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Bose or Beats!? (or neither?)

I am not an audiophile. I don't care if the music sounds like the band is right in front of me. For me I like a rich full sound in my ear. I have the QC 15's and they sound terrific. The noise cancelling in them is practically Witchcraft to me.

I tried the Beats and for me they lack the depth that the Bose does and don't really sound all that different from the included iPhone ear pods (btw, I find those an incredible value for the money). One thing you aren't going to get is the ability to exercise and sweat them up, keep that in mind. For the gym, the ear pods are good enough for me.

If you like that deep rich sound, Bose would be a good set of earphones for you. You can try them all out at Best buy though and see what you like so that is what I would recommend.
 
I have found that I like the sound of the "better" headphones including Shure , Beats Solo2, B&W and various brands available at Musician's Friend (for DJs and Musicians). This Christmas I gave my daughter a set of Beats Solo2's when they were on sale at a black friday event and I got over 30% off on retail. At her age (20) looks does matter as much as sound and as much as I find Beats to be overpriced I have to give credit where credit is due. Beats combination of hype and reasonable quality (though still overpriced) made paying for headphones fashionable again.

I recently picked up a pair of Bose Companion III speakers for my Mac mini to replace an abominable set of Polk Audio speakers that provided nothing but static. Yes $99 was a lot of money but they do sound good. I can't honestly recommend Beats over Shure but the latest models aren't bad if you don't mind paying the price. I was interested in wireless BT headphones. I looked at models from Bose and Beats. $400? I don't think so. I've got a set that cost me about $40 and while they don't sound as good as Beats or Bose would sound, they are adequate and provide wireless convenience. For wired headphones, the choice is a lot easier. You can get decent wired headphones for about $99 which is about half the retail price of Beats Solo 2's.
 
I have a pair of Sennheiser buds and a pair of Sennheiser over-the-ear phones. Great sound with both, including surprisingly good bass on the buds. I definitely recommend demoing Sennheiser.
 
Neither. OP, there's a couple bits of advice I can offer in defense of just about any set of headphones, and trying them out.

The first is a big one. Most of those display units are not properly burned in. I have two pair of Grado headphones, an older pair of SR80 cans and a newer pair of SR325e cans. The first thing I did with both of them was connect them to a playback device, like an iPod or head unit, and play music at a reasonable for about 100 hours. The store I bought both Grados is Fred's Sound of Music, here in Portland - they burn in all of their display speakers and headphones before putting them on display. My cans sound much richer than the day I bought them.

I can hazard a guess that the geeks at the Apple Store or Best Buy did something like this: Open a box. Put the headphones on a display. Walk away. Put the box on a shelf.

Next, get the right set of headphones or headphone system for what you intend to use them for. Check out the Beyerdynamic DT880 - a classic device. There's FIVE types of DT880. A 32-Ohm unit for iPods, cell phones and PCs/Macs. A 250-Ohm unit for lower-end audio units. A 600-Ohm unit for high-end audio units. A 250-Ohm unit for studios, with lower trim quality. And, a 250-Ohm unit that's totally-custom, with even an option for engraving. My SR80 and SR325 cans sound muffled on my iPhone, but sound great with my Onkyo amp/tuner, and even better with a ***** Modi Uber 2 connected to my rMBP, even better when I'm using Audirvana to play my music. My Beyerdynamic T51P sounds beyond excellent with my iPod or iPhone, which is what it was designed for - especially since it was burned in.

I'm not a Beats hater, I've never listened to them and likely never will. They're made in China, and IMO any pair of headphones made in China should cost $20-50, tops. There's just too many other nicer, better-built products out there. My Brooklyn-made SR80 cans are several years old, and have a set of replacement pads on them - $80, several years of great usage. But, they were burned in properly and they're used with the equipment they were designed to compliment. I know I'll get just as much usage out my SR325 and T51p cans. And, I do have a 20-year old pair of US-made Bose powered speakers that work just fine too. Cheers!
 
I like Bose better than Beats since I find them much more comfortable, but to me they sound that good as a similar priced set from another company.

For my money, I bought a pair of V-Moda M-100's. They sound great and with the XL pads, they are super comfortable. They are also built like a tank so big plus for durability.
 
Thanks for the replies, everyone.

Honestly, I have yet to encounter headphones that sound much better than my $30 Apple Earpods... Mind you all I really have access to are Bose and Beats atm.

I doubt I'll be going for either since, for $200-300, they don't really sound better than the Earpods.
 
jimmyco2008 said:
Thanks for the replies, everyone.

Honestly, I have yet to encounter headphones that sound much better than my $30 Apple Earpods... Mind you all I really have access to are Bose and Beats atm.

I doubt I'll be going for either since, for $200-300, they don't really sound better than the Earpods.
Click to expand...

$200-300? There are many excellent headphones for far less that blow the stock earbuds out of the water. Below are just a couple:

http://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-Mo...423512314&sr=8-5&keywords=Sennheiser+momentum
http://www.amazon.com/Philips-L1-28...d=1423512387&sr=8-1&keywords=Phillips+fidelio
 
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For your everyday non audiophile i recommend the V-Moda M-100's. They sound great, have extended bass for a 'fun' sound and are extremely well built and durable. They are also foldable, portable and look great. I have quite a few cans that are more expensive but i use my M-100's the most.
 
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