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"Horses for Courses!" on by TravisJD
Pros: 1). Noise cancelling is excellent
2). Very good sound quality
3). Very comfortable
4). iPod lead is great
5). Long battery lifeCons: 1). Material looks cheap
2). ExpensiveSummary: Horses for Courses
Read around on the internet and you will find a fairly reliable consensus emerging on Bose noise-cancelling headphones. Audiophiles tend to hate them, because they are expensive but have low fidelity (compared to headphones in their price bracket); people who buy them purely for noise-cancelling tend to like them, and even think that they sound pretty good.
NOISE CANCELLING
Audiophiles who want noise mitigation tend to go for the passive attenuation used with IEMs (in-ear monitors, like the sort that performers wear on stage). I have some Shure IEMs, and they are very good at blocking out external noise, but at the cost of inserting something into your ear canal. Worse, in an environment such as a plane, you are often interrupted and have to pull them out of your ear canal, meaning that you have to keep struggling with refitting. (Yes, you can get a microphone unit to avoid this, but that's pretty inconvenient in itself.) Let's not even talk about earwax!
The Bose headphones are very easy to move and replace, so what you lose in absolute attenuation is more than offset by convenience.
The attenuation itself is very good. Without noise cancelling turned on, the headphones do a good job of muffling the external world, but when you turn it on there is a clear "silencing" effect. I haven't tested other noise cancelling headphones, but from reading reviews I'd say that it's pretty clear that Bose are technically the best and - even though these headphones will not silence the external world or even come clear to it - once you actually start playing music your brain tends to go along with the process and exclude any distracting noises that might make it past the active cancelling.
Note that the lower listening volumes possible with these headphones, together with the passive attenuation in the earpad designs, probably means that these headphones have very little leakage. They are certainly not silent to other people, but may be less noisy than other headphones you have tried.
BUILD QUALITY & COMFORT
Bose are often criticized on build quality: certainly the QC15s are very "plastic" in feel and you may be disappointed compared with some other headphones in the price bracket, which employ expensive or exotic materials. The "leatherette" headband and ear pads are functional, no better. My AKG K701s, which cost about two thirds of the price of the QC15s, look and feel like a much more expensive headphone.
That said, the QC15s are very light and surprisingly comfortable. Rather than being directly above the crown of the head, the headband is angled slightly forward, meaning that they are not going to move about when you lean back in your seat, and although the clamping effect against the ears is strong enough to result in hot ears, it is perfectly comfortable to wear spectacles at the same time as these headphones.
There are also some nice design touches in the QC15s. The battery compartment is very easy to access (yet secure) and takes one AAA battery (unlike the QC3s which used a special rechargeable battery). The cable snaps into the headphone on a special proprietary coupling. This means that the cable should be fairly easy to replace if it becomes damaged. (In any case, in the UK Bose give you a second cable included in the price: it's the cable for controlling Apple devices, which has a microphone on it, a volume switch and a pause/answer button.) The cable also has a slider on it so that if you are using the headphones on a plane you can set it to a higher resistance in order to compensate for the high gain circuits used in flight cabins. Oh, and the cable is very light and straight: you might feel that it is flimsy, but actually I think that a light cable is very practical.
Stated battery life from one AAA battery is about 30-35 hours. You can't run the headphones at all without battery power, so battery lifetime is important. Fortunately, the operation light on the side of the headphones gives you very generous warning when the battery is low: it starts flashing when you have about five hours left. Some reviews have pointed out that it would be nice to be able to run the headphones passively without engaging the sound cancelling circuit (for example, for listening at home in a quiet room) but my feeling is that, in the real world, you are never going to need that or run out of batteries.
The QC15s come with a clamshell case that is really quite nice. The ear units fold flat against the moulded inside of the case, and it seems to offer enough protection that you could stuff it in a bag without worrying, although do bear in mind that overall the headphones in their case are a similar size to a hardback book, so they do take a toll on space in your hand luggage.
SOUND QUALITY
The QC15s are not neutral: they can sound airless in the highs (although this may be a feature of the noise cancellation itself); they sound slightly thin (I could almost say "tinny") in the mids; they boom in the lows, giving a likeable but not natural bass, and their bass extension is okay, but nothing special. You'll notice their weaknesses most on drums and acoustic or electric bass, which can have decent volume and boom but lack the impact and weight that you would get from a really good headphone. That said, the stereo image is good and the QC15s can be quite impressive on music that has sustained bass notes: what you lose out on attack is made up for on sustain.
You can compensate for the lack of punch by turning up the volume, but I don't recommend this. These headphones drive very easily and can be played at absolutely deafening volumes, but (in addition to being very bad for you) this is completely contrary to the entire design: these are intended to be listened to at comparatively low volumes, where their sound characteristics makes them a natural "loudness" circuit. If you listen to the QC15s at (very) high volumes the sound gets very muddy and uncontrolled.
Although it may sound as though I am really down on the sound quality, if you listen generally to popular music, classical or jazz, these headphones are easily good enough for dedicated home listening. They definitely struggle on hip hop, where their bass coloration and lack of real weight clashes horribly with the artificial EQ on that music. To be honest, though, unless you live on a constant diet of bass-intensive music you will be fine, and many owners will be trading up from headphones that may sound nowhere near as good as these do.
One big surprise with the QC15s was how good they are for surround sound. For interest, I tried the QC15s out of a Creative DDTS-30 (which is a little pocket-sized decoder that can provide a Dolby Headphone output) and they do a wonderful job with DTS sound such as the Steven Wilson mix of King Crimson's Starless and Bible Black. The colouration of the QC15s is also spot-on for gaming, with a lot of volume and a very good "out of the head" performance. It's a rather niche use for Bose headphones, but definitely worth trying.
I also tested these headphones with an iPhone and the Apple-compatible cable and was impressed how well the QC15s handled a phone call: the two people talking in the room with me were nicely "muted", the headphones were much better than the iPhone's built-in speaker at reproducing the voice of the person I was talking to, and the in-line microphone seemed to do a good job at picking up my voice. I don't have much use for this aspect of the QC15s, but it's something to bear in mind if you have a need for this functionality.
You should also note that I did listening tests for this review against the AKG K701s out of a headphone amp in a quiet environment. The K701s are a lot more difficult to drive than the QC15s, so if you are using headphones primarily with, for example, an iPod then the QC15s will cope a lot better than many "hi-fi" headphones.
OVERALL
These headphones are designed to be used in noisy environments, whether that means a plane or just a living room where someone is watching a television. As such, it isn't fair to complain that they don't have the same sonic fidelity as other headphones at their price point; the simple fact is that the Bose will sound much, much better than a high-fidelity headphone because you can hear them much better at tolerable volume settings. These headphones are absolutely not "jacks of all trades": they serve a practical purpose and the price premium that they carry reflects how well they do that.
There seems to be a lot of room for improvement in the QC15s but, at time of writing, they are pretty clearly the class leader for what they do and I didn't want to subtract a star since (on a major investment like this) most readers would be seriously put off by the suggestion that these are anything less than a five-star product. Bose has got the key things - noise cancelling, comfort and technical design - right.
P.S. for best deal of the Bose QuietComfort 15, I suggest you have to check before you're will buy it at: Before-buy.info/BoseQuietComfort15
Good Luck! -
"Great Sound, Very Comfortable!" on by S-Hiebert
Pros: + Build Quality Is Pretty Good
+ Incredibly Comfortable
+ Sound Quality Is Fantastic
+ Superb Noise Cancellation
+ Uses 1 AAA battery
+ No cable requiredCons: - You will only get sound when the battery is installed. If you take the battery out or if the battery is dead, the sound is dead
- Not include a 1/4" adapter
- Case is rather big for frequent travelers
- Bulky when stowingSummary: I have owned two other pairs of Bose headphones and I have been using Bose products for over 15 years. This is my fair opinion on the QC15's.
Edit Link
I bought them from Bosedotcom and used their 12 month interest free payment plan. Do this only if you don't want to put the three hundred down up front. If you can spend the three hundred right now, buy them from B&H, Crutchfield, Amazon, etc. because Bose will charge you sales tax because I think they have operations in almost every state.
The reason I bought these was because I heard them in a Bose demonstration area at a Best Buy. They had all the Bose headphones on display. As I put these on, I was blown away by the demonstration. They sounded better than my old Triports. They were more comfortable, and the noise cancellation seemed to work really well. I immediately put the old phones up on eBay and bought these.
First Impressions:
Build quality is pretty good. For the price, I would have expected better materials considering there is a lot of plastic here and if you simply rub off the Bose name, these look like $50 cans. The first thing I noticed was that these are incredibly comfortable. The old Triports made the top of my head hurt and they made me hot because the headband was stiffer and was made of a harder material. The Triports seemed to squish your head while the QC15's just sit on your head. I can keep these QC15's on for a long time and feel comfortable. The wider foam headband is very soft and the ear cushions feel great over your ear. The single cord is also a nice feature and I like how you can disconnect it and use them strictly as noise-canceling headphones. Bose includes an airplane adapter and they give you a case but I think the case looks cheap and bulky and awkward. The case should be more form fitting and sleek. The less-expensive Bose on-ear Triports have a very nice sleek case. I was also very surprised that for the price, Bose does not include a 1/4" adapter. My Triports came with an adapter. I'm sure if you buy these at a Bose store, you can get them to throw in an adapter for free but then again you will get hit with the sales tax thing. Bose also includes 10 product information cards so you can give them to people who inquire about your nice QC15 headphones.
Sound Quality:
I bought the old Triports when they first came out around 2003 and I was incredibly happy with those. I never knew headphones could sound like stereo speakers. The only reason I got rid of those is after I heard the QC15's at the Best Buy. The QC15's actually sounded better and they are noise canceling.
Sound is better because the bass seems deeper. Also noise cancellation is not just for using it in an airplane. Noise cancellation really does help make the sound more focused because it blocks out more ambient noise. In other words, the noise cancellation is not just for canceling out loud obnoxious sounds, it actually enhances the music because there is less outside noise to color the sound. I don't know the proper technical words to evaluate sound quality but I can just tell you that there is a difference between these and the Triports; it's something you can pick out right away.
One thing to keep in mind is that you will only get sound when the battery is installed. If you take the battery out or if the battery is dead, the sound is dead. I don't get this but I guess Bose wants you to only listen to music when the noise cancellation is on. If you don't have batteries, these headphones become an expensive paperweight. There is a little zipper compartment in the headphone carrying case and I highly recommend you keep two extra AAA's in there.
Noise Cancellation:
The Bose demonstration station at Best Buy simulated the sound of jet engines from inside an airplane. The demo asks you to press a button to start the audible sound and then to put the headphones on and listen to some music. Assuming the demonstration was not rigged in any way, the QC15's did drown out the engine roar and I could hear the music without any distraction. I was impressed. It's actually a weird feeling, the noise drowns out as you are putting these on your head and the closer they get to your ears.
Now here's where you might be surprised --noise cancellation does not mean that it eliminates all ambient noise. I can put these headphones on and turn on the noise cancellation and if somebody screams my name from across the room, I can still hear that. I think the noise cancellation is strictly for much louder environments like inside an airplane and things of that nature where the circuitry "senses" the noise and sends a signal to counter it. Noise cancellation is not 100% cancellation of ambient noise. The noise cancellation works really well when it is being used while playing music but when used by itself I would not classify them as "isolation" headphones.
Also, I did notice that once the noise cancellation is on, it does put the slightest bit of pressure on your eardrum. Not pain or discomfort or anything like that, it's just a sensation you get that tells you something is there. I think it feels good actually. Some people say it feels like you are on the bottom of a swimming pool.
Price:
Overpriced like every other Bose product. Considering the amount of plastic on this model, they really look like $50 headphones. You are paying for 1. The technology/patents/etc., 2. The Bose name. Considering Bose is at the top of the noise canceling market, you are paying for that accomplishment. Don't let price necessarily deter you. Bose is one of the few, if any, audio brands that has excellent re-sale value. If you don't like them after a year or so, put them up for sale and you will get back almost all of your money. People say Bose spends way too much money on PR and advertising but their reputation, as a result, speaks for itself.
Conclusion:
I like them. As far as sound, they sound great. If I was a frequent traveler, I would like them even more. I find myself using the noise cancellation in the library to help me concentrate. I decided to keep them because I do use them a lot and they did sound better than the Triports I previously owned and they are more comfortable. They are pricey and not worth the advertised price IMO. Really assess whether you need the noise cancellation or not. My guess is most people will not. Honestly, unless you are a frequent traveler, I don't think you will be blown away with the noise canceling when used on a daily basis. Try before you buy them and remember that if you are not happy with them, if you sell them, you will not lose a whole lot.
*** P.S. If you will buy these headphones I suggest you have compare price before you decide at: www.amazon.com/gp/*************?ie=UTF8&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fgp%2Foffer-listing%2FB002M38I2U%3Fie%3DUTF8%26ref_%3Ddp_olp_new%26condition%3Dnew&tag=***************&********=ur2&camp=1789&creative=390957
Updated on Nov 6, 2011
I suggest for best deal at: www.amazon .com/exec/******/****/B0054JJ0QW/cnet-offer-2
Enjoy!
Updated on Nov 6, 2011www.amazon .com/exec/******/****/B0054JJ0QW/cnet-offer-20
Updated on Nov 17, 2011Edit Link
www.amazon .com/dp/B0054JJ0QW/?tag=*************** -
"Many Strengths One Heavy Weakness" on by zbangando
Pros: Very Very comfortable
Noise cancellation is a major leap ahead
Good Build QualityCons: Sound is not to audiophile standards
When Noise cancellation was active produced a sensation similar to traveling at high speeds in a train going through a tunnel.Summary: These headphones would work miracles for the frequent flyer. The noise cancellation is excellent, especially filtering the low frequencies. During my test I had the Bose employees crank the L1 system up and when I turned the headphones on the bass from the L1 was no longer audible as well as the mids and highs. This is backed by their overachieving comfort which is important. The sound that these produced was good, but not on par with audiophile headphones of the same price. Bass was good, but often the highs and mids became too bright on aggressive records such as A Watchful Guardian, The Dark Knight. All in all I thought these headphones are a very good pair for what their name implies.
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"just returned my Q3's and so far I am impressed" on by levinej103
Pros: I can tell at least from both the QC 2's and the QC 3's that the noise cancelation is better as well as the sound quality, at least in regards to the bass I agree with the review that the sound on this model is more well rounded in regards to bass
Cons: obviously bigger than the smaller QC 3's
Summary: I have a smaller head so I favored the QC 3's I am a first year law student and I use these for doing work in coffee shops, studying etc... other than the bigger build which I was not a big fan of I can say that it is an upgrade in both noise cancelation and sound quality. Also unlike the QC 3's that left my ears red after long use, the around the ear design is better if you don't want to go into a meeting with red ears after an hour of use, but the bulk made me less motivated to walk around campus in them as my everyday headphones (I know these are typically reserved for flying but they are also great study headphones). Overall if size is not a issue these are the clear choice and they're cheaper. I returned mine on the 30 day money back and the customer service was extremely helpful.
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"Yes, go buy them. Incredible!" on by Bobcaramba
Pros: Fit my 1st gen iphone. Comfortable, great noise cancelation, detachable wire and extremely good quality materials. 30 day trial. Carrying case.
Cons: No battery, no music, price tag is a little steep but trust me when I say you will forget about that the first time you wear them.
Summary: When it comes down to it Bose is just another brand, an amazing one at that. But one that has set extremely high standards for its products. I have yet to find one person who walks out of a Bose store and says " wow that was horrible".
Now I should admit I am no audiophile, but what I can say is that I have had a variety of headphones in my life and these are by far the best I have ever owned.
They are amazing, truly comfortable and built from quality materials. The second you pull them out of the case and feel the soft cushiony leather and headband you automatically feel happier.
As for sound I must say I have rediscovered my Itunes library and spent countless hours just listening to music, something I never did anymore.
I have two extremely loud fans going in my room pretty much 24/7 ( if you own little Honeywells you know what I mean) and as soon as I flick that little switch they simply go away.
The price tag is a little steep but as soon as I began using them any guilt went away.
The people at the store were quick and efficient, polite and just all around helpful.
I honestly love my QC15's but they may not be for everyone so if you don't like them or think they were too expensive just take them back, you have 30 days to be impressed. You'll need 30 seconds.
The bottom-line is simple, they are beautiful pieces of engineering and a dream com e true, they sound crisp and clean, the bass is deep but not overpowering. I wouldn't change them for the world. Best purchase of the year.
Bose Quiet Comfort 15 user reviews
