Bose® QuietComfort® 2 Acoustic Noise Cancelling® Headphones

See it at Amazon.com for $279.99

Average Customer Rating
(4.0 out of 5)

Amazon Customer Reviews

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Better stuff out there for $300

with regards to sound, this is a very good headset

The noise cancelling features are very good ---- unfortunately, the 'phones suffer from discomfort and price

I compared these headphones, head to head, on an airplane, against the Sony MDR NC20, and there was no difference in sound - both performed excellently, and equally, within the airplane environment ---- however, the Sony ones were more comfortable and MUCH cheaper

Don't even waster your time with the Bose Quite Comfort ---- grab a pair of the Sony's and you'll fall in love!

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Stay away from these headsets at all cost!

A few years back I became a huge
advocate for the Bose QuietComfort
headphones that have been selling for $299.

Based on my original experience with these
headphones I posted a rather lengthy, positive
review concerning their quality in both sound
and workmanship.

I'd now like to take those words back.

It seems there is a defect in materials used
in these headphones that could plague other
owners in the years to come.

3-4 years after purchasing my QuiteComfort
headphones I noticed that the rubber earpiece
material is flaking away like mad.

Every time I wear the headset and take it
off, my face and ears are covered with black
residue from the shedding of the earpiece.
My face looks like it is covered with black ants.

Though these headsets are nearly 4 years old,
I haven't worn them much outside of travel.
Additionally, they have been kept in the
travel accessory bag included in the package.

What bothers me most about this is the fact
that despite countless mails I have sent to
Customer Service, Bose will not address this
problem.

While I understand the headsets are probably
out of warranty, this is a pretty major defect
in materials that most owners probably will not
realize until after the warranty expires.

As far as Bose is concerned, once your warranty
is up with them they could be concerned less with
what happens with their headsets.

For the price that Bose charges for these headsets,
I would expect this company to at least reply
to consumers who are reporting this problem and
offer suggestions on what can be done.

Many users across the Internet have warned members
about quality issues concerning Bose. I should have
stayed away from these headsets based on those
recommendations, but for some reason, the
QuietComfort still remains at the top of most
reviews dealing with noise-cancelling headsets.

All I can do at this point is warn people
to stay away from purchasing these headsets until
Bose shows that they have some sort of concern
towards complaints when their products go bad.

My apologies for recommending these headsets
to anyone that may experience the same problems
I am experiencing now or in the near future.

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Excellent sound as expected from Bose.. bulky

I have owned a pai 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 hrs.
- Not great to sleep in (on flights) as you tend to block the noise cancellation ports.

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Don't make the "Bosetake"

I have done some extensive research on Bose product, including this headphone, it is a ok headphone, not much better than what you can pick up at local Target for under $30.

Let's start by the original "tri-port" headphone, what is triport? you might ask, after opening the can up, it was a paper driver with three holes in it, does it make the sound better? we don't know, does it make it worse, we don't know, maybe the same??? this lead me to doing some research on the specifications on this headphone: this is exactly quoted on Bose's website:
Overall headphone dimensions: 7 3/4"H x 6 1/2"W

Ear cushion outside dimensions: 3 4/5"H x 3"W

Weight with cables: 6.9 oz.

Let's not talk about the best cans money can buy (Grado etc.http://www.goodcans.com/), but aren't you curious what you are buying for 300 of them big boys? things such as the range and clarity of sound?

So for comparison, how about something simular? (in price, not performance) A German designed and engineered Sennheiser offer far greater performance at a lower price. if you talk to any (i really mean ANY) audiophiles, he will tell you that he would not even consider Bose as a high end headphone. this is what Senn HD600 says about their product which is $30 cheaper than Bose.
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Technical Data
Nominal impedance 300 Ohm
Contact pressure ca. 2,5 N
Weight w/o cable 260 g
Jack plug 3,5/6,3 mm stereo
Transducer principle open, dynamic
Ear coupling circumaural
Cable length 3 m
Frequency response (headphones) 12.....39000 Hz
Sound pressure level (SPL) 97 dB(SPL)
THD, total harmonic distortion 0,1 %
Frequency response
(graph can not be displayed)
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If anyone has a technical specification of Bose headphones, or any Bose products, please pose it or leave a review so we can all see them. I have tried numerous of Bose products, but none of them you can find any technical specifications. Or you can do a little self test; try any product on audio companies' product websites: either Klipsch or Sennheiser, and check out their product's specification. Some may say: how come we never even heard of the other brands if they are so good? The answer is simple, when you own a company that produces top products, you rather spend your limited assets on R&D and make your products better and word of mouth will spread out faster than speeding arrow. I was introduced to Sennheiser and I can personally recommend those to you and you won't be disappointed. Bose spend millions of dollar in advertising, that's why it is so well known and you even can see them in USA weekly included in your Sunday paper. Just think about it, every place we see the Bose ad is every dollar that will be incurred and added to the cost of the product. Essentially, we are paying for seeing the ads?!?! Do a little research, you can find some Bose replacement part (none Bose branded) but with the same specs for about 20-30 dollar. This headphone, with no exception will cost about 30-40 dollar to make. Now they are throwing in some CD player that's probably mass made in a third world country and you will never use since CD is getting out of style (ipod? wink ;) ), it cost about 30-50 dollar in general for a CD player, even good SONY or Panasonic ones. Did Bose say anything about their CD player or anywhere you can buy them and compare? We have all fall victim of mass marketing and you will not get a good product at the end.

Check out this website for a comprehensive review for Bose products, I know it's not for the headphone, it might just give a new fresh idea for what to purchase in the future or in this case, what not to purchase.

http://intellexual.net/bose.html

Quotation from that website:
Few magazines are now willing to give honest reviews of Bose products due to a Consumer Reports review a few years back that gave a bose product embarrassingly bad ratings (score of 62 out of 100). Consumer Reports allegedly used a double-blind comparison test, which is in fact the ideal way to compare speakers. That particular review ended up in a lawsuit over "unscientific testing methods". Thankfully, Bose lost that lawsuit, but since then, Consumer Reports and various other magazines give neutral-to-rave reviews that tip-toe around the actual sound quality and focus more on ergonomics and style. More prestigious publications like Fi and What HiFi? ignore Bose products completely.

I am writing this review neither in hope that you will change your attitude toward Bose nor your decision to purchase this product, it's just interesting for me to discover a lot of less known about Bose and I would like to share them with you. You have the choice to get what's right for you.

Peace

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Great for Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

First, I am going to discuss the options for noise canceling headphones. Then, I am going to go into detail about the Bose QC2 headphones.

If you are looking for a great pair of high-end traditional headphones that cup your ear, you are looking in the right place; the Bose QuietComfort 2s are for you! If you are an audiophile (probably not if you are considering buying something from Bose) then look at the Sennheiser HD 650s ($400). If you don't have a large budget and want reasonable noise-canceling, then look at the Sony MDR-NC6s ($35). If you like the supra-aural style of the Sony MDR-NC6s, but want a higher quality headphone, then wait for the Bose QuietComfort 3s ($349, release date June 15, 2006). If you are looking for noise canceling while operating landscaping equipment and OK audio performance, then look at John Deere's Noise Canceling Headset ($89). If you are looking for a really lightweight supra-aural noise canceling headset, then consider the Sennheiser PXC 300 ($150). Finally, if you want noise-caneling ear canal headphones, then the Etymotic Research ER6i's ($85) are for you.

The QC2 comes in two flavors: champagne and silver (2005). The older champagne version has a problem with the headband breaking. If the headband breaks during your warranty period, Bose will send you a brand new pair of silver QC2s. The only other major difference between the two flavors is that the silver headphones work with Bose's cell-connect accessory. The cell-connect connects your compatible cellphone (there's a list on Bose.com) to the QC2s and has a mic. I personally don't know why one would need this accessory... but it's a neat add-on. I have used the cell-connect and QC2s with my Motorola E815 with no problems (other than the fact that I wasn't sure how loud to talk).

The QC2s shine when worn on airplanes, trains, and public transit. They are also very good in the office to drown out the hums of air conditioning and computers. THEY do not make it completely quiet. High-frequency sounds such as people talking are NOT canceled out.

I find the QC2s to be very comfortable. Make sure to test them out before you buy them, because the circumaural design is not for everyone. The headphones come with everything you need--1/4" and 3.5mm connectors, a great semi-hard shell case, and more. The strap for the case is not included with the silver headphones. The earcups on the headphones swivel to flatten and fit inside the case. An iPod can easily fit inside the case, and an iPod Nano can reportedly fit inside the small clear velcro case that initially holds "customer courtesy cards" (which are business cards that you can give to people that ask about your QC2s).

Make sure to stock up on AAA batteries for the QC2s. The QC3s use a custom Bose rechargable lithium battery instead. Battery life is good, and a light will blink on the side of the headphones when your battery is low.

Overall, I'm very satisfied with my QC2s, and I think other people are too. I even saw someone wearing them while driving! (Don't do that).

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