Creative has broken new ground in the field of wireless earbuds. The company has announced that its upcoming Aurvana Ace and Aurvana Ace 2 noise-canceling wireless earbuds will use a hybrid dual-driver architecture featuring MEMS drivers from the company called xMEMS, which is the first of its kind that employs this new audio technology. Will become the first product of its kind. The Orvana Ace is priced at $130 while the Ace 2 is priced at $150. Both will be available for preorder from November 10th.
What is MEMS driver?
MEMS stands for micro-electromechanical system – basically a tiny device that contains both non-moving electronics as well as moving mechanical parts. In the case of the xMEMS-designed audio drivers used in the Aurvana Ace, the moving part is a tiny silicone membrane that can move air (and thus produce sound) when an electrical signal is passed through the flap. ).
Although I haven’t heard any MEMS drivers for myself yet, XMEMS are said to have a number of advantages over existing driver technologies such as dynamic, balanced armature and planar magnetic. These include a huge frequency response range, ultrafast transient response (the ability to move rapidly from one sound to another), more accurate sound reproduction, and most of all, they are tough as nails. With an IP58 rating, they’re completely dust and waterproof and can even withstand being thrown in the washing machine and/or dryer.
You and I have been told those are the benefits we can enjoy, but for manufacturers, there are also additional benefits like a high level of uniformity between drivers because they are essentially built like microchips.
Why does Orvana Ace use two drivers?
In a sealed set of earbuds, like a pair of wired in-ear monitors (IEMs), it’s possible to use a single MEMS driver, but wireless, noise-canceling earbuds are partially ventilated. That venting highlights one of the few weaknesses of current MEMS driver technology – they can’t produce the high enough sound pressure levels (SPL) required in a vented earbud, especially with the majority of active noise cancellation (ANC) algorithms used. At low frequencies. ,
That’s why the Aurvana Ace and Ace 2 use a hybrid design – an XMEMS-built driver for the mids and highs, where the biggest advantages of MEMS can be heard, and a standard 10mm dynamic driver for the lows, So that the required SPL is available. For the ANC to work.
Creative Orvana Ace
Design-wise, you’d never know that the Auravana Ace doesn’t have the same set of drivers as the Apple AirPods Pro. With the Ace’s stem-based shape, silicone eartips, and flip-top charging case, they look a lot like Apple’s earbuds, if you squint your eyes and pretend they’re white.
They also have similar battery and charging specs. Both have wireless charging cases, and both will give you about 24 hours of listening time in total.
But when you get into the details, differences emerge. The Orvana Ace supports Bluetooth 5.3, which includes compatibility with the new LC3 codec for LE audio and very low latency. SBC, AAC, aptX, and aptX Adaptive are also supported when used with compatible phones.
Thanks to the combination of drivers, the Auravana Ace has a huge frequency response range. Creative claims it’s 5Hz to 40kHz – well above (and below) the normal range of human hearing. The earbuds use hybrid ANC and have six mics to pick up voices during calls. These have IPX5 rating for water resistance.
Creative Orvana Ace 2
The Ace 2 is almost identical to the Ace, except for the translucent black plastic and copper-colored charging case inlay.
The big difference is that the Ace 2 has two additional Qualcomm technologies built-in: aptX lossless for CD-quality audio when used with a lossless audio source and a compatible smartphone, plus Adaptive ANC. Unlike regular ANC, Adaptive ANC can make small adjustments to compensate for any irregularities in the seal between the earbuds and your ear, as well as differences in external sounds.