Now that delicate earbuds, or earphones, have almost completely replaced the big muffins that previously decorated music listeners’ ears, manufacturers are placing more emphasis on quality and features than previously. As is the case with most in-the-box accessories, the buds your iPod or other player came with can do with a serious upgrade. This time we tried out three sets of in-ear speakers from Bose, Denon and Sony.
$99 > www.bose.com
Bose made a big deal out of the launch of their first in-ear speakers last summer, and then made a big deal out of it again this spring as the company executed a sort-of re-launch. Bose hasn’t really redesigned the products they introduced last year, rather they added a couple of enhancements to address complaints some users had. The Bose products are a little different from other in-ear phones in that they don’t wedge in tight into the ear canal. Instead they rest gently in the little pocket cavity right outside (called the concha) the ear canal. This design achieves a few things. First, it makes them the most comfortable earbuds I’ve ever worn, and makes them easy to put on. It also doesn’t completely seal out outside noise, so you’ll still be able to hear (assuming your music isn’t too loud) cars honking at you as you cross a street. Also, it makes them easy to fall out if you wear them during physical activities, such as jogging or working out. For this reason, Bose added a clip (to attach onto your clothes) on the main wire and a rubber lanyard that goes around your neck. These enhancements will absorb the pulling and bouncing from your activities and keep you from losing your buds. They’re nice touches, and I especially like the lanyard.
Acoustically, Bose hasn’t changed the earphones. They use the company’s Triport design, which incorporates three small holes to allow air passage and enhance bass. In fact, the Bose design enhances bass so much that the company recommends you set your player’s equalizer option to flat. The Bose earbuds do in fact produce a lot of bass, and rock lovers will appreciate the fullness it gives to the music. The sound is very rich, and the fit is so comfortable you almost don’t know they’re there. They come with a sturdy case and feature stiff, tangle-resistant wire.
If you already bought the Bose earphones before they started including the clip and lanyard, Bose will send them to you for free.
Sony
$99 > www.sony.com
The Sony MDR-NC22 earbuds are noise- canceling, which means they electronically filter out certain frequencies from the outside world to better seal yourself inside your head. Typical over-the-ear headphones do this by incorporating the electronics into one of the ear pieces, making them a bit bulky. The Sony puts the electronics on a little module located on the wire and adds a clip so you can attach it to your jacket to keep the thing from bouncing around. It takes a single “AAA” battery to power it.
In terms of comfort, the Sonys are a huge improvement over typical earbuds. The flexible rubber attachments fit nicely, and you don’t have to work too hard to get them in your ear correctly (note: some earbuds I’ve used, such as the Shure E3s only perform properly when pushed in just right, something I find difficult to do). There’s a mute button on the control module so you can listen to an announcement on an airplane without having to take the things off.
The sound is fairly good, with a decent bass and detail reproduction. The noise cancellation feature, however, is not that great. It seems to boost the volume more than cancel out ambient noise, which accomplishes the same thing anyway.
Where the earbuds go wrong for me, however, is in the design—the left wire is about half the length of the right wire, which makes it prone to tangles and forces me to keep my player in my right pocket. Also the noise cancellation module can be a nuisance and tangle magnet if you’re not careful. It comes with a cloth bag for storage and an adaptor for two-prong airline headphone inputs.
Denon
$199 > www.denon.com
Denon usually focuses on mid- and high-end home theater gear such as surround sound receivers and DVD players. The AH-C700 is part of the company’s first ever earphone products. The design incorporates what Denon calls an acoustic optimizer, which is essentially a larger cavity in the earbud housing with a small port on one end.
Like traditional speakers, a large cavity can enhance bass, and speakers need a port to allow airflow. The main housing is aluminum, which differs from your run-of-the-mill plastic earbud. The C700s use ball-shaped ear tips like the Sony, but the weight of the extended body of the product makes them not quite as snug as the Sonys and more prone to being easily tugged out. That said, they are very comfortable, but you’ll find yourself tapping them back into place more often than the other two models. On the other hand, they do isolate you more from ambient noise than the Bose products due to their in-canal design.
What really make the Denons stand out is their sound performance. Like the Bose, they do a good job of making bass in a small space, but the Denons sound a lot cleaner and more natural than the other two here—they’re also a lot more expensive, but if you’re looking for a more accurate experience, these deliver. yy
In regard to the Bose earbuds, I had a pair and he sound and fit were very good except for the bass response which was very weak, the content was there but had virtually no power. I used a sansa 250 mp3 player , A sony mini disc and an Ipod nano All 3 yield poor bass resonse with and w/o the use of a hp amplifier. I have a set of Phillips she-9500 earbuds, the sound excellant with any source, unbelievable for $30.00 Buds. I have many bose products, The earbuds are the only disapointment
These are not in ear buds as advertised. Always fall out and no good in noisy places.Very disappointed, last bose product for me.