Bose Quiet Comfort 15

Pros: The audio clarity is a huge improvement over the QC2 model that these replaced and noise cancellation is much better. I was never very impressed with the upper end of the QC2, but the QC15 has sure solved that problem

Cons: have not had them long enough to identify any flaws.

Summary: I have had QC2 for several years and the ear pads were falling apart, so I took them back to the Bose store where they were originally purchased and was told that I had to send them to factory for repair.

While at the Bose store I decided to compare the QC15 noise reduction against my old QC2s. The QC15s attenuated the simulated airplane noise far better than my QC2s.

However, what really sold me was the Bose TRADE-UP offer that was made at their factory store. I surrendered my old QC2s with their earpads falling apart plus $125 upgrade fee and walked out with brand new QC15s.

I did not appreciate how much Bose has improved their audio quality until I got home and began listening to music on my iPod. Now I began heaaring stereo imaging and a third dimension that I never experienced with the QC2s. The piano was suddenly crisp with each note well defined. The transient attack of Claptons guitar strings jumped out at me and his voice was superbly focused. The ethereal qualities of Sarah McLachlans voice was back. Pavarotti's voice was no longer blurred into the orchestra. In short, the Bose QC15 sound much more like my mid-range Grado and Sennheiser headphones than like the $5 earbuds that come with consumer audio.

I have never been a big fan of Bose and my purchase of the QC2s was simply so I could watch DVDs during commercial airline flights. However, the QC15 has impressed me with quietness and musicality. Therefore, I enthusiastically endorse this new model.