That’s perfect thank you! The issue I’m finding is the isolation is poor and I’m getting the gyms eurobeat garbage bleeding through at times, and although the fit of the Bose is immaculate imo, the fact they stick out the sheer weigh makes them move, never near to fall out but the sensation is odd when trying to concentrate.
If your gym is loud, that is a problem. It forces you turn them up to unsafe levels.
Well my Bose Soundsport Free are sadly goon back after only a week, I’ve used them exclusively in the gym and imo the sound is more than acceptable, in fact I fully enjoy the sound, of anything I’d like the bass a bit stronger.
The fit to me is fantastic, but the way they stick out leaves a feeling of a downwards dragging which although they’ll never come lose or free just feels very awkward to me.
Connection wise, they’ve been impeccable, never a loss, blip anything so on that front I’m super impressed.
Now the kicker...
If you’re a runner where hearing ambient noise ie cars beeping etc then the design is pretty genius actually as it’s the best of both worlds BUT for actual gym use imo they’re terribly flawed. At anything less than full blast the environment sound they let in is totally unnaceptable and unfit for purpose, I want to love them as they do so much right but the weight hanging outside the ear and the poor isolation means for me and I suspect many others they’re just not a true gym headphone.
Will be buying the new Sony when it’s available and report back with a comparison.
I got the Sony's yesterday and was able to give them a spin at the gym. Initial impressions are as follows:
1. SQ is very nice but it requires use of the App which likely is a battery drain. The app has two components: (1) an equalizer but with presets only (no manual mode) and (2) a selection of whether to use best sound quality or stability. I didn't love any of the presets but settled on Bright and Vocal as my favorites. Any bass boost is overwhelming and many of the presets boost the base. The sound signature is V shaped and fun clearly tuned for an exercise crowd. Plenty of punch and energy. Not much in the way of soundstage but that's to be expected. I do think the Bose present a little more open soundstage with some width. The Sony's are in between your ears only. I have tested the Bose, Beoplay, Jaybird, PSB, Onkyo, Erato, and Jabra (Elite Sports) and I would rank the Sony's at the upper middle of the ranks. I personally prefer the Bose SQ but it's not a huge difference. The Sony's are an upgrade to Jaybird in terms of SQ. Perhaps slightly below the PSB but again very close. Overall, these sound very good but are not game changing.
2. Fit. Rock solid. Not much more needs to be said. I think these would survive a sweaty run no problem without slippage.
3. Connection. I didn't wander far from my phone so I can't comment on this yet. I did get one slight drop/shift when walking from the machine to the water station. It was brief but it surprised me because the Bose have virtually never dropped out on me.
4. Features. The app, ANC and transparency mode are all nice features to have. I did test the ANC and found that it works but it is nothing like the ANC offered by Bose on other models. Also, compared to the Bose, they seal so much better I really didn't even need the ANC in the gym. I probably will leave this off in hopes of saving batter life.
5. Battery Life. This could be a trouble spot. Advertised for 3 hours. Well, after 30 minutes of cardio, the meter was down 1/3 but that may just be a software issue. I will rarely use this for more than an hour but if they don't get at least 3 hours, that could be an issue for many of you. The ANC would be nice on a flight but if battery is only 2-3 hours, it defeats the purpose.
6. Design. They aren't the prettiest form factor but I think they look a little less dorky than the bose which are truly awful. This isn't a big issue for me but I am jealous of those sleek form factor of the Jabra Active 65t. These are sleeker than the Bose. The charging case is awful. Feels flimsy and likely to break. I'm a little surprised that Sony didn't do a better job here.
Overall, I think these are a very nice entry into the category. I probably still prefer the Bose due to slightly better SQ but if your intended use is a noisy environment these would definitely be the better choice. These offer a better package of features over the PSB which are very fussy to operate. I have not tried the Jabra Active 65t which is probably the next closest competitor to these but I do prefer the SQ on the Sony to the Elite Sports which I thought were very muddy and average sounding. The Sony blow the Jaybird away.
I'll post more impressions as they get more use.
