Headphones Reviews

This unit has great sound for buck but I find the overall quality to be a bit flimsy. The earbud covers (foamy things) comes off way too easily and are a major drag. Mine broke after just a little over than 90 days. Bass is good, and soundroom is decent - but no way these will stack up with a pair of decent closed over the head phones. I find that during exercise that a headband i required, but that is as much a question of how you position your player. Recommended for sound and good if your commuting - if you need these for any kind of exercise - Stay away. Also you may go through 3 of these in a year. they are not very durable

These are great -- even a non-audiophile like me can tell these are much better than the earbuds that usually come packaged with CD and MP3 players. They produce a rich, clear sound, and you don't have to jack up the volume to hear your music well. The MX300s are a cheap upgrade that will really improve your portable music experience. On mine, one of the little foam earbud covers comes loose every so often, but Radio Shack carries replacement covers.

When I plug in my iPod to charge and listen at work, it sends electric shocks to my brain. and when im listening on the go the left and right sides fade in and out as the jack moves around, probably because its not goldplated.

Noticed the difference from the first time I tried them. Bass and sound quality are just great! (I had to turn the bass boost off in my Zire 71). No complaints.

I have the Sony MODEL # SRF-HM22 with 5 preset fm and 5 am buttons and a clock. This is great but it is a few years old. We were hoping to find same specifications even tho it would cost more. Advantage to presets: when walking and listening, so easy to change stations without looking! The clock is also a definite plus. Wonder why Sony no longer makes this available.

I already own the previous Sony product, the SRF-H3. That is a fine product for the money, which I use while working out.
So, when I needed another headphone radio, I decided to buy another SRF-H3, but then noticed that Sony had just updated the product as the new SRF-H4.
The new version has been improved in a number of ways:
- The larger ear pad fits more comfortably and don't move from the correct position.
- The FM tuner now does a better job of rejecting adjacent channels (much less bleed-through from other channels).
- Even with the normal setting, the H4 has much better bass than the H3, and in the Mega-Bass position, the bass response is unusually good for a product in this price range. (Not only is this important for current pop music, but it also makes jazz and classical sound more natural.) The increased low end makes the overall response less emphasized towards the high end, which also makes the inherent noise and hiss of AM & FM radio less apparent and thus less annoying. By the way, the response sounds more even with Mega-Bass turned on, indicating that the designers anticipate the product being used by most users with it switched on, and thus provide the off position as a convenience for those who find that much bass annoying.
- The mounting of the speakers directly on the ear pieces is more solid, and eliminates the possibility of the sort of breakage mentioned in customer reviews of the H3.

Note that the product is extremely inexpensive and thus one ought not to expect the sort of sound quality you might get if you spend "three figures". However, most of the inadequacies are in what is missing (instrumental tonality and detail, dynamic range, etc.) and thus the product is still pleasant to use. Also, my radio tuning needs are minimal (there are only a few stations here), and as local radio conditions vary quite a bit, it's possible that your situation might require a more expensive tuner. But then again, it might not.

I reserve 5 stars for those high-end units, but I don't see what Sony could do to further improve this product without also having to increase the price.

PS It uses one "AAA" battery (easily available) - I mention this in case Amazon has not yet corrected their information.

I bought these TDK headphones for use with my iBook laptop (to watch movies/listen to music while not at home)...

The interesting thing about the buds themselves is that they don't have a foam covering a hard plastic portion (like most other earbuds). Instead it has this nice soft rubbery thing, which feels weird in your hand, and might seem uncomfortable in the ear but it fits quite nicely and doesn't fall off. And it's also comfortable to wear for extended periods of time.

I doubt they'll win any acoustic awards, I've heard better earbuds: but for the price and the comfort I think they're worth it.

On a slight negative and final note: the carrying case is annoying, because it's not a wind-y case, which makes it difficult to take them out or put them away quickly because you have to sit there wrapping the cord around the case or unwrapping it.

I have had a number of earbuds... and I picked these up because they were cheap and available.

Since that purchase, I have been impressed by the level of comfort... as well as the volume and quality of sound. They may not be as amazing as professional DJ headphones... but as far as earbuds go, these are pretty darn good. It helps that they are really, really comfortable... the soft rubber stuff makes for an eargasmic experience. The guy before me made a good and valid point about how annoying the case is... but since I have broken the last two pairs of earbuds that I have owned... I will religiously use this new case. The other great thing about these headphones, is that they have an equally long cord for both ears... and if you have ever tried Panasonic, or a few other brands of earbuds, you know how annoying it is when you have have to wear them a certain way. The cord is also suitably long to be worn from a pocket to your ear.

Overall... these are a good buy if you need comfort and portability... the only thing better than this would be to get some Sony DJ headphones... but those look really silly when you are walking around listening to your iPod.

These headphones can't seem to handle any bass or loud volume. You hear a rattling sound if you turn your stereo above 6. Also, you hear the people talking around you, and they can hear what your listening to.

These headphones, i believe are very good for their innexpensive price. although maybe not as high tech as some of the other headphones on the market, i found that the sound provided by the headphones was very good, and the sound released to people that werent listening was minimal. I play the guitar, and i neede headphones so i could hear my self bette, so i bought these.

I'm not brutal with equipment, but in a few short weeks, the flimsy plastic part that holds the ear pieces to the headset broke on one side. Within a month or two the other side went as well forcing me to use office paper clamps to hold the whole thing together.

I use them in bed late at night when the household is asleep. A second convenient bedside charger would be nice. I tend to put them down on the bedside table before I doze off rather than get up and walk across the room hook it up for recharge. If you're a late night TV watcher, you too might call this justifiable laziness. Too many times I put them on the next night and find the battery's down.

I honestly think that before I replace them with another wireless, I'd find a way to sneak an extension wire across the room through attic or basement space and go with a standard wired headphone.

I thought wireless would allow me to move freely while listening to music, but that has been anything but the case. With my pair, there is a constant 'fuzz' almost like I am listening to an old AM radio. It falls out of frequency so often I find myself adjusting the tuner usually after 3 or 4 songs. If I simply move four feet away from the receiver I am punished by extremely loud distortion. It's painful. Since I've had these I've yet to be able to find the 'perfect' frequency, never getting the clear sound I had hoped for. In addition to the flawed usability, these are a lot bigger than they look and a just a little too cumbersome. I've learned that with wireless headphones it's best to spend a little extra for better quality. But it cheap, buy it twice.

I can't complain about the cost, I actually won these, so mine were free.

These headphones provide hours of wireless listening throughout your house and even the surrounding outdoors. The sound quality is ok, the low is good, the midrange is ok, but the high just sucks. With some EQ adjustment they sound better but they always seem to have too low of a tone for my taste. They completely cover the ears and block most outside sound which helps in noisy areas. They are rather comfortable but due to the ear pressure after about an hour or so they become uncomfortable.

Let me go over a quick Pros and Cons list:

Pros:

- Good wireless reception, works well all around the house and even near by outdoors. Similar range to a good cordless phone.

- Good low and ok midrange.

- Fairly lightweight for this type of device.

- Comes with everything you need including batteries.

- Easy to setup.

Cons:

- Bad highrange, low tone.

- Becomes uncomfortable after a while due to the pressure of the pads.

- When the batteries get low the tuning may have to be adjusted some times, but not really a problem I had much.

In the end I have found it a useful product to have if you like walking around your house listening to tunes from your computer or some other non-portable device. If you want great "highs" look elsewhere, but for general listening these will provide you with a relatively cheap, average wireless solution. For this I give the product 3 stars.

I picked up a pair of the rs-65's cheap from Amazon for watching movies and listening to music at night, so as not to disturb my wife and daughter. I have to agree with the previous reviewer's negative review---though they are not the worst headphones I've ever heard, they are not a good value for the money. When I first took them out of the box, my impression was, "Gee, these things are made of some pretty cheesy plastic." Getting a good, comfortable fit for me was impossible, and wearing them through a whole CD or movie was not a pleasant experience.

While the range for actually hearing some kind of sound may be ok, even a few feet away from the transmitter there is still static, which is very distracting while listening to music. Watching a movie is a little better, as you sit in one position, but even turning your head from side to side creates noise---I just can't bear to have noise interfere with the sound. Even aside from the static, the sound from these headphones is not good for the money. My corded Koss Portapros (you can check them out here on Amazon---much cheaper) sound infinitely better, and they are by no means an audiophile set of phones.

These headphones also have a surround sound feature which adds some "space" to the sound in your head, though the overall effect is pretty weak and does not compare with a true surround sound 5.1 system. Overall, I thought these headphones had tolerable sound for movies, but were just too uncomfortable to wear through an entire feature. After doing more research, I think wireless headphone technology still needs much improvement, and I plan to stay with corded phones for now.

As many people have pointed out, be prepared for static and temporary loss of signal as you move around while wearing these. It might annoy you (like me) to the point of having to go through the hassle of returning them. I do find them light and comfy, and the sound is fine ifmost of the time. If you keep your head stationary you won't have any break in the sound. But if your head is perfectly stationary, do you really need cordless? My opinion: live with the cord if you can...until the technology gets a bit better... it will.

I really enjoy the mobility and the light weight. The sound isn't bad either. Typical of the better Sennheisers with decent bass and a nicely balanced high end. The downside of the cordless design though is that they lack the extreme detail of the best headphones and the highs aren't extended enough to get a silky topend.
I hesitated to buy these though based upon some comments by reviewers. There is some truth to these comments but they don't bother me. Yes, the headphone cup is a bit small and they do seem a bit tight at first. But I'm an over six foot male with a large head and average size ears. My ears fit fine and after just a couple of minutes they don't feel tight at all. I can wear them for hours comfortably. And reception isn't perfect. I can use them most anywhere in my large house but there are some deadspots based more on how I turn my head than distance. The good news though is that just a tiny head adjustment clears it up.
And lastly I recommend the SR65 as the sweet spot in the line. It has the autotuning feature which I suspect is important to decent reception and it has the surround sound feature which basically seems to feed the deeper bass to both channels. It does give more ambience and better bass. It definitely does enhance the sound of some recordings. The SR85 lacks the surround and substitutes dynamic noise reduction. That's evidently a compander system that according to the SR85 reviews seems to compress the dynamics. No problem here on dynamics.

This set of headphones were bad right out of the box..I have co-worker/friends that have purchased the same product ( refurbished by the same company ) and most have failed to work properly within 2 to 5 days..problems like ( canceling feature doesn't work at all..Humming noise..or bad sound quality ) I wouldn't waste my time or money sending product back to this company..as they can't fix them right the first time..(...)..

Excellent noise-cancelling, where the noise is mostly bass and all-pervading (e.g. inside a plane in flight, or near to rumbling air-conditioning).

It's not so good at supressing high frequencies (inevitably, 'cos of the laws of physics), so the job I wanted it to do - blocking out other people's voices when I'm trying to concentrate in the office - is beyond it's abilities, sadly. It makes the voices quieter, but it makes the rumbing air-conditioning and other background stuff quieter still, so the voices actually become more obvious, especially if the person talking is within 6 feet of you.

Also, I find the rigid plastic head band tries to squeeze my head while I'm wearing the thing, but maybe that's just 'cos I have a big head! =:o} The weight and bulk of the battery on one side of the headband makes them a bit lop-sided. I'd prefer to see the electronics built into the cable, rather than weighing down the headpiece istelf.

They're certainly the most affordable noise-cancelling headphones I've found anywhere, and do a great job or reproducing whatever music you're playing through them, and thus they're good value if, like me, you're not quite sure it's worth shelling out a fortune on an experimental idea: At least if the noise-cancellation doesn't do the trick for you, you'll still have a decent pair of headphones for occasional use! =:o}

If you're searching for a way to hear music on your daily commute to work, on an airplane, or on a trip, than look no more. Produced by the creative minds at Aiwa, the "HP-CN5 Noise Canceling Headphones" are the perfect piece of technology to have around.

Utilizing noise-cancellation technology, these headphones block all sources of outdoor noise and interference such as an airplane engine, a car motor, or screeching rails when listening to your portable radio/compact disc player. I first had the experience of using noise-cancellation headphones on a flight in 2000, and have always loved the quality of sound they have given me. Many companies, such as Sony and Bose have also produced their own versions of these ingenious headphones, however if price is a matter to you, than I would stick with Aiwa's version (Sony and Bose have priced their headphones over $100).

While these headphones are great because they can easily fit into your bag, purse, briefcase and come with leather case, there are negative aspects to them. The fact that the cord is too short doesn't help me when I want to use these headphones when jogging or working out on a treadmill. Also if exposed to plenty of wear and tear, the headphones tend to break easier than traditional headphones. However, compared to their headphones, I wouldn't trade these for ones that will not give you the same quality of sound as Aiwa.

In conclusion, these are great headphones to have period. Aiwa has produced another winning product in their long line of audio products.

This review is for the Advent AW720. Don't buy it.

1. Very weak battery life.

According to the manual, it takes 12 hours to completely charge the Ni-Cd battery and a completely charged battery yields 4 hours of playtime. 12/4 is unacceptable. The weakest of Sony headphones have batteries that charge for 24 hours but yield 30 hours playtime. So if you charge the weakest Sony headphone battery for 12 hours, you get 15 hours, or 3 times the charge! That's more like it! The Advent battery makes you feel limited and I don't like feeling limited. Second, this may sound silly, it costs you to charge the headphones. If I didn't live in a dorm, I'd care! Those nickels can add up!

2. Poor clarity for anything except music (no dvd, videos, etc.)

Really, when I'm not using my headphones, I always have them charging! I always start off with 100% charged battery. And I play around with tuning knobs on both the headphone and the base. I do everything yet I cannot get rid of the "audio scratches" when watching a DVD on tv or watching a video on my computer. True, the careful tuning can get rid of the "hiss" but the "audio scratches" will be there at least every ten seconds no matter what you do when using the headphones for anything but music.

I tried to use the "special connection" (for my dvd player)that they give you rather than the typical headphone jack connection. Batteries were 75% charged. As usual, with proper tuning, the hiss was gone. But the "audio scratches" stayed! Those scratches totally ruin your movie watching experience! Second, I had to crawl down, disconnect the tv audio input nad then connect the headphone input to the dvd. When I finished trying to use the headphone, I had to crawl done again, disconnect and reconnect the tv audio. Who wants to go through that trouble for a "special connection" that doesn't really work? And how is it even possible if the battery is so weak that after half way through the movie it is signifcantly uncharged? Pathetic!

That being said, the sound quality of this headphone is great for music from my computer. No doubt about it. There are very few "audio scratches" there and with proper tuning the hiss will go down. Also, contrary to some reports, these headphones can be very, very loud indeed without being harsh!

3. Not very durable (then again, how many are?)

Close to the ear cup, there is a strip that is very easy to wear and tear. The ear cups themselves are of hollow plastic (although this is OK). Every time I put on the headphone, I feel afraid to break that part. Even the ear cups are poorly connected to the stem (this doesn't seem to be trouble). I admit it is easy to reinforce that weak area near the cup with duck tape and it won't trouble you at all, but who wants that! But then again, how many durable headphones are there? I wouldn't put my money on the RCA 160 Whip or whatever. I'm sure you can find something better anyway.

4. Range is very good!

I live in a dorm where there are thick walls. I can get out of my room and up to 30 (not 300) feet in the hallway and I can listen to music with no trouble. Hey, that's not bad is it, considering the fact that some headphones promise only up to 24 (of course, you know what they promise isn't the same as it really is, so factor that in). I still think 30 feet near thick walls is very impressive. And I'll bet that if it was a more open area, I'd get even better range. Impressive for that and probably top notch!

Conclusion:

Don't buy it. The battery is unacceptable. Very limited play time. And you are limited only to music. You can't watch movies or videos or watch tv with this headphone! Oh no you can't, not without getting an annoying "audio scratch" every the seconds even if the battery if fully charged and you use the optimum connection they tell you on DVD! And that is unacceptable because it ruins your movie experience!

I paid 17 dollars for these headphones right here at amazon (I hear the current price is 64!). I'd say you cap your price to 40 dollars (be patient, there'll be some merchant selling for a 40 dollars or less) and buy a Sony. I hear that even the Sonys are very poor, but at least you get a stronger battery?

Good luck.

I shopped all around!! The AW791 Dolby Digital are the best value on the market. The sound is great, you have the freedom to move from room to room with only minimal sound loss. No "line of site" restrictions like the IR wireless headphones. Two "Digital" inputs and one analog means you can plug in an array of sources. Battery life exceeds all others. They are comfortable to wear for extended periods for the real long movies. The ONLY thing to look out for is the pivot point on each ear piece. It is a weak joint that can break if twisted wrong. Make certain to put on and take off with ease.
All around a great product and if you shop around you will NOT find an exact product like it. Way to go AR!

some of the reviews above are in-accurate.
First off: there is no tuning knob on the base so they (other reviews) must be referencing another model. (aw721?)
This model has three channel selectors

I got mine off ebay for $50.

pro's:
-works great, little hiss when its turned on, but this is because it is auto tuning ( 3 seconds)
-takes digital inputs (optical too)
-volume goes way up.
-comparable if not better than my Sony MDR-CD380
-freedom from my mp3 player, pc, etc
-? interferes with my cell phone's incomming signal. (side-effect, but nice "Feature" ;)

con's:
-feels weak. dont think it will survive a drop or sit-on

-the light on the base when charging does not glow. (I dont know if it should, I must call them)
-Batteries dont seem to charge. Maybe this problem is limited to my set.

This review is for the Advent AW720. Don't buy it.

1. Very weak battery life.

According to the manual, it takes 12 hours to completely charge the Ni-Cd battery and a completely charged battery yields 4 hours of playtime. 12/4 is unacceptable. The weakest of Sony headphones have batteries that charge for 24 hours but yield 30 hours playtime. So if you charge the weakest Sony headphone battery for 12 hours, you get 15 hours, or 3 times the charge! That's more like it! The Advent battery makes you feel limited and I don't like feeling limited. Second, this may sound silly, it costs you to charge the headphones. If I didn't live in a dorm, I'd care! Those nickels can add up!

2. Poor clarity for anything except music (no dvd, videos, etc.)

Really, when I'm not using my headphones, I always have them charging! I always start off with 100% charged battery. And I play around with tuning knobs on both the headphone and the base. I do everything yet I cannot get rid of the "audio scratches" when watching a DVD on tv or watching a video on my computer. True, the careful tuning can get rid of the "hiss" but the "audio scratches" will be there at least every ten seconds no matter what you do when using the headphones for anything but music.

I tried to use the "special connection" (for my dvd player)that they give you rather than the typical headphone jack connection. Batteries were 75% charged. As usual, with proper tuning, the hiss was gone. But the "audio scratches" stayed! Those scratches totally ruin your movie watching experience! Second, I had to crawl down, disconnect the tv audio input nad then connect the headphone input to the dvd. When I finished trying to use the headphone, I had to crawl done again, disconnect and reconnect the tv audio. Who wants to go through that trouble for a "special connection" that doesn't really work? And how is it even possible if the battery is so weak that after half way through the movie it is signifcantly uncharged? Pathetic!

That being said, the sound quality of this headphone is great for music from my computer. No doubt about it. There are very few "audio scratches" there and with proper tuning the hiss will go down. Also, contrary to some reports, these headphones can be very, very loud indeed without being harsh!

3. Not very durable (then again, how many are?)

Close to the ear cup, there is a strip that is very easy to wear and tear. The ear cups themselves are of hollow plastic (although this is OK). Every time I put on the headphone, I feel afraid to break that part. Even the ear cups are poorly connected to the stem (this doesn't seem to be trouble). I admit it is easy to reinforce that weak area near the cup with duck tape and it won't trouble you at all, but who wants that! But then again, how many durable headphones are there? I wouldn't put my money on the RCA 160 Whip or whatever. I'm sure you can find something better anyway.

4. Range is very good!

I live in a dorm where there are thick walls. I can get out of my room and up to 30 (not 300) feet in the hallway and I can listen to music with no trouble. Hey, that's not bad is it, considering the fact that some headphones promise only up to 24 (of course, you know what they promise isn't the same as it really is, so factor that in). I still think 30 feet near thick walls is very impressive. And I'll bet that if it was a more open area, I'd get even better range. Impressive for that and probably top notch!

Conclusion:

Don't buy it. The battery is unacceptable. Very limited play time. And you are limited only to music. You can't watch movies or videos or watch tv with this headphone! Oh no you can't, not without getting an annoying "audio scratch" every the seconds even if the battery if fully charged and you use the optimum connection they tell you on DVD! And that is unacceptable because it ruins your movie experience!

I paid 17 dollars for these headphones right here at amazon (I hear the current price is 64!). I'd say you cap your price to 40 dollars (be patient, there'll be some merchant selling for a 40 dollars or less) and buy a Sony. I hear that even the Sonys are very poor, but at least you get a stronger battery?

Good luck.

I shopped all around!! The AW791 Dolby Digital are the best value on the market. The sound is great, you have the freedom to move from room to room with only minimal sound loss. No "line of site" restrictions like the IR wireless headphones. Two "Digital" inputs and one analog means you can plug in an array of sources. Battery life exceeds all others. They are comfortable to wear for extended periods for the real long movies. The ONLY thing to look out for is the pivot point on each ear piece. It is a weak joint that can break if twisted wrong. Make certain to put on and take off with ease.
All around a great product and if you shop around you will NOT find an exact product like it. Way to go AR!

some of the reviews above are in-accurate.
First off: there is no tuning knob on the base so they (other reviews) must be referencing another model. (aw721?)
This model has three channel selectors

I got mine off ebay for $50.

pro's:
-works great, little hiss when its turned on, but this is because it is auto tuning ( 3 seconds)
-takes digital inputs (optical too)
-volume goes way up.
-comparable if not better than my Sony MDR-CD380
-freedom from my mp3 player, pc, etc
-? interferes with my cell phone's incomming signal. (side-effect, but nice "Feature" ;)

con's:
-feels weak. dont think it will survive a drop or sit-on

-the light on the base when charging does not glow. (I dont know if it should, I must call them)
-Batteries dont seem to charge. Maybe this problem is limited to my set.