572 replies to this topic

[Wojo]

That's not possible in me country. You can't return stuff once it's opened.

If KM is to be believed you can just buy, use and return stuff in Kanadia. Does that even go for CD's and DVD/Blu-rays?

[OPINION]
Granted, I don't live in the land of mounties and mooses, but still, many places will allow you to return optical media if it is defective. Whether they believe you depends on how persuasive you are (cry a little and stomp your feet like a petulant little girl), whether they actually try to reproduce your "error" (nerds may), or how subtly you can damage the item yourself (devious...I like that). But this transaction is an exchange for another copy of the same item. You can't buy Slapshot, watch or copy it, and then try to exchange it for Mighty Ducks. You can only return it for a new copy of Slapshot, i.e. a replacement of the original item. Now that you have a new copy, you can return it anywhere. Hopefully you'll get cash but some places only give store credit because they're onto this kind of subtle scamming.

It sometimes helps to have a receipt from the original purchase if you're trying to stay honest, but you can always say it was a gift. Crummy places like Walmart don't care. You can take a half-eaten box of Cheetos back to Walmart saying it's stale, and they'll give you your money back. They don't care.
[/OPINION]

[Alexcremers]

Of course you can return something when it's defective. Defective isn't the issue. The issue is that someone can buy a video camera, shoot a movie with, and then before the 3 months are over, he can change his mind and ask the shop to give him back his money.

[Wojo]

If it's in otherwise good shape and he says it was a gift he opened two days ago and he didn't want it or claims it to be defective, yup, that's totally acceptable.

Of course, when I see a table of open box merchandise, I walk the other way.

I understand your consternation if it's a pair of headphones, and what you buy is stained with second-hand sweat, has dandruff or gives you ear herpes. Nasty. But legal.

[king mark]

So how can you be certain some dude didn't wear your headphones for 2 or 3 months?

Most big electronic stores have a 1 months return/exchange policy even on open items (EXCEPT DVD's/games...) .If your return it they sell the item as "open box" a bit discounted.

Now the smaller boutiques you have to deal. Where I bought my SR225's I only had a few days and could only have exchanged them (no straight return or refund). So I was 99% certain when I bought them

(Big box stores don't sell Grados)

[Blumenkohl]

Alex,

Who cares if someone did wear for a month or two? You're getting open box pricing on virtually new hardware. In most of the Western world fleas, the consumption, and smallpox have been eradicated. And unless you have severe open wounds AND a crippled immune system, it's no more likely to kill you than sitting your pristine and healthy ass down on a public toilet.

That said, just wipe whatever it is down with some rubbing alcohol. Lysol wipes if you are a germaphobe and need disinfection instead of sanitization.

[Koray Savas]

Retail stores don't sell used headphones, to my knowledge. At least with BBY, they get sent back to the manufacturer.

[Alexcremers]

You're getting open box pricing on virtually new hardware.

If it's cheaper than I have no problem with it. Something that is used or demo'd should not be sold as new. Then again, salesmen are never to be trusted. They will try to sell it as new, if they think they can get away with it.

[Blumenkohl]

Most retailers I've seen in the U.S., physical or online are fairly honest about open box. Though I have not been to "Joe's Redneck TechShack"

[Koray Savas]

At BBY they sometimes resell it new as long as the packaging hasn't been tampered with.

[king mark]

Well one thing I wouldn't buy open box is an LCD TV. It was probably returned because of dead pixels or another problem

[Koray Savas]

Yeah and there's a good chance it'll be missing the power cord, remote, or even the stand.

[king mark]

I did take a chance on my first ipod Nano. It had been used a few hours and returned the same day. It looked perfect so I bought open box. I got a free extended warranty which I remember using to fix the scroll wheel 2 years later

Good headphones are made to last for years and the reason the person returned it is because he didn't like the sound so I think it would be ok to buy open box

[E.T. & Elliott]

I use iGrado for workouts. They're ugly as all hell and can become downright painful after an hour or so of wearing them. But damn do they sound good. I need to find a way to make these more comfortable. Why in God's name does something that sound so good have to be so uncomfortable to wear?

[E.T. & Elliott]

http://www.amazon.co...=cm_rdp_product

I got a pair of these for work, on a whim. I like them. They aren't perfect. They get uncomfortable after a while. As I wore them throughout the day, they eventually stopped blocking the outside sound as well (sweat=bad). But I was impressed with their ability for the price. They sound a bit like Grado headphones. Bright and loaded with detail. Very good for JW music. They also don't deafen me. I mostly use them to block out the sounds of a couple machines and they do it pretty well. With the sound off, it's not much different than with ear plugs. For like 20 bucks, I can now listen to scores on and off while working in the warehouse, so cool. Plus, they don't sound like crap.

[Marian Schedenig]

Koss KSC75 are excellent clip-ons as well, especially given the dirt cheap price.

I just got these, after my Sony clip ons finally died. Can't compare them directly (for obvious reasons), but they do sound fine. Not as comfy though as the Sonys. And I miss the Sonys' cable retraction mechanism. But then, that's what ultimately killed them.

[Blumenkohl]

Koss KSC75 are excellent clip-ons as well, especially given the dirt cheap price.

I just got these, after my Sony clip ons finally died. Can't compare them directly (for obvious reasons), but they do sound fine. Not as comfy though as the Sonys. And I miss the Sonys' cable retraction mechanism. But then, that's what ultimately killed them.

Sweet. Glad you like them. You could always buy some cheap cable with a retractor off Amazon, take out the original cable, and stick the headphone cable in and reassemble.


Something like this: http://www.amazon.co...cable retractor

Surely there must be something similar on Amazon Österreich

[king mark]

I read somewhere the KSC75 have the same drivers as the Portapros so they should sound good

[Alexcremers]

I use iGrado for workouts. They're ugly as all hell

Indeed. I kinda like the retro look of the classic Grados but the iGrado didn't turn out very attractive, I must say. This is a no-go for me.


Alex

[Marian Schedenig]

You could always buy some cheap cable with a retractor off Amazon, take out the original cable, and stick the headphone cable in and reassemble.

Might be worth a thought.

[Stefancos]

I tried that a few years ago. Unless the cable is flat, it won't work.

[The Psycho Pianist]

Not sure if already posted on here but I used these - noise cancelling Goldring's. They are probably the best headphones I've used so far, excellent clarity in the sound (particularly with noise cancelling switched on) and they are definitely more comfortable than the Sony's that I used to use. The case that comes with them is also solid and they are surprisingly portable considering they are over ear.

[Marian Schedenig]

Apparently, the Koss are rather loud to bystanders. Seems everyone in the office can listen in on my playlist now...

[Alexcremers]

Annoying!

[E.T. & Elliott]

Just like Grados. Massive sound leakage (both in and out), making them ideal for private listening (in a quiet environment) and annoying as hell to anyone around you.

[king mark]

yes of course. Grados= Alone at Home

I'll keep saying the Shure SE215 are my favorite portable earphone of all time. I've had them for a year and nothing I've had in the past compares with the sound balance of these for orchestral music. They have a similar crisp and detailed sound to Grados SR60's, but more real bass( in this case that doesn't muddle the mids and highs). They are "in ear" but you don't need to stick them in too far

Recently I tried some Bose Quiet Comfort 2 whatever from someone I know, and I found they have a flat muffled sound, so add this to the list of headphones I don't recommend. By themselves they didn't sound horrible, but switching back and forth with the Shure it was obvious

[Marian Schedenig]

That's pretty much what I keep reading about anything produced by Bose.

[Blumenkohl]

I don't even understand why people consider Bose, when for less money they have access to AKG, Sennheiser, Beyerdynamic, Grados, Denon, Fostex, Audio Technica, Koss...etc.

[Jason LeBlanc]

I don't even understand why people consider Bose, when for less money they have access to AKG, Sennheiser, Beyerdynamic, Grados, Denon, Fostex, Audio Technica, Koss...etc.

THIS.

(The answer is marketing, of course)

[Alexcremers]

Recently I tried some Bose Quiet Comfort 2 whatever from someone I know, and I found they have a flat muffled sound, so add this to the list of headphones I don't recommend.

The Bose AE2 sound pretty good. I listen to them each time I walk into a Apple store. People shouldn't listen to the amounts of high frequencies (Grados) or low frequencies (Beats Audio) but to the accuracy (no region should jump out), depth and how lively they sound. It's also the most comfortable headphones I know.

[Trent Bennett]

Apparently, the Koss are rather loud to bystanders. Seems everyone in the office can listen in on my playlist now...

That's retarded if everyone in your office and hear your music because of the substandard headphones.

I don't even understand why people consider Bose, when for less money they have access to AKG, Sennheiser, Beyerdynamic, Grados, Denon, Fostex, Audio Technica, Koss...etc.

Agreed. While the Bose sound nice I'm not gonna shell out the money for them. I'd rather spend that money on something else.


I still maintain that my V-Moda Octave's are the best noise cancellation earbuds I've ever owned.

[Marian Schedenig]

Apparently, the Koss are rather loud to bystanders. Seems everyone in the office can listen in on my playlist now...

That's retarded if everyone in your office and hear your music because of the substandard headphones.

Not necessarily substandard, just not suited for office use. Though I haven't yet tested how loud they really are for outsiders.

[Trent Bennett]

Not necessarily substandard, just not suited for office use. Though I haven't yet tested how loud they really are for outsiders.

Ah, gotcha.

[Koray Savas]

Recently I tried some Bose Quiet Comfort 2 whatever from someone I know, and I found they have a flat muffled sound, so add this to the list of headphones I don't recommend.

The Bose AE2 sound pretty good. I listen to them each time I walk into a Apple store. People shouldn't listen to the amounts of high frequencies (Grados) or low frequencies (Beats Audio) but to the accuracy (no region should jump out), depth and how lively they sound. It's also the most comfortable headphones I know.

THIS

Bose is overpriced, like all headphones, but their products sound great.

[Blumenkohl]

Bose is overpriced, like all headphones, but their products sound great.

No they don't. And weren't you the one who was satisfied with his laptop speakers? Or was that Indy4?

[Koray Savas]

That was me, like 6 years ago. Now I'm satisfied with desktop speakers. Oh, and I still like Apple earbuds

[Alexcremers]

Well, fellas, I took the plunge and bought the Bose AE2 headphones. At first, I was disappointed with them. I tried it with my hi-fi amps, my Samsung Plasma TV, my laptop ... but they just didn't sound right. They sounded somewhat different on each device but every time the music felt distant and bass and treble were somewhat lacking, as if all frequencies were cut off from a certain point. The most positive thing I could find was how comfortable they are when you are wearing them but I sorta regretted the purchase. Two days later my Nokia 808 arrived and when I plugged the AE2 into the phone my jaw almost literally fell to the floor. Suddenly everything was there. Very rich and without overpowering bass or treble (Beats and company). Very, very balanced and detailed. I can tell you, the sound is pretty amazing. Almost perfect, in fact. Then it hit me, these phones are specifically designed for the iPhone and other smartphones like it! Bose actually sticks a label on the box (Made For iPod, iPhone, Ipad) so people know what they are buying but I thought that was a silly sales pitch. Anyway, I'm happy with them. Yes, it's a shame that they don't match with "all your favorite equipment" but they are truly excellent for my Nokia 808 Pureview and the sound is okay for watching TV.





Wait! The label is probably only there because this is the AE2i, which has a remote control for use with Apple products. It appears that the box for the normal AE2 does not mention it.


Alex

[E.T. & Elliott]

There's such a thing as good Bose headphones?

[Koray Savas]

The QuietComfort 15s

[king mark]

There's such a thing as good Bose headphones?

I don't think so.I've heard them (or a similar model) and I wasn't impressed. The mids are recessed and orchestral music sounds thin and muffled. Looks like Alex got sucked in my the slick marketing after looking for a pair for years and despite reading this tread

I you were going to buy something in that style the Bowen and Wilkens P5 are much better (i tried them too)

I do not believe for a second that the iphone "output" makes a difference unless the other devise you listened on was really shit or you have some weird EQ on it. The other headphones should sound good on the iphone too

[Jason LeBlanc]

Agree with everything king mark says