Bose® Around-Ear Headphones - 41213 Reviews

• great sound, comfortable fit

  
  By A2B7BUH8834Y6M on 2006-12-09
  I am not an audiophile - I do not have the precision hearing of a bat so I can echo-locate my breakfast. I know some folks are far more particular and can hear nuances in sound that are apparently not within my range of hearing. If you're like me - this review is for you.
  
  Like shoes, it's hard to review something as a comfortable fit for everyone. I can only review something as being a comfy fit for me. Everyone's head and ears are designed differently. If you have a mammoth head or large ears, these may not fit you as well as they fit me. I'd recommend trying a pair on - they are sold at fine electronic stores and they usually have a pair you can try on and listen to.
  
  First, I would try wearing them with no audio at all. Just stand there for 5 minutes with these things on. Do they bug you? If so, they're not for you.
  
  Personally, I find the soft cups that pivot for the precise shape of my head to be very comfy. The cups envelope my ears without scrunching them - just surrounding them with the music or audio I want to listen to. The bass is deep - even with the volume cranked way up, I don't feel like either the treble or bass is cracking.
  
  They're not as trendy looking as the miniscule ear buds everyone wears these days - but for complete solitude in listening to an audio book, mowing the lawn while listening to music, or just tuning out white noise while listing to something relaxing, these are nice.
  
  My less than perfect rating is for the kinda cheesy-looking plastic and foamy headband. The headband is a magnet for dog hair (guess how I found that out?) and the plastic components just look cheap. It doesn't matter how good the sound is - when you spend this kind of money, it's nice to know you can enjoy looking at an item, too. This is why Sony & Apple do so well with their products - they work AND they are sexy to look at. These are just - eh. They're ok, but nothing to write home about in the appearance department. I know from their full-page print ads and infomercials that sound engineers and all kinds of research and rocket science goes into their audio equipment - but they seriously need to work with an award winning designer to come up with a better look. If they canned half their ad campaign and devoted some of that money to design, they could lower the price and these things would sell like hotcakes.
  
  

• Better Than Any $100 Plus Earbuds - Made For Ipod

  
  By ABBST3BDXAG5L on 2007-01-03
  I have spent in excess of $400 trying to find the right earbuds that have great bass. These headphones are at any Apple store (they use them to demo the Ipods, but are not for sale). When I tried them with the Ipod, I was blown away. I wear them jogging, hiking & to the Gym (perfect for this - the phones shut out that horrible music selected by my Gym). You will have no regrets here, your search is over.
  
  

• On my third pair, with the same defective issue...

  
  By AR5SY32T76DBM on 2007-04-30
  These headphones, with their clear, detailed treble and warm bass, are very sweet sounding, indeed; they feel great on the head (even after extended use) and are as light as air.
  
  Unfortunately, they are (as others before me have said) fragile. I always took great care when using these headphones, and would use them no more than a few times a week, with them never leaving my home.
  
  Even so, less than a year after my initial purchase, the right side of the headphones (where the plastic "slider" is) inexplicably came apart. Bose acknowledged they are aware of this issue, and sent me a new pair, stating personally to me that they had revised the headphones construct material, claiming that the plastic is of a much sturdier quality. Bose readily replaced my broken headphones, although I did have to pay for shipping costs.
  
  One year later, my replacement headset came apart, in exactly the same fashion as the first! Bose is (once again) sending me a replacement; once again, I pay for shipping costs.
  
  In fact, more than three years after my initial purchase, judging by various online customer reviews, this issue STILL seems to be fairly widespread.
  
  To be fair, I must say that their customer service is top notch. Still, despite the great sound quality and good customer service, I cannot recommend these... Buyer beware!
  
  

• Look elsewhere for better values

  
  By AZ0SIZRQWN7RC on 2006-12-26
  When you move significantly above the $100 mark with headphones, one naturally expects superior sound and build quality - things that can be found with competing phones like the Grado SR125, Alessandro MS1, or even the Sony MDR-V6. For one thing, the body of these headphones is made of a relatively flimsy plastic, and lends little in the way of confidence in the product. The sound - the part that matters - may impress neophyytes with their strong bass, but balance and richness of tone are sorely absent. Perhaps that's why may TriPort owners find themselves defecting to other products.
  
  Bose has earned a name through aggressive advertising and name recognition, but if you're a savvy shopper (and are willing to look at some superb competing headphones (sometimes at half the price), you and your music will be in a better place.
  
  

• Incredible sound

  
  By AA0DWLXTOO8UW on 2006-12-28
  I cannot speak much for the fragility of the headphones, because I only use them indoors with my computer and my mp3 player. If I pay $140 for headphones, I am going to be pretty careful with them. I had a friend who was pretty hard on them and broke the headband. He didn't really care and just taped it back together.
  
  The headphones are comfortable to me. They get a little hot after a few hours of use, but what would you expect?
  
  The sound quality is incredible. That is why I am writing this review. Test it out for yourself. Find some music that was recorded very well (electronic music styles tend to be a good test as they have a wide spectrum of sounds and minimal microphone fuzz) and a pair of TriPorts and test it against other headphones. You owe it to yourself to at least give these a try.
  
  
• If you want great sound....
  By A39POK37DHV9Z8 on 2007-06-25
  I bought these headphones when I heard them at the Apple Store when I bought my iPod. The quality of the sound just blew me away. Great range of sound. The bass is just sweet. What more can I say? You want to truly enjoy that iPod this is how to do it.
  
  I am usually quite fussy about sound quality. I would highly recommend these headphones for your listening pleasure.
  
  
• Built for comfort but not durability
  By A85OJOVXAJIX on 2007-12-01
  I'm on my third (and last) pair of the Tri-Port headphones. The sound is good and they are very comfortable to wear for extended periods. The problem is that they are fragile and cheaply made.
  My first two pair failed because the jack is a poorly made molded plastic item that can't stand even moderately heavy use. The wires inside the jack become disconnected and sound from one or both ears is lost. Bose replaced the first two pair (still under warranty) but the current pair has failed in the same way.
  Think twice about buying these headphones. If you ever remove and reinsert the jack on a regular basis, I guarantee that it will eventually fail.
  
  
• Loud, Crystal Clear, And quiet for the others!!!
  By A335SHUUUUA9OA on 2006-12-31
  Greatest Headphones I have ever had, works great with Television, or Ipods. Highly Recommended!! Worth Your money.
  
  
• Very comfortable--solid sound
  By A1L9XQC4F1V9ZY on 2007-03-07
  My list of headphones needs was very specific and narrow: A lightweight, really comfortable set with solid range of sound. These headphones met my criteria and I am very pleased with them. I use them at my desk at work either plugged into my PC or into my iPod. Sometimes, I wear them at lunch while taking a walk and they work wonderfully for that.
  
  Yes, I supposed there might be better sounding headphones out there in this price range, but believe me, most of these are heavier and bulkier. I was resolved to having to wear behind the neck headphones because I really don't want Borg headgear on at work, but when I tried these on I was sold. I love them. I can wear them most of the day and not feel any discomfort and...vain as it may sound, my hair doesn't look like I have been sleeping beneath my desk all morning when I have to leave the music behind to attend a meeting.
  
  
  
• REALLY Comfortable and decent sounding
  By A5TP3ELB6N9TT on 2007-04-21
  Firstly... I cannot stress this fact more, these are the most comfortable headphones I have ever worn (and i have tried 10's of them). And they stay comfortable for hours and hours, I basically get bored of the music before I get tired of them. However, I would suggest that you try them on in an apple-store/best-buy to make sure they fit you well. I have above average sized ears and these still fit me exactly right. They also have good sound isolation because of the 'really' soft padding, which may also be bad since its hardly possible to carry on a conversation even after zeroing the volume.
  
  Secondly... I dont have enough money to call myself an 'audiophile' (and I got these headphones as a gift) but I love listening to all kinds of music and would agree with the opinion that its possible to get better sounding cans at this price. However, I would still not classify these as dreadful as they sound as good as my 30 buck sennheisers (which are rated pretty good everywhere). Also these are definitely louder than most other headphones (prolly cuz of isolation) but have a minute resident hiss (which I later realised was because of my soundcard). And to correct another reviewer: triport does not mean that these have 3 drivers for handling different parts of the frequency range.
  
  Thirdly.. these phones seem pretty well built to me and will not break even if you drop them on concrete from 6ft or if they get crushed between books inside your backpack. But they will break if you fall/step on them. As always the use of plastics is necessary to keep the weight low. Another good point about these is that the head band has a pretty good extension and makes a pleasing clicking sound while adjusting.
  
  Bottom line acceptable sound quality and excellent comfort.. now you go decide whether thats right for you (unless you are one of the Bose haters out there).
  
  
• Pricey, but worth it.
  By A2V7EO331SFUF6 on 2007-04-23
  As I've posted elsewhere, these are my favorite choice for quality listening. They don't tire your ears out (like plugs) and they isolate you from all but hte most intrusive environmental distractions. Superb bass response. Older models have a defect in the headband design, Bose has been replacing them absolutely free for the newer, more resilient model (silver).
  
  
• Great Headphones, good dealer.
  By AKZPPEIE10OKB on 2007-07-04
  The headphones have a great range of frequencies, sound great for everything I use them for (piano keyboard, ipod, video games, general computer use) You won't be disappointed with the quality at all.
  
  Also, my package arrived promptly and the headphones were NIB and wedged between two air-pillow packaging things. Much appreciated considering the price of this product.
  
  
• great sound, could be better fit
  By A1XOVMVP7Y41RM on 2007-07-24
  of course it has the best sound. and it muffles other sounds nicely.
  
  BUT it pushes my earrings into my head because it fits so tightly (and I have a small head). I have to tuck my small hoops in or I ache...
  
  worth the price, yes if you are picky about sound quality. If you do not know good quality, save money
  
  
• Great lightweight cans
  By A2QR9RUTKWVAAY on 2007-10-28
  I bought these about a year ago to replace a pair of ten year old Sonys that I had worn into retirement.
  
  I'm not an audiophile. I don't spend tons of money on stereo systems making sure that everything is just perfect. I am concerned about being a member of a generation with the potential to go deaf at an early age, and I wanted a pair of headphones that would prevent sound leakage and hopefully encourage me to turn the sound down.
  
  I like them. It does take a bit to get used to a new pair of headphones, and I found these made the treble a bit hissy. I don't turn my bass up. I have noticed instruments and sound effects more clearly in various songs that I hadn't before, which I found really interesting.
  
  These are lightweight, but the cushioning is good and the rubber doesn't come off on the back of my ears like the others did. They aren't preventative of outside sound, but definitely keep the sound inside the cans.
  
  My only complaint is that the cord seems like it could be more substantial for such an expensive piece of equipment. It isn't flimsy, but it's surprising that they didn't make these with a telephone cord like connection.
  
  
• a worthy product...
  By A24YRIA4LWSCQM on 2008-01-10
  $150 for a headphone may not sound like intelligent spending, but for Bose quality - you wont feel sorry later.
  
  Three years back when I researched on headphones, Bose stood first except for this one negative point. Headphone is fragile - Broke when I opened the FedEx box - similar reviews.
  
  But, I have been using this all these three years - really much; went to school, travel a lot, work in New York City and it is just fine. Of course, it needs care - you cant put in your backpack just like that - but definitely is not at all bad.
  
  Here is why Bose still remains my favorite.
  
  Deep Music (Not just loud) and Light weight (Very first time, it took 4 hours to realize that theres something on my head)
  
  
  
  
• Why buy Bose?
  By ASKPAK0O99G0I on 2008-02-08
  I listened to these at a retail store and was appalled by the sound quality these things put out. The bass was boomy (probably has something to do with how they designed the closed back) and there seemed to be something missing from the upper lows and lower mids.
  
  For the amount of money a person might spend on these headphones they could get some very nice Sennheisers or even Grados (depending on if you're OK with an open back design). Heck, Koss Portapros, albeit they're uglier than sin, would probably be a better choice.
  
  In fact, let me give you a little advice. You're probably looking at these because you're just a random joe blow type who wants more sound out of his iPod. Right? Well then you should probably buy either Sony Fontopias (if you like the speakers that go in your little ear hole) or get some Sennheisers if you like over the ear joints.
  
  
• Great sound, cheap construction
  By A1478MBJTMLSKL on 2008-02-06
  I'm now on my 3rd set of these headphones, and am about to send them back for the same reason: the headband broke. These things sound great, but the headband is some of the cheapest construction I have ever seen. I've now had three pairs break in the exact same way - the plastic pieces that join the headband to the ear cups has broken out, just from adjusting the headphones to the biggest size (I apparently have a big head) and WEARING THEM.
  
  I baby these things, and only use them at my desk when I'm working, so I'm not abusing them. My recommendation is that if you want to have some great sound, and contact Bose Warranty every year, then go for it. I'm going to start looking for a different set.
  
  
• Simply the Best.
  By A35LHDVDHU976N on 2008-02-08
  Love the Bose headphones. They have got to be the best I have ever used.
  
  
• Happy with Bose
  By A3SR7FWK3P6BUR on 2008-04-04
  What i like about the Bose Around-Ear headphones is that no one else needs to hear my music. I ride a van to and from work and i just start up my iPod with the Bose headphones and no one is bothered with the sound.
  It fits well around my ears.
  
  
• Fantastic Sound and Comfortable
  By A2F62OOJO8QOSQ on 2008-05-11
  I recommend these headphones for sheer comfort and quality of sound + the value is good. Great for use with an iPod or Sirius radio
  
  
  Only downside is the cord seems very flimsy. One slight jerk and I reckon I'll have to buy a new set :)
  
  
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