The CMF Headphone Pro packs high-end specs for a low price tag

CMF is expanding beyond wireless earbuds with the Headphone Pro, $99 over-ear headphones that bring the brand’s colorful, modular design philosophy to the over-ear audio space. While the price point positions these well below premium competitors, the feature set suggests CMF isn’t skimping on the fundamentals.

Like the recent Dyson Ontrac headphones, users can swap out the ear cushions entirely for different colors and materials to change the style, sound, and isolation of the headphones. Each set of ear cushions costs $25 extra. It’s a clever way to extend the product’s lifespan and appeal, though whether people will actually buy multiple cushions remains to be seen.

What piqued my interest the most is the tactile controls, which borrow heavily from the Nothing Headphone (1). The multi-function roller handles volume, playback, and ANC switching through scrolls and presses. CMF adds what they’re calling an “Energy Slider” — essentially a physical control that adjusts bass and treble emphasis.

Under the hood, there are 40mm drivers with support for Hi-Res audio wired and wirelessly via LDAC (up to 990kbps). Adaptive hybrid ANC promises up to 40dB of noise reduction across three automatic modes. Battery life claims are impressive, if they hold up in testing: 100 hours with ANC off, 50 hours with it on, plus rapid charging that delivers 4 hours of playback from a 5-minute charge.

CMF also includes Audiodo’s personalized sound profiling, which creates custom EQ curves based on a hearing test. The profiles are stored directly on the headphones rather than requiring app connectivity. Additional features include spatial audio modes for movies and music, plus the ability to charge directly from your smartphone via USB-C.

At $99, the Headphone Pro enters crowded territory dominated by established players like Anker Soundcore and JLab. However, given CMF’s track record with earbuds, which have delivered solid performance at competitive prices, these certainly could be a contender for the best headphones under $100.

The CMF Headphone Pro will be available in the UK and EU on September 29, and the US will follow on October 7. It is available in Dark Grey, Light Grey, and Light Green, and additional ear cushion colors will be available at launch.