Headphone recommendations (for step studying)

[plshelpvanxious]

Does anyone have recommendations for headphones that are comfortable and help block out sound?
I usually just use cheap earbuds but I've noticed that I get frustated when I hear other people talking/moving around when I'm stressed and trying to study.

I obviously don't need something that's the best quality - lectures and sketchy can only sound so good.

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[ExplodingUlcers]

Sounds like you need some good noise cancelling headphones. Most people are quick to choose Bose but I recommend the Sony WH-1000XM3 just because they're arguably much better sound quality and not nearly as expensive. You can probably get a good deal on them during Black Friday.

Sent from my SM-G955U using SDN mobile

 

[JoaoMoutinho]

You obviously can't beat actual noise cancellation headphones, but if you're looking for something significantly easier on your wallet, I previously have used SoundMagic earbuds with some memory foam ear tips with great results. I used to run these while doing landscaping and using all of the noisy riding mowers and leafblowers and stuff, and I could hear the music/audiobooks/etc just fine in spite of the extremely loud environment (hopefully you study someplace a little quieter). Nowadays you can actually even find OSHA-approved noise isolating earbuds for $20ish on Amazon.


I'd recommend trying a setup like that out if you aren't quite willing to fork over the dough for some full noise cancelling headphones yet. I will admit that I have since upgraded to a nicer pair of Sony earbuds since I no longer have to worry about noisy equipment or roommates, but this is an affordable option that has worked well for me.

Earbuds (on sale currently!):
Amazon product

Memory foam tips:
Amazon product

 

[TakotsuboOkazaki]

Otium Wireless Earbuds

$20 on Amazon

Cheap and functional.

With music or white noise going I can’t hear ****.

Sony or Bose will be better but at 10-15x the cost.

 

[deleted859689]

New apple airpods pro. If Linus gives it a thumbs up, they must be doing something right. Bluetooth with noise cancellation. ***expensive

 

[plshelpvanxious]

You obviously can't beat actual noise cancellation headphones, but if you're looking for something significantly easier on your wallet, I previously have used SoundMagic earbuds with some memory foam ear tips with great results. I used to run these while doing landscaping and using all of the noisy riding mowers and leafblowers and stuff, and I could hear the music/audiobooks/etc just fine in spite of the extremely loud environment (hopefully you study someplace a little quieter). Nowadays you can actually even find OSHA-approved noise isolating earbuds for $20ish on Amazon.


I'd recommend trying a setup like that out if you aren't quite willing to fork over the dough for some full noise cancelling headphones yet. I will admit that I have since upgraded to a nicer pair of Sony earbuds since I no longer have to worry about noisy equipment or roommates, but this is an affordable option that has worked well for me.

Earbuds (on sale currently!):
Amazon product

Memory foam tips:
Amazon product

This is such a great idea. I hadn't even thought about just modifying earbuds. Thanks!

 

[plshelpvanxious]

These recommendations are great! Thanks everyone! Affordable is always better, but I am willing to pay if something will last longer or work better for me. I'm hoping to take advantage of some online black friday sales

 

[hang50]

i second the sony XM3, really helpful when studying. added bonus of being the one thing i would never fly without. game changer in loud settings.

 

[percyeye]

Don't go cheap on these. You get what you pay for.

High quality noise cancelling headphones are amazing.

 

[IsleyOfTheNorth]

Bose QC35

A little more on these: Best noise cancelling available to my knowledge. Super-comfortable. Expensive though.

 

[hungrydoc710]

Sounds like you need some good noise cancelling headphones. Most people are quick to choose Bose but I recommend the Sony WH-1000XM3 just because they're arguably much better sound quality and not nearly as expensive. You can probably get a good deal on them during Black Friday.

Sent from my SM-G955U using SDN mobile

Another vote for the Sony WH's

 

[hungrydoc710]

Otium Wireless Earbuds

$20 on Amazon

Cheap and functional.

With music or white noise going I can’t hear ****.

Sony or Bose will be better but at 10-15x the cost.

Lol

 

[operaman]

I think any of the high end noise cancelling over the ear headphones would do the trick.

If cost is an issue, just remember that Costco and Sams have rather long and generous (90 day) return policies. Ive never shied away from a “rental” in my broker days.

Personally I use the Beats Bluetooth phones because I got a great deal and they sync with my iPhone is amazing. Not quite as good as the Sony or Bose but for me that was more than made up for by the cost savings I got and the ease with which they pair now.

 

[Cornfed101]

Amazon product

These headphones are great and only $50. I have had them since March and they have Bluetooth and noise canceling. The sound is great for being inexpensive.

 

[ChymeofPassion]

Bose QC15. Still extremely high quality headphones, but you're not paying for the BEST. You can find pre-owned for 50 bucks online.

 

[libertyyne]

shure 215. Noise isolation>noise canceling.

 

[NickNaylor]

Bose and Sony are generally considered to have the best noise cancellation technology, though the Apple Airpods Pro are pretty highly reviewed. I've got the Bose QC35 and really like them.

 

[CherryRedDracul]

shure 215. Noise isolation>noise canceling.

Shure SE215 earbuds are great for the price (~$100 when I bought them several years ago). Very good noise isolation.

 

[aldol16]

I use Jaybird X4's for working out and while not noise cancelling, they're actually amazing in terms of blocking out most noises. The plus side is that you can use them for working out and studying. It also has an excellent app where you can adjust the sound (with pre-made adjustments available).

 

[deleted859689]

These are good at noise canceling while you listen to music/sound. If you aren’t playing sounds, it’s more noise muffling and you can understand conversations going on around you

why would you just wear them without listening to music? Just get ear plugs if you want that lol

edit: unless you’re secretly listening to convos

 

[libertyyne]

why would you just wear them without listening to music? Just get ear plugs if you want that lol

edit: unless you’re secretly listening to convos

The purpose of buying these is just as much status signalling as it is to actually use them.

 

[deleted859689]

The purpose of buying these is just as much status signalling as it is to actually use them.

Do not own a pair myself since I don’t really like the aesthetics of them and think they look dumb. Social signaling depends also on how it’s perceived - the previous airpods really didn’t live up to the hype (just like beats by dre for instance), but these actually have good reviews so don’t feel bad recommending them as a noise cancelling solution to OPs problem

 

[libertyyne]

Do not own a pair myself since I don’t really like the aesthetics of them and think they look dumb. Social signaling depends also on how it’s perceived - the previous airpods really didn’t live up to the hype (just like beats by dre for instance), but these actually have good reviews so don’t feel bad recommending them as a noise cancelling solution to OPs problem

Status signals don't have to be practical or asthetically pleasing. The reason they sold at all was because of the signalling, just like beats were, the same reason people buy the newest iPhone Everytime it comes out, or buy expensive MacBook pros. Linus is not really an audio equipment reviewer.

 

[alprazoslam]

I’ve always been happy with the cheapest 5 star ones at the time at on amazon. Who tf spends 200 on beats unless u got rich parents. Also don’t wear the big huge earmuff ones they make you look like a turd

 

[deleted859689]

Status signals don't have to be practical or asthetically pleasing. The reason they sold at all was because of the signalling, just like beats were, the same reason people buy the newest iPhone Everytime it comes out, or buy expensive MacBook pros. Linus is not really an audio equipment reviewer.

Never said they did, it was just my own take on the airpods which I have no cares about. In fact, I look at people with airpods as kind of “why u wearing those?” But, as I said, perception of the public on a product is essential to status signaling (e.g. public needs to associate apple with, in this case, having a higher status I guess). I can agree with what your saying though. Don’t have a degree in marketing or anything, but I remember going to the apple store before the ipod came out and literally was no one there.

And yeah, linus isn’t really an audio reviewer, but who is? Most of it is subjective like people saying getting an after market cable changes the sound signature even though there are no scientific change to the frequencies. I trust Linus with other tech due to his objectivity and think he might have a good opinion on audio.

also even though I see those buying these apple products (mostly laptops since they are way overpriced for the hardware) as kinda “why are you wasting money”, to each their own. Doesn’t bother me what other people spend their money on. I do own the iphone since everyone in my family has one and I can use imessage. Also simple interface - email, video, web, text is all I use my phone for. Don’t need the customization of an android device.

 

[alprazoslam]

I can see the laptops they aren’t too bad if u get a year old version but headphones are headphones you can’t get that techhhy with them lol. I agree w iPhone tho mostly bc apps are better in apple stuff than android

 

[alprazoslam]

Some people can’t study if there is any noise and they only want headphones to keep all sound out (like many over ear noise-canceling headphones do). Wanted to give OP a heads up.

As for the status symbol convo, who cares? I like them and I like being able to run without wires getting in the way. Rejecting AirPods because you think they are status signaling is just another form of status signaling. Live and let live

idk last time I wore air pods about five chicks just walked up to me and started hitting on me

not reallt

 

[Giovanotto]

I just hate that the apple earplugs pro or whatever they are called is normalizing paying 180 for a pair of headphones. I don't care if they're good or not, I'm just annoyed now cause the segment is probably going to change.

 

[Giovanotto]

Never said they did, it was just my own take on the airpods which I have no cares about. In fact, I look at people with airpods as kind of “why u wearing those?” But, as I said, perception of the public on a product is essential to status signaling (e.g. public needs to associate apple with, in this case, having a higher status I guess). I can agree with what your saying though. Don’t have a degree in marketing or anything, but I remember going to the apple store before the ipod came out and literally was no one there.

And yeah, linus isn’t really an audio reviewer, but who is? Most of it is subjective like people saying getting an after market cable changes the sound signature even though there are no scientific change to the frequencies. I trust Linus with other tech due to his objectivity and think he might have a good opinion on audio.

also even though I see those buying these apple products (mostly laptops since they are way overpriced for the hardware) as kinda “why are you wasting money”, to each their own. Doesn’t bother me what other people spend their money on. I do own the iphone since everyone in my family has one and I can use imessage. Also simple interface - email, video, web, text is all I use my phone for. Don’t need the customization of an android device.

I get what you're trying to say, but unfortunately, what other people spend their money on does affect you. It's like how in the gaming world people started saying, oh I don't care if they sell one or two skins of my favorite hero circa 15 years ago. Look at what we have now, a wasteland of cash shops and DLC based games. You give the market an inch, they take a mile.

 

[deleted859689]

I get what you're trying to say, but unfortunately, what other people spend their money on does affect you. It's like how in the gaming world people started saying, oh I don't care if they sell one or two skins of my favorite hero circa 15 years ago. Look at what we have now, a wasteland of cash shops and DLC based games. You give the market an inch, they take a mile.

Sure it can indirectly affect me by pushing markets and technologies in different directions e.g. apple becoming a huge part of tech after being able to sell their products effectively and me having an iphone since my family all have iphones for imessage. But in gaming, one can choose to be a part of it or not. Gaming community for instance looks down on pay to win like loot boxes and hates the idea of DLCs, even though people will still put money it it. Some people might see it as a plus like in RPGs where people pay real cash for digital items or services e.g. level boosting/item farming (or in other games like when CS:GO had skin gambling, I made a pretty penny there), but in the end, you have to choose whether or not you want to participate in or support products. Do I care that games have DLCs or loot boxes/pay to win? Only in ones that I would choose to play And even then I don’t HAVE to buy DLCs. Do I care what people spend their money on in terms of non-essential commodities or goods? No, people can spend their money on whatever they want. But I agree it will indirectly affect me if I ever choose to become a consumer and want the best product on the market (most likely the one people have been spending money on).

so again, doesn’t bother me what people spend their money on unless it’s for essential goods like home ownership or healthcare or food for survival (thanks Maslow lol)

 

[deleted859689]

I just hate that the apple earplugs pro or whatever they are called is normalizing paying 180 for a pair of headphones. I don't care if they're good or not, I'm just annoyed now cause the segment is probably going to change.

180 is definitely not the norm for headphones. It’s the norm for apple earpods which are bluetooth and cableless, but you can find less expensive alternatives with the same functionality. Apple selling headphones at this price will never cause a change in cabled, cheaper headphones that don’t have all the bells and whistles apple claims to have. Unless you choose to be a consumer of apple products, you definitely do not have to pay that premium for a decent/good set of headphones and never will.

 

[operaman]

I think the market has been at this price point for a long time. High end bluetooth noise canceling products have always been 2-350 bucks depending on the brand. Apple seems to have priced their AirPods pro product right in line with their competition.

This seems to be an area where you really do get what you pay for. When I was a student I bought a pair of well reviewed cheap noise canceling headphones and thought it was pretty sweet. Then I tried the Bose/Beats/Sony high end products and it was an entirely different world.