Page 3 - Subjective Audio Analysis
We placed the Creative Stage Air V2 alongside the Audioengine 512 and Audioengine HD6 to get a good relative sense of where it is at.
As with all the audio products we review here at APH Networks, it takes quite a bit of experience and training of the ears before we can begin making a fair judgment. Even for the best of audio auditioners, it can be hard to produce an exact and accurate evaluation of a product without a thoroughly familiar product to use as a simultaneous reference despite what some self-proclaimed audiophiles like to say. I do not claim to be the reviewer of all reviewers for sound devices and am still learning things myself. There are no true objective measurements for audio sound quality. As the reviewer, however, I will put the Creative Stage Air V2 through a series of subjective tests to try to come up with the most objective rating possible. On the wired side, tests were conducted primarily on my computer via a USB cable directly connected into my MSI motherboard. For Bluetooth wireless tests, I used an iPhone 12 Pro.
After over 50 hours of break-in time -- well above typically required period -- I put the Creative Stage Air V2 to the tests. The equalizer was set to the default setting. All tracks on our devices are high-quality CD-equivalent files.
Since there is no subwoofer, with this being an under-monitor device, all the focus was put on the soundbar itself. When it came to the bass, I felt the Stage Air V2 was not able to go down to deep levels due to its missing coverage of frequencies below 80Hz on the lower end. This was expected per specifications. When listening to bass heavy genres of music like dubstep or drum and bass, the soundbar provided a lighter output. When listening to other EDM genres that work on the higher bass range, the bass came off as more defined, although I would describe it as a no-surprises device. The bass was not bad for the price and the inherent physical limitations of the soundbar, but is ultimately unremarkable. This soundbar gives as much bass as it looks.
When it came to the midrange, the Creative Stage Air V2 was serviceable. While I would not describe it as a full range of sound, most of the range was reasonably covered and was clear. However, vocals and instruments lacked warmth and richness, and at times even sounded a bit dry and harsh. A moderate amount of sibilance was noted. Overall, I would say the midrange was very forward-sounding with a small dip in the upper regions.
As far as the treble is concerned, the Stage Air V2 was able to hold its own quite well. The speaker was tuned to produce bright sounds with some energy present. Higher pitched vocals and instruments came off as sharp here. With all that said, like the midrange, there was some harshness to the treble. All other aspects were very average sounding. The sound signature came out as a non-linear line trending upwards. This made sense for a soundbar, as this is the best one could do for the price and form factor. Following the bass, the midrange had more intensity with the treble being the loudest relatively.
Like other soundbars we have reviewed in the past, the Creative Stage Air V2 was limited with its soundstaging. This is to say its depth and width were quite shallow, making it so the soundstage was fairly closed. This was evident when listening to live performances specifically. Because a lot of the actual sound was literally centered, the image was quite centered, too.
Moving on to layering and frequency separation, the Stage Air V2 was able to separate different frequency signals while maintaining details in the music. In songs with multiple voices and instruments, the soundbar was able to keep the detail and clarity of each reasonably distinct sound from the multiple sources. While the frequency separation was not exceptional, I would also say it was not unclear by any means. The detail between each layer of sound was within expectations, where the difference between each layer was clear enough. The cleanliness of the sound was acceptable as well. The same can be said with the balance, which is to say it was good enough.
When it comes to battery life, the Creative Stage Air V2 is rated for up to 6 hours of play time when unplugged. I set the speakers to 50% volume and listened to music until the soundbar battery was fully depleted. After testing, I found the specifications to be true. I was able to get around 5.5 hours on the soundbar before total depletion, which was close enough to the rated 6 hours. The Creative Stage Air V2 is also said to have a wireless range of 10m. I tested this outside by placing the speaker on my front porch and walking up the street until I could no longer hear music due to the soundbar disconnecting. I am also happy to say that the rated wireless distance was met more or less, with the speaker disconnecting around 11m.
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Hardware
3. Subjective Audio Analysis
4. Conclusion
