[Closed] Bose, please explain

Father in law's Bose HiFi is pretty impressive but actually no better than my Cambridge Audio Richer Sounds job which was half the price. But then it takes up a fraction of the room and doesn't have infant attracting speakers in harms way.

(I still don't know why I threw the speaker covers away)

I hate the fact that it seem very difficult to find out how much a lot of their products cost 😕

as above - never trust an organisation with restrictive sales practices (direct sales only, now discounters, no genuine discounts, limited pricing presence). They have something to hide if they dont trust the market to price their products.

If you can afford it, you don't need to know..

I ahve a Bose system belonging to my brother in law and hate the fact that I can't find RRPs of things and secondhand values vary a lot on ebay for the same equipment! I don't mind it but I was quite happy with my Cambridge Audio and Wharfedale set up before the mrs made me sell them on account of our lounge wasn't built for them!

Very good solutions for awkward/difficult/small spaces, decent sound quality, pretty reliable. They work really well in shops, bars, restaurants, galleries and that, with those tiny speakers and subwoofers you can hide away. And as GaryLake points out, if you've got kiddies about with inquisitive pokey fingers, they can be bunged where those little fingers can't reach.

Decent car audio systems too.

Way, way overpriced for what they are really though imo.

More widely available now than a few years ago, though...

agree with the above. good in some p.a applications.

Any opinions on the QC3 / QC15 headphones???

I do a lot of work related long-haul travel. having tried numerous NC headphones, I eventually stumped up the cash for the Bose unit. Honestly say it was money well spent. A few weeks later I bought the Sound-dock for home.

Yeah, its probably a bit over priced, and the hidden RRP is a marketing gimmick, but its still quality kit.

Years back I was a bit of an audiophile and at one point considered buying some Bose Accoustimass. After a bit of hunting I couldn't understand why the majority of Hifi dealers turned their nose up at Bose.

Turns out Bose are considered a "lifestyle" brand rather than a high-end manufacturer

Buggered if I could tell the difference though as they sounded the nuts

I've used their noise cancelling headphones on a few flights and thought they were great

I think they made their name in commercial sound systems, I had some Bose speaker about 20 years ago, which were fantastic. Not so sure about the modern stuff or consumer products.

Bose are pretty overpriced for the quality on offer and very much position themselves as a lifestyle brand. For example their speakers use very cheap drivers, poor quality cabinets and sound appalling AFAICT.
I've heard that the NC headphones are decent enough but if it were my money I'd go for some Sure or Etymotic in ear phones as you'll get a similar level of background noise reduction but for a much lower cost and have better sound quality. If you prefer over the ear phones Sennheiser or Grado are still hard to beat.

I bought some Sennheiser earbuds once, generally going off internet recommendations, now they were overpriced tat!

I've had noise cancelling headphones and find in-ear ones are actually better at keeping background noise out - currently binned my £150 NC ones for a pair of £20 in ear jobbies for long haul flights.

I've never seen Bose on sale in any of the decent HiFi stores I've been in, FWIW...

I was a bit of an audiophile and at one point considered buying some Bose Accoustimass

you weren't an audiophile if you couldn't hear anything wrong with their acoustimass system.

For one thing it is technically suspect - their subwoofer is not a subwoofer at all as it covers too much of the sound spectrum - a sub needs to cut off at 100Hz or you can tell where it is. It is like a mono system with a some stereo at high frequencies.

And it doesn't sound much cop either - all boom and tizzy. Just play some real music on it, some piano for example, and then ask yourself if that is what a piano really sound like.

All marketing and no substance - although I haven't heard their headphones.

I used some of their commercial PA speakers at Uni - the ones with an EQ box. OK for PA speakers, but I have heard better.

I tried some Bose head phones out the other day and just didn't like them, then tried some Sennheiser and they sounded rubbish, put a set of beats solo's on ad promptly paid for them 😀

you weren' t an audiophile if you couldn't hear anything wrong with their acoustimass system.

And I don't think Bose have ever targeted their stuff at Audiophiles. It's a very artificial sound they've got BUT give them their dues, they've tuned it so that it sounds attractive to many peoples ears (much like the VIVID setting on TV that's used in shops - horribly artificial but makes the sets stand out).

Bose looks good and it's small which suits people. The ease of use on their MP3 system was well ahead of the competition when I saw it a few years back.

You can put better sub/sat systems together (Monitor Audio, B&W etc etc) but few other people are offering the complete package that Bose do. It's a bit like Apple products - people will tell you that you can put better together for less but it's inevitably uglier and more fiddly (though the difference is i think they're wrong with Apple and right with Bose. Ho hum.)

I have a pair of Bose noise cancelling headphones, and have done for about five years now. Having had them I wouldn't hesitate to pay the £295 replacement cost. They sound great, are very comfortable and really do make a massive difference on flights. Yes they're pricey, but I don't understand why people get so upset about that... many of you have opted for XTR over XT.

I also found they are fantastic for my at work productivity - put the Bose on in the office and then I'm able to power through work without getting harassed by muppets or general office din.

I also really like the fact that when I needed new ear foams about three years ago, Bose just gave a whole new set of headphones. No reason why, they just did. Sweet.

Get over your strange snobbery, suck up the cost and give your ears and life a wonderful treat.

I have Bose QC3 headphones that I use mainly with with iPod for music and iPad for films. Great on an airplane for cutting out most of the engine noise. Really comfy and the rechargeable batteries (2 included) last ages.

Were they worth the money = If they last 4-5years definitely yes
Would I buy again = as long as they last well then yes

Problem is you may well have paid XTR money for Deore LX bits.

I do a lot of internal flights over here in China.
My NC headphones are on my must take list. Sometimes I just sit there, and not listen to anything, the almost silence is good enough.

They are also great in drowning out the yap of the mother-in-laws bark around the house as well.

Any opinions on the QC3 / QC15 headphones???

I eventually went for Klipsh X-1's.

I also really like the fact that when I needed new ear foams about three years ago, Bose just gave a whole new set of headphones.

I've always thought that approach to customer service actually suggests that there is a massive gap between raw materials and selling price. The other company that does that is Oakley.

TurnerGuy

you weren't an audiophile if you couldn't hear anything wrong with their acoustimass system.

For one thing it is technically suspect - their subwoofer is not a subwoofer at all as it covers too much of the sound spectrum - a sub needs to cut off at 100Hz or you can tell where it is. It is like a mono system with a some stereo at high frequencies.

Acoustimass isn't intended for audiophiles, or at least not for audiophile listening. If you are prepared to have a properly setup hifi /listening environment and sit right in the sweet spot then a decent hifi will give better results. Acoustimass gives a very good spread of sound throughout a room whilst being visually unobtrusive. That's what it's for and it does that very well.

As for being "technically suspect" that's just daft. The fact is it works and does what it's supposed to...It's a mid-range speaker that has been designed to camouflage its directional cues..You can tuck the single mid range speaker box behind a sofa or whatever and really won't notice it's there - the soundstage appears to be completely projected from the sattelite speakers....If you move around the room with music on you can't actually detect it as a sound source at all until you get very very close to it.

I've owned a Boss acoustimass system and various hifis over the years. They all do different things well. The Bose stuff does a good job at what it's designed for.

I have a pair of Bose noise cancelling headphones, and have done for about five years now. Having had them I wouldn't hesitate to pay the £295 replacement cost. They sound great, are very comfortable and really do make a massive difference on flights. Yes they're pricey, but I don't understand why people get so upset about that... many of you have opted for XTR over XT.

I had a set of acostimass speakers in my lounge. Got them second hand, put them up listened to some stuff, took them down and sold them. Pish. Put my Rega RS5s back in place and accepted that for decent sound there is no replacement for displacement. I use their nc headphones though and have done for years - they are very good.

triple flange

😯

Audiophiles

The [i]dirty[/i] bastards. 😡

Moving small diaphragms through huge amplitudes has it's limits and Bose fail to move enough air to make low frequencies sound right IMO.

I've just remembered a Bose ad on the TV. I remember thinking "sounds quite good that", then realised I was listening to an HD fibre optic fed cable box connected to a Kenwood amp feeding Monitor Audio speakers. I wonder what it sounded like on basic television speakers? And if it sounded any good at all it demonstrates Bose units work best in the same frequency range as TV speakers.

[Trouble is they're headphones, which are bulky and obtrusive.]

That's one of the reasons I love them, as it makes people think twice before interrupting me or speaking to me. That said, triple flanges sound nice 😉

overpriced tat for people who think they know what good speakers sound like 😛

As per my first post then !!!!

Although the response on the nc headphones seems more positive

I've used QC15 headphones on a long haul flight. I thought that they were very good at cancelling the aircraft noises and comfortable.
However, I will not be buying any because:
1) reviews seem to suggest flimsy construction for everyday use
2) can only use in NC mode. So if the battery dies, so do the headphones! (although i suggest you check my facts on this one!)
3) i'm not convinced of their NC capabilities for non-aircraft noises.
4) they are very expensive
5) i dont fly enough to justify getting them for that purpose

In their favour, I found them to be better on flights than my in ear Shure E110s.

I'd recommend investigating getting a set of custom made ear inserts.
http://www.hearingprotection.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=60&Itemid=117

flimsy construction for everyday use

The last time I looked at some in the Bose shop they felt flimsy and were broken

3) i'm not convinced of their NC capabilities for non-aircraft noises

Do you really need it elsewhere?

custom made ear inserts.

Got some of these on Shure earbuds but really don't find them comfortable. Too much 'in ear noise' when you chew/move your jaw. Make my ears sore quickly if i start inserting and removing them (eg on a plane when the stewardess/partner talks to you). I took my Sennheiser HD25's on my last long flight. Great sound, light and comfortable, effectively block out background noise.

I have had some Tri-Port over ear headphones for about 7 years now and used to use them on a daily basis when commuting by train and they have been faultless I don't use them so much these days because I drive to work but when I do I am still very pleased with the sound they produce,and they are so comfortable.

Another here who uses in-ear phones for flights and noise reduction. Even the non-active noise-cancellation kind are fine; if you get the fit right you cut out most of the noise of engines etc. Personally I was a Shure fan, but they kept breaking (E3, E4, SLC4 x2), so I switched to Etymotic hf5s. They're not quite the same sound, but incredibly detailed and recently the bass seems to have opened up a lot too.

I wanted some cheap but half decent ear plugs and went for some SoundMagic PL21s (I think). Very impressive especially for the money. They're a bit dull and could do with a bit more high end but apart from that the rest sounds very nice and clear. Solid bass without being muddy and you can actually hear all the instruments and subtleties in the mix. For £22 they're spot on. Oh and they were fine on the plane.

If BOSE stuff was cheap they could hardly claim it was good, could they? It's all marketing.

I've got the OE headphones. 120 quid, so not cheap, but I love them, very comfy, great sound (not neutral at all through, very warm and quite bass heavy). I love them

I don't understand why anyone would pay for Bose headphones when you can get an awesome set of Grado SR80s for usually a much lower price. Unless you must have the sound isolation and stuff, Grados are all open back iirc.