[localredhead]

...For the reaming I'm gonna get.
 
First let me tell you I got them for $80 BNIB and I have a 2 year protection plan on them, should they be a POS at least they are covered.  Are they overpriced at 149?  I'm not sure they are honestly when I compare them to other offerings in that price range and factor in comfort and other things (customer service, etc).
 
So, I am not an audiophile but I DO CARE about what I am hearing and I am very analytical.  I listen to music through headphones or IEMs at least 5-6 hours a day at work.  I'm a software developer... so I get caught up in *all* the details and I'm pretty much an IEM / headphone geek.
 
Anyways -  I needed something really comfortable and it needed to be fun... but still mostly accurate.  I wanted them for work because my A151's seal too well and I hear nothing else but music when they are on.  By boss has taken to throwing markers at me to get my attention. Full sized cans give me too much bass-head (dents in my hair)  So I needed an supra-aural headphone that still sealed reasonably well.
 
I used the sound signatiure of my 151's as a reference point.
 
I tried a lot of consumer grade portable headphones and the only ones that felt like I could wear for a long time was the Bose OE2's.  The klipch one's felt nice but the cups were awkward. The bass felt too out of place. I thought the beats were comfy but the bass was horribly bloated and I've heard suspect reviews about the Solo's durability.
 
I thought long and hard about the Skullcandy Aviators.  REAL long and hard (heh)... in the end they still felt like a POS even though they were comfortable.  I do think they sounded nice but felt like they lacked bass.  I also felt like they had a big sound stage but everything was recessed and the bass had to be turned down so it wouldn't cover the rest of the spectrum. I also got the sense the chrome would flake off without much use.  They do have a life warranty but like I said, I needed it for work and they were simply too gaudy to sit at my desk with them on.
 
I had to consider the OE2's.  They felt great... but all the guys at head-fi would think I'm a loser... this is the **** that goes through my head.  Stupid right?
 
I felt like I was taking a huge gamble because I did my research. I know nobody here likes Bose.  I know Joker rated the AE2's a 7/10 on sound... but said they had an odd sound stage.  He's also rated a few other headphones that I know I like and have had experience with.  I happen to think the AE2's feel great but look cheap so I wouldn't buy them.
 
Honestly guys... OE2's - they sound pretty good.  Compared to my A151's I'd say they sound slightly warmer with a smaller but more three dimensional sound stage.
 
I am by no means qualified. That said I feel as though when I listen to the OE2's, compared with my A151, the sound is very similar only the A151 feels like I am watching a band on a stage, and the OE2's make me feel like I'm in a small concert hall.  I don't know which my preference is, I do enjoy my A151's a lot and I thought everything I tried that strayed too far from them was rubbish.
 
I listen to Jazz, Rock, Hip Hop, Dubstep, DnB.
 
I'd really like someone here who is more qualified than I to review the OE2's.  I'm at least curious to see how far off the mark I am.  Based off other things I've heard, I'd give them a 7/10 on sound.  9/10 comfort.
 
The cable is pretty nice and detachable as well.  
 
Like I said I brought my own lube.
 
 
 

 

[J0nny]

 
Quote:

...[it] felt like they lacked bass. 
...and the bass had to be turned down so it wouldn't cover the rest of the spectrum.

 
Um, what? Theres two conflicting points for the Klipsch Ones right there. I wanted to try the OE2 but could never really bring myself to do it. Especially as every other Bose product I've owned has been a POS.

 

[Stay808]

From my experience,
 
Bose IEMS are extremely overpriced for what you are offered.  Their design might be one of the main reasons most people buy then and also because of how they market their product.  Bose at $80 dollars is still what you can call "overpriced" at 80 dollars, there are much better options, at $149 dollars the IEMS better come with a nice steak dinner!  From my experience in the past with Bose IEMs, the only positive side about them is the fact that they are pretty comfortable.  Other then that, the sound quality of them are not great for the price you are paying, and also they tend to have a lot of problems with their cable.

 

[wilzc]

The QC15 and QC3 are overpriced, but the AE2 and OE2 as well as the older Triports are pretty much okay in value. You do pay a slight premium coz its BOSe, and the build quality is abit shoddy but the comfort is EXTREME and the sound is really passable, even for full RRP of 150. At about 100 or so, this is quite a bargain contrary to popular belief. Sadly in Australia, these are 250-300. So it sux real bad hahaha.

 

[sulkoudai]

Quote:

The QC15 and QC3 are overpriced, but the AE2 and OE2 as well as the older Triports are pretty much okay in value. You do pay a slight premium coz its BOSe, and the build quality is abit shoddy but the comfort is EXTREME and the sound is really passable, even for full RRP of 150. At about 100 or so, this is quite a bargain contrary to popular belief. Sadly in Australia, these are 250-300. So it sux real bad hahaha.

nah, 100-150 bucks is way to expensive for Bose. the V Moda M80s are only 180 bucks now and the M80s are better than crappy Bose in anyway

 

[wilzc]

Quote:

nah, 100-150 bucks is way to expensive for Bose. the V Moda M80s are only 180 bucks now and the M80s are better than crappy Bose in anyway

Nowhere near as comfortable on my ears. But YMMV.
 
They do not have a vertical hinge thus do not sit well on my protruding ears. The BOSE is amazingly comfortable.
 
So for 30-80 dollars cheaper, the BOSE offers an alternative to m80 that is arguably not as good sounding or well built but an option that some can wear for hours on end as opposed to the m80 which hurt me like hell.

 

[localredhead]

I did not conflict myself about the klipch image ones.
 
I also did not buy or look at ANY bose IEMS - it just so happens I used an IEM as my reference point for sound signature and those were my A151's which arguably have an accurate sound signature reminiscant of the RE0's but with more bass.
 
The product of topic is the Bose OE2 which is not an IEM but has a sound signature *Resembling* my A151's.
 
In the 149 price range you have the Skullcandy Aviators - and nobody calls them over priced crap... in fact most people say "I hate skull candy but these sound nice"...  Honestly in my hands they still looked flaky to me and of questionable quality.  This is a feeling I do not get with the OE2's which seem well built even though they are all plastic.  You also have the beats by dre - but people just say "They have too much bass, the sound signature is distorted."  Then you also have the klipch image ones - which IMHO sound ok but the bass was seperated from the rest of the spectrum too much for my ears.  
 
Are my OE2's overpriced compared to the above?  Not IMO.
 
Of all the ones I listed above, people don't say they are overpriced POS - when I factor in things like Comfort, Sound Quality, and Customer Service on repairs, I feel like the Bose OE2's edge the rest out of the picture.  So why are Bose the only ones in the overpriced category?  Could it be because people are over-generalizing and not giving it a fare shake?  In this price range I challenge anyone to come up with a pair of headphones that sound as good but feel as comfortable.
 
My OE2's have a decent detachable cable, a decent carrying case, exceptional comfort, and a decent sound signature.  Can ANYONE here who is qualified comment on these factors and not the price?  I feel like the price is all people really know about the Bose products and very few have actually used them.  The OE2's are not reviewed here so I have my doubts as to anyones expertise with them unless they were given an honest review and I don't see many people lining up to do it.  The only reason why I feel compelled to throw this in the forum's face is because they actually do sound good.  Believe me if they were **** I would be lining up to dump on bose like the rest...
 
Instead I'd like to highlight klipch for its poor customer service and overpriced products - especially when compared to Bose.  
 
My opinion solely... but an informed one.
 
Bose has a serious stigmatism around here.  I like what I like - but if someone with experience could comment and give them an honest review that'd be great.   I'd even consider lending mine out for such a purpose.
 
 
 

 

[Stay808]

I do agree that Bose's Customer Service is one of the best, due to the fact that they actually have official "Bose" stores which make it convenient for people to just walk in and get an  exchange(bose rarely do repairs on headphones/iems).  

 

[localredhead]

Doing some more research into the sound quality on the OE2's.
 
Bear in mind the following thread discusses the AE2, the oe's should have a similar signature.
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/575257/bose-refuse-to-reveal-ae2-technical-specifications/15#post_7817533
 
In comparing the bose AE's sound signature with that of the M50's, they don't appear to be far off.
 
I'm seriously thinking that Bose is just hated on the same way all the skaters hated on Abercrombie back when I was in H.S.
 
Lame sauce.
 
disclosure:  I'm a skater.
 
 

 

[SobbingWallet]

Quote:

Doing some more research into the sound quality on the OE2's.
 
Bear in mind the following thread discusses the AE2, the oe's should have a similar signature.
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/575257/bose-refuse-to-reveal-ae2-technical-specifications/15#post_7817533
 
In comparing the bose AE's sound signature with that of the M50's, they don't appear to be far off.
 
I'm seriously thinking that Bose is just hated on the same way all the skaters hated on Abercrombie back when I was in H.S.
 
Lame sauce.
 
disclosure:  I'm a skater.
 
 

To be fair, Abercrombie was hated largely for selling overpriced clothing that relied on its brand name more than its actual quality...though I suppose skaters might have had their own image-related reasons.  Still, saying that Bose is hated in the same way isn't exactly a defense of Bose.

 
Note I'm not actually crapping on your purchase though.  I know little firsthand about the true quality of Bose products.  Most of what I know about them regards their deceptive marketing and heavily controlled brand image (like their refusal to let customers compare other quality equipment side-by-side...which of course doesn't help for getting a real feel for their quality level either).
 

 

[localredhead]

You're right, completely.
 
I had the same frustrations when I was purchasing them, I felt they sounded "ok" and just "ok" when I bought them but that was because I could not compare them to anything or even listen to them on my own source.
 
After getting them home and doing a comparison they haven't left my head in about 4 days.  Every waking moment has been spent listening to them and I have yet to feel any fatigue.  My ears hurt a bit from the clamping pressure but I have sensitive ears in those regards and I'm pretty sure nothing in the price range would feel as nice as these do.
 
Based on comfort alone is how I made my purchase choice, I needed something I could wear for 5 hours straight without realizing it and hopefully it would be fairly accurate. I lucked out in the end because they happen to sound pretty good for the price range.  IMHO Compared to others in the same category they are still more comfortable and do sound as good as anything I've been able to test in that price range.
 
I know there is better for cheaper and all that.  I think Bose has some stupid marketing; but honestly they don't market to people like us and that is why they are hated here.  
 
With that said - I think the AE2 and OE2 could be serious contenders in the portable arena.  I even flirted with the idea of standardizing on them and getting a set of AE2's for DJing just to be different and to always make sure I have new headphones if anything goes wrong with them.  With the sound signature being predictable I actually think there are a lot of positives to this.
 
I wouldn't shake a stick at their IEM's though.
 
 
 
 
 

 

[kimragone]

Quote:

To be fair, Abercrombie was hated largely for selling overpriced clothing that relied on its brand name more than its actual quality...though I suppose skaters might have had their own image-related reasons.  Still, saying that Bose is hated in the same way isn't exactly a defense of Bose.

 
Note I'm not actually crapping on your purchase though.  I know little firsthand about the true quality of Bose products.  Most of what I know about them regards their deceptive marketing and heavily controlled brand image (like their refusal to let customers compare other quality equipment side-by-side...which of course doesn't help for getting a real feel for their quality level either).
 

 
That's because your source won't say something like "Notice the deep, textured bass" when you push the button to hear what they sound like
 
All kidding aside though, I have their IEM2 and use them for very low volume when I need to hear what else is going on around me.

 

[bubsdaddy]

I have the OE, AE, IE, and QC15. I didn't pay full retail for any of them. I use the IE almost every day for the lack of isolation, portability and comfort. I liken the sound and comfort of the AE and at it's current price point of below $100 I think they are really decent. I picked up the OE used and it has a pretty warm to dark signature but I like it for around the house and yard work. The QC15 has the best Noise Cancellation I have ever heard but the sound is a bit thin to my ears. The AE sound is much better. Just my $.02.

 

[dlhen68]

OK, I also drank the Kool-aid (i.e. bought the Bose). Here's my tale in brief.
Last year I picked up a pair of Beyerdynamic DT990's (600 ohm) after doing tons of research, much of it on this site. I wanted quality AND comfort. I had just returned a pair of the B&W P5's because they seemed too warm, sound-wise (for my taste anyway). The Beyers fit the bill. Great sound and not a pain to wear. I missed the compactness of the P5's though. When Beyer introduced the DT1350's I jumped on it. The sound was much better (IMHO) that the P5's. While generally comfortable (and beautifully built), they can be a pain to my ears after a while due to the clamping force. One day in a brick & mortar store I passed a Bose display and decided to try on a pair of the OE2's. Wow. They were SO lightweight. They felt like toys compared to the DT1350's. A few weeks passed and I kept thinking about the damn things. Finally, the other day I went back and bought a pair. I just had to try them out on my own turf. After reading all of the Bose Bashing I was surprised at the sound coming from these little toys. I did a lot of A/B with the 1350's. Well, the Kool-aid must have kicked in, 'cause these things sound fine. The 1350's are better, but considering the featherweight nature of the OE2's I'm really pretty amazed. I was all set to return them as soon as I walked out of the store, but no, they will coexist with my other cans. For casual listening and watching movies, these may end up being my go-to phones (even tho they be toys!). One thing I learned after buying my first set of Beyers: You can't just have one set of headphones.

 

[Pattonromell]

I always thought the IE2 had a good sound, but man the QC SUCK!!!!!! I hear very muddy bass and trebles I can't hear. But, that is just me.