Headphones

When I reviewed the Thinksound On1 headphone, I came away impressed with their good build quality and warm, inviting sound which belied their monitor name. To my ears, monitors are all about accuracy—even at the expense of fun and engaging. That’s where the On1 headphone failed and succeeded. Now, Thinksound has replaced the On1 with […]

While I’ve tried out many types of headphones in my life, I never felt the need for noise canceling headphones. First, it was due to the battery, and second, I thought they were really pricey. When I heard about the Creative Aurvana ANC headphones, I had to give them a try. Not only were they

In my review of the new Focal Listen headphone, I mentioned that it was at the bottom rung (so to speak) of three new headphones from the French company Focal. Further up the ladder were the Elear and Utopia headphones—both very different headphones and both much, much more expensive. When I was given the chance

When I reviewed the Focal Spirit Classic, Professional and One S headphones, I marveled how a French maker of insanely expensive speakers could manage to produce affordable headphones. Yes, they’re expensive, but not when compared to their heritage. Well, that’s all changed. Focal has released three new headphones and while the Elear (review coming) headphone

It’s almost comical. One of the best in-ear headphones (earphones) available at any price comes in a package that isn’t nearly as nice as some of the cheapest headphones available. Not only that, there’s an embarrassing selection of only three pairs of tips, no mic and … no case? Are you kidding me? Okay, they

In 2013, I reviewed the Meze 73 Classics headphones. I liked the sound and the use of wood for the ear cups. It helped project a warm and friendly audio quality that was easy to listen to for hours. All this holds true for the new 99 Classics headphone. Meze has trimmed their entire headphone

For 7 years, I’ve owned—and still use—the Klipsch X10i in-ear headphone (earphone). It quickly became one of my all-time favorite earphones for a couple of important reasons. The X10i sounds fantastic and they are the most comfortable pair of earphones I have ever used, period. They’re even more comfortable than my custom in-ear monitors that

I’ve reviewed a few noise canceling headphones over the years and one constant in all those reviews is that noise canceling alters the sound of whatever music you’re playing—and not in a good way. It seems to be the nature of the beast—if you want to block out distracting noise, be prepared to pay the

I generally avoid two things when it comes to headphones:  I steer clear of closed-ear models, as well as brands I’ve never heard of.  The Plugged Crown headphones are closed design, and Plugged doesn’t exactly enjoy the name-brand recognition as Sennheiser, Sony, Bose, etc.  Still, there was something about the appearance I kind of liked,

To say that something is cheap without being cheap can mean either it’s expensive but not well made or it’s not expensive yet well made. The RHA S500i in-ear headphone fits into the latter category. I’ve been using these earphones for a couple of months and still marvel how Scottish audio company Reid Heath Acoustics, Ltd.

Earphones and headphones are conceived and designed in many countries such as the US, UK, Japan, Australia and China. However, with the exception of some high-end models, most are sourced and manufactured in China to help keep costs down. But what if you wanted to design and build headphones in your own country and still