What really sold me on these was the detachable straight cable (I'm too newbish to do any mods) and Bose's $60 replacement program. (I know, they shouldn't make something that breaks anyway, but things happen.) Thank you guys for all your help, and I hope these last me a few years. I don't plan on using them much outside of the house, and I do plan on wearing them for 8 or more hours a day some days, and my cheapo Sony pair hurts my ears after a couple hours. Can you recommend a good headphone extension cable? Would any cable? I just want it to extend across a large bedroom, maybe 15 feet extension max, but am unsure if the sound quality would be lost from that. Would sound quality be decently preserved if I made a wireless set up, like putting an FM transmitter or something into an audio jack? What about with blue tooth?
For multimedia use, and what you're describing, the AE2 would likely be the top of the list of what I'd suggest you - especially based on the comfort concern. If this "copyright counsel" is legitimate, it needs a MOT tag and better introduction, but the claim that you can contact Bose CS and have the SN verified is legitimate (I wouldn't e-mail anything to that link - go through their official site or call their 1-800 (I think it really is 1-800-bose)).
There's *a lot* of stigma surrounding Bose products (and a lot of vitriol that comes from people who have never tried them); honestly I think they're very good all-rounder headphones that are a fantastic candidate for gaming due to their soundstaging. Check my "American Middleweights" write-up for more (I'm not trying to pimp myself out here, it's more that I don't feel like re-writing the whole thing).
Regarding build quality - the AE2 do appear to be more robust than the original TriPort, but the general theme is that they'll last if you don't abuse them - for at home use you should be alright, or at least as alright as you would be with any other pair of headphones.
Regarding "is there better for the money" - it depends on who you ask. The best answer I can give you is that there is DIFFERENT for the money, and to some people that difference will be "better" and to others "worse" (but often "different" morphs into "better" in audiophile parlance). Based on your described usage, assuming these are the real deal (and $100 for them doesn't seem unreasonable if you bought them from a legitimate source or used), and assuming their sound signature is good for you, they're probably one of the better choices you could've made here. Sure, you can drive yourself mad evaluating every possible permutation and every possible option and worry about that last 5%, but that seems to detract from the whole "enjoyment" aspect of music and such. Again, this assumes they're legitimate, which is something I would question with any popular product that comes from a manufacturer with a strict MSRP policy (e.g. if these were certain Audio-Technica or Sony models, we'd still be having this discussion).
I understand that but the thought of them being fake never came up at all in this thread until this bose guy just posted saying they might be just because of the price. If they are legit, he should keep them if he enjoys them.
+1. MOTs should better identify themselves too.
