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Apple or not? Tough Dilemma!

Apple Or not?

  • Total voters
    13
  • Poll closed .
sahni130

sahni130

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jun 25, 2008
677
416
Atlanta, Georgia, United States
hello Dear friends,
I am in the market for some nice headphones and right now the two that I am looking at are the new Apple in-ear headphones and the $99 Bose in-ear headphones. I listen to mainly rock and hip=hop music and also some classical and country music. I will be using these headphones with an iPhone 3G and sometimes with the iPod 5th Gen. I am looking to spend no more than $115 on a pair. Which one of these should i buy? Which one do you think will last longer? Do the apple in-ear headphones work with the iPhone 3G to change tracks and play/pause tracks?

Thanks,
Jay
 
I don't know what to recommend since I haven't tried either.
Although, I heard the new Apple In-Ear headphones got some pretty good reviews.

The Apple In-Ear headphones work with the iPhone 3G; the mic and audio does but not previous and next.
I'm not sure about play/pause.
 
I would buy the Apple ones.

I have the original upgraded model - the first ones with better sound than the originals. And, I absolutely love them. However, they didn't get great reviews and were only like $39... I think they just had a better fitting ear piece made of rubber, like the new ones, which isolated sound better. Since the new ones have dual drivers, I would imagine they are pretty good; in addition added features like mic and volume controls.

I have heard a lot of bad things about Bose as a company. And most threads you read here have an enraged hater of Bose.

If it were my money, I would give it to Apple based on those two options you have given. Others will tell you to get a completely different model. If you're an Apple fan, as I am, get the ones that are made for your iPod/iPhone.

Happy Holidays and good luck whichever way you go.
 
I'd say the Apple ones.

Apple:

Good reviews
I hear about 2 individual tweeters per earpiece
has mic
remote control on side

Bose:

probably better quality, not sure about audio quality
Bose product,
no mic
20 more
 
I'd suggest that you look for Ultimate Ears, Shure or Etymotic - they'll have something for your price range. They're proven brands for in-ear models that have a very good reputation, although they may not have controls for the iPhone/iPod.

You should spend a few weeks breaking your head over at head-fi.org and their forums. :D Don't blame me if your budget of $115 soon becomes three times as much. :eek: :p
 
wiseguy27 said:
I'd suggest that you look for Ultimate Ears, Shure or Etymotic - they'll have something for your price range. They're proven brands for in-ear models that have a very good reputation, although they may not have controls for the iPhone/iPod.

You should spend a few weeks breaking your head over at head-fi.org and their forums. :D Don't blame me if your budget of $115 soon becomes three times as much. :eek: :p
Click to expand...

why will my budget triple?
 
Bose are generally considered good, but way overpriced for what you get. If you don't need the built in mic I would look at some Shure or Sennheiser. I have some Sennheiser CX500 which cost me ~$70 from Amazon and they're pretty nice.
 
sahni130 said:
why will my budget triple?
Click to expand...

Uh oh. That's the reaction (versus "No way, my budget won't change") that gets people into trouble over at HF. Look at the Shure e2c's. I think you can get them on Amazon for like 60 bucks - a steal at that price, in my opinion. Far outperforms the Bose IEs, and I will be very surprised if they were not better than Apple's new phones.
 
darwinian said:
Uh oh. That's the reaction (versus "No way, my budget won't change) that gets people into trouble over at HF. Look at the Shure e2c's. I think you can get them on Amazon for like 60 bucks - a steal at that price, in my opinion. Far outperforms the Bose IEs, and I will be very surprised if they were not better than Apple's new phones.
Click to expand...


QFT. Head-fi is a very good place for information about in-ear earphones - lot of knowledgeable people out there.

To the OP: Your budget will probably change because you'll get to know what exactly you would get for your price point. Not that it's bad, but it so happens that sometimes people do want more.
 
DONT BUY THE BOSE

Buy some Shure SE 110s or even older E2cs. You will like these much better. The Bose use sound processing to make up for their lack of quality sound. I have not tried the Apple ones, but I really do recommend the Shures.

Bose:
muddy, bad sounding
very few highs
comfortable
poor build quality (break easily. I went through 6 pairs under warranty in 2 years.)
good warranty
tips tend to fall off

Shure
not a ton of bass
not as comfortable until you get used to it
great high ends (in the 210s, 110s are ok but still better than bose)
can add attachments with remote and microphone
better case
tips don't fall off
strong feeling
 
Scottsdale said:
I would buy the Apple ones.



If it were my money, I would give it to Apple based on those two options you have given. Others will tell you to get a completely different model. If you're an Apple fan, as I am, get the ones that are made for your iPod/iPhone.
Click to expand...

I totally agree.:)
 
darwinian said:
Uh oh. That's the reaction (versus "No way, my budget won't change) that gets people into trouble over at HF. Look at the Shure e2c's. I think you can get them on Amazon for like 60 bucks - a steal at that price, in my opinion. Far outperforms the Bose IEs, and I will be very surprised if they were not better than Apple's new phones.
Click to expand...

The Shure e2c doesn't have a mic, but the I2c-m does, and is only $40 on Amazon. I don't know how good they are, I'm still using my original Apple ear phones.
 
The apple headphones seem nice but I haven't tried them so I can't vouch for the quality, but like txhockey9404 said I would go for a pair of Shures instead. Although I don't have a pair of E2cs I do have the 110 and 310, the 110 for the price offer good bass and isolation although the highs and mids seem a little muddy compared to my 310 but then again that explains the difference in price.

Here's a review for the Bose in-ears: http://reviews.cnet.com/headphones/bose-triport-in-ear/4505-7877_7-32150146.html?tag=mncol;lst

I to wanted to by the Boses back then till I found out they don't isolate sound.
 
plinden said:
The Shure e2c doesn't have a mic, but the I2c-m does, and is only $40 on Amazon. I don't know how good they are, I'm still using my original Apple ear phones.
Click to expand...

I have some shure 210s and the mic unit specifically designed for the iphone. All the play/pause and previous etc work perfectly and you get great headphones. To be honest the fact that you are paying for functionality in the new apple h/phones that you can't use would frustrate me. Shure (and I have had many middle to top range in-ears) are the real sweet spot. Great isolation and clear reproduction. Bass isn't thumping but realistic and I never have to have them too loud either (a bonus if you don't want to go deaf eventually ;) )

I have recommended Shures to many people and have never had a bad response. They used to have issues with cabling but no more. Also I think it's safer not to have white headphones as they can attract some 'unwanted' attention

D:apple:
 
I would never buy Boss after all the stuff I read on them. I forgot who they sued, but Bose sued someone just because they gave Bose a bad review once and working w/ people who do music for a living, they would never buy Bose.

http://intellexual.net/bose.html

EDIT: It was in 81 when Bose sued Consumer Reports:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consumer_Reports

In 1981 the Bose Corporation sued Consumer Reports (CR) magazine for libel. CR reported in a review that the sound from the system that they reviewed "tended to wander about the room". The District Court found that CR "had published the false statement with knowledge that it was false or with reckless disregard of its truth or falsity". The Court of Appeals reversed the trial court's ruling, and the United States Supreme Court affirmed in Bose Corp. v. Consumers Union of United States, Inc., finding that CR's statement was made without actual malice, which was the standard in cases where the First Amendment was involved; and therefore was not libelous.
Click to expand...
 
Wow you guys have totally changed the way I look at Bose now. Just yesterday I was almost dead set on buying Bose. This may sound weird but now I'm even more confused. If Bose is so bad then why do so many people pay more to buy Bose than other brands? Do the Bose in ear headphones have a woofer and a tweeter built in
 
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