joe-cool's Full Review: Bose TriPort Consumer Headphones
I am a music connoisseur. I will not settle for anything less than the best. And when it comes to music, I demand near-perfection…
Of course, being a teenager and all, money is tighter than anything, so getting to near-perfection is usually not the choice for us adolescents. That’s why for a while, I was cruising around with a $13 dollar pair of Phillips headphones. They were awesome indeed…for thirteen bucks, that is. Now I needed something bigger, stronger, and something that sounded better than a $13 dollar pair of headphones. Enter the Bose Triport headphones.
Good things:
Side advice on Ebay (skip this if you want to)
For another little introduction, I’ll talk about Ebay for a second. For the longest time, I wanted these headphones. I needed them. But their cost was a steep one to climb. So I decided that I would buy them off of Ebay. But after a month or so later, I just decided to buy them from Bestbuy.com. Why? Let me give you a piece of my mind:
1. The lowest price for the Triports that I saw was around $120 dollars, and that’s without shipping. This was for about every single auction going on. If you were lucky enough, there might be a “buy it now” auction for around $100 bucks or so, but it usually disappeared after a few hours.
2. If you buy it on Ebay, unless they state so otherwise, you’re not going to get a brand, spanky new pair of Triport headphones. Also, sometimes included things (carrying bag, 5’ extension cable) are not included.
3. The other important thing is that if you buy it on Ebay, you’re not going to get a receipt. In other words, if your Triports break a month or so after you bought them, you’re basically screwed. And a common problem for these things apparently is that they break too easily.
So that’s pretty much it. After considering all of these things, I went and plucked down the money to buy them at retail price. By making this list I am not in any way shunning people from using Ebay. I have much respect for the people who run and sell stuff on Ebay, and I have bought several things from there. But I think buying these headphones from retail store is the wiser thing to do. Just a little side note…onto the headphones.
Included stuff
The Bose Triport headphones come with a few items. First thing they come with are the headphones themselves. There’s also a carrying bag, which is great for storing your Triports and your CD player at the same time. They also come with a ¼ inch home stereo adapter plug, and a five foot extension cable, in case the six foot cable on the headphones isn’t good enough. And lastly, they come with a one year warranty card, and an owner’s manual as well.
Sadly to say, the owner’s manual is very limited. There are only a few things of information and three or four troubleshooting hints, and then the rest of it is just the same thing translated into other language. Then again, they are headphones, so it’s kind of self explanatory.
Appearance, weight, and comfort
I got the Glacier blue Triport headphones, and I must say they’re pretty trendy looking. Their blue coat is a one that is pleasing to the eye, and is the envy to several. There’s no huge plastic strap that fits over your melon, and the actual headphones themselves aren’t that big and don’t make you look like a goof ball when you put them on.
When you put these things on, you have to first remember to put them on the right way. There’s been a few times where I put these things on backwards, because yes, there is a proper way to put them on. Luckily, it’s semi-obvious, because if you put them on improperly, your ears are pressing against the insides of the headphones (there’s also left/right markings on the sides as well).
But when you do put them on right…wow. These things are over the top comfortable. The leather/pleather outlining (I’m almost positive it is leather…I mean, it better be!) produces a seal around your ear completely, giving a very nice and comfortable fit. And on the inside, your ears barely touch the actual headphone, giving a little bit of air space so your ears aren’t pressing against something.
The other reason the Triports are so comfortable is because they weigh practically nothing. I mean, my Ipod weighs more than these headphones! The reason why it’s so lightweight is because of its thin and light strap that goes around your head. If you’re person that travels a lot, and doesn’t want some clunky, heavy weighing pair of headphones, the Triports are for you. Whenever someone wants to talk to me, I just take them off, put them around my neck, and just leave them there, because there’s no strain whatsoever.
Some people complain that it’s too thin and I’ve heard stories of people breaking these things just two days after they buy them. Let me separate the myth from the truth. I will admit that the Triport’s frame is a tad flimsy, but such are the costs of making it lightweight. I will also admit that if you put it into, say, a book bag that is just tossed around and thrown all over the place, they will probably break.
But what I’m also admitting that I’ve dropped these things several times and I’ve brought them into school, thrown them into my locker, and then they get pushed back by the mountains of textbooks that go in there. And these things are still living without any sign of them breaking. I am telling you to use caution with throwing them around and stuff, just because they’re so expensive. Even if they had a frame of indestructible steel, I’d still be careful.
Sound is the essence of life
Now, for the moment everyone’s been waiting for. Let me tell you…the sound is absolutely amazing! One would expect that from an expensive pair of headphones, but let me confirm with you: the sound that comes from these headphones is better than any other stereo or speaker or other headphone that I have ever heard in my entire life.
First, the bass. The makers at Bose claim that their powerful 40 mm bass drivers in each headphone are in a league of their own, and get this: you don’t need artificial boost to get powerful bass out of these suckers! Or so they claim. I’ll admit that the bass quality without any artificial boost on is extremely good. However, if you have a CD player that has the artificial bass boost option, I’d say throw it on.
Why? Well, if you first put the artificial boost on, some will feel it to be overpowering. But after a good hour of listening to it, the sound will be much fuller and surrounding than without the boost. The boost just enables the Triport’s bass to be even more extraordinary. I could definitely see people considering this a flaw about me wanting to have the bass boost on for my headphones, but I’ve always had bass boost on all my previous headphones, and always will have bass boost on. I crave bass. Besides, the headphones sound fantastic without the option on. So if you have bass boost, great. If not, you’re still in for a treat.
Where these headphones come in handy with their “no bass boost” is for MP3 players, where a bass boost is not really an option. The Triports will make your MP3’s sound better than ever. Songs that were too distorted when played on my old headphones sounded great, without any distortion. I own an Ipod, and when combined with the Triports, it makes a lethal combination. But it when it comes down to better sound quality, a CD player will sound a lot better with the Triports.
That said, I rummaged through a bunch of CDs with different styles of music to test how well the Triports handled in each style. I’ll rate each section out of a possible 5
1. Classical = 5. Classical sounded very good. The sound was very warm and full, and the strings of the lower families get appreciated. Horns are nice and bright and produce a very mellow sound.
2. Electronic/Dance/Techno = 5. I’d give this category a 6 if I could’ve. If you’re an avid fan of techno or dance or whatever, these headphones will put you into an ecstasy of sound. I heard sounds that I’ve never heard before on any other headphone or even stereo. The bass is very responsive and low, and all of the beats are sharp and articulate. A definite must for techno listeners.
3. Rock/Punk = 4.5. Rock is superb, except that the vocals could’ve used a little tweaking, along with the percussion in some spots. Most people (including myself) won’t notice half the time. But if you always wanted to get the bass out in some of your rock ballads, look no further than these headphones, since you can hear the bass as clear as day.
4. Hip/Hop = 5. Again, another category that I wish I could give a six. Like the techno and dance section, you will hear sounds never heard before. The bass is down right thumping (just listen to To the Five Boroughs by the Beastie Boys), and the beats are fantastic.
As you can see, the Triports clearly wipe out all of the music slots like they’re supposed to, thank goodness. This probably would conclude my statement that the Triports sound absolutely amazing, and you’ve got to hear these suckers in action with any of your favorite CDs to get the full experience, which is even more enhanced because…
What? What are you saying?
When you put these headphones on, and get your music fired up, you may notice something…that there are no other sounds invading you! My previous headphones had about a bajillion holes in them so you could hear practically every single conversation going on around you. And bringing them onto the bus with its loud engines roaring in the morning was pure suicide.
Not for the Triports. Although I’ll admit that you will be able to hear a few things, humming noises such as the sound of a loud bus engine will be reduced to nothing, depending somewhat on the music you’re listening to. I was recently listening to Green Day’s excellent American Idiot at half volume, and I couldn’t hear anything else. I’ve even tried these things on while vacuuming my room. Yes, I could hear the vacuum, but it was dramatically reduced. I have yet to try these things on an airplane though.
That’s the other great part about these things: when you put them on, it’s just you and the music. All you have to do is close your eyes, and you’ll be in a utopia of pure sound. I’ve had many memorable moments listening to these things, and I’m actually giddy with excitement when I get a new CD, just so I can hear how well it will sound with the Triports, because these things sound greater beyond great.
Not so good things:
The Bose Triports are expensive. I wouldn’t go along the lines of saying they’re very expensive, but $150 dollars is a lot of money to be throwing down for a pair of headphones. If these things were even $15 dollars cheaper, I wouldn’t be complaining, but they’re a little too pricey. All for that patent listed on the side of the headphones…
Also, some people may think that the construction of the headband is lacking. I’ve heard people breaking these things just by taking them off their head, just days after they bought them, which I think is absurd, unless your head is the size of a pumpkin. I’ve had these things for a little over the month and they have been molested many a time, and they’re still in perfect condition. Heck, there aren’t even any scratches on it. You just got to be a little careful with these things. I mean, they’re $150 dollars anyway, so why would you want to abuse them? Still, my Triports after a month are in perfect condition like I said before. Just put that into consideration.
And one last complaint is that it can get a little toasty inside the headphones, but you have to have them on for well over an hour (I’ve gone 4 hour blocks with them on and I was fine) in a fairly warm area. Nothing too big though.
The Verdict
I love the Triports. They’re amazing. Everything that I thought sounded good in the past sounds twenty times better now. If you buy these things, the first thing you’ll want to do is go through all the CDs you love, and trust me, you’ll be in pure music heaven.
However, I wouldn’t recommend them to absolutely everyone. For instance, I found that the bass boost made the Triports sound more full and surrounding. Without the bass boost, it still sounded very good, but not as good with the boost enabled. Keep that part in mind. Also, if you have a tendency to break everything that your hands get a hold of, then the Triports are not for you. Although my Triports are in perfect condition, I’ll admit that the frame isn’t as durable as it could be.
Still, if none of these small grudges bother you, then trust me, the Triports are for the inner music lover within you. You, and not to mention your ears, will love you for buying these things.
-Witty.
Links and stuff
www.bose.com
www.headphone.com (information on headphones and such)
http://search.ebay.com/triport_W0QQsokeywordredirectZ1QQfromZR8 (Ebay deals on the Triports)
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