I’m going traveling and was hoping to bring along my OP-1. What would you recommend for in-ear or small headphones for on the go?
Cheers
Bose QC20i - Noise Cancelling Headphones.
You can’t get a better headphone for travelling! Especially long haul flights or train journeys.
Yes, they are expensive but just wait until you try them when you are on a plane. The loud deep drone of the engines are cut to almost nothing and you are in your own little bubble of silence. This allows you to work on even the quietest of compositions in detail. If, like me, you can’t normally sleep on planes/trains etc these headphones will change that - your little bubble of silence will become your haven when travelling. Noisey train - no problem. Street noise from outside hotel room - no problem.
The sound quality and response is decent from the headphones too. It’s Bose after all.
These headphones have been a gamechanger for me when travelling. I can get sleep whenever I want it - even when there’s crying babies a few seats away.
Thanks man, they are a little expensive. I seem to break the plug on my headphones every six months, so not sure I can justify spending that much. Are the leads replaceable?
Cheers
I am currently traveling and use the OP1 with Urban ears Kransen earbuds and I also have a bad history of breaking the plug every now and then. These ones are absolutely fine. Also when you walk listening to music you don’t hear your foot steps like it is the case with other earbuds if that makes sense.
Anyway, I recommend!
all you need to know about headphones is here: http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/innerfidelitys-wall-fame-full-size-sealed#9rfme0EYIp6gvR5H.97
@canispeaktodave if you are in the UK you can buy the headphones from John Lewis and take out the 3 years insurance - it’s an extra £30 or something.
This means that if you break the plug in the headphones accidentally then you’ll get new ones!
OR if your headphones survive 2 years and 11 months, on the last month of the 3 years, have an accident with the headphones and get yourself some new ones
OR if your headphones survive 2 years and 11 months, on the last month of the 3 years, have an accident with the headphones and get yourself some new ones
I’ve got some Shure SE215 and they are fantastic ear buds. Come with a whole shwack of various sizes and variations for the perfect fit.
Sennheiser px100 II is pretty cool.
You can fold it yet it’s rather solid. Comfortable + great sound. And cheap.
I have the white model.
Now that you guys KNOW that you have a tendency to break headphone plugs - could I suggest you get with the programme and be (even just slightly) more careful. If the rest of us can manage to make headphone plugs last for a couple of years, then so can you. lol
CB
CB I was going to say something along the same lines.
If I buy a £30 pair of headphones then I’m not going to be fussed about how I treat them.
My Bose QC20’s on the other hand get handled with care because I know that they cost a lot.
What is it with people these days not taking care of their shit? 
I know people who have been through a handful of smartphones due to dropping/falling down toilets/stolen.
I’m sorry but if something has cost me £700 then it’s glued to my hand and isnt being dropped and certainly not left on a table in a bar. I know where it is at ALL times.
It really depends on the quality of the headphone plugs: I had some Sennheiser MM70, using them everyday and letting them free in my pockets, they have been working for 5 years! When they finally broke I had to use the crapy Samsung S5 earbuds, I had issues after 2 weeks…
I’ve been an Audio-Technica user and lover for years now. I have a pair of IM50s (approx. EUR 150), one of the Japanese-made models, but recently bought a pair of ATH Sport3 earphones (cca. EUR 60) for my eldest son and they sound great, almost as great as the IM50. As far as I can hear they are very well balanced with enough oomph, mids and highs, fit comfortably and are even waterproof.
Also when you walk listening to music you don't hear your foot steps like it is the case with other earbuds if that makes sense.
Ha! I know exactly what you mean. Sometimes when I am walking with my cheap 'buds it’s like my feet are side-chaining the music. My brain focuses in on it like a laserbeam, and it starts driving me crazy.
Exactly!! Really annoying (and really well explained).
I think they call the noise due to cable movement microphonics
Honestly, for portable, comfortable buds, Apple’s stock “Ear Pods” are pretty damn good. I use Sony MDR-7506’s for sofa work.
Thanks for all the replies!
I had some Sennheiser MM70, they were the last ones to go. I went with Bluetooth headphones for everyday usage, just podcasts though, and they don’t cut the mustard with the OP-1. I tried on all the headphones at BOSE and Curry’s in the mall in Sheffield the other day and nothing comes close to the Grado one’s I have, it’s a shame it leaks so much noise and has no noise cancelling.
I use these at work Sennheiser HD201, and at under £20, they are superior to all Beats headphones I’ve tried. Most headphones seem to concentrate on bass and ignore the treble, giving a completely unbalanced sound.
You’ve all given me some food for thought. If I see any of those when I am out and about, I’ll have to try them out. Thanks again.
Beats are just marketing hype. There are FAR better headphones out there.
Did you try the Bose noise cancelling headphones? Pretty magical eh?
I think they are THE best in terms of results of noise cancelling you can get in headphones.
I think they are THE best in terms of results of noise cancelling you can get in headphones.
I love mine and literally could not travel without them.
Thanks for the Shure recommendation. I’ve not heard of them before. I went to richer sounds who had the 315 and the 425 in ear versions. The 315’s were very muffled, I tried the 425’s, they lack a little bass but are amazing and twin drivers. I got them for £160 as they were previously demoed. They have detachable cables, this swayed me. I buy headphones twice a year because I break them at £50 a pop, so replacing the wiring should make them pay for themselves in no time!
Thanks again.
Although it’s too late to give you my opinion some others may benefit from it.
As some know I live in Japan, and as most know Japan is renowned for high spec swanky tech, I decided to take the plunge and put some money down on some expensive in-ear headphones.
I ran through many headphones A/Bing with the tunes on my iPhone 6 and then something happened that I’ve never experienced. Hi-res. I plopped on some ‘Elecom’ (of all makes) and were blown away. Their frequency range dominated the rest and despite the knowledge of we humans’ frequency range they added definition and clarity way beyond anything I’ve experienced.
It just so happened that I ventured to the electrical store on the day they released the h.ear headphones from Sony. These are also sublime and there noise cancellation is unbelievably high-brow and innovative.
I went for a cream tea with my wife who was also shopping for headphones. We discussed the differences.
Upon going back to the store another revelation happened. The ‘hi-res’ was disfunctional through my wife’s iPod Nano. Normal headphones that were still expensive sounded better. It goes to show that it depends on the internal aspects of a device and the headphones that determines happy ears. I like the way my wife put it “Both device and headphones need to have a good chemistry for the best outcome”
I chose the Elecom CH2000 over the Sony’s and the Elecom CH3000. My wife and a friends experience was mirrored. They explained it in exactly the same way saying that it feels like there is so much more space and they can hear everything. And it’s true.
Sorry for my monologue and thanks for reading, especially if you read it all. I’ll finish by saying…
‘hi-res’ is the future!