Reply With QuoteI've got Q35's and love them. Previously had the 25's. Brilliant battery life
No experience of the others but the B&O are on ear yet you mention over ear?
I’ve been looking at options online for a pair of over-ear headphones and wondered what folk on here would recommend.
I’m a big fan of Bose and the Quiet Comfort 35 headphones get good reviews. I’d have no need for the newest version of these as I believe the only real difference is the Google Assitant button.
https://www.bose.co.uk/en_gb/product...E&gclsrc=aw.ds
I also like the look of the Bang & Olufsen Beoplay H8i but I’m more drawn to the looks of the cream coloured version than anything else.
https://www.beoplay.com/en/landingpa...nes#experience
Finally, I’ve read some good things about the Bowers & Wilkins PX:
http://www.bowers-wilkins.co.uk/Head...eadphones.html
Of the above I’ve only tried the Bose QC at the airport and they sounded great but curious as to alternatives and what others recommend.
Cheers,
Martin
I've got Q35's and love them. Previously had the 25's. Brilliant battery life
No experience of the others but the B&O are on ear yet you mention over ear?
I’ve got the Bose qc35ii and the Sony top end ones (bought off here from gmtmaster) (sorry can’t remmeber the code). Both are excellent.
The Bose are lighter and less ‘fussy’ the sense you just put them on and hey what you’re given in terms of sound. The sonys have an equaliser etc as part of the app. They also come
On offer fairly often so you can pick them up at around £250.
I’ve got the B&O H9i (which weren’t on your list) and having done lots of research vs the B&W/Bose alternatives I came out on these primarily due to the fact that they can be used without power via a 3.5 jack (included). The rest all rely on having power to function even via a headphone jack (as I understood it, happy to be corrected) so if your battery dies they’re of no use.
The ANC isn’t quite as “strong” as the Bose by all accounts but the sound is very good and the ANC good enough for a plane.
The Q35's come with a 3.5 lead as wellOriginally Posted by tiny73
Can they be used without a battery though? My wife has the 1st Gen of these and were rendered useless when the battery ran out halfway through our flight to ZA. I borrowed them for a flight to SG (with spare batteries) and if you turn the ANC off there's no sound at all. I don't know if the newer versions allow that but the research I did suggested not. The B&O don't require the ANC to be on to function as a "normal" pair of headphones via the 3.5mm jack.
You can't use the noise cancelling no but they work as standard headphones with no batteryCan they be used without a battery though? My wife has the 1st Gen of these and were rendered useless when the battery ran out halfway through our flight to ZA. I borrowed them for a flight to SG (with spare batteries
Even the 1st generation can be used with depleted batteries using a lead.Can they be used without a battery though? My wife has the 1st Gen of these and were rendered useless when the battery ran out halfway through our flight to ZA. I borrowed them for a flight to SG (with spare batteries
The batteries aren't user replaceable either!
Maybe she has the QCXX then, hers has an AA battery which is great if it does deplete but definitely doesn’t work without power as she found to her cost.
Thanks for the feedback so far...is there any other brands that I should also consider at this price point?
I’m using a pair of Nura’s and am very pleased with them.
R
Ignorance breeds Fear. Fear breeds Hatred. Hatred breeds Ignorance. Break the chain.
I've tried a couple lately and here are my recommendations:
* Sennheiser Momentum 2.0: In my opinion the best ones in terms of construction and sound. They're metal and leather, very comfortable to wear over long times and easy to carry around. Battery lasts for ~18 hours and can be used with a wire when the battery is depleted. Noise isolation is probably the worst from all the 3 on my list but in my opinion it is adequate for office use and plane travel. That's the pair I ended up getting.
* Sony WH 1000xm2: Fancy controls that are a bit hard to learn but might come in handy (hand gestures to change volume, track and pause music if you want to hear something from the outside world). Battery lasts >20 hours and they fold and can be quite compact and easy to carry around. Noise cancelling is better than the momentum but worst than the Bose. I've not listened to them extensively but sound-wise they're reportedly very good as well.
* Bose QC35: The go-to pair if you prefer heavy noise cancellation. Everyone has a pair and there's a good reason for that but imho, they're worst than the other two in terms of sound fidelity but still decent enough. Battery life is reported to be >20 hours.
I got the Sennheisers because I'm really happy with their customer support and the quality of their products. This, coupled with the great sound quality and amazing build quality made me go for the Momentum and if I was in the market for a pair I'd probably go for these again. However, I'd strongly recommend you to try them before you commit to one.
Last edited by fleshpress; 23rd July 2018 at 22:03.
I have a pair of the B&O H8(predecessor model) and yes they are on ear, rather than over ear. I've also tested the Bose and the noise cancelling is pretty good but the actual SQ is maybe a bit above average but nothing to write home about. Maybe that's just me, as I've personally never been overly impressed with BOSE SQ in general.
My own pair of H8's have in turn been excellent all rounders in both the SQ and the noise cancellation is up their with the BOSE with the bonus being if the battery goes dead all you do is attach the headphone cable and it will still work as a set of normal headphones .
Overall, out of the list you provide I'd be considering the B&O (but is on ear) or the Bowers & Wilkins
I've owned the Bose and Sony headphones (both original versions).
One aspect I haven't seen mentioned is the Bluetooth range where the Sony is far better. Both ok if listening to an iPhone being carried about but from PC (and I've tried various Bluetooth dongles) the range of the Bose is poor and the sound frequently breaks up..
For over ears I think you would be hard pressed to beat the Nuraphones (Unique) which now have ANC via a software update as well as many more new useful features. I find them very impressive.
Otherwise I think the B&W PXs are hard to beat
Read up on the Nuras and try if you can. Amazon had 25% off
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
B&W PXs reviews have been great. If they did an on ear version I would get them.
I have the P5s and their build, sound is excellent.
How will you use these? If it's for community and the noise cancelation is important then the above recommendations for the Bose/Sony stand. If it's for critical listening then I suggest the Sony MDR7506, pound for pound one of the best pairs you could buy. They're often used in studios for their neutral reproduction--hear the music just like the artist intended it to sound! If they weren't discontinued now, I'd also recommend the Oppo PM3s, an amazing set of planar magnetic cans, and also great value.
Last edited by sean; 23rd July 2018 at 21:10.
I have B&W P5’s and the sound quality is excellent. Just wish they had ANC for flights.
One thing to remember is good quality headphones will amplify how poor the source sound is. I tend to stick to Spotify Premium or FLAC when on the move.
Excellent summary. I had the Momentum but now have the Sony and find them a definite step up in terms of sound quality and cancellation. I actually prefer the more anonymous looks too.
I have the Bose QC35s (first edition) and the B&W PX.
The Bose are more comfortable, but the PX sound better to me.
I should sell the Bose as I doubt I will use them again.
I've got the Sony MDR 1000x and would highly recommend. Plenty of reviews criticise the fact that the arms break, but I think this is something they've now resolved. The noise cancelling is excellent, sound quality is awesome and the battery life seems to last forever. Read some of the online reviews.
Lots of food for thought here and I intend to have a good look at the options suggested above that I hadn’t even considered. Thanks again to those who contributed,
I have a pair of B&W PX headphones and I'm delighted with them. Great sound quality and comfortable when worn for long periods.
Same here, couldn't be happier. Lots of reviews/comparisons on youtube etc and they usually come recommended over the Bose equivalents.
Cheers,
Gary
Surprised that no one has mentioned the Sony WH-H900N h.ear on 2
Excellent value for money and I have been thoroughly impressed.
I like the Bose cans because they manage being paired to multiple Bluetooth devices with far less fuss or carry-on than anything else.
I’m going to have a wander around town tomorrow and explore options which should be fun.
So I had a look at the offerings in John Lewis this morning. I listened to the Bose QC 35 II again and the sound quality and comfort is as good as I remembered from my recent encounter with them at the airport recently. Whether or not I can deal with the rather plasticy construction I’m not so sure.
I also tried some offerings from Sony which to my ears sounded just as good but weren’t quite as comfortable.
I was really keen to try the Bowers & Wilkins PX as they look to be better quality and I like some of the features, including the music pausing if you remove one of the ear pieces and powering down if you put them on your neck etc. They also had about £40 off the RRP at present if anyone else is interested.
I’m considering taking up electric unicycling (see other thread) so I’m now wondering if I might be better off buying the wireless Bose Soundsport Free earbuds!
I think these are pretty much P7 with noise reduction. So one thing I found with the original P7 is that you need a good fit around your ears. When I bought the P7 I thought they "just fit" I came to find I couldn't wear they for long periods as the leather cup doesn't have much give. So much so that I gave them to my daughter in the end and bought some Sennheiser 598SE instead which are wonderfully comfortable in comparison. I've always found that whenever I have tried Bose in stores they always feel really comfy.
I’m conscious that some have said that the PX can be quite tight and they weren’t on display in the shop so I couldn’t even try them. I saw the Sennheiser boxed up too and they also looked the part.
Plus one here.
I bought my MX1000s just over a year ago when the first edition of both were available and the Sony had better sound quality for me - and were more comfortable on my ears. I found their noise-cancelling preferable to the Bose but to be honest I would have been happy with the QC35s if that was all that was available. If either is available for a significant discount at the time you want to buy, then get that one. I bought at about £260 but I saw the QC35s a month later in a shop overseas for £180 and wished I had waited, purely because the difference in them is so small. Both are great and will have their fans from anyone who owns them.
Thanks for your input guys.
Does anyone have any experience of the Bose earbuds I mentioned above?
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