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Bose QuietComfort 35 II Review (Noise Cancelling Headphone)

Jimbob54

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Got these yesterday. I like them. Feared the cups may be too small but I can get my lugs fully in.

Too bassy for me out of the box and with amir's suggested eq (I normally drop the bass eq by 2 or 3 dB on any Harman EQ) but a - 2db low shelf at 200 and a +2b at 40 creates a nice scoop around the 100 hz area but leaves the sub bass still there and amir's rw works well after that. Cleans up the sound a bit.
 

posvibes

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(I normally drop the bass eq by 2 or 3 dB on any Harman EQ) but a - 2db low shelf at 200 and a +2b at 40 creates a nice scoop around the 100 hz area but leaves the sub bass still there and amir's rw works well after that. Cleans up the sound a bit.

I tried this and it ain't too bad, I quite like it actually makes the music to my ear less directional more ambient to my ears. Well done that man!

I am not sure if I prefer it though.
 

Trouble Maker

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... and I still have my QC25 ...

Same here, IMHO they are still great in office and traveling headphones, not that either of those are happening much now. The pads disintegrated (thanks Japan humidity) and I thought about upgrading, but just replaced the pads instead. If intl. (work) travel were a thing now I'd probably get some newer wireless. Maybe next time I have an overseers (work) trip I'll pull the trigger, it was the catalyst for the first set too.
 

Harmonie

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Ran across this blog with story how rechargeable battery in this HP exploded and burned poor owner's temple:


and so many guys that had their cellphones exploding in their front pocket ....

Reminds me @Ron Texas 's :

 

Harmonie

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Persik

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Ran across this blog with story how rechargeable battery in this HP exploded and burned poor owner's temple:

That’s scary story, not sure if I should refuse delivery of qc35ii and order xm4 instead…
 

nathan

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Wireless headphones mean batteries on your head no matter which brand.
 

Harmonie

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That’s scary story, not sure if I should refuse delivery of qc35ii and order xm4 instead…
I have a QC25 with regular batteries and won't have therefore any of such issues ...
 

Persik

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QC35ii was delivered to me couple of days ago and subjectively I feel really-really satisfied by the sound. Bose is not my "go to" brand by any means (Adam Audio, Sennheiser, Beyerdynamic, Fostex, AKG, Technics, Pioneer, Denon, Motu, etc are more common brand for my audio gear)
Psychological phenomenon that many of us are experiencing in this thread is called "cognitive dissonance"; the expectation of Bose, as consumer brand, to fail miserably the objective testing was not met, and that makes us uncomfortable:)
However, once "acceptance" settles in, QC35ii could become an awesome addition to your gear.
Thank you Amir for this review and I hope that folks on this thread will be able to overcome that "cognitive dissonance" and enjoy QC35ii.
Cheers, and happy holidays everyone!
 

Persik

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Bluetooth can vary the frequency response depending on the codec used. It also adds artifacts of its own which impacts tests such as distortion. Note that when I turn on NC, the DAC and internal amp is used even though I am using wired connection.
Did you use low, high or off NC setting during the testing?
 
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Jimbob54

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rrr

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For these Bose QC 35 II headphones I loaded the custom PEQ settings in this thread (as shown attached), and there is only a slight difference in sound compared to the original stock EQ setting, but I have to ask (as a newbie) what difference does 2 lines of EQ really make? (I am just asking that because the ASR PEQ setting is still a little bit more boomier than I what I would like when it comes to bass). Is it possible to re-measure and get a more detailed PEQ text file, one that has more than 2 lines, i assume more lines of adjustment = better? (correct me if i am wrong)

I compared it to the crinnacle's EQ settings (which is what I had set before I came across this thread and learned how to load a custom PEQ setting, as ASR's PEQ settings are not bundled with SoundSource by default (Amir or someone should contact them and try to get them bundled in) by listening, and crinacle's EQ settings makes the Bose QC35 II sound a bit flatter, which I kind of prefer, but still that bass is now too quiet after EQ. So I am stuck inbetween 3 options; too much bass in the default noEQ setting, slightly less but still too much bass in the ASR PEQ setting, too little bass with the crinacle setting. What are your thoughts on all of this?
 

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Zensō

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For these Bose QC 35 II headphones I loaded the custom PEQ settings in this thread (as shown attached), and there is only a slight difference in sound compared to the original stock EQ setting, but I have to ask (as a newbie) what difference does 2 lines of EQ really make? (I am just asking that because the ASR PEQ setting is still a little bit more boomier than I what I would like when it comes to bass). Is it possible to re-measure and get a more detailed PEQ text file, one that has more than 2 lines, i assume more lines of adjustment = better? (correct me if i am wrong)

I compared it to the crinnacle's EQ settings (which is what I had set before I came across this thread and learned how to load a custom PEQ setting, as ASR's PEQ settings are not bundled with SoundSource by default (Amir or someone should contact them and try to get them bundled in) by listening, and crinacle's EQ settings makes the Bose QC35 II sound a bit flatter, which I kind of prefer, but still that bass is now too quiet after EQ. So I am stuck inbetween 3 options; too much bass in the default noEQ setting, slightly less but still too much bass in the ASR PEQ setting, too little bass with the crinacle setting. What are your thoughts on all of this?
Why not add a low shelf and bring down the bass to your liking?
 

Jimbob54

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Hello, are there any update replies to my 2 posts above?
Sounds like you need a bit of an eq primer. I couldn't find one on here but this covers the basics. https://homestudiorecordings.com/parametric-eq/

I don't know how SoundSource works to apply any of this so youd have to look that up in the manual.

One thing from your first post, more filters does not necessarily equal better as applying the wrong filter, or one where it isn't needed can be detrimental.

There are a few main approaches to PEQ I find ;

1. Model to a target curve exactly. This is the auto eq approach. Taking the measurements of the headphone and using software to work out a number of filters that bring the measured response to the target response. Users then either type these filters into their eq software, upload them from the source or possibly import a pre done convolution filter.

2. Take the Amir approach which is measure, compare to target, make a few obvious adjustments, listen again and tweak until the results sound good. That's why he only uses 2, he's not trying to map to the target precisely, just to improve obvious areas to his ears.

3.Freestyle. User doesn't measure or seek established measurements or indeed targets and plays around seeing what works for them. This might be easy to get improvements in large areas of the response (like a few dB low shelf in the bass for a headphone with reduced bass) but unlikely to work well for more specific deficiencies.

My advice. Start with method 1 using either auto eq settings or oratory1990 presets and fiddle with those to taste.

Another point about the bose. Take care with how you are using them. There are 5 settings each of which, I think, has a different frequency response and sound :

Wired off
Wired on (this means anc is on high and can't be disabled)
Wireless anc high (default)
Wireless anc low
Wireless anc off (this one is very different to the 2 above)

So you really need to know which of these the measurer is using. For amir's eq it is, I believe, for wired on.

Sorry for rambling!
 
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