[thesebastian]

I've just received the QC20. 30 minutes of usage opinion:
 
- NC: Is very good!
There's some kind of "airflow" noise (is this the "white noise" some people talk about?) that is very noticeable at home when NC is on, but it doesn't really bother me. At the airplane, this should be unnoticeable, or at least irrelevant, compared to the plane's noise.
 
- SQ: Is regular. You can probably find much better quality in 100€ (non ANC) headphones. But here the price (IMO) is based on the ANC technology and Bose still has the best ANC in small (in-ear) headphones; the included battery/dac/amp; design; warranty and post sale services, etc. 
 
- SQ "On vs Off" (using a good desktop DAC and good portable amp, I think this only applies when the HPs are OFF): The main difference is the Bass power/volume. Secondarily the overall Volume.
If I turn off the Bose, I have to raise a bit the volume level of my amp, but the quality is still good when the unit is off. (But the bass is lower, so there is a diff there). 
> If you are in a quiet environment with a good amp/dac, listening quiet music, I prefer to have it Off, the advantage of having it off is that you don't hear the NC background noise in quiet music. (I'm an AKG K701 user, so I don't really like the strong punchy bass from the Bose amplifier).
> If you are in a noisy environment (like an airplane or the train, or a noisy office) the winner is Bose amplifier.  
 
Tomorrow I'll try them on a plane, but so far I'm keeping them. 

 

[Genebaby]

I've flown with these now, which is the primary reason I got them, they were great on the plane so I'll keep them and be wary of using them on ground transportation.

 

[thesebastian]

Me too!
So far I took 4 planes with them and the NC is very good

 

[thesebastian]

Latelly found the missing link with these earphones.
While buying some Comply tips for other earphones I discovered that the "Isolation T400" do work with these Bose QC20 and man is it an improvement? yes, yes, yes, even better isolation and way better sound. Highly recommended. The caveat are the "nails" in the QC tube but provided you are careful when puting the thing in the ears these will not bother...I had been wishing for such a solution for years as the ear pieces of these earphones are quite crappy in isolating the external noise.

my two cents...plane trips got even quieter and with better sound.

Tomorrow I'll try this. I've just got the "Variety Pack 400" (Medium size). So first I'll try the Isolation ones. 

 

[thesebastian]

  Tomorrow I'll try this. I've just got the "Variety Pack 400" (Medium size). So first I'll try the Isolation ones. 

The Comply earbuds didn't work to me.

I compared Stayhears (Medium) vs Comply T400 (Isolation - Medium ) and TS400 (Comfort - Medium ), and the stock earbuds provided general better cancellation than the other two. 
 
I haven't compared SQ, just the noise cancellation.
I think the Comply ones are too small and they need to be in a perfect position to isolate as good as the Stayhears. This is even more difficult in a Plane where I'm using a pillow (cabeau "evolution pillow") and you sometimes push the earbuds with the pillow and you move the earbuds position. In my experience it was easy to create some kind of breach that can affect the cancellation. 
Another contra is the "plastic socket" used to attach the stock stayhears, that can hurt you if you push your ear to the pillow, also that thing prevents the stock earbuds to push into your ears and harm you.  

Tip: I don't want to spend more money to try the Large ones, but I've a feeling that if you are using Stayhears (M) and wanted to try the comply earbuds, you should try Comply (L). 

Now I'm going to compare  Stayhears (M) vs Stayhears (L). So far I haven't noticed too much difference (at home), probably going to come back to the medium ones, but let's tray.

 

[Jordig]

Hello guys,

I read that QC20 can be used to sleep in bed. I try to sleep with them two times and after 4-5 hours I had to take them off because I felt uncomfortable. I usually sleep on their backs, and on the right of my legs I have the battery "box" (to turn on and off the headphones) and my phone to listen white noise app. If I put the battery box and phone in my body it's more uncomfortable. The problem is that I can't move much because I fear that can be broken. I also notice that when I'm stretched I can cover the cables with my neck, as if crushing them, which increases my insecurity and the fear of being broken. If I sleep in sideways position, I notice that the earplug it's pressed with the bed pillows, which can cause breakage in the headphones too.

So it's impossible sleep comfortable with these difficulties.

Some advice to sleep more comfortable with the QC20s in the bed? And what can I do to don't break it?

Thanks.

 

[Strider]

I'm planning to buy a Bose QC20 headset from ebay, however, i want to be sure that i have the latest version. I think from what i have read that there are 3 versions. 1x 2013 version, and 2x 2015 versions.

Is the QC20 set in the below image the latest version?

 

[Pro-Jules]

I love these.

The NC is great.

I use and EarStudio ES100 to make them (sort of) wireless

I broadcast hi res files from a hi res player (Fiio M9) to the ES100 I use the LDAC Bluetooth codec this gets me the best possible sound transfer.

In the gym or commuting I can keep the player in a pocket or play with it without tugging at wires connected to my ears.

The ES100 and the QC20 cable can easily clip to my t-shirt or tuck inside a shirt pocket.

I tried IEMs but they don't suit my ear canals

I find the Bose StayHear eartips brilliant.

Finally the ES100 has a fantastic 10 band eq.

I have presets configured for my QC20's the car and a BT SPEAKER I use in the house / Shower.

Here is the eq curve I tweaked on the ES100

The bottom 4 are my own custom curves.

 

[SilverEars]

I like these a lot too. Seem very practical for those that want ANC in environments with significant low-end noise such as air-conditioning units, or motor vehicles and aircrafts. ANC performance on these are just as good as the full-sized ANC headphones. I prefer small form factor iems compared to full-sized headphones for travel, so these fit my needs well. There no other iem that can match the ANC performance of these, and I'm anticipating for the true wireless version that is to come out in 2020.

When it comes to noise cancelling, Bose is the top brand. This iem with such high level of ANC performance came out in 2013. All these years, I didn't even think I needed something like this until started to see the use case scenarios for ANC.

 

[SilverEars]

On the avg seems comparable, but the full-sized ANC does seem to drown out the 300 - 800hz noise better. I believe the airplane cabin noise is centered around 500hz so I can see why full-sized is providing better noise reduction for those cases, but interestingly, for lower frequencies QC20 perform much better than either of them.

Bose QC20 ANC performance


QC35 ii


Sony WH-1000XM3

 

[stacey]

Hey I just got these. In terms of SQ , my old set of Auzeze iSIne 20 blow them away, but then again the retail for 2x the price. The ANC abilities of this IEM is a godsend if you're trying to get some work done in a noisy environment

 

[tmarshl]

IEMs Fall out of my ears. I found a solution for the Bose QC20s

I have a consistent problem with IEMs: Custom IEMs irritate my ear canals, and I can hear every footstep and heartbeat; Universal IEMS tend to not make a very good seal, or they fall out of my ears. I have some excellent full-size cans (Focal Utopia and Raal Requisite SR1a "earfield speakers") in my listening room; some very good NC full-size (Bose NC 700s) for the airplane, some very good wired universal IEMs (Audeze LCDi4s), and some reasonable truly wireless earbuds (Power Beats Pro) for telephone calls and dictation

I seem to be very well equipped, but on a trip to Australia, I purchased a pair of Bose QC20s noise cancelling wired earbuds. I like the sound, and the NC is pretty good (not good enough for a long flight, however). I am using the StayHear tips, provided by Bose (the large white in the left ear, and the larger black Sport model for the right ear). They are almost perfect, but they have fallen out a couple of times when I was active. So I have been looking for something to give me security that they won't fall out of my ears (clips, hangers, hooks) while I am participating in activities, and I am pleased to report that I have found two solutions.

The first one is an ear hook for a Motorola headset. It does work, but it turns out that it is tight over my ear and got uncomfortable after several hours of usage:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Bluetooth-Ear-Clips-Hook-Headset-Earbud-Earloops-For-Motorola-HZ720-HX550-H520/264314726734?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&var=563902449174&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

The second one is a SILICONE ear hook, which is much more comfortable on my large ears (with glasses on), I purchased the 10mm version which grabs the QC20 behind the StayHear buds, and locks them in place on my ears. They still fit inside the carry case, with a little positioning effort.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/4PCS-SET-Silicone-Ear-Hook-Bluetooth-Headset-Replacement-Clip-Loop-Earhook-US/283412549727?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&var=584413002312&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

I am sure there are others who have a similar problem - universal IEMs falling out when engaged in active pursuits. This solution works for me. As usual, YMMV.

 

[toshvan]

Hey ppl. Is there anything similar on the market atm? Wired IEMs with ANC?
Also I see some Bose qc20 on sale, on ebay and aliexpress... Are those legit, since Bose qc20 should be discontinued?