Bose QuietComfort 2 Acoustic Noise Cancelling Headphone

I finally bought myself this QuietComfort 2 after having seen thousands of them on my flights. For those who have written that they have spent a lot of time on an airplane, I can probably top most of you with an average of 400,000+ miles a year flying around all over the place. I'm a flight attendant for Delta airlines and I have never heard a single complaint from any passenger who use them. And most of them are used by very frequent flyers who spend more time on an airplane than an average traveler. Occasionally I see other type of noise canceling headphones but when asked how well they liked them, all of them wished they had bought Bose instead. When asked if I can try on myself, Bose QuietComfort's owners are more than happy to let me wear their headphones and they always tell me how pleased they are with the products. Because my duty sometime requires me to fly as a passenger, I am actually looking forward to listen to my book-on-tape, watch a movie, or simply have a great flight!! Along with my airport sit time, which I sometime like to be left alone in my little world. For those who don't travel a lot, this headset may not be the best choice for you, but for those who often travel on a train or an air plane or use a public transportation, consider it an investment and you will say "Gee, why didn't I get this before?"

I have owned a pair of the QuietComfort headphones for more than a year now. They are absolutely great on intercontinental flights.

Pros:
+ The sound is fabulous, bass reproduction is great.
+ Needs one AAA battery, but it goes for between 24 - 30 hrs of use so this is great.
+ Noise cancellation works great, great cushioning.

Cons:
- Pricey
- Bulky to transport, cant be substituted for "workout" phones.
- Too much insulation on the earpiece. My ears start to sweat if i wear constantly for more than a couple of hours.
- Not great to sleep in (on flights) as you tend to block the noise cancellation ports.

The Bose QuietComfort 2 headphones were meant for travel in mind--Its noise cancelling feature cancels out as much active noise it can, but suffers from poor sound reproduction, material construction that has a long way to go, and battery-dependant output. Audiophiles won't like it because of the muddy sound. Headphone Aficionados won't like it because of its rather fragile construction. Although this edition of QuietComfort 2 Headphones have about 2-5 improvements over the first release of the QuietComfort 2, I would like to point out these highs and lows:

Highs:
+ Noise Cancellation Technology
+ Tailored for Airplane, Bus, and Subway travel
+ Can be used with any Audio Device
+ Multiple Plugs allow user to plug headphones at a variety of devices

Lows:
- Sound is muddy with poor treble and excessive bass (Not audiophile-friendly)
- Bulky
- Very fragile construction
- Battery-dependant output

Therefore, you are paying about $275 worth of noise cancelling and $25 worth of sound. You will have a very tough choice when deciding whether or not you want to go with these due to its rather muddy sound. Audiophiles and Headphone Aficionados should look elsewhere as the Bose QuietComfort 2 Headphones were meant for affluent travellers.

These headphones sound awesome. As long as you do not use them near: certain cellphones, wireless phones, or anything that is wireless. Some of these devices create unwanted sounds such as screeching, oscillating low beeps and other unwanted sounds. I was so disappointed when I received my official "blowoff" letter from bose with no resolution of the problem. But I have to admit, the sound quality (when not beeping) was unbelievable. I have noticed that some reviewers have commented on the bad noise cancelling ability, That is because the headphones have 2 settings, low and high levels of cancelling and by default they ship in the low setting. switch it to high and you won't hear much except your music. unless your near a cellphone, then you will hear beep-screeeeech-beep

The sound was awesome - no question about it - but the headphones fell apart after 8 months. The cheap plastic used to connect the ear pieces to the head piece cracked and eventually broke, and now a sharp piece of metal sticks into my head if I ever wear them. I needed to tape them with hockey tape to hold them together.....I expect better for $300!