Pros: Long 20 ft cord, volume control, excellent sound, lightweight, comfortable, low price.
Cons: Virtually no external noise isolation, creaky plastic construction.
The Bottom Line:
These are great headphones for watching TV or listening to music without disturbing others. They're budget priced but have great sound quality. Comfortable to wear for extended periods of time.
robotnut's Full Review: Philips SHP 2500 Consumer Headphones
The Philips SHP2500 is a full sized, budget priced headphone. On the packaging, it is labeled as "Stereo TV headphones". It features an extra long 20 ft straight cable with 3.5mm stereo plug, in-line volume control, powerful bass response, and a 3.5mm to 6.3mm adaptor plug.
I purchased this headphone ($20 at Target) primarily for watching TV. Living in a condo with paper thin walls, I have to keep the volume down low if I'm watching a late night movie. But I don't enjoy watching movies as much at low volumes and sometimes can't make out some of the dialogue. With these headphones, I can now enjoy my movies at normal volume levels without disturbing anyone.
I'm no audiophile, so technical specs don't really mean so much to me. But in case anyone is interested:
Frequency Response: 15 - 22,000 Hz Sensitivity: 100 dB Impedence: 32 Ohm Max power input: 500 mW
The bass response on these headphones is incredible. When watching a DVD, you get the big booming bass that you get when you’re at a movie theater. In fact, I sometimes have to turn down the bass on my stereo receiver’s equalizer. I was amazed at the clarity of the sound from these phones. I can hear nuances in the audio that I’ve never noticed before when just listening through speakers. For example, when the studio audience on a TV show applauds, it’s like I can make out each individual clap. I haven’t limited myself to only using these headphones for TV or movies. I’ve also been using them to listen to my CD collection. I was never really impressed with the sound that came out of the 3” speakers of my CD boombox. It can only be described as hollow and tinny at best. But when I plugged these headphones in, it was like, WOW! Who knew that dinky little boombox was capable of producing such rich, full sound?
These headphones are very lightweight and comfortable to wear. Even with no padding, the headband does not hurt the top of my head. The tension of the headband is tight enough to keep the headphones on without slipping but not so tight that your head feels like it’s in a vise. I’ve even worn them while doing my Perfect Pushup workout routine and there was absolutely no slipping. The ear cups on these phones are huge so they should accommodate even the largest ears. I have literally worn them for hours and hours straight and have not experienced any pain. I should also add that I do wear glasses, which sometimes adds to the discomfort of wearing full sized headphones, but not so with the SHP2500. My ears do begin to feel warm after a while but they don’t really get sweaty. The padding on the ear cups is covered with a soft breathable fabric.
One of the features that attracted me to the Philips SHP2500 headphone is the extra long cord. I’ve looked at several other headphones that had cord lengths ranging from 9 to 12 ft long. The distance between my TV and couch is about 10 ft. So with those other headphones, I would probably still need to add a headphone extension cord. With the 20 ft cord on the SHP2500, it’s no problem. The freedom of movement that the 20 ft cord allows is a big plus. I can walk from my kitchen, into the dining room and part of my living room without having to take the headphones off. With such a long cord, the in-line volume control comes in very handy. I can easily adjust the volume even if the phones are plugged into a sound source in an adjacent room. The only thing you need to be careful of, with such a long cord, is that it doesn’t get snagged on something, or that you don’t trip over it. It’s happened to me a couple of times. There is no visible strain relief on the cord going into the ear cups. I’m worried that the cord might get pulled out if it’s tugged hard enough but so far that hasn’t happened. The cord is a dual entry cord, meaning there is a separate cord going into the left and right ear cups. I originally would put the headphones on with the cord dangling in front of me. But wearing it that way, the cord would frequently get in the way and it was hard not to trip over it. Then I realized that I could put the headphones on with the cord behind me. I find that the cord is much less of a hassle this way. The only thing is that I have to reach behind me if I need to adjust the volume control.
The headphones are constructed entirely of plastic. While that contributes to it’s light weight, it also makes them look and feel cheap. If I move around a lot while wearing them, I can hear the plastic creaking where the ear cups swivel on the hinges of the headband. It’s not really a big deal when sitting still. The only thing I really wished these headphones did better is isolate outside noise. Considering that these phones completely surround your ears, you’d think they would muffle out some noise. But while wearing them, I can still hear the refrigerator humming and I can still hear the neighbor blasting the volume of their TV.
I would heartily recommend the Philips SHP2500 to anyone for watching TV or listening to music without disturbing others. I would not recommend them for traveling or if you’re in a noisy environment and need to isolate outside noise.
Full-size headphones with volume control 40mm speaker driver for outstanding sound performance 6 meter cable Inline volume control Inline L/R stereoMore at Amazon
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