Headphone News

The competition to win one of a pair of Sennheiser headphones in association HeadCandi with has now closed and I’m pleased to announce the lucky winners.

The wireless Sennheiser RS110’s have been won by Helen Wood in Essex in the UK. The pair of black Sennheiser CX300 in-ear headphones go to Alfredo Arraiza in Pamplona, Spain.

Well done to the winners and commiserations to those who missed out. Better luck next time!

Finally, thanks go to HeadCandi for generously supplying the prizes.

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Our competition to win one of a pair of Sennheiser headphones is almost closed, so anyone that hasn’t entered had better be quick. I’ll accept any entries in my inbox by midnight tonight (UK time) but any received after that wont be included in the draw.

Thanks to HeadCandi, we have a pair of wireless Sennheiser RS110’s and a pair of black Sennheiser CX300 in-ear headphones to go to the lucky winners.

Entering is simple, just send an email with your full name, email address and answer to this easy question to [competition now closed].

In which European country was headphone manufacturer Sennheiser founded?

Competition Rules

• Entries will be accepted until Saturday the 14th of April.
• Winners will be selected at random after this date and will be notified by email within 5 days.
• Winner’s will agree to their names being posted on this website.
• Your email address will not be used for anything other than notifying the lucky winners. We hate spam too.
• All prizes are provided by HeadCandi.
• The selection of winners is final. No moaning if you don’t win!

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Just a quick reminder, there’s still a few days before Headphone News’ competition to win one of two great pairs of Sennheiser headphones closes. Thanks to HeadCandi, we have a pair of wireless Sennheiser RS110’s and a pair of black Sennheiser CX300 in-ear headphones to go to the lucky winners.

Entering is simple, just send an email with your full name, email address and answer to this easy question to [competition now closed].

In which European country was headphone manufacturer Sennheiser founded?

Competition Rules

• Entries will be accepted until Saturday the 14th of April.
• Winners will be selected at random after this date and will be notified by email within 5 days.
• Winner’s will agree to their names being posted on this website.
• Your email address will not be used for anything other than notifying the lucky winners. We hate spam too.
• All prizes are provided by HeadCandi.
• The selection of winners is final. No moaning if you don’t win!

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Thanks to the very generous people over at HeadCandi, Headphone News have two great pairs of Sennheiser headphones to give away to our readers.

First up is the wireless RS110 (pictured). Worth £44.99, these headphones have a 100 metre range making them great for watching movies or listening to music in the house or (my favorite) out in the garden.

Second up is a set of black Sennheiser CX300 in-ear headphones. These earphones make ideal replacements for the rubbish set bundled with iPod’s and, as well as sounding great, look good too.

Since this is our first competition at Headphone News, we’re going to make it very simple. To enter send an email with your full name, email address and answer to this easy question to [competition now closed].

In which European country was headphone manufacturer Sennheiser founded?

Told you it was easy. Now get entering.

Competition Rules

• Entries will be accepted until Saturday the 14th of April.
• Winners will be selected at random after this date and will be notified by email within 5 days.
• Winner’s will agree to their names being posted on this website.
• Your email address will not be used for anything other than notifying the lucky winners. We hate spam too.
• All prizes are provided by HeadCandi.
• The selection of winners is final. No moaning if you don’t win!

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Top girls gadget guide Shiny Shiny have listed their top 5 noise-reducing headphones focusing on both electronic noise-reducing and passive noise-isolating technologies.

It features a number of Headphone News favorites including the rather gorgeous V-Moda Vibe and the ever popular Bose QuietComfort 3.

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Sci-Fi Tech have a list of their top 10 ways to listen to an iPod which is an interesting read. Most of the choices are as to be expected with the Sony MDR-NC11 and the Shure i4c making an appearance.

However, their last choice, the AKG K240 Studio is a bit of a strange one. It’s not that often you see people wearing full size studio ‘phones with their iPods but obviously it’s something they go for at Sci-Fi Tech.

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November was another busy month here at Headphone News, I’m really starting to feel the companies vying for your Christmas Dollars!

For me, probably the biggest news of the month was the official announcement of Etymotic’s ety.8 Bluetooth headphones. Although I’ve no doubt these will be excellent Bluetooth headphones, I really wish Etymotic could’ve worked a bit harder on the design.

November also saw the release of the rather fetching V-Moda Vibe earphones. They’ve already had at least one good review and they seem like a good Christmas buy.

Also, we wrote some informational articles that those interested in gaming headphones and noise-canceling headphones might want to check out.

November has also been an unusually good (or should that be bad?) month for weird and wonderful headphones. It’s a tough decision, but i think my favorite has got to be the N-Tech NVP100 and NVP200 - probably the best bright pink bone conducting headphones I’ve ever seen.

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At the moment, it seems nearly every new set of headphones released incorporate some sort of noise-reduction technology. But how does it work? And will it work for you?

How noise-canceling works
There are two basic ways for headphones to reduce external noise. The most basic way is to simply block external noise from reaching your ears. This can be done by either encompassing your full ear with a tight seal like the forthcoming Sony Altus headphones or by blocking your ear canal like the Bose TriPort IE earphones.

Both of these techniques work to an extent, but have their down sides. The over-ear design relies on forming a seal with your head which can get very warm and uncomfortable. It also tends to produce large and heavy headphones, fine for use in the home but not so useful in the sort of situations where you’d actually want to block out external noise, for example, on a train. The ear canal design is more successful at blocking out sound but, unless you can find a set of earbuds that fit perfectly, can quickly get uncomfortable. Many ear-canal ‘phones come with a selection of sleeves to offer you a better fit but even they are unlikely to fit perfectly (those with lots of money might try Ultimate Ears custom-fit headphones if they really crave the perfect fit).
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Related Link: Noise cancelling headphones For the biggest range of noise cancelling headphones in the UK visit iHeadphones. Sale starts now on all noise cancelling headphones!

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Headphones for gaming are quite a different beast from headphones for listening to music. If you’re looking for a new set of headphones to use for playing games here are some of the features you should look out for:

Comfort - Perhaps the most important thing about gaming headphones is that they are comfortable. The last thing you want to do during an intense gaming session is to have to stop due to uncomfortable headphones. Padding is vital here, but at the same time you don’t want them to be too warm. It’s a difficult compromise but, if it’s done right, you should be able to wear the ‘phones for hours without discomfort.

Bass - Although all-round good sound quality is important in gaming, for me it’s the bass that really makes the experience. High-quality, powerful bass can immerse you in a game. There’s nothing like really feeling the bullets fire during a first-person shooter.

Cable length - The length of your headphone cable seems a strange thing to mention but for gaming it really is important. If it’s too short you’ll be too close to your screen but if it’s too long then tangling may become a problem. For me, 2 meters works well but headphones with a number of variable length detachable cables is ideal.

Adaptability - If you’re only using the headphones for gaming then this isn’t really a consideration. However if, like a lot of people, you’ll also be using your headphones for music and watching movies, you’ll need a good all-round performer. Some headphones even have separate gaming and non-gaming modes to ensure the best sound in all circumstances.

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As it nears the Christmas holiday season the headphone market has noticeably hotted up. There have been a number of big releases but probably the most notable announcement has been the Ultrasone Edition 9 headphones. Billed as “the best headphones in the world” the Edition 9’s $1500 price tag is the sort of Christmas gift I dream of. Maybe next year…

Also interesting is Bose’s new Triport OE and IE headphones. Although Bose have a lot of critics, I still like the look of these headphones which are now available to purchase.

Finally, Sony seem to be really pushing noise canceling this month. First we had the full-size MDR-D777SL, then the S700 range of digital audio players with built-in noise-cancelation and finally the MDR-NC22(JE) noise canceling earphones. This certainly looks like a tactical move on Sony’s part, probably inspired by Bose’s considerable success with the Quiet Comfort series.

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