Mobile headphone hassle

suburbansky

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For as long as I can think of I've had problems with my mobile headphones, way back to the 1990s with my first cassette Walkman. For years (many of them) I've just accepted the fact that these have to be replaced regularly, with one channel always going to pot sooner or later. Hencwent e, the headphones of my choice would always be whatever had a vaguely acceptable price-durability-ratio, with sound quality not really a concern. About ten years ago, I bought a pair of Sennheiser earbuds, for a change, which went bust as fast as the less expensive ones and were the pinnacle of unease to boot (my entire body felt sealed-off wearing those, and they would be statically charged in no time, so I felt constantly on the brink of being self-shortcircuited or even electrocuted). So I went back to cheap Panasonics (about the equivalent of £10-15) which sounded okay-ish and proved to be quite durable. Last spring, another foray into more high-endy headphones started hopefully (some FiiOs) but last week, after about 9 months of use, the left channel said goodbye, so I had to send them back on warranty - and am back to the Panasonics now, but the in my ears good sound quality of the FiiOs have ruined them for me. So I really don't know where to go now in the mobile headphone department. Is there anybody without the problem of constantly breaking mobile headphones? (I don't really want to use a Bluetooth connection, btw...)
 

suburbansky

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Quality comes at a price.You get what you pay for.

Well, no! The expensive headphones (Sennheiser and FiiO, both in the £150-200 bracket) were much more short-lived than the cheap Panasonics, which also beat the Sennheiser, if maybe not for the sound quality per se but for the overall enjoyment. That's my main problem: You pay a high price and they still break after no time.
 

Kurtevich

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Why don't you want to use bluetooth? It looks like the problems you have are mostly related to cords, so going cordless can be a solution. Honestly, when I first tried BT headphones - I thought this was one of the best inventions of our times! It makes it so easy and flexible. Especially when using with PC - you can go around the room without needing to take them off, you can also control them without needing to touch the source, you don't need to know where the source is - it's so relaxing. Off course they also have cons. I have several BT headphones and one pair of wired, there are different reasons to like either of them. But if I were to choose only one model - this would have been BT for sure. Especially if you don't care much about sound quality - not that I think BT sounds bad, but I think the main reason why people continue to use wired headphones is because they are supposedly sound better. Even though in reality, it also depends on what you plug them into, but anyway.
 
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DCarmi

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For general use when out and about I used to use wired earphones. They did tend to break, simply because I was stuffing them in my pocket and pulling them out again.

I now use bluetooth ones for that reason. I have an Anker (neckwire type) for the past 4 years which I use frequently. Not hifi but sound acceptable.
 
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camcroft

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Well, no! The expensive headphones (Sennheiser and FiiO, both in the £150-200 bracket) were much more short-lived than the cheap Panasonics, which also beat the Sennheiser, if maybe not for the sound quality per se but for the overall enjoyment. That's my main problem: You pay a high price and they still break after no time.
Agree.I have loads of wired ear/headphones when it comes to wires one thing comes to mind handle with care and fold wires neatly if need be.
 

Longchops

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For as long as I can think of I've had problems with my mobile headphones, way back to the 1990s with my first cassette Walkman. For years (many of them) I've just accepted the fact that these have to be replaced regularly, with one channel always going to pot sooner or later. Hencwent e, the headphones of my choice would always be whatever had a vaguely acceptable price-durability-ratio, with sound quality not really a concern. About ten years ago, I bought a pair of Sennheiser earbuds, for a change, which went bust as fast as the less expensive ones and were the pinnacle of unease to boot (my entire body felt sealed-off wearing those, and they would be statically charged in no time, so I felt constantly on the brink of being self-shortcircuited or even electrocuted). So I went back to cheap Panasonics (about the equivalent of £10-15) which sounded okay-ish and proved to be quite durable. Last spring, another foray into more high-endy headphones started hopefully (some FiiOs) but last week, after about 9 months of use, the left channel said goodbye, so I had to send them back on warranty - and am back to the Panasonics now, but the in my ears good sound quality of the FiiOs have ruined them for me. So I really don't know where to go now in the mobile headphone department. Is there anybody without the problem of constantly breaking mobile headphones? (I don't really want to use a Bluetooth connection, btw...)


Is is the left channel that keeps breaking?
 

suburbansky

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Is is the left channel that keeps breaking?

I've been asking that question myself - certainly not 100 percent of the time, but I think there's a tendency for the left to go first. However, I do handle the headphones quite carefully - the expensive ones more so than the cheapos; I use them only during walking, no sports or anything, and I try to avoid tearing at the cables or bending the plugs or anything - for Christ's sake, the FiiO have a solid metal casing where the cable connects to the plug, and it broke nonetheless (inside the metal casing it seens, not where the cable goes in).
 

suburbansky

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For general use when out and about I used to use wired earphones. They did tend to break, simply because I was stuffing them in my pocket and pulling them out again.

I now use bluetooth ones for that reason. I have an Anker (neckwire type) for the past 4 years which I use frequently. Not hifi but sound acceptable.
Just go wireless less too go wrong .

Seems as though I'd have to give it a try... Makes the addition of DAC, which I have been looking into, obsolete then.
 

Longchops

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I've been asking that question myself - certainly not 100 percent of the time, but I think there's a tendency for the left to go first. However, I do handle the headphones quite carefully - the expensive ones more so than the cheapos; I use them only during walking, no sports or anything, and I try to avoid tearing at the cables or bending the plugs or anything - for Christ's sake, the FiiO have a solid metal casing where the cable connects to the plug, and it broke nonetheless (inside the metal casing it seens, not where the cable goes in).


Reason I ask is because the tip of the minijack is the left channel, so if that breaks first it suggests the socket on the device is weak, just from having pressure placed on it even through normal use, it will bend the pins more
 

suburbansky

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On a whim, I bought the Beyerdynamic FreeByrds, So far I'm quite happy with them, although there are still some connectivity issues. Meanwhile, my FiiO have been replaced with a new pair, on the warranty. I'll leave them wrapped for the forseeable future, and sell them eventually, if the FreeByrds in particular (and the wireless way in general) stand the test of time. (Also because I start to think that the headphone plug of my Fiio M9 player may be on the way out as well.)
 
On a whim, I bought the Beyerdynamic FreeByrds, So far I'm quite happy with them, although there are still some connectivity issues. Meanwhile, my FiiO have been replaced with a new pair, on the warranty. I'll leave them wrapped for the forseeable future, and sell them eventually, if the FreeByrds in particular (and the wireless way in general) stand the test of time. (Also because I start to think that the headphone plug of my Fiio M9 player may be on the way out as well.)
Surely there is more than one headphone socket on the M9??
 

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