CMF by Nothing has carved out a clear identity over the past couple of years. The brand knows how to keep prices aggressive, design playful, and features competitive without chasing premium territory outright. With the CMF Headphone Pro, CMF is taking its biggest swing yet. This is its first over-ear headphone, priced at Rs 7,999, and it lands in a segment where expectations are far higher than they are for TWS earbuds.
Over-ear headphones at this price are judged on more than just sound. Comfort, noise cancellation, battery life, controls, and app support all matter, and small missteps tend to stand out quickly. After spending time with the CMF Headphone Pro, it is clear that this is an ambitious product. It does a lot right, experiments with new ideas, and occasionally trips over its own enthusiasm.
Table of Contents
Design and comfort: bold, modular, and unmistakably CMF
The CMF Headphone Pro looks nothing like a conventional over-ear headphone, and that is very much the point. The circular earcups, high-arching headband, and swappable ear cushions lean heavily into CMF’s colourful, modular design language. Whether you like the look or not will come down to personal taste, but there is no denying that the Headphone Pro stands out in a market full of black and grey headphones.
The modular ear cushions are easy to twist on and off, letting you swap colours or replace worn pads down the line. It is a clever idea, though not without quirks. It is possible to attach the cushions the wrong way around if you are not paying attention, which can affect the seal and comfort.
Comfort is a mixed but mostly positive story. The earcups are large and create a good seal around the ears, contributing to both passive isolation and sound quality. The cushioning on the ear pads is generous, and the clamping force feels well judged. The headband, while flexible, could have used a bit more padding for longer listening sessions. Some users may find pressure building up after a couple of hours, while others will have no issue wearing them through a full workday.
The headphones carry an IPX2 rating, which means they can handle light sweat or a drizzle, but this is not a pair you would want to use during workouts or heavy rain.
Controls: tactile, thoughtful, but slightly fiddly
One of the CMF Headphone Pro’s most distinctive features is its physical control system. In an era dominated by touch gestures, CMF has gone in the opposite direction, and largely for the better.
In practice, the controls are intuitive once you get used to them. Scrolling volume feels natural, and playback controls are easy to remember. The slider, which is stiff enough to stay in place even when the headphones are thrown into a bag, is a genuinely interesting idea.
That said, the execution is not perfect. The buttons and slider are smaller than expected, especially considering the size of the earcups. People with larger fingers may struggle to locate the right control by touch alone, and accidental presses are not uncommon in the beginning.
Still, the overall control scheme feels more deliberate and engaging than swipe-based systems, and it is something CMF deserves credit for.
Sound quality and Energy Slider: enjoyable, flexible, but not flawless
The CMF Headphone Pro uses dual 40mm dynamic drivers with a dual-chamber acoustic design and supports AAC, SBC, and LDAC. Hi-Res certification for both wired and wireless playback is impressive at this price.
Out of the box, the sound signature is balanced, with a slight emphasis on warmth. Vocals and instruments come through clearly, and the soundstage is wider than you might expect from a pair of headphones in this segment. There is good separation between elements, and spatial cues are handled well, especially with Spatial Audio enabled.
Bass is present but not overpowering by default, and this is where the Energy Slider comes into play. Sliding it up adds bass or treble emphasis depending on how you configure it in the app. While it does make a noticeable difference to the sound, pushing it too far tends to add boominess rather than improving punch or clarity. At higher bass levels, the upper frequencies can start to feel muted, especially at louder volumes.
Meanwhile, “Vultures” by John Mayer highlighted the slider’s limitations. Even at around 50 percent, the bass felt too dominant, forcing me to dial it all the way down. This is a track where Mayer’s guitar work and vocals should take centre stage, and the default tuning did not quite get out of the way.
So, while the sound is pleasant and easy to listen to, it lacks a bit of sparkle in the highs. Certain tracks with prominent high-frequency detail can sound slightly muted, and the limited EQ options make it difficult to fine-tune around this. You do get a handful of presets – Rock, Pop, Electronic, Classical, Enhanced Vocals – along with a Custom mode, but the latter only allows basic bass, mid, and treble adjustments.
Volume levels are also on the conservative side. The headphones do not get as loud as some competitors, which may matter if you like listening at higher volumes or in noisy environments. Personally, I prefer listening at around 50 to 60 percent volume, so the Headphone Pro’s loudness did not bother me, but this is something worth keeping in mind.
Noise cancellation: better than expected
Active noise cancellation is one of the CMF Headphone Pro’s stronger areas. Using a hybrid ANC system with multiple microphones, the headphones can reduce noise by up to 40dB.
In real-world use, ANC performs best at low frequencies, effectively cutting out engine rumble, air conditioners, and traffic noise. It also handles office chatter better than expected, softening voices without introducing too much pressure or hiss.
Adaptive ANC is available, but in practice, setting ANC to high manually delivers more consistent results. Passive isolation from the large earcups also plays a big role here, making the overall noise reduction feel stronger than the numbers suggest.
Transparency mode works well enough for quick conversations, though it is not the most natural-sounding implementation.
App experience and features: strong fundamentals, missed opportunities
The Nothing X app acts as the control hub for the Headphone Pro, and it is mostly well done. Setup is quick and painless, thanks to Google Fast Pair. Bluetooth multi-device works reliably, letting you stay connected to two devices at once.
However, the app also feels like a step back in one key area. Unlike the more premium Nothing Headphone (1), the CMF Headphone Pro only offers a basic 3-band custom EQ. For a product that encourages sound tweaking through hardware sliders, the lack of a more detailed EQ feels like a missed opportunity.
Battery life: the defining feature
Battery life is where the CMF Headphone Pro truly stands out. CMF claims up to 100 hours of playback with ANC off at moderate volume, and around 50 hours with ANC enabled. Even with LDAC turned on, endurance remains excellent.
In real-world testing, battery drain is impressively slow. Long listening sessions barely make a dent, and it is entirely possible to go days, even weeks, without reaching for a charger. This alone puts the Headphone Pro ahead of many rivals that cost significantly more.
Call quality and connectivity
I didn’t face any issues with call quality. The three-microphone setup with Clear Voice Technology keeps voices clear indoors, and wind noise is reasonably well controlled outdoors. This is not a replacement for a dedicated headset, but it is more than adequate for quick work calls and casual conversations if you’re too lazy to remove the headphones.
Bluetooth connectivity is stable, multipoint works as intended, and latency is low enough for video watching and casual gaming. Wired listening via the 3.5mm jack is also supported, though USB audio is not.
Verdict
The CMF Headphone Pro is an impressive first attempt at an affordable over-ear headphone. It delivers a distinctive design, thoughtful physical controls, effective noise cancellation, and class-leading battery life, all at a price that undercuts many established players.
It is not without flaws. The plastic build feels less premium than the design suggests, long-session comfort will vary from person to person, and the sound tuning, while enjoyable, lacks refinement at higher volumes. The limited EQ options in the app also feel like a missed opportunity. The “Pro” branding, too, feels slightly misplaced. It suggests a flagship-grade product, which this is not, especially when Nothing’s own Headphone (1) never carried the Pro tag despite being a more premium offering. I would probably lean towards the Sony WH-CN720N if sound quality were my absolute priority.
Still, at Rs 7,999, the value proposition is hard to ignore. If you want a pair of over-ear headphones that look different from a sea of similar, bland-looking over-the-ear headphones, last forever on a charge, and deliver solid ANC and sound without stretching your budget, the CMF Headphone Pro makes a strong case for itself.
Editor’s rating: 7.9/10
Pros:
- Fun and unique modular design
- Excellent battery life
- Effective noise cancellation
- Physical, intuitive controls
Cons:
- Plastic build feels basic
- Energy Slider feels gimmicky at the moment
- Limited EQ customisation
- Does not fold for travel
