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Welcome to our Headphone Review Page: In our research section, we try to keep our readers informed about a variety of technology related products and services. Keep reading to find out everything you need to know about Headphones and Earphones - features, reviews, prices, pictures. Enjoy! See the categories below to get started learning about Headphones: |
What are the best Earphones or Headphones I can buy? Sennheiser? Shure?Headphones comes in various styles, from the old fashioned ear-cupping style, to the ear-hanging with speaker inset, to the in-ear bud type. They also come in a variety of quality and price ranges, depending on your needs. Personally, I’m not an audiophile snob and am just as happy with $15 ear buds as I am with a $100 set of headphones -- but we all have different tastes and requirements. Let's start with the Shure sound isolating earphones (NOT noise cancelling - noise cancelling involves creating "opposites" of external sounds to cancel them out). These small earphones slip inside your ear and have a soft, pliable sleeve that creates a secure fit between the sound source (the drivers) and your ear canal (pictures at right). These are considered professional level earphones, and the Shure E series includes the E2c ($99), E3c, E4c, and E5c ($499). They come with 3 sizes of sleeves to get the just right fit in your ear. If you are looking for noise-cancelling earphones, we recommend the Audio-Technica ATH-ANC7 QuietPoint Active Noise-Cancelling Headphones at Amazon (they carry all the best-selling noise cancelling headphones as well - list here).
What makes these noise isolating headphones shine is their ability to deliver crisp sound directly into the ear while sealing out most external noises - I find even the low-end ones to be far superior to just about anything else you will find out there. Another leading brand is Sennheiser, offering low-end MX250 earbuds ($8), MX 350, MX 400 ($15), Sennheiser PX 100 ($49), to the Sennheiser HD 650 ($499), the Rolls Royce of headphones! The PX 100 is a good mid-range choice, coming in the headband style with over-ear foam cushions. Though bigger than earbuds, they fold up into a small case and are comfortable to wear. They provide a deep bass range and sound excellent, allowing a bit of outside sound in so you don't feel completely locked out of the real world. If you want to buy online, you can browse the entire Sennheiser collection here.
More Earbud and Headphone Reviews: Grado, AKG
The AKG headphones (pictures below) are loud - let's start with that, cranking out over 110dB easily. It comes in an over the head style with faux leather ear pads, but again folds up small for storage and includes a little carrying bag. Grado SR 60 and SR 80 HeadphonesThe Grado SR60 and SR80 headphones are slightly bulkier designs that probably work better at home or office than at the gym or on the jogging trail. At about $60 or $70 for the SR60s, not a bad deal for above average sound quality and performance. The over-the-head band can be tweaked a little for a better fit, if needed.For a final look, we've included the Ultimate Ears very high-end (that is, almost $1000) UE-10 Pros. You know you will get good sound when you have ear impressions made to get custom-fitted earplugs! They provide noise isolation and cancellation, and of course will also show off any defects in your audio source. Probably best used by the pros!
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At about $40, a good buy. Another good AKG product is their noise cancelling K 28 NC - more like $120 bucks, with very strong bass. The Etymotic ER6i family was designed especially for the Ipod - and it shows it look and function (white ear buds below). The ear buds can be a little tricky to fit correctly, but WOW, once in they sound great, thanks again to sound isolation technology and fit. At closer to $120, they do cost more, and the sound quality comes at a price - but pretty much designed for audio purists and not the rap/hip-hop crowd.