Huge Comparison of [almost] all the Best Bluetooth Headphones - post your own comparisons here
Jun 18, 2015 at 6:39 PM Post #1,231 of 3,643
So I have a pair of sony xb950bt now and I'm wanting something a little more balanced/comfortable to replace them.
 
I've kinda got it narrowed down to:
 
Urbanite XL BT
Momentum (over ear)
AKG K845bt
 
My biggest concern with both of the sennheisers is fit, I know they'll sound great, but I'm worried the cups are a bit too small. I've owned the wired version of the akg and liked both sound and comfort on them (they're based off the k55*, right?).  
 
So I guess, based on the fact that the sony's are about right for comfort, which of those three are equal/better?
 
Jun 18, 2015 at 7:11 PM Post #1,232 of 3,643
  So I have a pair of sony xb950bt now and I'm wanting something a little more balanced/comfortable to replace them.
 
I've kinda got it narrowed down to:
 
Urbanite XL BT
Momentum (over ear)
AKG K845bt
 
My biggest concern with both of the sennheisers is fit, I know they'll sound great, but I'm worried the cups are a bit too small. I've owned the wired version of the akg and liked both sound and comfort on them (they're based off the k55*, right?).  
 
So I guess, based on the fact that the sony's are about right for comfort, which of those three are equal/better?


haha..that's funny... It took me about 6 months to decide which BT headphones to buy. My first decision was Logitech UE9000, but I was waiting for other brands what they come up with... Couple of weeks ago I had the same short list like you, BUT at the same moment I found out that iOS devices don't support AptX codec. And not all BT headphones support AAC which is nearly as good as AptX and perfect for iPhone. So I started again and was looking for headphones with both AAC and AptX, in case apple will support AptX in the future iOS. After reading many articles and reviews and threads here  and around the internet I decided for ATH-99WSBT. I got them on ebay from some japanese store and it took ages to deliver but after about a month from the order I got them. And I'm really happy. The ear cushions were a bit small for my ears but I changed them toady and it's perfect. What I love about them is the volume... I have it just after half on my iPhone and it is LOUD. Sometimes I turn it even more UP but then I'm worried about my ears :) Cos it's loud. But still clean. At home I have Denons AH-D2000 and in the office I have Beyer dynamics DTT 770 PRO, so that's my only measure and to be honest, sometimes I feel like I enjoy ATHs more than BDs in my office. Obviously the Denons are different class and it's not easy to beat them. I wish I could have tested all the BT headphones myself but I'm extremely happy with my decision at the moment. Let me know which one did you go for in the end.
 
Jun 19, 2015 at 6:02 AM Post #1,234 of 3,643
  It is interesting to have other options in earpads for ws99bt. Please post and let us know how you feel about the shure earpad when you get it. Thanks.


The original cushions are perfect circle outside (which is fine) but inside too instead of oval, which is the main problem. I don't understand why Audio technica didn't think about this when they designed the headphones. If they would make the cusions just 2mm thicker and the inner circle oval shape - 40mm x 55mm it would fit 99% of the ears out there :)
The replacement cushions are fine but they are oval shape which looks a bit weird because the headphones are perfect circle. So, lets find ear cushions which are 85x85mm outside and 40x55mm inside :)
 
Jun 19, 2015 at 8:03 AM Post #1,235 of 3,643
Would it be possible to mark whether the headphones support APTX, LDAC and / or AAC? I had the Sennheiser Momentum Wireless high on my list, but it might seem like it doesn't support AAC? Which makes it rather pointless for one with iOS-devices... I was searching for something to replace my Beats Studio Wireless and even though the audio quality isn't that great you can't really fault the battery life, the media controls of it's wireless / bluetooth performance.
 
Jun 19, 2015 at 9:41 AM Post #1,236 of 3,643
  Would it be possible to mark whether the headphones support APTX, LDAC and / or AAC? I had the Sennheiser Momentum Wireless high on my list, but it might seem like it doesn't support AAC? Which makes it rather pointless for one with iOS-devices... I was searching for something to replace my Beats Studio Wireless and even though the audio quality isn't that great you can't really fault the battery life, the media controls of it's wireless / bluetooth performance.


yeah, sometimes it's not easy to find the specs about the supported BT codecs. That's what took me most of the time when I was comparing different brands. Some of them don't mention it at all on their website... 
 
Jun 19, 2015 at 9:49 AM Post #1,237 of 3,643
  So I have a pair of sony xb950bt now and I'm wanting something a little more balanced/comfortable to replace them.
 
I've kinda got it narrowed down to:
 
Urbanite XL BT
Momentum (over ear)
AKG K845bt
 
My biggest concern with both of the sennheisers is fit, I know they'll sound great, but I'm worried the cups are a bit too small. I've owned the wired version of the akg and liked both sound and comfort on them (they're based off the k55*, right?).  
 
So I guess, based on the fact that the sony's are about right for comfort, which of those three are equal/better?

 
The AKG won't fit around your ears either. The cups are circular and they do look the same as the k550. They are pretty comfortable though apart from the headband. How big are your ears? The Momentum's are pretty big (around 6.35mm x 3.9mm from memory).The Momentum has other issues though with regards to the bluetooth connection. Haven't tried the Urbanite sorry.
 
Jun 19, 2015 at 10:26 AM Post #1,238 of 3,643
  Why even try the Zik 2.0's then? The whole premise of the Zik is customization. 
 
Rather than spending days/months looking for a pair of cans that sound closest to what you want, spend a couple of minutes tuning the Ziks to sound exactly as how you want. If I want serious audiophile sound quality, I wouldn't be looking in this price range anyways. You'll need to fork out more. Here's a Zik review that details all it's features:
 
http://www.engadget.com/2014/11/03/parrot-zik-2-0-review/
 
Good luck with your search! Cheers.

Days/months? Haha I live in Japan, almost all of the top 10 headphones on this list are in one store a few minutes from my apartment. I could decide in an hour. I just don't think there is a pair of BT headphones out there that perfectly fit my needs. The Philips M2 and AKG K845BT come extremely close, but each have their own drawbacks. As for serious audiophile sound, I already have plenty of that. But I like the idea of wireless headphones for more freedom in my listening, especially when I'm powerlifting.
 
Perhaps I will stop by the store again and download the Zik app this time to give them another shot. But right now it's summer and my ears get too hot anyway wearing full sized cans around.
 
Jun 19, 2015 at 11:19 AM Post #1,239 of 3,643
I own 2 BT headphones.
The Plantronics BackBeat and Beats Studios.
 
I can't say enough about the Plantronics.  They are some of the best cans I have owned.
And for wireless, they do everything you could want.
Insane battery life.
Decent ANC.
Great sound quality.
Comfortable.
Auto pause when you take them off.
Can play without power.
 
The only con I would say is that they look a little too "utilitarian", I would have preferred something more stylish but they are nice.
 
I'm no Beats basher.
I love my Studios and own the v2 2012 and recently the Matte Black wireless Studios.
 
They sound and look great.
 
But add me to the group that would never recommend them.
 
In just a little over a month, the fabric on the ear cup developed an obvious tear.
 
Just inexcusable for a almost $400 pair of headphones.
 
Z
 
Jun 20, 2015 at 12:19 PM Post #1,240 of 3,643
Turns out I was able to snag a used pair of the Backbeat Pro's for $130 on an ebay auction. HELLS YEAH! They got here yesterday and I'm now ready to return the $250 Best Buy pair.
 
Interestingly I think the used pair are ever so slightly less bright than the Best Buy pair, which I guess is due to burn-in. So this probably isn't news to most. But I do think it's important to note since so many people accuse the sound of being very V-shaped; I'd say that's definitely true in the right-off-the-assembly-line pair, but the used one has a much more balanced profile to it, not as in-your-face high-mids, and smoother more well-rounded bass.
 
I was worried as to whether this is a good thing or not, but I'm leaning towards liking the burnt-in pair better. I initially thought the flatter response might blueballs me, especially considering my exclusively high-energy, sonically chaotic music preferences. But now after giving them a solid listen, I think it's better even for more perversely V-shaped music. Skrillex's Devil's Den feels like all the different bass frequencies agree with each other more in the used 'phones, whereas (contrary to my prediction) they seem to step over each other and muddle to some degree in the brand new phones. Same with the highs - even though the varied cymbals in big tech-death drumkits like Necrophagist's are less sharp volume-wise, they play much nicer with the rest of the spectrum, the end result being a much more overall cohesive and thus explosive sound.
 
Maybe that's because once the drivers back off the overly accentuated highs and lows there's more power left for the mids to shine. Anyway the point is, once burned in, these take a qualitative step up in sound quality (in my amateur opinion), and for SOME reason, the sound as a whole seems to gain some liveliness and clarity that I suppose the out-of-the-box overly boosted high/low frequencies could be preventing at first. And for $130 bones, the WS99BT is now considerably less attractive.
 
Jun 20, 2015 at 3:33 PM Post #1,243 of 3,643
Can you tell me the date of the latest firmware, I have the plantronic back beat pros and updated when they first came out but wondering if there is any improvement
 
Jun 21, 2015 at 2:40 PM Post #1,245 of 3,643
My audio technica WS99BT arrived a few days ago i put up a little video on youtube about them ..its my first ever youtube video so i hope its ok 
https://youtu.be/u0LjwE3GH38
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top