Want comfortable, good-sounding headphones without the high price? This $130 pick is worth a look
The Soundcore Space 2 headphones deliver impressive comfort and audio for $130, but their noise cancellation doesn't quite match pricier rivals.
If the goal of the Soundcore Space 2 wireless headphones was to blend comfort, ANC, and audio quality into an inexpensive product, then mission—mostly—accomplished.
These wireless headphones don’t provide the same level of active noise cancellation performance that more premium models do, but they do offer some dampening of distractions while having plenty of comfort and thumping audio.
Anker’s audio division, Soundcore, has proven that it can make good-quality headphones at a reasonable price. These new Space 2 offer a lot of value for under $150.
The Space 2 wireless headphones are extremely comfortable
Anker’s Soundcore is advertising the new Space 2 headphones in three main areas: comfort, sound, and ANC. In my testing, the Space 2 are a home run in two of those categories.
Primarily, I think the Space 2 are an extremely comfortable pair of headphones. The 264-gram weight contributes to the feel, but mostly it's the squishy earcups and the wide headband that make these easy to wear for long periods.
Unfortunately, the Space 2 don’t twist and fold quite as compactly as the Soundcore Space One Pro. Those are the pinnacle of portability and comfort, but the Space 2 do fine and also retail for $70 less.
On the sound front, these wireless headphones have excellent boom with the default EQ. There’s even more bass available with the BassUp mode turned on. I thought the 40mm drivers had good clarity. Any modern pop song will have the vibe that the artist was going for.
Noise cancellation is the weakest part of the Space 2
If those other two heavily promoted areas of the Space 2 headphones are great, ANC performance leaves the most room for improvement.
I directly compared the Space 2 headphones to more expensive options from Bose, Apple, and Marshall. Despite the lower $130 price, I was curious to see if the Space 2 could get close to blocking the same amount of noise as the others.
Unfortunately, the Space 2’s Adaptive ANC 3.0 isn’t magic. It works fine to block background noise and low-volume distractions. But when it comes to a 70 to 80 decibel airplane cabin, these headphones don’t come close to headphones that cost twice as much or more—not unreasonable!
If you do leave ANC on most of the time, you can expect about 50 hours of battery life or 70 hours with it turned off. The Space 2 will also fast charge, so five minutes plugged in will get you four hours of use.
There’s a volume rocker on the earcup. That’s better than touch controls, which can be triggered accidentally. You can use the Space 2 for calls. There are three mics built-in. Using the Space 2 to record my voice sounded about average. It’s nothing to write home about, but it’s not terrible.
There are other minor features tucked away, but overall, these are light on complex software features. That’s fine for a more budget-friendly product. Another reason it’s important that these have good comfort and sound.
Are the Soundcore Space 2 headphones worth buying?
Given the budget-friendly $130 retail price of the Soundcore Space 2 wireless headphones, they’re a solid value. Importantly, they sound good and are comfortable to wear for entire cross-country flights. However, if the thing you’re looking for is the strongest ANC, then you’ll probably want to look elsewhere.
Soundcore is pitching these for travel, but I actually like the Space 2 more for everyday use, where average ANC strength will do.