RunningAHEAD - Topic: Dumb headphone question

xor

posted: 3/27/2009 at 11:47 AM

Perhaps this is buried in one of the existing headphone threads, but I love the thrill of new conversation. I just got my new Sennheiser headphones (MX-85s I think; doesn't matter... beats what I had). Go me. I'm used to headphone cords that make a Y... one cord from the player to a Y, from which a wire runs to each ear. No prob. Usually, the line to each ear is the same length. On these Sennheisers, one of the lines to an ear is far longer than the other one. What's up with that? I'm sure there's a reason. But it escapes me.

jendelush

posted: 3/27/2009 at 12:00 PM

I don't have these headphones, so I'm speculating based on my own experience. Maybe the longer one goes to the ear that's farthest away from your armband? I wear my ipod on my left arm, and I always have trouble keeping the right side in.

xor

posted: 3/27/2009 at 12:02 PM

Hmmm. Well, I'm not planning on wearing it on my arm. But perhaps that's it. I hadn't thought of that because that's not how I wear it. Interesting.

perfesserr

Imminent Catastrophe

posted: 3/27/2009 at 12:33 PM
modified: 3/27/2009 at 12:34 PM

the long one is supposed to go behind your neck to your ear. I guess.

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RunningBEHIND

posted: 3/27/2009 at 12:41 PM
modified: 3/27/2009 at 12:41 PM

The long cord goes behind your neck. Makes it a lot easier to manage and doesn't get in the way like it does with the Y-symmetrical ones that sit in front of you all day. This is pretty standard on euro/asian earbuds.

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alan fletcher

posted: 3/27/2009 at 12:47 PM

i think you got this guy's headphones...

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Seacow

posted: 3/27/2009 at 2:48 PM

From their website: "Important wearing note! The longer side of the asymetrical cable goes behind the neck and into the opposite ear. This mimics a single sided cable and reduces the amount of cable in front of the wearer during physical activity. This is a safety and ergonomic feature. Please contact Sennheiser with any questions about product fit." http://www.sennheiserusa.com/newsite/productdetail.asp?transid=502539

scottaculous

posted: 3/27/2009 at 3:13 PM

I wish the asymmetrical design is more common in the US. Personally, I think the symmetrical design looks tacky and gets in my way.

Craig S

Menace to Sobriety

posted: 3/27/2009 at 3:16 PM

Can't they come up with wireless headphones/earbuds, etc? I guess the risk of losing them is greater, especially if you put them in too far, but the comfort of not having the cables waving all over the place would offset that risk.

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RunningBEHIND

posted: 3/27/2009 at 4:35 PM

They have wireless headphones. Unfortunately wireless earbuds are a currently a no-go as the battery power required makes a design somewhat cumbersome. Hopefully they will get all of the kinks ironed out of wireless power soon.

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Penny_A

thumbs up!

posted: 3/27/2009 at 7:18 PM

Wireless headphones would be cool! Then I could hear what people are listening to as they run by me.

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rectumdamnnearkilledem

posted: 3/27/2009 at 7:25 PM

SRL, I hope you like the Sennheisers. I think the ones you got are the updated version of the ones I have. I am on my second pair. I love them. Totally sweat and rain-proof. Good sound, but I can still hear stuff around me, which is perfect. Smile

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xor

posted: 3/27/2009 at 7:27 PM

I used them for the first (and second) time today. They sound great... the earplugs with the extra little doodads to hold them still are kind of funky. And they come with tons of spares in various sizes to ensure a great fit. The problem is that all these pieces are a bit overwhelming. Ultimately, I could probably make them fit better, but I don't feel like dealing with all the little pieces.

RunningBEHIND

posted: 3/28/2009 at 7:36 AM

Quote from Penny_A on 3/27/2009 at 7:18 PM:

Wireless headphones would be cool! Then I could hear what people are listening to as they run by me.

Unfortunately the old ones actually worked like this. I'm not sure if encoding limits the amount of bandwidth or something, but I had an old pair when I used to live in the dorms that operated on the same frequency as cordless non-cell phones, and every once in a while I would end up accidently snooping on peoples phone conversations.

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greenrunning

posted: 3/30/2009 at 9:46 AM
modified: 3/30/2009 at 9:48 AM

I had the Sennheisers you are talking about. That extra cord length drove me crazy. I get the idea behind it, and I've seen other headphones where one side was slightly longer and it worked out. But on these there is just a ridiculous amount of extra length...probably 18" or more. I tried to clip it to my shirt with the little included clip, but it was too much of a pain. I finally just cut the long side off and only used one ear. In the end I emailed Sennheiser and complained a couple of times, and they shipped me a pair of PMX75s for FREE...they are probably 40 bucks in the store. That was about 2 years ago, and I'm still using them. I can't believe they've held up through this much sweat and abuse. I also didn't think I'd like this "around the neck" style, but it actually has worked out much better than earbuds. I'll definitely buy these again when I need some more. I wish more companies had that level of customer service.

Dumb headphone question (Read 1012 times)