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Latest 6 Reviews Here is what people are saying about the Bose QuietComfort 3 Acoustic Noise Cancelling Headphones with free MP3 player
"These headphones simply rock!"
2009-11-14
- Reviewed By User: A39UBB6MGTF0LS
I bought these in the US as the price in Germany was 398 or about $600 at the exchange rate at time of purchase and am hugely impressed with them. Wore them on the flight back from US and just switching them on before listening to music or movie totally muffles the surrounding sound in the plane. Sound quality is crystal clear as one would expect from BOSE and the build quality is nothing short of excellent. Great product.
"The Best"
2009-11-12
- Reviewed By User: A1IWUMPQJLEJ8I
I have been using Bose Quiet Comfort 3 for 6 months now. I bought it in Los Angeles and I live in Turkey.
The noise canceling is really amazing. It is probably one of the top 5 in noise canceling among all headphones. Even if you do not play the music but just turn on the headphone, you can easily recognize the difference. Nothing can interrupt your relationship with your headphone when it is on.
Despite this it is hard to protect the headphones. It needs an extra effort to carry it with the bag.
Despite the positives, I can confess that my headphones do not satisfy when it did the first day I bought. This is common for everybody. You just can't help it.
On the other hand, many ask if does this satisfy me after I spent almost 380 USD to afford it. It depends on how much your wallet contains. I think it is a fair price for this high level headphones.
Still QC 2 or QC 15 can get more plaudits because their price is more fair for many.
"As advertised"
2009-10-26
- Reviewed By User: AA8T1V0HGEN4Q
Bought these as a gift. Person who received them is satisfied. I have the "over the ear" version but this apparently provide same effect. Still pricey, but definately worth the price.
"an excellent noise cancelling headset"
2009-10-05
- Reviewed By User: A2DX5EFC136HYF
I travel alot for work and was using the QC2 for many years. After trading in my QC2 I took the QC3 to Asia. I no longer feel painful pressure on my right ear. This is something I would get for wearing the QC2 for a long period of time. The noise canceling is most excellent. They do not produce white noise like other headsets and I can't hardly hear the engine noise. Definitely worth the money.
"Noise cancelling headphones"
2009-10-03
- Reviewed By User: A2ULUKU7CQFSCH
I have to admit I read the reviews on this product AFTER I ordered them and was worried. Many people did not like them because of the WHOOMP sound when turning them on. I didn't feel it uncomfortable or annoying at all and I think the sound and tone when listening to my music is absolutely great. If the WHOOMP sound is bothersome to you, turn the headphones on and then put them on. I also felt the headphones were extremely comfortable as well.
"Great marketing for a lower-end product."
2009-09-28
- Reviewed By User: A3C2A3D2KG1F1A
Ah, good old Bose. Most people that buy Bose buy it thinking they are purchasing the pinacle of audio gear. They've seen the ads on TV or even have first-hand experience at a Bose store and are blown away by the sound quality. People are willing to spend hundreds or thousands more just so they can be one of the elite. People like to casually announce to their friends that they have Bose gear so they can watch their friends gape in awe. Bose is so good at marketing that even when the consumer brings the product home they believe what they are hearing is about the best reproduction of sound that is available today. Unfortunately that's far from the truth.
No, I don't own anything that is Bose but I'm still going to write this review. I'm a fan of Grados and one day my boss comes walking into my office bragging about his new amazing headphones (these QC-3s) and he was sure that these $350.00 headphones would blow away my Grado HF-1s. Now the HF-1s aren't the flagship headphone for Grado - they are just an ultra-rare headphone that was hand-made, numbered, signed by John Grado himself and use a good quality driver. I would say they are about equivalent to the SR-325s ($295). I took up the challenge but instead of trusting him with my HF-1s we traded my SR-80s ($100) and his QC-3s for a week so we could each experience each-others headphones so I do have experience with the QC-3s.
The QC-3s are all about bass. Bose was smart here because a lot of people equate good music to lots of bass. On first listen I was impressed with the low end but as I kept listening I became less impressed. No matter how good the source was the low end was always more boomy and it lacked any substantial "punch". These headphones can hum well but the initial kick is weak. As you move to higher frequencies the quality degrades further. The boomy bass really just hides the lack of high fidelity in the higher freqeuncy range. Listening to something like a piano piece in these headphones will definitely show how much detail these really do lack. interesting sounds that were once there with my Grados were gone when I listened to these (such as actually hearing what people say in the audience for a live performance). Everything just sounds muffled - similar to going to a rock show with cheap ear plugs.
One thing I tend to do when shopping around for audio gear is look at the cords. Typically higher end gear will use cords that are nice and thick as this allows more bandwidth between the source (or amplifier) and the headphones. The cords for the QC-3s were surprisingly cheap and thin. These aren't much thicker then even the cheapest $5.00 ear-buds. Of course thick cord doesn't always equal a good product but a super thin cheap cord is almost always a sign of an inferior product.
I may be comparing apples to oranges here because Grados are open-air so they are far from noise-cancelling but I have listened to other noise canceling headphones and I don't see any significant improvement with these. Unfortunately I don't own any noise-canceling headphones so I'm really comparing sound quality between Grados lower-end SR-80s that cost 1/3 the price of these and besides - it was my bosses idea :)
I must say that the QC-3s are extremely comfortable and they look nice. Definitely high marks for comfort.
So I may seemed a bit biased here but when it came down to it my boss sold his headphones and bought some SR-80s! When we traded back after that week and he re-listened to his QC-3s he was completely blown-away when he realized how much he was really missing. Real high end brands like Grado really allow you to hear all frequencies very well - not just bass.
I URGE you to find a store where you can listen to something like Grados (or any other 'audiophile' brand should do). Bring a decent mp3 player and listen to something detailed like classical music, then compare what you hear with the QC-3s. I promise you even the $80.00 SR-60s from Grado will sound exponentially better. If noise-canceling is a must then I would comparison shop with other brands - $350.00 for this quality is almost criminal. There are more places to buy high end audio gear other then Best Buy, Ultimate Electronics (or any other one-stop-shop electronics store).
Here are a few "did you knows" about Bose. I'm sorry that I come off as a biased reviewer just trying to trash this company but really I'm just trying to educate people and show them that Bose really isn't all that great. I'm constantly amazed when I listen to someones Bose headphones or surround sound system and then listen to the owner brag as he sits in awe of his Bose gear while listening to his gear myself and wondering why people think it's so great. It's amazing marketing and not much more.
Did you know -
- Bose has tried to sue Consumer Reports for reporting mediocre reviews for their products?
- Products like the $1300.00 AM-15 system use cheap paper cones (VERY low quality) and drivers that normally cost about $35?
- Their high end cabinets are often made with the cheapest possible material (low density fiberboard) - even budget systems often use better material
- Independent sources (like Sound and Vision magazine) show that 'high end' Bose systems only reproduce 66% of the audible frequencies. That is very poor.
- Bose often does not publish frequency and distortion information (for good reasons, see the above bullet point)
- The US Air Force terminated a multimillion dollar contract with Bose for noise canceling headphones in air craft because the quality was so low.
- Finally, you may have heard Bose in one of those cool sound rooms at your local mega-store and have been blown away. Did you know behind the wall there is over $30,000.00 worth of gear specifically designed to make the sound system sound better then it really does? Behind the wall lies very high end pre-amps, equalizers, DSP processors...etc. Don't believe me? Next time you see one of these rooms featuring Bose ask the sales person to show you the control room behind the wall. They will be reluctant to show you and some will even deny it but insist on checking out whats behind the wall. tens of thousands of dollars worth of gear is what you will see and also that's what you are really hearing.
Unfortunately Bose is so good at marketing they seem to almost brainwash the public into believing they are the top of the line, when in fact they are not. I know many people will not find this review helpful simply because the truth hurts, but I urge you to do your own research and go see these things for yourself. My boss was a Bose-aholic (he has Bose EVERYTHING!) and to see him suddenly wake up by listening to sub $100.00 headphones was really something!
Last updated: Nov 22, 2009 at 02:43 EST. Pricing information is provided by the listed merchants. GoSale.com is not responsible for the accuracy of pricing information, product information or the images provided. Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on amazon.com or other merchants at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product. As always, be sure to visit the merchant's site to review and verify product information, price, and shipping costs. GoSale.com is not responsible for the content and opinions contained in customer submitted reviews.
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"These headphones simply rock!"
"Great marketing for a lower-end product."