If you don’t have much room on your desk for large speakers, you usually have to make do with small USB speakers that don’t sound very good. But luckily there are exceptions like the new Creative Pebble Pro, which we’ll talk about in this review, which gives you great sound in a small format.
The classic design of the Pebble series has been retained, but the new Pro version features audio enhancements like revised drivers with 10W RMS power (up to 30W with a 30W USB charger) and RGB lighting. Best of all, the performance is amazing despite the small size.
Below, you’ll learn more about the performance of the Creative Pebble Pro speakers and what we think of them after our review.
Creative Pebble Pro review
- Excellent sound quality for its size
- Amplified bass
- Multiple connection options
- Increased output power
- RGB lighting effect
- Super compact size for easy placement
- For the price, they could already include the 30W USB-C PD charger to get the most out of them.
- 2.0 Channels
- 2 x 2.25″ full range driver with passive radiator
- RMS power: 10W / 30W (with 30W USB-C PD charger)
- Peak power: 20W / 60W (with 30W USB-C PD charger)
- Clear Dialog, BassFlex
- Frequency response: 80 Hz – 20,000 Hz
- Signal-to-noise ratio (SNR): ≥ 75 dB
- RGB lighting effects
- Bluetooth 5.3
- Bluetooth codecs: SBC
- Connectors: USB-C, USB-C PD 30W, 3.5 mm auxiliary input, headphone jack
- Dimensions: 123 x 123 x 118 mm
- Available in alpine green
Unboxing
Unboxing Creative Pebble Pro – Included accesories
Inside the box you will find the following:
- Creative Pebble Pro Speaker Boxes
- User manual
- USB-C to USB-C cable (1.5 m)
- USB-C to USB-A cable (1.5m)
- 3.5mm AUX input cable (1.2m)
Design
The Pebble Pro retains the distinctive look of the previous Pebble generations. They have a round shape with visible baffles oriented at a 45° angle. The Pebble Pro is available in a new dark green color, which is currently the only color available.
Of the two speakers, the one on the right is the one responsible for everything. This is where you’ll find the volume wheel, the button to control the backlight, activate Bluetooth, as well as the 3.5 mm jack and USB ports.
Build quality is good, the buttons are easy to press, and the volume controls are graduated so you know exactly what settings you’re making. One improvement Creative has made is the length of the cable between the left and right speaker units. It’s now 1.8 meters long, giving you more flexibility in positioning the Pebble Pro speakers on your desk.
Another new design feature of the Pebble Pro series is the RGB LED light strips on the bottom of the speakers. This is very common in gaming speakers and might be interesting for you if you are a fan of this kind of lighting effects to create a special aesthetic on your desk.
Creative Pebble Pro RGB lights
By pressing the center of the volume control, you can adjust the lighting style and switch between flashing and static colors, or turn the lights off if you like. You can’t adjust the brightness of the lighting, but we found it to be just right – not too bright to be distracting, and not too dim to have no effect.
Connectivity
Creative has expanded the connection possibilities in this new Pro version with a new USB-C PD port in addition to now including an auxiliary cable. There are four ways to connect the Creative Pebble Pro, first via USB-C to USB-C, via USB-C to USB-A, then via 3.5 mm jack connection and finally wirelessly via Bluetooth.
USB and Aux inputs
One thing that has also been improved in this new version, is the length of the cable connecting both speakers, which is now 1.8m as opposed to the 1.35m of the Pebble V3, giving you more versatility to place them.
There are two USB-C ports on the back of the right speaker unit, therefore, we can at the same time enjoy high quality sound through this port, and connect the 30W PD power supply to the other port which is marked in red on the speaker.
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On the other hand, if you want to use it through the 3.5mm AUX input, you have to make sure you power it through the USB-C port first.
The last connection option is Bluetooth, which in this case the version included is 5.3, which provides impressive range and stability. We experienced no drops or lags when playing videos from different devices.
In addition, a 4-pin headphone jack and a 3-pin microphone jack are included on one side for greater flexibility of use. We think it’s a wise move for Creative to include a microphone port so you can use a dedicated microphone for better call quality.
Side connections for headphones and microphone
With the addition of the microphone port, Creative has further enhanced the microphone experience by enabling the SmartComms Kit on the Pebble Pro. SmartComms is an existing software feature in the Creative app that is designed to improve communication, especially in noisy environments.
Software SmartComms Kit by Creative
Creative’s SmartComms Kit has two main functions: one is VoiceDetect and the other is NoiseClean. The first one helps you to automatically mute yourself by voice detection, freeing your hands to concentrate on other things like killing enemies while playing a game for example.
The NoiseClean function, on the other hand, is very useful when you are talking on the phone in a noisy environment, as it helps reduce background noise. On the other hand, if you can barely understand what your partner is saying because of background noise, NoiseClean-In helps you reduce it so you can concentrate on their voice.
Sound
Aside from RGB lighting, additional ports and SmartComms Kit functionality, the Pebble Pro also offers audio quality improvements over the Pebble V3. Now, the 2.25″ drivers have been redesigned to include BassFlex technology, which enhances bass.
Creative notes that the drivers have been revised from the ground up with a completely new transducer design. This allows for more headroom, to deliver louder and clearer audio performance and which the brand estimates delivers bass performance 3.5 times richer and deeper than the V3s.
Despite being the same size as the V3, the new Pebble Pro series has a higher peak power of 20 W (compared to 16 W for the V3). At the rear, each speaker has a passive radiator that increases bass intensity.
Creative Pebble Pro Passive radiators
The Creative Pebble Pro’s use USB-C for power and reach 10W RMS and up to 20W peak power, which is enough for most things, including gaming. If you need more volume, you can connect them to a 30W charger, which boosts the sound even more. We found the bass to be powerful, while the mids and highs were clear. Even at the highest volume, there is no distortion, which is impressive for such a small set of speakers.
The mid-bass has a warm, round sound that adds depth to vocals. The bass is more audible in the Pebble Pro than in the Pebble V3 and you can feel the strength of the bass. It is true that, as expected due to their small size, the sub-bass is very extended and they are not able to reproduce the lower frequencies of the spectrum. Even so, the bass response is impressive for a speaker of this size.
You can improve the sound by adjusting the 300 Hz frequencies up to a value of + 3db, which adds more presence to the mid-bass. If you use them with Windows, simply go to Sound Settings / Sound Control Panel, select the speakers and go to the Enhancements option. Here select Bass Boost and click on Settings. In the drop-down select the frequency of 300 Hz and in Boost Level select +3 db.
In turn, we found that the bass was slightly deeper when we powered the Pebble Pro with a 30W charger.
The sound is perceived to be quite wide thanks to the drivers being designed at a 45° angle so that the sound is better directed to the usual listening position. In addition, thanks to the 1.8 meters of cable you will be able to separate them further for a more stereo feel.
If you want more punchy bass, you have the Pebble Plus that have a separate subwoofer, but of course at the cost of adding more cables, requiring more space and also losing connectivity options.
We found the music performance to be surprising for its size and the sound adjustment we have mentioned above. But not only with music do these Pebble Pro edition, but also with the viewing of movies and series.
We found that the dialogues are heard quite clearly and can be distinguished in complicated scenes where there are effects and ambient sound. On many occasions it is complicated to hear voices well, but these Creative Pebble Pro do a good job in this area. To achieve this, the brand has improved its Clear Dialog audio processing in this new Pro version and in our opinions is that they have done a good job.
Creative Pebble Pro opinion
Review Creative Pebble Pro PC speakers with USB-C PD and Bluetooth
At around 65$, the Pebble Pro are about 25 $ more expensive than the V3, so there isn’t a big jump in price. Despite its similar appearance, the Pebble Pro offers many improvements that justify the price difference. First, they offer better audio quality with deeper bass and more power. Second, there are additional headphone and microphone ports. Finally, there’s SmartComms kit compatibility, a longer connection cable, better Bluetooth, and fancy RGB lights.
If you’re looking for small desktop speakers, I think the Creative Pebble Pro offers the best value.
Are the Creative Pebble Pro’s worth the money?
In our opinion, the Creative Pebble Pro is a good buy if you’re looking for speakers that take up as little space as possible without sacrificing too much audio quality. They offer great sound as well as good design and build quality. Their compact size makes them easy to place on your desk, and the longer cable between the speakers gives you more room to move them around and place them wherever you want.
See price Creative Pebble Pro speakers
Bluetooth 5.3 and Customizable RGB Lighting, Clear Dialog and BassFlex Tech
Alternatives to the Pebble Pro
Aside from the Pebble V3 itself, which you can buy now at a great price, there are a few alternatives.
If you don’t have desk space issues and the room you want to use the Pebble Pro in is large, you can use the PreSonus ERIS E3.5, 2.0 monitors with a 3.5-inch woofer and a 1-inch tweeter for smooth and refined sound. The power is 50W in total, and you can connect it to your PC via a 3.5mm jack.
The price is a bit higher, but you get great sound quality at the expense of space. There’s also a Bluetooth version, but that’s a significant step up from the Pebble Pro.
If you want to keep the size as compact as possible, you also have the Edifier G1000, a super compact pair of 2.0 speakers. They also have Bluetooth connectivity and RGB lights, and come with a wired controller that lets you control the source, volume, and lighting effects.
