Klaxon

I am in the market to upgrade my headphones since my wife took my $50 Sony ones back to the States with her. I was looking at a couple of pairs of Seinheiser's (PXC150,PXC250,PXC300) or a pair of Bose QC2. The Sennheisers look to be more portable. Is there a difference between earphones that completely encompass your ear or those that just cover them. The Bose ones do but it looks like the Sennheisers do not. Any feedback appreciated.

Kampai,
Klaxon

MisterNice

Try using the "search" feature of FT. Itsa quite good.

MisterNice

slawecki

I'll sell you 2 pairs of slightly used 250's.

I prefer Shure noise isolation system. No comparison in the amount of noise reduction. no hot ears.

CPRich

Lots of threads on this topic - try Seach on "headphones"

I also prefer Shure's for extremely light, portable, noise blocking as opposed to NC - and I've tried Sennheiser, Bose, Shure, Etymotic, PlaneQuiet, and Sony. I currently travel with Shure E3c's

ewj

I had a pair of QC2 and loved them, I dropped them out of my case and a car ran over them at a airport. I used them with my Archos 420 to watch tv shows and listen to books on tape.

I say an ad for Solitude Noise Cancelling Headphones and got them. They are better and cost $100 less. You also get them registered with boomerang. They sound is clearer - less hum and you can use them when the noise reduction system is off (battery saving). The only thing I do not like is the carrying case otherwise they are a great set.

http://www.travelessentials.com/depa...500000011.html

http://www.unitedsale.com/product_in...oducts_id=2115

ewj

The in your ear block out noise and are very good at it. The over the ear block and cancel noise. The ear buds are not comfortable (for some people) but are better if you listen and sleep (you can roll your head) and more compact. The better over the ear provide IMHO better overall sound, generally can be used longer (better omfort), and easier to transfer from person to person.

DavidNZ

Noise isolation has worked better for me (after trying Sony's NC-20s for several long-haul flights). Now use Shure E4c canalphones and am hugely impressed.

milcrat

yea i have both the shure e3 and the solitude. They are different type of headphones. Solitude will allow you to hear everything around you and kill all the background noise. So you can still hear people talking to you and such. The shure e3 will kill all noise outside your ear. You'll get better sound but won't know what' shappening around you which may be a good thing.

Russell745

I have the Bose QC2. They're great but I've seen lots of talk about them breaking in a particular spot.

daw617

The Etymotics ER-4 in-ear phones are amazing, and have good sound isolation. If you care a lot about sound quality, and don't mind dishing out the bucks for it, take a serious look at them.

tdo-ca

Out of the box. E4c's are fantastic. Completely transforms the MP3 player. Thanks to you and other FT user/reviewers.

flyboy_421

The absolute best sound and noise blocking set I've found is the ultimateears.com UE-10pro's. However they are pricey, but they make the Bose QC2's sound terrible (that was what they replaced.)

However they are pricey at around $950 bucks plus getting the molds made. (Oh, and they are the most comfortable things to wear as well.

Scott

willyroo

QCs V Shure E4s:

Shures sound better. Just plug them into any high quality audio gear (which an iPod is not) and you'll hear real music. Noise cancelling headphones add additional signal which affects the ability to play "just music".

Shures are cheaper.

Shures are smaller, and you can leave them in when you fall asleep. With QCs, I would take them off, insert the foam ear inserts from the nice QF amenity kit, then go to sleep. The Shures isolate noise even when no sound coming through, and better yet, you can leave your ambient music running while you're asleep.

Shures are harder to get working properly - you'll have to fiddle with the various in-ear attachments until you get a good fit.

Shure spends money on construction and sound quality, Bose spends money on advertising. Put any Bose product against equivalently priced competitors, especially in speakers, and they're left wanting. Bose delivers a huge soundstage, but it's the depth of a coat of paint.

Oh and edited to add: Shures are quieter - too quiet in many instances. But on a long flight that's not a bad thing.

someotherguy

And Shures require no batteries and fit in your shirt pocket.

ScottC

BOSE: Better sound through marketing