Creative, one of the most historic and well-known brands when it comes to PC audio, just introduced Creative Zen Hybrid Proa family of headphones specifically aimed at the PC ecosystem and devices, albeit with a practically global reach, with which it consolidates its position in a market that it has been strongly focused on for several years, without This means that it has left, if we ignore its historical market, the audio market cards, with the legendary Sound Blaster brand.

With many elements in common, but some elements that distinguish each of the three models presented, we find the Ccreative Zen Hybrid Pro, Creative Zen Hybrid Pro Classic and Creative Zen Hybrid Pro SXFI, three models of the circumaural type, which differ in supported technologies and also in the inclusion of BT-L3 and BT-L4 transmitters in the Classic and SXFI models. So let’s start by reviewing what they have in common.

Inside, and to guarantee the sound quality, we find some 40mm neodymium drivers Custom designed, capable of reproducing frequencies in the range of 20 hertz to 20 kilohertz and a sensitivity of 117 decibels. Their impedance of 32 ohms puts them in a relatively balanced position in terms of input signal power required for quality sound reproduction.

All three models are wireless, and it’s worth stopping for a moment to review their use of LE Audio technology, a technology introduced by Bluetooth SIG at CES 2021 that significantly expands the potential of this type of connectivity for audio transmission. Thanks to it, and Creative Zen Hybrid Pro makes the most of it, we find higher energy efficiency (remember that LE stands for Low Energy), ultra-low latencies and something that is still not very common, multicast, with which several users to share the same output signal.

Another very notable feature of these three models is that They have active noise cancellation (ANC for its abbreviation in English, Active Noise Cancellation) hybrid, therefore adaptable to our needs and environment. In this regard, a weighted mix between the sound they reproduce and the sound from outside, we have an ambient mode that will allow us to enjoy a reasonably immersive experience and at the same time allow us to hear acoustic signals from the outside to guarantee our safety when we use them on the street.

As already indicated, everything seen so far is common to all three models, although it is true that to enjoy the LE Audio features it is necessary to have a transmitter such as those included in the Classic and SXFI models and which can be purchased separately as they are fully compatible with this technology. So let’s now look at the peculiarities of these last two.

• Creative Zen Hybrid Pro Classic: In addition to everything seen so far, this version includes a Creative BT-L3 transmitter that allows you to use LE Audio features, and also includes a detachable microphone
• Creative Zen Hybrid Pro SXFI: The top of the range is this model, which, as you might have guessed from the name, is compatible with SXFI technology thanks to the Super X-Fi UltraDPS chip. In addition, they also include the Creative BT-L4 audio transmitter and a detachable shoulder microphone.

Creative Zen Hybrid Pro are priced at 99.99 euros and are available on the manufacturer’s website.

Creative Zen Hybrid ProClassic is worth the price 129.99 euros and are available on the manufacturer’s website.

Creative Zen Hybrid ProSXFI are priced for 149.99 euros and are available on the manufacturer’s website.

More information: Creative