The Bose shop on regent street were doing the QC25's for £129 yesterday. I haven't seen them myself (saw it posted elsewhere) so perhaps give them a ring first if you make a trip just to pick them up.
For the attention of those looking to but the QC35's, I've just ended what seemed like an interminably long selection process by buying the Sony MDR-1000x. They're widely considered to have knocked the QC35s of their perch, and the technology is very impressive.
Not really discounted, so I bought mine direct from Sony for £329.
More bass, but less noise cancelling in my direct side by side comparison.Originally Posted by learningtofly
It's just a matter of time...
Not sure I'd agree with that, although such things are by nature quite subjective. However, the Sony NC is switchable/adjustable, which is a huge advantage, and the ability to hold conversations just by holding your hand over the earcup is fantastic.
The industry view is that Sony's NC is superior, btw.
The Sony are probably the best wireless/nc headphone for features, and the sound was very good - to me at least, but I've not tried any real high end stuff. At the same volume I could hear no outside noise with the Bose, but a small amount with the Sony - at higher volume they were fine (maybe I have a slightly better/more comfortable fit with the Bose). Both would have played music from my phone louder than comfortable for my listening, without distortion. As I already had the Bose, I was only trying them out/window shopping.
I think the Sony are probably better, but at £80 more than I paid for the Bose I'm still a little price sensitive, and the ear cups felt better on the Bose for my little ears.
It's just a matter of time...
After having the Bose ones for a few month I found them not the best on long flights - I swapped to the Bose in-ear QC20 - still great and no 'sweaty ears'....
When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks long into you.........
Currys PC World has 10% off QC35s usual price of £289.95 with code AUDIO10 (also for the Sony but not in stock).
Code is for all headphones, speakers and soundbars - ends today (allegedly).
Last edited by Kingstepper; 11th December 2016 at 23:24.
Thanks for the suggestion and saving me the research! My in ear Sony packed up so was looking for a new one. Thought will go the whole hog. Bought one today, Xmas present (for self) sorted, now the wait to open it on Xmas day. Already have the QC 15
Don't rub it in. Oh! The wait
I also bought the Sonys recently as they were sold at a discount at Currys (Manchester Airport). Very impressed as I really didn't expect the Bluetooth to sound as good and the comfort is excellent even with glasses.
Is connecting via USB the only option? Bought one for Xmas, been charging for the 3 hours, bu***r all has happened.
Is there no other way of charging this?
This seems a good deal??
http://www.martindawes.com/item/Bose...ones-Apple/1U9
Use NEW5 for a further £5 off :)
Sony or Bose? I was just about to pull the trigger on a pair of those Sonys then read you can only charge them via USB via your laptop or PC. This just seems totally bonkers to me as I very rarely take my laptop with me anymore so would be stuck so I'm looking at the Bose instead now. Shame, the Sonys looked a decent set of 'phones too.
I normally use a pair of wired IEMs, currently UE900s, but fancy trying a pair of this type of headphone so looked into the Bose QC35 and Sony MDR1000X which seem to be the market leaders but couldn't justify the £290 and £330 price respectively if I don't get on with them. I've just purchased Sony's next model down, the MDR100ABN, as they're now half the price of the MDR1000X.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-MDR100...ct_top?ie=UTF8
Obviously shouldn't be as good but hopefully will give me a feel as to whether they're for me or not. Mine don't arrive until Thursday but does anyone else have these and care to share an opinion?
Meant the Sony. Agree, sounds totally daft that you have turn your computer on to charge the cans! They do sound good though
Out of stock for ages.
Edit:- Sorry, they do have them again (thanks to W124) and I've just ordered a pair myself.
Last edited by Kingstepper; 28th December 2016 at 12:43.
I charge the Sony from whatever socket happens to be handy and have never had a problem. Apparently Sony want to avoid them being connected to a rapid charger, but a normal household supply presents no problem at all.
I have just ordered a set of QC35 from Martin Dawes for £242, less the £5 discount.
Search on 'Bose', it shows limited stock on QC35, but definitely available to order.
I will be collecting from the Warrington branch.
Has anyone successfully paired these with a MacBook ? Despite trying everything suggested online my MacBook doesn't "find" these.
I had trouble pairing with my PC but eventually succeeded by clearing all devices on headphones and switching off/rebooting everything. (Guess you've tried all this Ally?)
However, sound is very jittery (unlistenable) - has anyone any success on PC (Windows 10)?
Mine pair fine with my MacBook Air. I just put the QC35s into pairing mode and they appeared as a device on my Air. Having said that, when I bought them, as soon as I connected mine to my iPhone (via the Bose Connect app) a new firmware was installed, so maybe there was something in there...
Very easy, Did it in under 3 minutes. Turned on bluetooth on headphones & MacBook asked MacBook to search, once found pair. Job done!
Thanks for this, I was just turning them on and assuming the white LED meant discoverable, now sorted - and yes I'm an idiot.
Didn't see your post till now. So I can connect it to a household supply directly without it going KA BOOM or the smell of burning plastic?
IT DIDN"T GO KA BOOM! Goody gumdrops! Thanks you kind sir!Well, I can't speak for yours, but mine didn't
Bought these for my wife for Christmas and she loves them, especially on her commute to work by train.
Looks like a firmware update has buggered up the noise cancelling on he QC35's
https://community.bose.com/t5/Wirele...ore/td-p/39183
A worrying thread (the one on bose.com, not this one). Not sure how much validity the opinions carry but some seem convinced that the issue is not resolvable. Has anyone bought QC35s recently and has the same problem? I sold my old Sony NC 'phones and I'm hovering over purchasing a pair of these.
You might want to have a look at the new range of NC that Sony has/is coming out with. Hopefully this will fix the build issues that was my concern on the over ear model.
https://www.whathifi.com/news/sony-a...ing-headphones
Thanks, previously owned some Sony NCs and have tried the new ones too (I'm in Japan) but although better built than the Bose, they make my ears too hot. So thought I'd join the herd. Unless there are still firmware issues.
I've recently bought the Bose QC20 as the Sony MDR 1000x also were hot and uncomfortable to sleep with for me. Noise cancellation of the in-ear version was surprisingly good. Can't wait to test them out on my next trip.
It's a great time to buy the older QC35s before they disappear altogether. If you can live without Google Assistant on the QC35II you can get them for a good price.
I personally wouldn't put too much store in one thread on the internet that was started in February. If there was a FW problem it would have been fixed long before now.
Last edited by Tony; 16th October 2017 at 11:28.
£260 for the old version
https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/bos...-tyson-2811895
The latest firmware is excellent... variable levels of ANC or you can turn it off. The firmware is also upgradeable from the phone app now.
There was a problem (allegedly) with an old firmware, but my QC35s are amazing.
Sent from my ONEPLUS A5000 using TZ-UK mobile app
Same experience for me. I've never had an issue with the firmware on my QC35's. They're a great bit of kit.
John Lewis will pricematch this deal
Just ordered mine via JL for 259 after confirmation of the agreed pricematch
Simon
I have just ordered a pair of qc35. Has anyone had an answer from bose on this matter?
Sent from my iPhone using TZ-UK mobile app
Spent about an hour trying out the various models today. I used an iPod 5.5G loaded with lossless tracks for the wired connection and an iPhone 6 with 256kbps AAC for the Bluetooth testing. A summary in case anyone is interested:
QC35 - used this as reference. It's comfortable, light, and the latest firmware gives the option of NC off/low/high which is useful, and can be used wired or wireless. I did notice quite a lot of the weird pressure feeling with NC on (high). Sound quality was "acceptable". Negatives are the still unclear firmware situation (community.bose.com threads are interminable and inconclusive) and the rechargeable battery. Not sure how easy to replace, or if even possible. Other spares are available though and Bose support is generally very good. This model is on sale now everywhere here, presumably to clear stocks for the very similar mk2 arriving shortly.
QC30 - Looks odd, no way to use wired as far as I could tell, so not good for air travel.
QC25 - Still available, only about 2000 yen (~15 pounds) cheaper than the QC35. Same NC but not wireless and no app. On the positive side, no firmware issues.
QC20 - Good fit, same NC as the others (excellent), and unobtrusive enough to use daily. On the negative side: small non-replaceable battery looks good for 18 months to 2 years if used as a daily headphone. Not sure how sturdy the captive connections are. Appears then to be disposable. Also, tragically, the sound quality with NC on was utterly appalling.
Sony WH-1000XM2 - I found this a little bit better than the QC35 in that the NC was even better at random noise suppression (like PA annoucements) and it had a very low noise floor, with inaudible hiss. It was also more comfortable than the older Sony NC model I used to own, seemingly noticeably lighter. Cupping the right earpiece disables the NC so it's nice to use too. Wired or wireless and supports some wide bandwidth wireless too, if you have the right (ie, Sony) player. Sound quality was really good. I'd suggest this model is probably the all-round best NC headphone at the moment. Negatives: expensive, may cook your ears (but seems less painful than previous models on my head at least).
Sony WH-H900N H.Ear On 2 (who thinks of these names...?) - About 25% cheaper than the WH-1000XM2 and about 25% less excellent in all regards. Features, fit, sound. Still very good and comparable to the QC35, which costs the same. It's good to have a choice at this level, given Bose's strangely persistent firmware palaver.
AKG N20NC - Pretty much a copy of the Bose QC20. NC seemed about the same but the ear pieces didn't fit me as well as the Bose, as well as being heavier. I expect the NC is very dependent on getting a good seal, so try before buying. Half the price of the Bose, so if these fit for you, a good choice. Same drawbacks as the QC20 as far as seeming disposability. Note that I couldn't get NC to work while charging the battery.
So after all that? I feel like Clint Eastwood's character in Where Eagles Dare, after listening to Richard Burton's Major John Smith explain the triple-cross. "Major, right now you got me about as confused as I ever hope to be".
I think for me, I'm not cool enough to use a big full size headphone while out and about, and I have HD650s at home. So the NC set would only be used on a 'plane if I got the headphone style. The Bose and AKG ear-bud ones are just as effective for NC but have their own compromises which ruled them out for me.
I think I'd lean towards the Bose QC25 (the wired one) if only because I think the NC is the same, it would last longer as no rechargeable battery to decay, and there are no firmware issues! Easily converted to Blutooth if necessary too. Unfortunately it is still priced quite high. The Sony options are excellent and (just) technically superior, with a better sound too. If they fit you, consider them, especially if you have a Sony player.
For now, I think I'll just use ear plugs on the 'plane and look out for a used or discount pair of QC25s.
I think costco had Bose last time I was in.
I have the older QC 25 and theyve been brilliant but Ive upgraded to the qc35 version 2 A’s the lack of aux on my iphone means Ive upgraded I also like the wireless feature as it frustrates me using the wire and also n
Last edited by R0bertb00th; 17th October 2017 at 13:23.
For wireless on a plane, someone suggested this.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/TaoTronics-...h+dongle&psc=1
You should try the new B&W PX NC headphones. Hearing very good things.
I have the QC 30s and they do take a little getting use to but are comfortable and never had an issue using them on a flight and I fly a fair bit!
How do you plug them into the IFE? Do you use a separate BT transmitter?
I don’t as I don’t tend to use IFE due to the iPad nowadays. I always find the differing connections on planes don’t fit in any case.
But if you do then these are no good to you.
I’ve probably spent more time than I should comparing various headphones, and for a few weeks I owned both QC35s (2016 model) and Sony 1000Xs (mk 1).
In terms of NC, there’s not really that much in it (in the situations I’ve tried them). I agree that the Sonys probably have less of the “pressure” sensation (but it’s there, as with all NC systems), but they do edge the Bose slightly. Both are fantastic at isolating you from the outside world. Also, the touch panel to hear external sounds is a great feature. Oddly though, it’s fiddly for volume and track change, and good-old-fashioned buttons work far better on the Bose. Similarly, the buttons on the left ear are not very ergonomic - but apparently the mk 2s are better in this respect. The Sonys are a bit heavier and less comfortable, if anything. I really think there’s very little to chose between them in those terms though.
What swings it it for me is the sound quality. Despite what the reviews say, I was underwhelmed by the Sonys - particularly at low volumes. The bass is solid and defined, but although the treble seems accurate, there’s nowhere near the sense of spacious soundstage and subtle detail in treble - it’s almost the difference between the sound being in your head, and totally surrounding you. This was particularly obvious at low volumes, and less well-produced music. (In fairness, well-produced music at high volume was probably closer to chose, but I’m not convinced blasting your ears is a good idea).
I also recently compared the QC30s to the equivalent new Sony WI1000 in-ears - these actually seemed very close in sound signature - I’d be hard pushed to pick a favourite, but neither are as good as the QC35s - but better or equivalent to the 1000x to my ears. Sound quality is obviously very subjective, but to me, going back-and-forth, the Bose have a much more dynamic, impactful sound, if slightly less “hi-fi”.
Given the Bose have slightly more comfortable ear fittings and were about £50 cheaper, I plumped for the QC30s, and had a chance to compare them with the QC35s on a flight.
I’m surprisingly impressed with the QC30s. The NC is very good against aircraft noise, almost as good as the QC35s, and the biggest advantage for me is that your ears don’t get sweaty (plus you can wear glasses with them/shades by the pool). Oddly, they’re not as good at cutting out noise at the gym as over-ear phones. (But again, they’re less sweaty).
With the dongle to connect them to the IFE (which I need to get now), I reckon they’re potentially better for flying than the QC35s.
One thing to remember in the Bose/Sony scrap is that the Bose cans are much better at intelligently handling multiple connections, eg to an iPad and iPhone simultaneously.
As an aside, I have been surprised at how poor the Airpods are at this. Bose is still way ahead at this simple but essential feature.
Qc-25's are a good price in the Bose store for Black Friday at £179
Any other noise cancelling deals out there?
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