Stuffy Bose On-Ear Cans Are Now Designed For the Youth [Audio]

By Mario Aguilar Oct 12, 2011 9:50 AM 7,681 14

Watch out Dre, 50-Cent's not your only competition. Soon you might not be buying Bose's on-ear headphones just because they're the cheapest one's the company has to offer—the new Bose OE2 headphones have a refreshed street-ready design.

The most noticeable difference between the Bose OE2 headphones and their predecessors is the stylish new design, which is available in both black and white. Bose definitely took a page from the success of Beats by Dre and spruced up the cans to be hip-looking and noticeable on the subway. The new design is also slimmer and lighter so the headphones should be more comfortable on the street, too. But don't expect these cans to have the Beats' deafening bass-response since the OE2's are packed with standard Bose sound. The new Bose on-ear headphones come in two versions—OE2 and OE2i—the only difference being the the inline microphone and inline remote and microphone compatible with Apple products. At $150 and $180 respectively, they're priced competitively with their chic competition. [Bose]

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If You Can't Follow the Conversation on a Jabra Supreme, You Might Want to Get Your Hearing Checked [Audio]

Active Noise Cancellation technology is a wonderful thing—assuming you could afford the high-end stereo headphones they're normally found on. But now, that same crystal-clear sound is coming to Bluetooth headsets with the Jabra Supreme.

Active Noise Cancellation counteracts an incoming sound wave with a phase-inverted version of itself to create an interference wave, thereby mitigating the external noise. Jabra combines two active noise cancellation technologies—Wind-Noise Reduction and Noise Blackout 3.0—into the Jabra Supreme, the world's first non-stereo headset to feature active noise reduction. The Supreme employs a dedicated mic and chip set to pump out these antiphase sound-waves and minimize the ambient noise heard by the user. Wind-noise reduction—surprise, surprise—mitigates wind noise while the Noise Blackout 3.0 even cleans up what the person on the other end of the call hears. In addition, the new Supreme will feature an easy On/Off design activated by simply flicking out the boom mic.

The Jabra Supreme will drop some time in October with an MSRP of $99. [Jabra]

You can keep up with Andrew Tarantola, the author of this post, on Twitter, Facebook, or Google+. Related Stories

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MOG's FreePlay Lets You Listen to Music Without Paying For It [Audio]

Starting tomorrow, MOG users will have access its 11 million song library for free with no monthly usage cap—as long as they're willing to put up with ads and actively interact with other users.

Think of MOG's new "FreePlay" service as Pandora's ads meets Dropbox's incentives. MOG assigns users of the services a "virtual gas tank" of play time, which is interrupted every so often with ads. As they use the service more, share music with other users, and invite their friends through social networks, they earn more play time in the tank. While Spotify's free service has a 10-hour monthly cap, MOG's FreePlay theoretically never runs out. Play how MOG wants you to play and the dream of free on demand music can be yours. Otherwise, you can pay for one of its previously existing services.

MOG currently offers a free trial of its paid monthly plans, which are very similar to those offered by Spotify: $5 for unlimited, ad-free access via web or desktop client and $10 to add mobile devices. New Freeplay users will get 60 days without ads, but MOG's hope, of course, is that you'll be hooked and upgrade to one of their paid services before that ad-free trial runs out. Nobody's managed to create a freemium music plan for mobile just yet, but hopefully that's not too far around the corner. [MOG]

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The Marijuana of Virtual Surround Sound [Audio]

Yamaha has a history of making excellent sound bars—some of which cost as much as a full set of speakers. This new $300 model is the gateway drug of all-in-one systems: It's so gonna get your broke-ass hooked.

The 35" x 4" x 4" YAS-101 packs a 120-watt digital amplifier, two midrange drivers, and a built-in sub to shake the ol' abode. But where's the sound coming from? I DON'T KNOW. THE ROOM IS LIKE SPINNING! Or maybe that's the virtual surround sound software, which is designed to simulate 7.1-channel audio. Is high-quality surround sound possible for 300 clams? Seems like a reach, but Yamaha knows their sound bars, so we're stoked to find out. [Yamaha]

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Do Genre-Specific Headphones Give Worlds Apart Sound? [Audio]

A set of headphones specially tailored to the type of music I'm listening to sounds appealing—assuming anyone could pull it off. Well that's exactly what Fuse InTune headphones are supposed to do.

The models come in five different variations, each designed for different audio styles—everything from Classical to Rock to Hip Hop. Head over to Sound and Vision for hands-on analysis of each model. [Sound and Vision; Image: Fuse]

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Hey Audiophile! Five Baller Vintage Amps That Are Dirt Cheap [Audio]

A five-year-old surround-sound receiver has all the appeal of a five-year-old banana. But a five-year-old (or even 25-year-old) stereo amplifier might sound and perform every bit as good as one built last month. Much stereo equipment is timeless, which is why so many audio enthusiasts are getting back into vintage gear. And a lot of old stereo gear is also extremely affordable.

These old-school components still sound great today - and you can pick 'em up for a song.
Here are five vintage amps and preamps I've had great experiences with - and in a couple of cases still own and use. If you see these guys selling on eBay or Audiogon for a reasonable price (or even better, at a garage sale for a crazily reasonable price), give 'em serious consideration if you're in the market for something in that vein.

Kenwood KR-6170 "Jumbo Jet" stereo receiver Pictured above
Today's A/V receivers may seem feature-packed, but the KR-6170 makes them seem pathetically parsimonious. This fabled early-1970s receiver, commonly referred to as the "Jumbo Jet," is stuffed with features you'll never see on anything made today. Front and center is a spring-loaded sleep timer knob that works just like the heat lamp timers you find in motel bathrooms. A built-in rhythm box gives you a dozen different ultra-cheezy beats, and you can plug in a guitar and a microphone and play right along. There's even a spring reverb, the same type found in classic Fender guitar amps. Choose from the 50-watt, 100-watt or "full power" setting. I don't know what the KR-6170 originally cost, but you should be able to pick one up for $100 to $300. I got to play with one during my recent visit to vintage dealer Innovative Audio, and I guarantee it'll inspire more conversation and admiration than even the most high-end A/V receiver made today.

Sound+Vision gets under the hood of the best new audio and video gear—and goes behind the scenes on the music and movies that make the tech worth owning.

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