The best in it's class? (Bang & Olufsen Earphones)

Member Name: gofasterstripes

Product:	Bang & Olufsen Earphones
Date:	15/05/03 (10191 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Stylish, Excellent Reproduction, Unique

Disadvantages: Costly, Easily scratched, Badly designed strain guard

I was slightly apprehensive when decidng on whether to purchase these earphones - after all, the price (about £110 12 months ago, but is extremely variable among shops) is one heck of a lot of money for a pair of earphone, but im an audiophile myself, and i liek to have the best sound reprodiction that i can whilst on the move. Conveniently, i also had a small bonus at work, so i was able to afford them. I purchased my pair at a specialist audio shop near me.

My pair were packaged in a pretty innocent looking cardboard box, but extremely well done! First out is the box is the luxury leather case - not some 'cheapo' PVC case like a lot of earphones possess, but a well stitched thick leather semicircular case with a wonderful smell too - like i said my pair are at least 12 months old and i can still smell the leather! The case seals itself with a hefty velcro clasp and does the job pretty well.

You also get an exstension lead for the earphones, whilst i havent actually needed to use my lead which is still sealed in its bag, i do believe that it is about 1 metre in length.

Then of course the earphones themselves. They follow a simple design rather like a letter 'G', and are fashioned from a very lightweight aluminium / rubber construction. They are fully adjustable for width and height of the ear, the height mechanism moves with a firm but very smooth action. Finally, the soundpiece is able to rotate about its 'axle' smoothly so you can push or pull the soundpiece in or out of your earhole. Im sure that most people will find that the adjustments provided are more than adequate, they were for me.

The owner is also provided with two pairs of foam pads with which they can cover the soundpiece with to a) provide a more snug fit b) improve sound quality. I did find that the foam pads were essential for my own ears as over lengthly periods, the bare soundpiece is quite unfortable and 'sharp' shall we say
against the earhole. Once you have used up all of the foam pads, they are easy to purchase again, i bought six from HMV at a very respctable 99p :)

The sound quality provded the by earphones is second to none - a crisp reproduction across all the ranges with good low medium and high tones. I did also find that when used with audio playsers which give little output (such as some MP3 players) these were able to cope sufficiently and give excellent sound quality. Sound leakabge is pretty respectable too - i like to listen to music quite loud and when used with the foam pads, sound is filtered out to others pretty well.

Perhaps odd to mention, but I think that it is appropriate here: The earphone wire! I have been through plenty of cheaper earphones myself and at some point of heavy use, you get the usual 'sound in one ear syndrome', usually down to a bad grade of wire used, or badly designed / fashioned strain guards on the jack ends. The wire used here is quite pliable and flexible and is easy to fold ready for to be stowed in the case. on a nevative point here, i do think that the strain guard on the end of the jack could be better formed, as it seems rather hollow and non supportive :/

In conclusion, if you can afford these, then get them! You will own an extremely uniquely designed pairs of earphones, and they certainly got a ot of attention from friends, coworkers, etc. They are quite durable and i would thik that mine get given 'a good hammering' shall we say ;). On a negative side, if you want them to keep looking as good as they are in the photos, then you DO need to look after them very well - the 'Bang and Olufsen' transfer written on either earphone stem easily wears off. Finally, being an aluminium construction, they can get easily scratched - hint - don't put them together in your pocket when you have finished with them, put them back in the case!

All in all, a stylish and audibly superior p
air of earphones.

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