Non-Internal Earphones

[fmwyso]

I have a friend who currently buys $15 cheap ear phones but they are fairly consistently getting shorts (or etc.) because they are used for working out. After a few months, the earphones are likely to be broken. This last pair he had only lasted a month or so, and he is thinking "Why not pay three times as much if they last 5 times as long?" (not to mention possible extra sound quality).

I'd grab a pair of E10s except my friend hates anything that goes anywhere near the earcanal. To give you an idea what kind of earphones he is looking for, http://elliottback.com/wp/wp-content...arbuds-png.png. He is perfectly happy with crappy sound quality (is totally thrilled with the $15 earbuds from Sony or etc.).

So does anyone know of an outer ear phone that costs <$50 and should be able to handle lots of bouncing around etc.?

[The DarkSide]

Sennheiser & Philips make some sports specific ear buds (those are ear buds, LOL!!!). Do a google and see what you can find. I'm a bit under the weather, so I'm not up to doing it for you ATM.

[Chef]

Any of the big names like AKG and Senn make nice earphones. I think Sennheiser makes some of the most durable earphones.

I don't think they are going to last that much longer though. Your friend probably needs to analyse how he takes care of his earphones and why they are dying. It probably also isn't because he works out.

Things that tend to kill earphones:

-wrapping them around the player when not in use (or around anything)
-playing with the input jack idly.
-generally anything you do which puts tension on the wire you could avoid
-getting caught on things (door handles, the zipper of your jacket etc) will eventually also kill them

My pro tips: When not in use, just coil them lightly, not around anything, but just enough so it's not a ball of wires when you put it in your pocket. Don't fiddle with the wire jack / discipline your OCD if you are the type to put extra pressure on the jack to 'make sure' it's in.

Cheap headphones do indeed have worse build quality, but either will last years if you just don't put tension on the wire too much. Your body running on the treadmill and the wire shaking won't do anything, it's when the wire is taut that problems occur.

Hope this helps. Ask him to experiment with the next earphones he gets to see if he can prolong their life. For me the worst things I used to do to my earphones was playing with the input jack and having the splitter get caught on the collar of my winter jacket constantly.

[The DarkSide]

I didn't know AKG made sports headphones/earbuds/iem's,...

PS: the JVC Riptidz are cheap, well made, sweat resistant, and have better than average sq. Check those out,...

[Chef]

309 and 315 are both earphones. http://www.amazon.ca/K309ORN-AKG-K30...3556907&sr=8-1 looks like his price range to me. I dunno if they sell them anymore, but I own the K319 and I like em fine.

They have tonnes of IEMs. So I guess maybe you learned a thing today if you thought they only made one pair of headphones. They also make this: http://www.amazon.com/AKG-K3003I-Ref.../dp/B006Q4NSK8 which looks like about the stupidest purchasing decision a human being could make

[The DarkSide]

Like I said, those aren't "sports" earbuds. The op is for exercise earbuds,...

[Chef]

I guess I'm not really understanding what the difference between a normal earphone and a sports earphone is (besides being cheap plastic and colourful). The OP says his friend just uses cheap earphones and he wants ones that are slightly more durable. If he's getting wire shorts, the issue isn't going to be whether or not its marketed toward joggers, it's gonna be his habits with creating wire tension.

Maybe you can clear my confusion if there's a real difference between the cheap earphones AKG is selling and your typical 'sports' marketed earphone. Or why you couldn't use a normal earphone for jogging :S

[El C]

Originally Posted by Chef

I guess I'm not really understanding what the difference between a normal earphone and a sports earphone is (besides being cheap plastic and colourful). The OP says his friend just uses cheap earphones and he wants ones that are slightly more durable. If he's getting wire shorts, the issue isn't going to be whether or not its marketed toward joggers, it's gonna be his habits with creating wire tension.

Maybe you can clear my confusion if there's a real difference between the cheap earphones AKG is selling and your typical 'sports' marketed earphone. Or why you couldn't use a normal earphone for jogging :S

"Sport" earphones are usually designed so that they don't fall out easily, usually by using some sort of hook or mechanism to ensure a snug fit. There's nothing wrong with using normal earphones for jogging, but given that earbuds rest on the ear canal I wouldn't expect them to be secure.

OP, what earphones does your friend have, and how does he take care of them?

[fmwyso]

Originally Posted by El C

"Sport" earphones are usually designed so that they don't fall out easily, usually by using some sort of hook or mechanism to ensure a snug fit. There's nothing wrong with using normal earphones for jogging, but given that earbuds rest on the ear canal I wouldn't expect them to be secure.

OP, what earphones does your friend have, and how does he take care of them?

Sorry about not replying for a bit! To answer the questions, my friend buys pretty much anything from Wal Mart that is cheap and doesn't actually insert into the ear. Based on suggestions, and previous things I've heard, I went with Sennheiser and just bought a pair of $20 earphones from them.

As for sports earphones, I honestly never even knew they had such things. After googling it, I realized "sports earphones" are apparently just what I call "clip ons". The friend doesn't care if they clip on or not, but simply wants durability.

As for care, I told him plainly that even the cheapies should be lasting longer than they are lasting. We'll see what happens with the $20 pair, hopefully the combination of him being a little safer and them being a bit more durable works well together :P.

Thanks for the responses everyone!

[The DarkSide]

Sports earphones are built a bit tougher, as they're designed for working out.

[Carson Dyle]

Originally Posted by fmwyso

Sorry about not replying for a bit! To answer the questions, my friend buys pretty much anything from Wal Mart that is cheap and doesn't actually insert into the ear. Based on suggestions, and previous things I've heard, I went with Sennheiser and just bought a pair of $20 earphones from them.

I'm curious... which model did you end up buying for $20?

[JK98]

The JVC HA-EB75 earbuds with earclips is quite decent for around $8.

[fmwyso]

Originally Posted by Carson Dyle

I'm curious... which model did you end up buying for $20?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005920DVA/

Just looked at Sennheiser and asked the friend how much he was willing to pay and ended up at $20.

[JK98]

The Panasonic RP-HS33 is a good budget choice if someone wants a workout earphone without isolation. It sounds a bit better than the JVC HA-EB75 but is much larger, so the fit may be different. I am not that thrilled with the Panasonic RP-HS16. For just a bit more the HS33 sounds so much better.

Regular earbuds without earhooks tend to fall out often when you are very active. The ones with the earhooks are so much more convenient when you are very active.

[Thunderkiss]

Been using MEElectronics M6 Over-the-ear earphones for various sporting/ outdoor activities for over a year now. Boy, I have tortured them, but they still are in really good condition, have never fallen out of ears, sound great, and isolate too.

For around $30, I am more than pleased with my M6's.

[JK98]

I am afraid of using anything with isolation when I am walking through traffic. He specifically stated that he doesn't want an internal earphone(IEM) which is what the M6 is.

[MEGAKILL]

Try the Sony MDR ZX100 20.00 and if you have a good EQ in your system they play well for there price

[JK98]

The ZX100 is a headphone. He wants earbuds.

[Chef]

He decided about a month ago, so I think if people have devices they recommend for using while exercising more generally, anyone who searches google and finds this thread won't mind suggestions that aren't earbuds.

I think snug fitting earbuds are ok even if you are doing jumping jacks, but maybe not all ears can make a snug fit. I would avoid hooks unless you find normal earbuds fall out all the time though, because at least for me they damage the backs of my ears and make the skin reddish and peeling with frequent use.