[helicon1]

omg atleast the AE is kinda ok sounding but the OE, holy cow that headphone makes me wanna break things. And the AE are my biggest regret of a purchase even after their discounted price. Lol $ 70 Sonys put them to shame.

 

[Mike Walker]

Try listening WITH YOUR EARS! The OE has substantially better bass extension than the AE, which is what immediately drew me to them when I listened at Best Buy while waiting for my wife. I didn't expect to like them, but they were in front of me...and I'll always listen to headphones, given the chance.

Now the Bose OE are from the Sony MDR-V6/7506/Grado SR-80 "in your face" school...more forward, emphasizing detail in the midrange and treble than, say, Sennheiser HD600s, or even their much less expensive HD431s, which I keep in my studio for quick checks of mixes.

In absolute terms, the low bass on the Bose OE is not only extended, but it's bumped up by a couple of db. I'm 51 years old, and just don't listen to music at very high volumes like these "kids today", so this is actually useful to me, but perhaps not to you. Ditto the emphasis in the upper mids and treble. Sennheisers better 'phones have a MUCH more laid-back quality. Some people prefer one "school", others the other. Neither are "correct"...both differ from absolute neutrality, as do all transducers...none are perfect. I actually enjoy BOTH...for different uses. I appreciate different qualities for tracking and mixing, or for critical listening to my favorite album than for, say, listening to George Winston "tinkle the keys" while I read a novel.

If you don't like the Bose OE, don't buy them. But they do have some qualities which are not only undeniable, but demonstrable and MEASURABLE. PROFOUND bass extension is one. Low distortion another.

Since no headphone is perfect, and all have demonstrable deviations from neutral response, it's really a personal choice as to which imperfections each individual finds most tolerable. Scream and flame all you like, it really is a personal choice. There are no right or wrong answers. Only choices which more, or less fit our preconceived nitions about what "sounds best".

 

[funkadelic]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Berlioz /img/forum/go_quote.gif IThe worst part is, anyone who buys Bose is committed to their music. I see people with Bose all the time, and they're totally in to their music. People I meet who use Bose, have extensive CD collections, and even use lossless formats. That's what really gets me. It's only the most loyal customers of Bose - the people who really love their music - that get screwed the most.

This is an interesting comment.


One thing we are probably all guilty of here is spending too much time listening to how the music sounds rather than listening to the music.(I know that applies to me!) and I do wonder sometimes whether we can really say that the Bose-lovers concertrating on their music ratherthan locating the best SQ possible have got it wrong and are being screwed.


Simon

 

[Mike Walker]

Funkadelic is right. It's about THE MUSIC. A bad recording on AM radio of music I love is ALWAYS preferable to a great recording on the finest audio system of music I don't care for! In fact In fact an AM station about 40 miles away has live bluegrass and folk music on Saturday mornings. The sound quality wouldn't amaze any audiophile. But it's clean enough, and of wide enough bandwidth (especially on my GE SuperRadio in the Wide Bandwidth setting) that I can listen through the audio limitations and enjoy THE MUSIC.

Hey Funkadelic...."TEAR THE ROOF OFF THE SUCKA'! (great screen name!)

 

[sebhuber]

ok sorry, if I look back it wasnt funny at all, so I apologize. However those Bose headphones are quite good sounding if you like how Bose equalizes them. The problem with them is that if you listen to them it feels and sounds like if you put two metal cups around your ears and play music through them.
Furthermore they are ridiculously expensive and get outperformed by the K450 by miles (I was a previous OE owner for at least half a year). I always noticed that there was something wrong with them I just didn't want to admit it, simply because they cost tooo much!!

 

[Mike Walker]

Again, no 'phones are perfect. So "outperforms" is subjective. You do realize that while FREQUENCY EXTENSION has an absolute, demonstrable, measurable meaning, "sound quality" or "performance" do not. They're entirely subjective. In the ear of the beholder. And value is in the WALLET of the beholder. I think they're well worth what they cost. If you disagree, don't buy 'em.

 

[sebhuber]

so how come FREQUENCY GRAPHS don't get released on any of the Bose products. I agree with no phones are perfect. The OE don't sound natural and this is a fact. The bass extension you talk about is overblown. By a mile. Ok, I have known bose for years now. we got the lifestyle systems, a wave radio the music monitor and the companion five. My brother even owns the bose ie. My dad felt sorry that I spent all my money on the bose OE after he listened to the AKGs he asked me if he could buy them for 90 pounds. I bought them for a 180 euro when I was in germany. I am not saying all these are crap, I am saying that you can get better with less hence a bad value.

 

[Mike Walker]

Frequency response graphs have virtually no correlation to how headphones sound, because our heads, and outer ears shape the sound differently in each of us.

I've noted that bass is elevated on Bose OE headphones. But the extension is quite remarkable. They go as low as your ears do...holding up quite strongly in the 20-40hz octave, where many (most?) 'phones that people rave about here are all but missing in action. You can clearly test my assertion with tones you can generate in a program like Adobe Audition (Cool Edit, etc.)

Again, terms like "crap", "value", "overpriced", "by a mile", are SUBJECTIVE! You do realize that, right? I agree that some Bose products are overpriced, but IN MY OPINION (what matters since I spent MY money!), the Bose OE 'phones are a good value, again FOR ME, because they meet MY expectations better than lots of other 'phones, including ones which cost much more.

Geez, I paid a hundred bucks for headphones 35 years ago. 150 dollars for a good pair of cans in 2009 is, IN MY OPINION, certainly NOT overpriced!

 

[sebhuber]

Ok,

..the value is the satisfaction gained. I get it. However please tell me: What else have you listened to except from Bose. I mean do you spend time with natural sounding headphones that go into the detail and get the most out of a piece of music?

I was terribly annoyed when I found out that what I was listening to on the OE was just a "simplified" version of the original track.

The bass extension you talk about is present in other headphones too. You simply don't hear it as much, because it isn't more relevant than any other feature of the sound signature i.e. this doesn't make the music better if you don't have any highs or mids and have as much bass as possible.

 

[Bass head]

Can anyone tell me how to post a question please i cant seem to figure it out?

 

[Mike Walker]

Please don't "explain" headphones to me. I've worn them for many hours a day for 35+ years IN MY WORK (as a radio personality, producer, and now studio owner and host of an internationally syndicated show called "Saving the 70s" Saving the 70s That's me on the site, wearing a pair of Sennheiser HD-451s, one of the MANY pairs of headphones I own. If you've read my previous posts, I have discussed some of them, but they include the Sennheiser HD-600, the HD-580, the HD-451, HD-40, HD-400, the PX-100, the Sony MDR-V6, AND the MDR-7506 (I know they're the same 'phone!), the Beyerdynamic HD-990 pro, Koss Porta-Pro, Koss KSC-35, Koss KSC-75, Koss A-130, Koss A-200, Koss Pro-4AA, Koss HV-1A, Grado SR-60 and SR-80, and many others. I'm a headphone junkie...using them not just for pleasure, but as a tool IN MY WORK.

So perhaps I'm better qualified than most hear to question YOUR ability to determine "sound quality" and "value".

I've stated MANY TIMES that the Bose OE 'phones have elevated bass...but they also have VERY extended deep bass, which most 'phones DO NOT. GREAT open-air 'phones like the Grados and Sennheisers raved about here usually fall-off in response quite steeply in the bottom octave. Play a 30hz, then a 20hz tone through the Bose OE, then play the same tone through the Sennheiser HD600, and you'll quickly appreciate that the Bose is FAR MORE SOLID, and reproduces FAR MORE FUNDAMENTAL at these extremely low frequencies than the Sennheisers (or Grados), for instance.

Your assertion that Bose OE headphones have "no highs" is laughable. The highs are ALSO elevated somewhat, as is the bass. I would have had more respect for your condascending attitude if you'd complained the Bose 'phones have a "smiley-face" eq curve, emphasizing bass AND treble. They do just a bit. Again, no 'phones are perfectly linear. Not only that, since our ears are shaped differently, the same 'phones will likely sound different in the midrange and highs to you than to me. Sound quality and value ARE SUBJECTIVE!

I don't use the Bose 'phones in my studio, because I don't think they're rugged enough to stand up to such heavy-duty use. But I DO think they'd work quite well for mixing. The elevated bass would keep me from dialing in too much bass, and the elevated highs would prevent me equalizing in too much high frequency "sizzle", as we hear in far too many modern recordings.

There are many things about which you may lecture me, but I doubt I have very much to "learn" about headphones from most here. I've worn them for hours dach day since Nixon was president. And unlike most here, I have been, and AM PAID FOR IT!

 

[pcf]

Quote:

Originally Posted by funkadelic /img/forum/go_quote.gif This is an interesting comment. One thing we are probably all guilty of here is spending too much time listening to how the music sounds rather than listening to the music.(I know that applies to me!) and I do wonder sometimes whether we can really say that the Bose-lovers concertrating on their music ratherthan locating the best SQ possible have got it wrong and are being screwed. Simon

Great comment Simon!

I remember reading an interview with Les Paul on Stereophile years ago. He said he listened to his music with a portable radio in the kitchen most of the time and didn't feel that he was missing any details. In fact, he gave the interviewer a hard time about audiophiles trying to get a "neutral" sound without knowing how the music was recorded in the first place.

Paul

 

[sebhuber]

You win. You have the quite the collection. I don't use headphones that often but when I use them it's for pleasure and the Bose simply don't do the job, for me.
I was not referring to Bose when I stated that music doesn't become more pleasant, I was using an extreme.

 

[Mike Walker]

Should you decide to listen to my show, note that while most music is digital from CDs,I do FREQUENTLY use vinyl. See if you notice any difference in sound quality between the "digita' songs and the ones from the black discs!

Hint: Neil Sedaka song "Laughter in the Rain" comes from a 35 year old 45 I bought when working at my first radio job. Try to find it on CD!

 

[sebhuber]

wow dude. I really do enjoy your show!