[obobskivich]

Assuming they're genuine, good choice. I find they're still a pretty good deal even at $150. Had them back when I had the Denon D600, and I liked the AE2 more.

Out of curiosity - are these two similar in any way?

Hard to predict. You never know if the drivers will die out, connections will short, or the earcup will fall off. All headphones are prone to certain death. Some are luckier than others.

+1. On the upside, Bose has good customer service and will generally accept products on trade-in if they've failed out of warranty. So I think overall you're doing alright here - they're fine headphones, and as long as you don't bang on them, you shouldn't have problems beyond normal eventual failure that everything will succumb to at one time or another.

 

[Katun]

Quote:

Out of curiosity - are these two similar in any way?

 
Hmm, not really. AE2 had a far better midrange, and the bass didn't drown out half the sound.
 
I could tell the AE2 was aiming more at a neutral/midrange sound than anything. Not sure what the D600 was trying to do besides give underwater subwoofers a run for their money...

 

[obobskivich]

Hmm, not really. AE2 had a far better midrange, and the bass didn't drown out half the sound.

I could tell the AE2 was aiming more at a neutral/midrange sound than anything. Not sure what the D600 was trying to do besides give underwater subwoofers a run for their money...

You know, to people who like the AE2, this is a great praise; to people who bash on Bose, this is like kicking Denon's teeth in with steel toed boots. Either way, you've basically ended all questions on my part about the D600.

 

[elkend]

So far the only things I do not like about these is how warm my ears get when I wear them.  I do like how well they block out noise though.  Is there a simple mod or movement you guys do for things like this?

 

[obobskivich]

Taking breaks while using them is basically the only easy solution. Any sort of modification to them will change the sound and/or isolation properties, and having said that, I'm not even aware of after-market pads or similar that've been tested to fit on them (because the mounts for the pads on these are pretty unique in shape and design).

 

[kramer5150]

Good choice.  and it kind of pains me to say this a one time bose-basher.  I never cared for the original triport, and if you search from 6-7 years ago you can probably dig up my old commentary on that.
 
But the AE2 I think is a smoother broader spectral presentation with less "one-note" bass bloated sound that I think plagued the original triport.  The AE2 is still bass boosted, but its much better mixed into the overall spectrum of sound.  The AE2 is still $$$ though in that I think its overall sonic quality very closely matches the $15 KSC75 and $35 portapro.  What you are paying for though is the overall confort, build quality, durability and passive noise isolation.  When you factor all those elements into the AE2 I think its priced decently well.  Although speed, detail resolution and spectral accuracy is NOT what these are about.  Its more about their groovy coloration and "character", plugging directly into your player, soundcard or other lossy format and enjoying the tunes.
 
They are great hulu movie stream and youtube cans... where their lack of detail resolution + overall comfort work in their favor.
 
You're not going to get around sweaty ears.  Thats just how it goes with pleather earcupads.  It would be nice if Bose offered perhaps as an option felt/velour or fabric earpad cushions.  One things for sure the SOFT memory foam padding on these is unmatched. 

 

[Gilly87]

Good buy. I hear they compare well with cans in that price range. If they sound good to your ears, odds are they aren't fake; I've had a few fakes and they all sounded pretty terrible. The only fakes I've heard of sounding decent are some Chinese OEM Beats fakes.

 

[ITALIANNYC]

Quote:

Good choice.  and it kind of pains me to say this a one time bose-basher.  I never cared for the original triport, and if you search from 6-7 years ago you can probably dig up my old commentary on that.
 
But the AE2 I think is a smoother broader spectral presentation with less "one-note" bass bloated sound that I think plagued the original triport.  The AE2 is still bass boosted, but its much better mixed into the overall spectrum of sound.  The AE2 is still $$$ though in that I think its overall sonic quality very closely matches the $15 KSC75 and $35 portapro.  What you are paying for though is the overall confort, build quality, durability and passive noise isolation.  When you factor all those elements into the AE2 I think its priced decently well.  Although speed, detail resolution and spectral accuracy is NOT what these are about.  Its more about their groovy coloration and "character", plugging directly into your player, soundcard or other lossy format and enjoying the tunes.
 
They are great hulu movie stream and youtube cans... where their lack of detail resolution + overall comfort work in their favor.
 
You're not going to get around sweaty ears.  Thats just how it goes with pleather earcupads.  It would be nice if Bose offered perhaps as an option felt/velour or fabric earpad cushions.  One things for sure the SOFT memory foam padding on these is unmatched. 

 
I dont know what other cans you have used but there is nothing bass boosted about the AE2. If anything, they lack bass, which I much prefer because I get enjoyment with every genre instead of just hiphop/dance. Everything sounds good. The original tri ports, now THOSE things were boosted to hell. The OE2 also has alot more bass than the AE2.
 
I mostly use with my android phone using poweramp with the bass and treble boost on. Still not bass heavy at all, but great all around sound. If I use my ipod, it sounds a little louder but not as full sounding.
 
As far as the other person who said their ears got warm, I have never had that problem happen. Then again, I live in NYC and its freezing here. I'll get back to you in the summer lol. As far as indoor, I have worn them for hours without any problems or my ears being warm.
 
I got my pair for 60 dollars from bose when I broke my original OE after 2 and a half years. I love that quality about Bose customer service, its usually no questions asked. Spend 150 one time for a set of cans, and basically for life it will cost you 60 dollars everytime u want a new pair, and you will always be upgraded to a new version if it is out. I was even offered the QC3 for around 220-230 if I remember correct. Those are 350 retail.

 

[bmw74]

I just did the same thing... I had a pair of the original TriPort, which broke and I had glued them with crazy glue, until I found out about their exchange program.  I called them up, and they offered the AE2 for $60 + 7.50 for prepaid UPS shipping label (the other option is for me to ship them using my own method, which probably was going to cost me more).  They didn't offer me the QC3, I thought about inquiring about them, but I didn't want to spend more than $100 in a replacement, so this works.  I have owned Grado SR-60i, B&W P3 and B&W C5.  I loved my Grados, they are the best for the price range, but my problem is that they were too open and could not enjoy music without disturbing others or catching outside noise.  The B&W P3 was awesome, but they made my ears hurt so much that I could not listen for more than an hour tops, so I took them back.  The C5s were really good, but I got buyers remorse for their price and returned them too (Best Buy return policy is awesome).  I have tried the QC3, they sounded good but not $300 good to my ears, plus I didn't like the pressure on my ears from the noise reduction.
 
Bottom line, I think $60 for a new pair of AE2 is a fair price for their sound.  Just the fact that they are charging $60 for a replacement tells you that paying $150 for a new set is way overpriced... I'm pretty sure that at $60, they are probably making some money, so at $150, their profit margins must be in the triple digits.
 
Happy listening!