Intro:
After reading so much about Bose whether due to hype or bashing, I found myself wanting to hear them first hand. With that in mind, I plunged down to Fry's intending to get the Bose Around-Ear model. When I got there, however, the AE model is SOLD OUT! So I settled for the Bose On-Ear. I walked out of Fry's $170 short. I'll be using the Keces DA152 as a DAC/Amp with my computer as source. Quick note on the Keces, I found it to be superior to the Little Dot MKIII with Russian 6Zh1P-EV driver tubes in almost every aspect save for the slightly more spherical soundstage, smoother and warmer midrange of the Little Dot. Two most notable superiority of the Keces are the extension on both ends while giving quite a bit more impact on every note. Bose OE is burned in for over 24+ hours (improved considerably).
Equipment experience: (At the time of review)
Amp/DAC:
- iBasso D2 Boa
- Marantz 2230B
- Nuforce Icon
- Little Dot MKIII
- Keces DA152
Headphones:
- RE1/RE2
- Sennheiser HD280 Pro
- Denon D2000
- Stax SR-Lambda
- Audio Technica W5000
Pictures:
Build Quality/Appearance:
I must say, the build quality of OE isn't that great which is the last thing you would want from a headphone that costs $170. It's made of mostly plastic and I feel like it'll easily break whenever I'm handling it. Portability is great since the OE's very compact and you can fold it up and store it in the carrying case that it came with. The cable is detachable and very flexible which is another big plus if you're on the go.
Comfort:
The OE is as the name suggested, having a supra-aural design. Overall I would say that it's quite comfortable while it's not anywhere near the level of a D2000 and Stax if long music session's your thing. However, The OE's very light weighing in at just 5.2 ounce so it won't be weighing your head down. The paddings on the earcup are quite soft and they don't clamp very hard against your ears, resting gently on your ear. Due to the on ear design, your ears do get quite warm after say an hour or so wearing it and my ears get tired with the OE sitting there after around 2 hours.
Sound Quality:
Highs:
First of all, no harshness or sibilance can be detected which is a definite plus. I still remember the grating harsh highs and sibilance of my HD280 hurting my ears. So what about the other aspects? Well, the OE's highs are recessed and very muffled. More often than not, it's overpowered by the bass. Sparkles and extension are sorely lacking which always leave you wanting for more especially when there's presence of string instruments. The most notable short coming must be hearing cymbals on this headphone. They can sound like they're made of plastic in some cases!
Bass:
If you think your D5000 has a lot of bass quantity? THINK AGAIN! There's only one word to describe the Bose OE's bass: OVERPOWERING. Before burn-in, the OE was just plain crap which gives out one noted boom (much like the bad subwoofer in cars that pass by on the street with their volume maxed out). After burn-in, bass improved considerably. It's still overpowering and boomy, but much less so than before. Any hint of bass(especially sub-bass) in the music will be emphasized to a ridiculous level. Speed, bass extension and definition is lacking. Drums sound very unrealistic.
Mids:
Again, it's recessed and very muffled and not enjoyable at all. I feel like singers are singing through a cup. On the other hand, since bass is emphasized and greatly boosted, male singers that have a deep voice suffer mightily. Their vocals are often mixed with, for lack of a better word, the boom of the boomy bass.
Soundstage/Detail:
Before burn-in, I felt like music's playing in a tiny box which made me feel suffocating which burn-in cured. The OE has a in your face presentation with a diffused soundstage spanning from left ear to right ear and it's very narrow in terms of depth. Soundstage coherency is also lacking. Often times, you'll hear instruments on the opposite ends of the stage with vocal right in the middle but nothing else happening between them. Detail and Instrument separation's fair when bass is not present in music. If there's any bass in the music, you'll be lucky to hear other instruments clearly.
Overall:
The Bose On-Ear is an extremely dark headphone that has overpowering bass with little to no definition. Besides the overpowering bass, the most striking thing you'll hear when you first put them on is how muffled they sound. Then you'll notice their rolled off highs. Portability and comfort, however, is the OE's strong suit. For $170, they're definitely a poor performer especially since the HD280 Pro that I have was only $70 when I bought it and it's superior in many aspects.
Update After 50+ hours of burn-in:
This will be my final update as the sound of the OE hasn't changed much after the 30+ hour mark of burn-in but it has improved considerably. The most notable change is the bass. It has mellowed out a lot and doesn't intrude the other ranges nearly as much as before. Bass has tightened a lot more and has much more definition to it although it is still somewhat boomy. Like the bass, the lower midrange is still overemphasized but not as much as before. Soundstage also opened up a bit more. Overall, the OE reminds me of Shure E4C's(not 100% if it's E4C) sound signature(warm with rolled off highs and bass is on the boomy side), but a lot less clarity because the sound is muffled. If it isn't so muffled, the headphone would be decent and a lot more enjoyable. However, it's not $170 enjoyable; more like $70 - 80 enjoyable(IMHO).
After reading so much about Bose whether due to hype or bashing, I found myself wanting to hear them first hand. With that in mind, I plunged down to Fry's intending to get the Bose Around-Ear model. When I got there, however, the AE model is SOLD OUT! So I settled for the Bose On-Ear. I walked out of Fry's $170 short. I'll be using the Keces DA152 as a DAC/Amp with my computer as source. Quick note on the Keces, I found it to be superior to the Little Dot MKIII with Russian 6Zh1P-EV driver tubes in almost every aspect save for the slightly more spherical soundstage, smoother and warmer midrange of the Little Dot. Two most notable superiority of the Keces are the extension on both ends while giving quite a bit more impact on every note. Bose OE is burned in for over 24+ hours (improved considerably).
Equipment experience: (At the time of review)
Amp/DAC:
- iBasso D2 Boa
- Marantz 2230B
- Nuforce Icon
- Little Dot MKIII
- Keces DA152
Headphones:
- RE1/RE2
- Sennheiser HD280 Pro
- Denon D2000
- Stax SR-Lambda
- Audio Technica W5000
Pictures:
Build Quality/Appearance:
I must say, the build quality of OE isn't that great which is the last thing you would want from a headphone that costs $170. It's made of mostly plastic and I feel like it'll easily break whenever I'm handling it. Portability is great since the OE's very compact and you can fold it up and store it in the carrying case that it came with. The cable is detachable and very flexible which is another big plus if you're on the go.
Comfort:
The OE is as the name suggested, having a supra-aural design. Overall I would say that it's quite comfortable while it's not anywhere near the level of a D2000 and Stax if long music session's your thing. However, The OE's very light weighing in at just 5.2 ounce so it won't be weighing your head down. The paddings on the earcup are quite soft and they don't clamp very hard against your ears, resting gently on your ear. Due to the on ear design, your ears do get quite warm after say an hour or so wearing it and my ears get tired with the OE sitting there after around 2 hours.
Sound Quality:
Highs:
First of all, no harshness or sibilance can be detected which is a definite plus. I still remember the grating harsh highs and sibilance of my HD280 hurting my ears. So what about the other aspects? Well, the OE's highs are recessed and very muffled. More often than not, it's overpowered by the bass. Sparkles and extension are sorely lacking which always leave you wanting for more especially when there's presence of string instruments. The most notable short coming must be hearing cymbals on this headphone. They can sound like they're made of plastic in some cases!
Bass:
If you think your D5000 has a lot of bass quantity? THINK AGAIN! There's only one word to describe the Bose OE's bass: OVERPOWERING. Before burn-in, the OE was just plain crap which gives out one noted boom (much like the bad subwoofer in cars that pass by on the street with their volume maxed out). After burn-in, bass improved considerably. It's still overpowering and boomy, but much less so than before. Any hint of bass(especially sub-bass) in the music will be emphasized to a ridiculous level. Speed, bass extension and definition is lacking. Drums sound very unrealistic.
Mids:
Again, it's recessed and very muffled and not enjoyable at all. I feel like singers are singing through a cup. On the other hand, since bass is emphasized and greatly boosted, male singers that have a deep voice suffer mightily. Their vocals are often mixed with, for lack of a better word, the boom of the boomy bass.
Soundstage/Detail:
Before burn-in, I felt like music's playing in a tiny box which made me feel suffocating which burn-in cured. The OE has a in your face presentation with a diffused soundstage spanning from left ear to right ear and it's very narrow in terms of depth. Soundstage coherency is also lacking. Often times, you'll hear instruments on the opposite ends of the stage with vocal right in the middle but nothing else happening between them. Detail and Instrument separation's fair when bass is not present in music. If there's any bass in the music, you'll be lucky to hear other instruments clearly.
Overall:
The Bose On-Ear is an extremely dark headphone that has overpowering bass with little to no definition. Besides the overpowering bass, the most striking thing you'll hear when you first put them on is how muffled they sound. Then you'll notice their rolled off highs. Portability and comfort, however, is the OE's strong suit. For $170, they're definitely a poor performer especially since the HD280 Pro that I have was only $70 when I bought it and it's superior in many aspects.
Update After 50+ hours of burn-in:
This will be my final update as the sound of the OE hasn't changed much after the 30+ hour mark of burn-in but it has improved considerably. The most notable change is the bass. It has mellowed out a lot and doesn't intrude the other ranges nearly as much as before. Bass has tightened a lot more and has much more definition to it although it is still somewhat boomy. Like the bass, the lower midrange is still overemphasized but not as much as before. Soundstage also opened up a bit more. Overall, the OE reminds me of Shure E4C's(not 100% if it's E4C) sound signature(warm with rolled off highs and bass is on the boomy side), but a lot less clarity because the sound is muffled. If it isn't so muffled, the headphone would be decent and a lot more enjoyable. However, it's not $170 enjoyable; more like $70 - 80 enjoyable(IMHO).
