[Vividcard]

Sometimes you can't really appreciate where you are now without looking back. It's not a outlandish statement to say that pretty much every person who posts on this forum is at least an audio enthusiast. Usually, we have spent a decent chunk of change on our technology. But it's not often we return to where it all began. Today, I had the chance to do just that. In some ways, it was an enjoyable experience. And in other's it was not.
 
As a recent initiate into at least the enthusiast arena. I feel I have a relatively large equipment selection (see my introduction thread), but nothing stops you from being in a rush. I listen to music at work to keep focused. It allows me to avoid my nearest co-workers whining, which lets me keep my sanity just that much longer. So it can be a bit upsetting when I forget my headphones at home.
 
This is the scenario: As I recently just dropped my largest single purchase on a pair of Shure SE-425 I have been using them religiously (especially since I just finished their burn in as well). This means they come with me to work, and mute the world around me. Then, they come home with me for some more listening if I have time (and let's be honest, I'm not leaving $300.00 headphones at work...). But if I am in a particular rush in the morning, like this morning, you forget things. Leaving me at the mercy of what I have at work.
 
Now, thankfully, I still have something at work as a backup. In this case, this are my old Bose IE2's. Which I've mentioned were my stepping stone into this world. And for years I loved and cared for these phones. But after spending time attuning my ears to the finer things, I can't help but feel a little sad that these fail me so now.
 
It's amazing how I've come from using the cheapest headphones I could find that were comfortable to what I am now. Putting these headphones in I realized just how bad these are in comparison to the other gear I have been using. It may not be fair to compare headphones that aren't even in the same price league. But it's to best way I've found to show what I've learned.
 
I appreciate my tight, concise bass. Clear musical separation, and sound stage. And these Bose provide almost nothing on any of these traits. The bass is muddy and overdone, which causes all instrumentation to blend together. The sound stage is practically non existent. (Again, this is in comparison to other beautiful creatures such as the SE-425s, RHA 750's, and Sennheiser 598HD). It's a world of difference. As a test, I tried to distinguish music from spotify at a normal quality vs my lossless files on my phone and my Fiio X1, but I just couldn't hear a difference.
 
Now I don't want to beat down Bose too much, because the reality is the headphones are still not bad for what they are. I tried some skullcandy's my wife left in my car for an even further comparison. And it went even farther. It's when I realized that these were just reproducing sound... Sure, bass was there. It was over done. All the instruments were there. but everything just sounded tinny, and well, boring. Even the most upbeat melodies fell flat in these headphones, Not only was I dumbfounded that I used to use these, but baffled as to how my wife still uses these with all the other, better options lying around.
 
This is by no way a review, and it should not be read as one. More of a rant about how we realize that we have made our hobby more enjoyable. Like a doctor, we get to watch our contributions evolve and grow. But occasionally, we get thrown back into past. As I said, it was great to see that I could now tell the differences, but it was hellishly frustrating to find how hard it is to be pleased with something less now. That is all!

 

[Tail]

   
Now, thankfully, I still have something at work as a backup. In this case, this are my old Bose IE2's. Which I've mentioned were my stepping stone into this world. And for years I loved and cared for these phones. But after spending time attuning my ears to the finer things, I can't help but feel a little sad that these fail me so now.
 
I appreciate my tight, concise bass. Clear musical separation, and sound stage. And these Bose provide almost nothing on any of these traits. The bass is muddy and overdone, which causes all instrumentation to blend together. The sound stage is practically non existent.

Completely agree about Bose... never heard worse sound for 150$ in my life. Actually haven't even heard worse for half the price of IE2. They are better than stock earbuds you get with some smartphone for sure, but most earphones 40+ $ will do better. Especially cos of complete lack of isolation.
 
I know this wasn't the point of your post but I was so disappointed in IE2 I had to get that out once again and... well part of your post I quoted made it easier

 

[Vividcard]

  Completely agree about Bose... never heard worse sound for 150$ in my life. Actually haven't even heard worse for half the price of IE2. They are better than stock earbuds you get with some smartphone for sure, but most earphones 40+ $ will do better. Especially cos of complete lack of isolation.
 
I know this wasn't the point of your post but I was so disappointed in IE2 I had to get that out once again and... well part of your post I quoted made it easier

I totally understand, If you had told me this when I first got them, I would have tried to argue. But now they just aren't worth the defense. It is worth noting that I did change the tips to the quiet-comfort tips... which did help quite a bit... But you know what they say about polishing a turd..

 

[ShaftShanker]

Is Bose quality that bad? I've never tried them but i was considering their active noise cancelling in ear monitors or headphones for commuting and flying. I have comply foam tips on my JVC HA FXD80 and Westone UM10s but they don't work that well in flights.

 

[Vividcard]

  Is Bose quality that bad? I've never tried them but i was considering their active noise cancelling in ear monitors or headphones for commuting and flying. I have comply foam tips on my JVC HA FXD80 and Westone UM10s but they don't work that well in flights.

Personal recommendation, don't bother. This is my personal opinion obviously, but there are a few reasons to avoid this. Before anything else, I would tell you that in my experience, Bose noise cancellation does not work practically at all when it comes to the high volume of a roaring jet engine. I'd recommend a set of phones with solid noise isolation instead.
 
Second, I can tell you that Bose just isn't worth the brand surcharge. with the cost of their "High quality" in ears. You can afford something so much better. As they say, "No highs, no lows, must be Bose". The reproduction of the sound (or lack thereof) will have you begging for your Westone's, even if you have to hear the jet and crying baby in the background.
 
Not to throw my support for one brand only, but I would point you to the Shure SE-215's. Same sound isolation level's as my 425's, won't break the bank, and I can tell you they work a dream on a plane. I was just on a flight where I got sat on the wing with a crying baby right behind me. Headphones in and I could barely hear anything. Once I hit play the world went mute and there was nothing fighting my music.
 
Because I know some people don't like the fitment of the Shure's, if you are having trouble with the fit or comfort, just find something with good isolation. Plane noises aren't a job for noise cancellation.
 
EDIT: Shortly after typing this, I found something that might also help back my statement on the Basic Guide to In Ear Canalphones, Link here: http://www.head-fi.org/a/basic-guide-to-in-ear-canalphones
 

​

3. Why noise isolation and not Active Noise Cancellation?

Despite their larger size, ANC headphones do not always provide better noise reduction in comparison to IEMs. Also, many ANC headphones’ sound quality (SQ) is often found to be ‘second class’ at best (in comparison to the price you pay for them). In contrast, IEM provide better noise reduction without sacrificing SQ.

Here are some measurements taken from tests done at the Auditory Systems Lab at Virginia Tech University on isolation vs. noise cancellation. While all the Shure‘s IEMs in the test provide 29 dB ~ 37 dB of isolation, the result of ANC headphones are not as great as one might believe:
Bose QC2: 20dB (77% of ambient noise)
Sennheiser PXC-250: 11dB (58% of ambient noise)
Sony MDR-NC20: 8 dB (40% of ambient noise)

 

[Tail]

  Is Bose quality that bad? I've never tried them but i was considering their active noise cancelling in ear monitors or headphones for commuting and flying. I have comply foam tips on my JVC HA FXD80 and Westone UM10s but they don't work that well in flights.

Bose in ear are supremely bad, haven't hear their noise cancelling in ear tho, that might be worth a check since noise cancelling on their normal size headphones is decent, if not the best in business. But only active noise cancelling function that is good, other than that, you will hardly find anything worse than it for the price.
 
Unless you strictly need earphones without isolation, but anything that seal your ear canal will give you substantially better sound, better bass extension (bass on IE2, SIE2, MIE2 etc is there, plenty of it, but not that good low deep bass extension, it's more of overpowering mid bass punch that cover mid range). 
 
Since there is no isolation at all you need to crank volume up to hurting levels when in gym or outside running or cycling, and ironically they advertise them for sport (SIE2 for example). Highs aren't also extended well as Vividcard said and clarity is not on par with similarly priced (or even many lower priced) earphones. 
 
Only consider them if you need noise cancellation (their headphones) or if you need to have no isolation (their in ear earphones) but other than those use cases, they are one of the worst there are, only hyped trough heavy marketing, people have been exposed to brand for decades now and it's one of the most marketed audio brands till date, also it's available everywhere, in local tech store so it's easy to get hands on one, and they give 2 year warranty... so their sales are very good, but the cold truth is (imo) they should be avoided at all costs.

 

[Vividcard]

Bose in my opinion isn't worth their weight when it comes to portable audio. That means in ear, on ear, and over ear. This also goes with most built in car audio. I do feel there is some merit to the purchase for home audio gear, such as computer speakers and surround sound setups. But for this use, I'd say spend your money elsewhere.

 

[Feilong4]

Same thing happened to me a few days ago but that was with the Beats Studio (First rendition). I bought it used on ebay to see if I will feel that spark or whatever it was that made me absolutely love them back then.
 
I remember always heading to the Beats section of a Walmart or Target and extremely eager to retry on the Studios, and just in awe of how they sounded. 
 
Of course, I had only listened to 10 dollar JVC earbuds so of course the Studios were some step up.
 
Let's just say, good thing I didn't start my audio journey with Beats. Fast forward to today, with the old Studios on my head and played some tunes.
 
Completely cringe worthy. Everything just sounded so garbled up and to think that they sold these for 299.99 USD just a few years back boggles my mind today.
 
I checked the serial number and it surely was legitimate, and I have no idea what I heard back then was the same I am hearing today. No idea if they used some special amplifier or whatever magic do-hickey in the stalls but I can say that I did not feel that spark I had back then. More like a realization of how clueless I was.
 
I'm also surprised I had to turn the volume on my phone (Xperia Z3v) one or two notches from full volume to get my ideal listening level.
 
And now let's just say, good thing I went for a seller that offered returns with no hassle.
 
Also, cheap doesn't always equal bad. I was in the Brainwavz Massdrop drop and got the M5 for 20 bucks. After a slight EQ'ing I was able to really enjoy them. Probably one of my smarter buys.

 

[Vividcard]

 
I checked the serial number and it surely was legitimate, and I have no idea what I heard back then was the same I am hearing today. No idea if they used some special amplifier or whatever magic do-hickey in the stalls but I can say that I did not feel that spark I had back then. More like a realization of how clueless I was.

Don't quote me on this, but it may have been the Demo unit. I know the Beats had a demo version that required a power outlet, perhaps a special amp for the demo units... Never was a fan of beats headphones. Overdone lows, blanketed mids. And, like Bose, dat price tag yo!

 

[obobskivich]

I agree with the original post, in that sometimes going back and "cleaning the palette" with more typical/average cabbage/etc gear is a nice way to remind us of what hi-fi equipment is really all about.

On the Bose question: I've not tried their in-ear headphones at all, but the QC15 (which are newer and improved over the QC2 mentioned above, and they've since moved onto QC25) sound fine to me, and the ANC is quite effective at blocking out droning noises (like HVAC). I still prefer my IEMs for travel (much more compact and as mentioned, excellent isolation), but if you can't do in-ears for whatever reason, I'd take the QCs over any sealed full-size can (as they do offer better isolation, and that's been measured by various sources). I've not tried any other ANC headphone that does as good of a job, except maybe the (more expensive) Parrot Zik. Their passive cans (the original TriPort and the follow-up AE2) are also fine for what they are - mid-range full-size all-rounders that are comfortable and work well with a wide variety of devices and media. They aren't giant killers, but I don't think they're meant to be either.