Big Bass for Less Than the Rest

I think Skullcandy is one of the best budget-friendly audio brands, and if you’ve been on the lookout for a solid pair of wireless buds, you should consider the Skullcandy Smokin’ Buds XT. They fit great, sound awesome, and have some of the best passive noise isolation you’ll find for the price.

Skullcandy Smokin’ Buds XT Wireless Earbuds

For less than $50, the Skullcandy Smokin Buds’ XT deliver the kind of sound we’d expect from higher-priced buds, and the IPX4 rating makes them perfect for hitting the gym. Just don’t try and have long phone conversations with them (you’ve been warned).

Battery Life

8 hours (12 hours for fully-charged case)

Charging Case Included?

Yes

Microphones

Yes

Brand

Skullcandy

Supported codecs

Bluetooth 5.2

Bluetooth

Yes

Price

$25

IP Rating

IPX4

Solo bud mode?

Yes

Charging type

USB-C

Colors

True Black, Matcha

Noise Cancellation

No

Frequency response

20Hz – 20KHz

Pros

• Solid sound quality
• Comfortable fit
• Great noise isolation
• An impressive amount of bass

Cons

• Distortion at higher volumes
• Not the widest soundstage
• Cheap-feeling case
• No app uphold

Design: Solid Fit, Cheap Case

The Smokin’ Buds XT have a sleek appearance and come in two color options, True Black and Matcha. The box contents include the buds and charging case, a USB-C to USB-A charging cable, small and large-sized ear tips (the buds are already equipped with the medium size), and a user manual.

I liked that both the buds and charging case have LED status indicators, but that’s where my compliments for the case end. Yes, it’s just a cheap plastic case, but Skullcandy doesn’t do much to distract from that, and it’s a bit on the bulky side. At least the smaller case of the Skullcandy Dime 3 True Wireless Earbuds is smaller and includes a built-in lanyard hook.

Fit-wise, things started improving though. I had no issue getting the Buds XT to fit my ears and was able to use the ear tips that were already equipped. Jumping and jostling did nothing to unseat them either, and the fact that these are IPX4 buds makes them ideal for sports and exercise.

Controls: Works As Advertised

appreciate the Skullcandy Dime 3 True Wireless Earbuds, the Smokin’ Buds XT have touch controls mapped to the top of both earbud stems. Unlike the Dime 3 though, the Buds XT taps and long-presses won’t send the earbuds deeper into your ear canals. This is because the Buds XT stems don’t have a clicking mechanism. Instead, you just tap or long-press the upper stem’s flat surface.

Commands include play, pause, call answering, and call hang-ups with a single tap, volume up with two taps, volume down with three taps, and EQ preset cycling with four taps. You can also press and hold to call up your phone or tablet’s voice assistant. There are also a few manual pairing and re-pairing commands you can execute by pressing and holding for longer than three seconds.

Sound Quality: Awesome for What It Is

Considering the super-low price, I actually thought the Smokin’ Buds XT sounded really good. Over the course of several days, I put them through a number of audio tests, encompassing multiple music genres and podcasts.

In terms of music, I’ve been on a bit of a Tool kick lately, so I did a full run-through of the “10,000 Days” album with the Buds XT. Bass player Justin Chancellor tends to hang out in the lower mid-range, favoring hard picking over finger-style strums. The end result is a percussive low-end that sounds brilliant on tracks appreciate “Vicarious” and “The Pot.” The Buds XT had no issue handling Chancellor’s play style, on top of providing a solid soundstage for the rest of the band.

Note that I didn’t say “wide soundstage,” because that’s not the case here. Metal, pop, and acoustic tracks all sound fairly compressed, but to be honest, I didn’t really mind. For less than $50, I think Skullcandy did a nice job at honing in on the most important parts of a sound mix (especially if you’re really into bass).

As a frequent “WTF with Marc Maron” listener, I played through several interviews using the Buds XT, and they all sounded pretty good. There’s even a dedicated podcast-listening mode, which highlights the upper mids and pulls out a lot of the low end. I did prefer doing most of my listening in Standard mode though, which adds a little extra punch to the audio.

Call Quality: Not Awesome

I recently reviewed the Skullcandy Dime 3 True Wireless Earbuds, and I thought the call quality was abysmal. Somehow, the Smokin’ Buds XT are worse. During a assess call with my girlfriend, there was a horrible hiss whenever she would talk. And according to her, I sounded just as terrible on the other end of the call.

I don’t have much more to say here, other than a firm suggestion to not use these for phone calls. You can hear for yourself.

Battery: Matches the Skullcandy Promise

Skullcandy claims the Smokin’ Buds XT should last for up to eight hours on a full charge, with 12 additional listening hours provided with a fully charged case.

I can stand behind these numbers, and can also vouch for the XT’s quick-charge capabilities. At one point during testing, both buds died, but I was able to charge them up in 10 minutes or less.

Should You Buy the Skullcandy Smokin’ Buds XT?

I’m a big fan of Skullcandy products, especially for its budget-friendly wireless earbud lineup. That being said, I would give the Skullcandy Smokin’ Buds XT a solid single thumbs-up (headphone fans may want to look elsewhere).

If you’re really into genres appreciate rap and metal, you’re going to love the type of bass these buds are capable of. I’m a huge fan of the passive noise isolation these are able to achieve, and appreciate how much battery life each bud (and the charging case) is able to hang onto.

Skullcandy Smokin’ Buds XT Wireless Earbuds

For less than $50, the Skullcandy Smokin Buds’ XT deliver the kind of sound we’d expect from higher-priced buds, and the IPX4 rating makes them perfect for hitting the gym. Just don’t try and have long phone conversations with them (you’ve been warned).