MartyJazz Posted January 10, 2005 Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 I was in a Best Buy today and saw several noise reduction headphones in the $50 -$70 or thereabouts price range. Brands included Aiwa, Maxell, Sony and Philips. A google search led me to lesser known but apparently quality noise reduction headsets in the same price range made by Noise Buster and Macally. I also saw a Sennheiser model which lists for $129 but I really want to spend half as much. I intend to use these at home to listen to music late at night as well as when I travel, jazz (but of course) being what I listen to most often with an occasional break for 19th century violin concertos. Anybody have any good recommendations, especially re the store available models (the Best Buy is only 2 miles away) vs. the mail order models mentioned above? Or can someone recommend one I haven't as yet heard of? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vibes Posted January 10, 2005 Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 You're in luck. I'm the person the does headphones purchasing for the chain. As far as sound quality goes, the Philips HN100 are the best of the lot at our stores, in my opinion. The HN050's are pretty good as well (I own both models). The Aiwa's sell the best, if that means anything. If you're willing to spend more, we carry the Sennheiser PXC250's on our website, which are the most comfortable and best-sounding noise-canceling headphones I've heard under $200. Above that, Bose QuietComfort2's are pretty impressive, but they retail for around $300. Best Buy doesn't carry them in store or on the website. PM me if you have more questions about Best Buy's headphones selection. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Johnson Posted January 10, 2005 Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 What do any of you who have the Bose Quiet Comfort headphones think of them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted January 10, 2005 Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 How about a price check on the Phillips HN100? And Marty, may I ask what the point is for noise cancelling headphones for late-night listening? I know you're neighborhood-its not Neighborhood Party Central. .... I guess you just want to buy a single set of headphones, but I have to say, " intend to use these at home to listen to music late at night " sure sounds weird. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MartyJazz Posted January 10, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 How about a price check on the Phillips HN100? And Marty, may I ask what the point is for noise cancelling headphones for late-night listening? I know you're neighborhood-its not Neighborhood Party Central. .... I guess you just want to buy a single set of headphones, but I have to say, " intend to use these at home to listen to music late at night " sure sounds weird. Nothing like having a fellow Org member who lives close by and knows the neighborhood. Dan, yuu're correct in that noice calling headphones aren't necessary for late night listening in this part of Florida. I just want one good pair to for multi-use possibilities, e.g., air travel as well as those quiet times at home, etc. Nevertheless, the adjective "weird" has still been used in reference to me, especially when visitors check out the "record room". B-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Д.Д. Posted January 10, 2005 Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 If you're willing to spend more, we carry the Sennheiser PXC250's on our website, which are the most comfortable and best-sounding noise-canceling headphones I've heard under $200. Above that, Bose QuietComfort2's are pretty impressive, but they retail for around $300. Best Buy doesn't carry them in store or on the website. Sennheizser is releasing a new improved model: PXC300 later this month. It has a higher level of noise reduction and an AA battery built-in noise reduction unit (not a clip-on thingies with special battery they have on PXC250. This will retail at around $220 and should be on par or better than Bose, which is supposed to be a standard. I just recentl bought Aiwa, and tried them without noise reduction - the sound is very poor. I will be flying soon and will check them on-flight (which is their main purpose of use, after all). Please note that these sort of headphones cancell only static constant noises, mostlyin the low-to-middle frrequency range (such as airplane/train noise, etc.), and will not significantly cancel random noises. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmirBagachelles Posted January 10, 2005 Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 The Senns sound fine to my ears, I can't fly without them. I have the old model with the battery pack and switch along the cord, and that's a bit of a pain. Will the new Senns cover the ears? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vibes Posted January 10, 2005 Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 I just recentl bought Aiwa, and tried them without noise reduction - the sound is very poor. I will be flying soon and will check them on-flight (which is their main purpose of use, after all). Please note that these sort of headphones cancell only static constant noises, mostlyin the low-to-middle frrequency range (such as airplane/train noise, etc.), and will not significantly cancel random noises. I find that most noise-canceling headphones don't sound that great without the noise-canceling circuit turned on. And yes, almost all (if not all) noise-canceling headphones are designed to block out the types of low-frequency noises caused by things like jet engines. If you're looking to block out your noisy co-workers, noise-canceling headphones aren't really going to get the job done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmitry Posted January 10, 2005 Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 Etymotic. Give 'em a try. I love mine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kh1958 Posted January 10, 2005 Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 I have the Sennsheiser model and am very pleased with them. Coupled with a loaded ipod, they make an airplane ride almost a pleasant experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted January 1, 2006 Report Share Posted January 1, 2006 Before leaving for my holiday travel, I decided to splurge on noise-reduction headphones, as I remembered how bad the open-eared discman headphones were the last time. Didn't actually consult this thread, but I went to Amazon and checked the posted reviews of the various options. It seemed as though there were a lot of low price choices but none of them had very good reviews, and I didn't want to spend the money on the really good ones. I ended up going with the JVC HA-NC100 model, and I am pleased to report that they functioned quite nicely. Even my audio engineer wife approved of them! They come with a nice leather carrying pouch, and had another nice feature: the cord stores in the left ear and retracts like a vaccuum cleaner cord. Best of all, they list for $149 but Amazon sells them for $47, and of course, free shipping, too. So I basically got a "high end" headphone at a low end price, and they worked very well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Friedman Posted January 1, 2006 Report Share Posted January 1, 2006 I recently was on a long trip to India and decided to get some noise reduction headphones to use with my iPod. I went for the Bose and was very pleased with them. I used them for many many hours on my flights to and from India. They did a fine job of blocking out the sounds of the jet engines. The music sounded very good too, clearly better by far than the plug in the ear phones that come with the iPod. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CJ Shearn Posted January 1, 2006 Report Share Posted January 1, 2006 the Maxell noise cancelling headphones NC II I think, are horrible. they don't last long, mine died after 6 months which I recently replaced with the Sennheiser HD 202 which I'm very happy with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gslade Posted January 2, 2006 Report Share Posted January 2, 2006 (edited) Etymotic. Give 'em a try. I love mine. I am getting a new Ipod this week so I decided to give the Etymotic (6i) a try another friend recommended these also I was not sure if the in the ear format was the best way to go but for the gym and in the car it makes sense for me Edited January 2, 2006 by gslade Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmitry Posted January 2, 2006 Report Share Posted January 2, 2006 Etymotic. Give 'em a try. I love mine. I am getting a new Ipod this week so I decided to give the Etymotic (6i) a try another friend recommended these also I was not sure if the in the ear format was the best way to go but for the gym and in the car it makes sense for me Wise choice. Nothing out there matches these[at their price level, that is]. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DukeCity Posted January 2, 2006 Report Share Posted January 2, 2006 Etymotic. Give 'em a try. I love mine. I am getting a new Ipod this week so I decided to give the Etymotic (6i) a try another friend recommended these also I was not sure if the in the ear format was the best way to go but for the gym and in the car it makes sense for me Wise choice. Nothing out there matches these[at their price level, that is]. I got a pair of these for my iPod and am very happy with 'em. I also got the HeadRoom AirHead amp for more extended listening. Didn't necessarily help the sound a whole lot, BUT it does have a "crossfade" feature that softens or blends the stereo separation, which can otherwise be fatiguing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomNYC Posted January 23, 2006 Report Share Posted January 23, 2006 What do any of you who have the Bose Quiet Comfort headphones think of them? I got them as a gift for Xmas and I have to say they are very impressive. I used them on a recent flight to Europe and they really did a nice job of canceling out engine noise and the audio quality is excellent. The price tag is steep but they are clearly superior to other headphones out there. It's tough for me to say this - normally I love to bash Bose! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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