Headphone Buying Guide

Headphones come in all shapes and sizes, spanning the gamut from small and sporty to large and professional. Junking the set supplied with your MP3 player is also the easiest way to improve its sound quality. We step you through the ins and outs, as well as the technical mumbo jumbo.

Jabra C820s

Noise-cancelling headphones
These headphones hush ambient noise by creating anti-noise that obviates the noise at your ear. They don't eliminate noise entirely, but the better models significantly reduce the whoosh of a jet plane's air conditioning systems. They're somewhat less effective at quieting the background din on trains and buses. It's important to note that noise-cancelling headphones come in all form factors, from full size to earbuds.

Upside
Since you no longer have to crank up the volume to overcome background noise, you can listen at lower levels, which leads to reduced ear fatigue. You'll also hear more low-level detail in your music.

Downside
Some users may be sensitive to the anti-noise, which exerts pressure on your eardrums. Most folks won't notice it, but we recommend auditioning noise-cancelling headphones before you buy. All noise-cancelling headphones use batteries to power the circuitry, which may be stored in the ear cup of larger models or in a separate in-line module on smaller ones.

Shure E4c

Noise-isolating headphones
Sealed full-size over-the-ear headphones effectively block out the environment and attenuate background noise at home. They're also popular as recording monitors. For portable use, tiny in-ear headphone models resemble earplugs and can seal out noise from trains and planes.

Upside
Noise-isolating headphones offer excellent seclusion from ambient or external noise -- equal or even superior to noise-cancelling headphones. Since you no longer have to crank up the volume to overcome background noise, you can listen at lower levels, reducing ear fatigue. Noise-isolating designs don't need batteries and don't exert pressure on your eardrum. They're ideal for frequent flyers and commuters.

Downside
Some listeners are uncomfortable inserting these in-ear headphones into their ears. You must achieve a secure seal, or bass response will suffer. Isolating yourself from outside noise may prove unsafe for active users who are walking or running. Large, over-the-ear models can become uncomfortably hot and make your ears sweat.

Surround headphones
Some models electronically synthesise surround effects to create a bigger than stereo sound field, while other headphones employ a more benign acoustic approach to deliver some semblance of a surround field between your ears. A handful of models even jam multiple speaker drivers into the earcups for "true" surround sound. By contrast, Dolby Headphone is a surround-sound mode available in some A/V receivers that simulates surround effects with any headphone plugged into them -- jump to the bottom of this page for more information. Surround headphones are targeted primarily to home-theatre fans or to gamers, but they also sound great with music.

Upside
Surround headphones create a more spacious sound than conventional stereo headphones.

Downside
The surround effect may seem artificially hyped or overly reverberant. The quality of the surround effect varies from one design to the next. No models sound as spacious as a multichannel speaker array.

Plantronics .Audio 370 Multimedia Headset

Communication headsets
Whether it's for voice-to-text transcription, online gaming, or PC-centric Voice over IP (VoIP) services such as Skype, a growing number of business and entertainment applications require two-way communications. Headphones with a built-in microphone provide an all-in-one solution.

Upside
A single headset can provide headphone and microphone functionality, meaning there's no need for the additional clutter associated with unreliable table-top or speakerphone-style microphones.

Downside
Game consoles such as Xbox and PlayStation may require headsets with semi-proprietary connections or need special adapters.

Sennheiser RS120

Wireless (home)
Cordless headphones have been around for years, but they have only recently started to approach the sound-quality standards of the better corded headphones. Non-portable wireless headphones -- full-size models with large base stations that aren't suitable for portable use -- employ one of two transmission methods: infrared or radio frequency (RF). Infrared uses pulses of light to transmit signals from the base unit to the headphones, but you have to remain within the line of sight of the transmitter to receive signals. Radio frequency models use radio waves to accomplish the same job, and since the radio signals can pass through walls, they generally suffer fewer signal dropouts.

Upside
Freed from the tyranny of wires, you can listen to TV, DVDs, and music without being tethered to your equipment. Base stations often have extensive connectivity options and some models offer surround modes.

Downside
Few wireless models can approach the sound quality of wired models, and many add a certain amount of background hiss or noise. Moreover, some RF models can interfere with cordless telephones or home-networking systems.

Logitech FreePulse wireless headphones

Wireless (portable)
Portable wireless headphones represent the cutting edge in headphone technology. New models employ either Bluetooth or RF transmission between the headphones and a small base dongle that plugs into the audio source, such as an iPod.

Upside
No wires snaking from your backpack, purse, or pocket.

Downside
In addition to needing frequent recharging or battery swaps, the small base station creates extra bulk that cuts down on portability. Furthermore, wireless sound quality is rarely up to wired standards.

Dolby Headphone
No, Dolby hasn't jumped into the headphone-manufacturing business. Dolby Headphone is a surround processor that synthesises multi-channel effects and expands stereo separation over any pair of stereo headphones. The technology does not synthesise quasi-surround from conventional stereo sources such as CDs or FM radio; instead, it enhances 5.1-channel DVDs and stereo recordings, respectively. The result is a sound that's less claustrophobic and "stuck in your head", and more akin to the effect of listening to speakers.

Dolby Headphone is a cool technology, but it's important to realise that it can be independent of the actual headphones. For instance, the Harman Kardon AVR 635 A/V receiver has on-board Dolby Headphone processing, which will work with any headphones you plug into it. On the other hand, the Pioneer SE-DIR800C wireless headphones include Dolby Headphone technology built into the base station, so you can hook them directly to a DVD player. Because the processor is built into the audio source -- the A/V receiver, in most cases -- the surround effect will work with any headphones that are plugged into it. If you're looking for Dolby Headphone, be sure to get an A/V receiver that supports it; if you're looking for surround headphones -- models that use internal circuitry to electronically synthesise surround effects -- focus on the actual headphones instead.