Bose® QuietComfort® 15 Acoustic Noise Cancelling® Headphones(Old Version)
by Bose
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List Price: Our Price: $222.00 You Save: $77.95 (26%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: CE See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Bose® QuietComfort® 15 Acoustic Noise Cancelling® Headphones(Old Version)
Customer Review: That $300 in your wallet should be spent in an instant.
Summary: 4 Stars
I've had these for only a few days now, but I know what I need to. Problems first: The 300$ price tag is, well, obviously overpriced. Bose is notorious for this sorta thing, but I get it - Brand value ; being able to say its Bose, blah blah blah... to me, these would be a good value if they were around $200 - $230. Secondly - weight. After a little while, maybe 25 minutes or so, you feel them start to push down on your head slightly. Thats not really worth complaining about though. Thirdly - size. Bose could have definitely made these noticeably smaller without compromising anywhere, as they are fairly big. Fourth - cable. The cable is rather long, and could surely be shorter without being a problem for most consumers. Fifth, the largest problem of all - Noise cancelling. The noise cancelling ability itself is great and there are no problems with that, but you are not given the option of when to turn it on. It must always be on. And once your battery runs out, you need a new one to listen to anything, so there's no conserving it for when you really want noise cancelling. This is a real shame, because many cheaper headsets, such as the $180 Philips SHN9500, offer this much needed option, along with a better, more natural placed switch, as well as a MUCH better battery compartment.
Good stuff: Firstly - design. Bose, across all its products, offers classy, yet not overstated design, and this headset is no exception. The noise cancelling indicator light has been changed from red on previous models, to green, which offers a nicer look overall. Secondly - comfort. In terms of padding, around ear space, and fit, these headphones are wonderful. The padding on the earcups is fantastic, better than headsets in lower pricepoints, such as the Philips. Third - sound quality. The sound quality is great, as it should be for $300. Good mid range, good highs, the bass is a little low compared to such things as Monster Beats, but I like low bass, so I made sure they were that way. I'm certainly not saying that there isn't enough bass, there just isn't a boat load. that's all. Fourth - accessories. The QC 15s come with a nice, compact Bose case, a AAA battery, and an airplane adapter, which is nice, since the main consumer base consists of frequent flyers.
So, things to consider:
1. High price
2. Amazing comfort
3. No noise cancelling off option
4. Fantastic sound quality
5. Elegant design
6. Bose name
7. Good carrying case.
If you're willing to spend $300 dollars on a headset like I was, then I employ you to buy these headphones because they are fantastic despite the flaws.
If not, make a pick from either of these two lists:
[...]
Owning these headphones is like owning a 5 year old child. Annoying from time to time and for different reasons, but if someone tried to take it away from you, you'd kill them.
Customer Review: New to Noise Canceling, tinnitus sufferer
Summary: 4 Stars
Since there are a ton of reviews on these I figured I'd approach it from a different standpoint - me. I'm a middleaged guy, very new to noise canceling technology, and I also suffer from tinnitus and am hyper-sensitive to certain frequencies. First let me say that everything you have read about these headphones is pretty much true. To recap that: they look good, they are expensive, the sound quality is not as great as you can get from other headphones (non-NC) in this price range, the cord is thin and seems flimsy, the NC works very well but does give a sensation of pressure.
My ears ring like crazy. Military accident. It sucks. I'm always looking for a better listening experience for my music. I'm not an audiophile. I listen to crappy mp3 files on my crappy phone. So my source sucks depending upon the song.
I'm really not sure how I feel about these headphones just yet. The NC is cool and does drown out the outside world pretty well. I don't travel much but work is noisy an I thought if I could drown out the background noise that I could listen to my music at lower volumes. But when the volume is lowered that pressure effect, or more of a noise dampening effect seems worse. So you really can't lower the music and hear it better than with non-NC headphones after all. In fact, you have to turn it up a bit to overcome the feeling of pressure. I love bass and the bass while okay on these seems to be attenuated, no doubt a by product of the NC which tends to drown out the lower frequenicies, or so I've read. The mids are nice and up front but the highs seem a little harsh. This is very bad for me because due to my type of hearing problems I'm hypersenstive to loud/high pitched sounds. I also cannot wear IEMs. They are physically uncomfortable to wear no matter which the tip type and I've tried them all.
At this price point I'm not sure these are the phones for me. If I flew alot or traveled on noisy busses/trains then maybe. But I think that I can probably get a better closed-cup headphone without NC for this kind of money. I've just bought them today and spent a good part of the work day listening to them so I'll have to give them a little more time. If I was Bose I would do a couple things to make these wicked winners: Make them bluetooth or make the primary cord short with an extension. Also, they sell for cord with a micro phone for use with cell phones. At this price that really should be included. I'd up the bass (I hear they dropped the bass down a bit as compared to the QC2's), and dial back the highs and make them less harsh.
They do get a little hot on my head but not as hot as the regular Bose over-the-ear phones I've owned. In fact, that will be my next step - a/b them with a set of those. If I end up sending them back I'll put the money for some other, non-NC phones in this price range.
Customer Review: Blissful Solitude
Summary: 5 Stars
Update:
15 months - still using the QC15's several times per week and they are still holding up well. No fit or finish issues what so ever. I do keep them in their case when not using them and when they are in my laptop bag. Ejoying them even more with my new WP7 phone.
Update:
After 4 months of daily use these Headphones are holding up very well (especially the headband and earcups which were crap on the QC2's). I am still super pleased with this purchase.
Exec Summary
- I highly recommend these headphones.
- Good in any situation where you need to concentrate. I could have really used these when I was in college for studying in dorms, libraries, etc.
- Battery life is excellent. I am pretty sure I have used them more than 24 hours on the original battery that came in the package and it is still going.
- Music sounds great. I have just started running thru my mp3 library but have hit on several songs that I know push the drivers pretty hard and they sound pretty damn good.
- Detachable cable. If you just want the noise cancelling, you can detach the cable and be cable free.
If you want to know why I am giving such a positive review after only having the headphones for 6 days, read on.
I spent a long time (weeks) researching Noise Cancelling headphones after getting moved to an office across from a computer lab with over 1000 rack mounted servers and right under its very large ceiling mounted HVAC unit. I tried a friend's QC3's for a day and things were better (I could concentrate and not get headaches), but I found the on-ear not as comfortable and not as good at blocking the sound as I had expected for the money. Then last Wednesday, I happened to read a Gizmodo article about how Bose was updating its Headphone lines and the 15's were arriving in store on Thursday. So first thing Thursday morning I dropped by the local mall and tried out a pair. I was sold after five minutes of wearing them and went straight to work to put them to work. After installing the battery I turned them on without the cable connected and put them on. Ah, quiet - Even the high pitch whine of the server fans was reduced by 90%. I was able to play some background music at a very low level and I now I could hear no environmental noise what so ever. I was still feeling guilty about spending $300; however I fell ill on Friday and had to be hospitalized. I was placed in a room that was right next to the nurse's station (great for service, awful for noise levels). Luckily I had brought along my Zune and my QC15's. I spent most of my three day hospital stay listening to E-Books in blissful silence. No bells, whistles, intercom pages, visitors talking, next door neighbors coughing, etc. Needless to say, it's the best $300 I have ever spent.
Customer Review: Your own personal cone of silence
Summary: 5 Stars
Some of you may remember the infamous Cone of Silence from the Get Smart comedy series made in the 1960s. In the show, the cone of silence was meant to provide a, well, cone of silence around two people who wanted to have a private conversation, like when discussing top secret information, so that no one outside the cone could hear them. The cone never worked correctly in the show, which is part of why it was a funny prop.
I've often wanted, or rather maybe needed is the better word, my own personal cone of silence. Since I, in part, make my living by writing, e.g., computer code as well as prose, having my own personal cone of silence around me so that I can read and write without having my thoughts constantly interrupted is critical to being productive. Moreover, sometimes, like when on flying in a plane or staying in a noisy hotel, I just want to tune out my environment. And finally, when mowing the lawn, I'd like to continue listening to my audio books or music without damaging my hearing.
Those were my criteria, and after using the Bose QuietComfort 15 Noise Cancelling Headphones, I'd have to say I indeed have found my own personal cone of silence.
The headphones work best at filtering out, say, engine-type noise. I can listen to my audio books while mowing the grass on the tractor without having to adjust the volume. In other words, I use the same volume setting while mowing the grass to listen to my audio books as when listening to them inside the house. That's pretty effective, to me.
The headphones do also suppress higher-pitched noises, like dogs barking or humans talking, but the headphones do not completely make those noises completely silent. Those noises are muffled, as if they were happening in another room.
As for comfort-I've worn these headphones for hours at a time and they did not bother me at all. I did notice that when I was outside mowing the grass, in the sun, that my ears did feel warm, but this was a minor inconvenience compared to the noise cancellation benefits.
The headphones come with a handy carrying case along with an audio cable to connect the headphones to audio devices as well as an airplane audio adapter plug. Also, they fold flat for easy packing. And note that there is some mechanical noise suppression from just wearing the headphones, but the noise cancelling function is battery operated-one AAA battery (included) gives you about 35 hours of noise cancelling quiet.
Are they worth the price? To me, yes. The hours of productivity they have allowed so far are already worth more than the purchase price. So I guess it comes down to how much you value your time, what types of environments you can be productive in, and if you've always dreamed of having your own personal cone of silence.
Customer Review: Astounding Sound AND Noise Cancellation
Summary: 5 Stars
I decided to buy a pair of noise canceling headphones after moving to a different location at work where I am in closer proximity to a rack of computers that runs constantly. After a short while the whirr of the fans in the computers and the rack in which they are mounted gets very tiring and annoys the ears. After doing some research, I finally decided on the Bose QuietComfort 15, and almost immediately I have seen that I made the right choice.
I was fortunate enough to get my hands on one of these before I committed my money so I could test the quality. I was very pleased when I put on the headphones, turned them on and all of the ambient noise around me simply vanished. The sound of the air conditioning, the murmuring of people chatting around me, even traffic outside was reduced to such a degree that I felt like I was in a bubble. I bought them on the spot.
I put these headphones through two major tests outside of work.
First, I plugged them into my iPod and turned them on. All I could hear when the music played was the music. Talking around me was overcome by the noise cancellation and the music, which was not set to a particularly high volume. As many have commented, the bass is very rich with these headphones but that's fine with me, as I really appreciate good bass response. Treble and mid-range are also good, though not quite as bright as the bass.
The really big surprise was when I plugged them into the mixing board where I was doing live recording. I was shocked at how effectively I could hear every sound coming through the microphones but practically nothing else. The sound was clear, crisp and not muddied in any way I could ascertain, which gave me a much better idea of what was recording onto the CD. I had used a lesser headset for this purpose, but no longer.
Some noises do get through, such as loud talking and even the typing on my keyboard, but those sounds are muffled quite a bit. The idea is to eliminate droning, obnoxious noise such as engine noise (there are several mentions in the documentation about wearing these on planes), while still allowing certain things to get through. These are certainly not perfect in that regard but they do come close.
In the past I have bought headphones only from either Sony or Sennheiser, with a very strong bias for the latter. This is my first set of Bose headphones and they are definitely the best pair I have ever used (let alone owned). I regard these as very much worth the price and gladly recommend them for anyone wanting to hear nothing but the music without blasting out the ears. These are high quality earphones and will please the enthusiast looking for good sound as well as the traveler looking for a quiet ride.