The big, bad headphones that won't go away

[@PanekPL]

"Of course, the downside of this closed ear design is that somebody or something requires your attention while you're listening to music, you probably won't be able to hear it." lol what downside? that's exactly why I wear these kinds of headphones

[@mercuryoak2]

There is a downside if there is a medical emergency or somebody came into your house and you didn't know it. Or what if your significant other or somebody needed your help or attention. That's what he was getting at

[@RSOFT92]

That reminds me of a Video from Doctor Mix (The Mellotron: Famous Songs), i was watching with my cheap Behringer HPS3000 Headphones on. At some point in the Video, someone behind the Camera whistles and Claps and i almost jumped off my exercise ball* because i thought someone was standing behind me. They are cheap headphones, but this moment really felt like the sound was coming from behind me. *Note: I use an exerciseball as chair for my desk

[@app0the]

@@RSOFT92 that's how you know the recording is well mastered and your system is fine enough. One day I was watching some movie, and there was a silent scene where the characters were entering their apartment, recorded from the inside of the room. The door clacked and I put the movie on pause and went to check who the heck managed to break into my house?! Then it hit me - my left/right connection was messed up, so even though the door opened on the left in the movie, it came out of the right speaker, which is where the hallway was, and that was close enough to pass off as a real door lmao

[@RSOFT92]

@@app0the Something like this happened to me yesterday. Heard a new song for the first time via Headphones and i thought "Who is talking so loudly outside?". Wasn't someone talking outside, was someone talking in the background of the recording which i didnt hear via loudspeakers previously. But youre right, the right equipment (on both sides) can make all the difference.

[@jamesslick4790]

@@mercuryoak2 I live by myself on the top floor of a secured building. It would take a helicopter or being Spider Man to break in to my apartment. If I am doing serious listening like editing tracks (I'm a musician) I want TOTAL isolation.

[@xenon2Merchant]

"Professional Studio" - but nobody said it was audio production studio, maybe professional hair styling studio.

[@siliconinsect]

They seriously are. I worked at a college radio station and the studio headphones took such a beating garbage like this is what was used for guests. Anyone serious had their own cans but most got stuck with these -- complete with other peoples' hair grease!

[@_ADM_]

that's because -"hair styling studio"- sounds like an example of Orwellian New Speach

[@CaveyMoth]

I was never a fan of that "Studio Sound for Pros" description. Companies keep throwing it onto their audio products, and all it really means is "Competent, Balanced Enough" at best.

[@alang5764]

I don't like your chances of getting a decent haircut with these on.

[@jmialtacct]

Or 8-square-meter "studios" marketed to "young professionals" in my city. Only 200k euros, batteries not included, but at least it has a water faucet.

[@shortcat]

The difference of quality between these three is very noticeable on a built-in speaker of a cheap smartphone.

[@brpadington]

The pair I had sounded very good. I think there may have been a lot of variance based on which brand made it.

[@coolelectronics1759]

same here on dell chromebook latitude.

[@porklaser]

I saw these headphones hanging on the side of a laptop/chromebook cart in a classroom yesterday, and I remember the older variant connected to old reel-to-reel players in my school library in the early 80s. They're a staple in education. Large, sturdy, inexpensive. They'll connect to anything with TR or TRRS jack. They're adjustable and the large cups sit comfortably on heads of any size. And, very importantly, they're easy to clean!

[@RowanBird779]

in grade 8, my school had a pile of these awful things and literally all of them had a non-functioning right ear cup

[@grayrabbit2211]

The ones we had in school were terrible. Terribly uncomfortable, sound quality was crap, noise isolation was non-existent. I used to just bring my own.

[@qwertykeyboard5901]

And for that, they did a pretty good job.

[@jamesslick4790]

My kid (if 34 is a "kid", LOL) is a Language Arts teacher and "Califone" is to educational audio what "Kodak" once was to film. It's an OMNIPRESENT brand in schools. And has been for decades. "Cheap" but rugged enough for use by -the little bastards- er, students. LOL

[@robotman5105]

Comfortable? I have no idea how people came to the conclusion that these are comfortable. my ears always rests against the grill and it hurts after 10 minutes. They felt and sounded like shit in elementary school and they still do in high school. I have to angle them so the pads rest on my ears, sacrificing audio clarity for my own sanity and comfort.

[@James_Ryan]

I just remembered: Sony were the first to introduce headphones with rare-earth magnets - the BBC TV show Tomorrow's World demoed it in 1980 (there's a clip on the BBC Archive channel if anyone's interested.)

[@Ray_of_Light62]

Those used samarium and cobalt. Neodymium arrived in the audio sector much later.

[@Dingleberry1856]

@@Ray_of_Light62it’s not hard to research before stating nonsense. From Sony corporation, “…but in the 1970s, highly magnetic rare-earth magnets and ultra-thin polyester film led to compact, 23-mm drivers - the prototype of current headphones, offering sufficient audio quality even from amp output powered by a dry cell battery. This was the MDR-3”

[@puppable]

​@@Dingleberry1856 samarium-cobalt is a type of rare earth magnet

[@Dingleberry1856]

@@puppable I know, and you know but I was letting Ray_of_Light62 in on the secret.

[@video99couk]

I have my "Samarium Cobalt Supermagnet" Ross RE-278 headphones from around 1982. They still sound surprisingly good. But they weren't cheap.

[@Recordology]

That out of phase demonstration was 🤌🏻

[@jamesslick4790]

I know, right? VERY good demo!

[@sonicbro6446]

The only problem is for those who are watching this on a smartphone or in mono, they won't get any sound due to the inverted signal

[@alexs81-]

@@sonicbro6446 Smartphones with one speaker use only one channel of sound, not the sum of L+R. I have had several smartphones over the years, all of them had this drawback.

[@ssnoc]

He’s the best - I learn so much from this channel

[@DavidWasman]

I always sell Nova 45s on ebay for $50 and under on purpose to screw over the scumbags over-pricing them due to the Stranger Things tax. I also sold multiple WM-8 Walkmans (model she used which was considered extremely basic and cheap, back then) for similarly low prices. Never sold one for more than $100. Vultures on ebay are ruining walkman and audio sales.

[@hydorah]

I love it when idiot sellers say "Stranger Things" and multiply the price by 5. Their items don't sell

[@patrickmersault4298]

You’re doing god’s work.

[@mramisuzuki6962]

You can buy Sony Pros for that price.

[@DavidWasman]

@@mramisuzuki6962 Why would you use Sony pros with vintage hardware, though

[@mramisuzuki6962]

@@DavidWasman they are vintage hardware.

[@davidleeashkenazi8992]

Had a pair "sound-quality" resembled being underwater.

[@eldebo99]

Okay the out of phase audio bit at 9:20 was really cool and appreciated. Even on desktop speakers the effect was, as you said, disconcerting.

[@eldebo99]

Interestingly enough, it looks like KZbin captions didn't catch what you said during that time.

[@diegoscopia]

If you listen to it on mono, you hear absolutely nothing. Which makes sense, but it threw me off while wearing one earbud only!

[@ivannatinkle]

​@@eldebo99 woah

[@davidg4288]

I was surprised by that as well. I don't know why, desktop speakers are two feet apart and a foot from each ear. They're like really big headphones. At least I now know my desktop speakers are in phase.

[@mrbarker92]

Holy crap. I work at a local news station, and I was editing a story yesterday that used footage from a school, and they had those exact headphones. You must be reading my mind, man. 😂

[@elladomisteriosodelaislawoodoo]

I remember using those headphones when we had state testing. Another reason to hate them

[@williamjones4483]

Califone made A/V equipment aimed primarily to educational and institutional use. Don't expect great sound quality from them.

[@jamesslick4790]

My daughter is a Language Arts teacher and "Califone" is to educational audio what "Kodak" once was to film. It's an OMNIPRESENT brand in schools. And has been for decades. "Cheap" but rugged enough for use by -the little bastards- er, students. LOL

[@audvidgeek]

@@williamjones4483 Califone equipment made before the turn of the 21st century though was MUCH more durable, and their old classroom phonographs actually sounded pretty good. Can't say they were good on records, with their 8 gram VTF, but their 6X9 speaker would crank out some pretty nice sound

[@jagmarc]

Very similar UK late 60s 70s in our school language classroom we all sat in rows with them on our heads all connected to the same circuit, we had a prank in the silences one of us would say a rude word into their earphone and whole room laugh hear it in the other earphones same time.

[@Nytalite]

12:07 As a longtime radio listener in the Washington, DC area, it makes me happy when you play the WRQX-FM/Mix 107.3 tape. We sadly lost it with the Cumulus-EMF deal in 2019, where it was turned into a K-Love affiliate.

[@belzebub16]

9:57 - here in Germany this is called the "bathtub" setting 😊

[@vdochev]

The "V" 😄

[@glynnetolar4423]

Ugh, my first headphones were like that. Branded by a local department store. The reason they can be used as speakers is because that's exactly what they had in them. Like transistor radio speakers. Oh, you covered that This reminds me of my graphics history. Years after those i got some Q-10 it was it 15? Open back. They were ok. Have no idea who made then. Then some Audio Technica that sat on ear. They were actually pretty good. Then, at the time, really nice ones were the Sony MDR V6. Those were fantastic. Then back to some open backs, Grado SR60. Where i discovered how the 'sound stage' opens up with open back headphones. Those were great but don't last. Back to the you're cheap but sound good for the price Monoprice $20 specials. They will not last though. Cable and glue issues. So finally found out the MDR V6 is still sold and got another pair of them. And now for the first time i have 2 pairs of headphones. As i now have the very good sounding and comfortable Audio Technica ATH-M50X. Finally detachable cable! Oh, in this history I've had some rear buds but few were good sounding. Wow, after typing this i didn't realize how many is gone though.

[@mal2ksc]

Still have and use my MDR-V600 with the anti-booming mod that basically makes them into V6 (take the foam out of the middle of the magnet, it eliminates the artificially boosted bass). I master on them, along with a pair of Tannoy SRM-12B speakers.

[@vhfgamer]

Ahhhhh, those later model caliphone ones look very familiar. My high school used those quite a lot in the computer labs. We had a system where some classes were taught digitally. So each student would have headphones so they could hear the lecture without bothering anyone else. It was a great system because we could all work at our own pace. This would have been some time around 2010 or so. Nobody knew this at the time, but I snuck an album of The Ventures onto my computer, so I could listen to surf music while doing the non lecture parts of the class.

[@zangl2955]

Such a bad boy

[@donnierussellii4659]

Porta Pros are the only headphones I can wear comfortably with glasses. It amazes me that most headphone manufacturers create ear torturing devices with poorer sound for more money.

[@DerekDominoes]

I like the SportaPro headphones even more. I guess the sound isn't as good as with the PortaPros (although I can't tell the difference) but I find the SportaPros to be even more comfortable.

[@cloudycolacorp]

I love how comfy they are, no feeling of being clamped whatsoever.

[@revolver64]

How far we’ve come since those days. After hearing records and tapes on subpar components like this for years, it’s no wonder that when CDs were released, how amazing they sounded and how records and tapes took such a steep dive.

[@audvidgeek]

I loved my Nova 45 headphones when I was in college. Wore them while walking to my classes listening to my Aiwa portable cassette player. wore them out, and ended up replacing them with PRO25's and was amazed at the sound of them...been using them since, and bought the Koss version of them a few years back myself

[@AmeshaSpentaArmaiti]

thank you for that unannounced demo of out of phase audio, i almost thought the voices had come back!

[@marcberm]

Good call. I definitely wouldn't be one to delve into the circumaural vs. uncutaural debate either.

[@bens1343]

Intactaural thank you very much :P

[@marcberm]

@@bens1343 🤣 Lol. Not judging either way. Looks like I ended up in the debate after all.

[@ThatElectronicsFool]

Shirts vs. Skins of audio

[@melody3741]

The WHAT

[@laranaarana]

The first headphone set I purchased was when I was working at Radio Shack, the Realistic/Koss Pro-60 and used them for more than 15 years.

[@jamesslick4790]

Former Shackers UNITE! 👍👍

[@stormshadow5555]

I enjoyed this video, well done. I would like to see you do another video comparing some more entry-level headphones and especially explain all the different types available past and present and their sound quality differences per dollar amount paid past and present. And don't forget to take some apart and show the internal differences too, a strong point with your videos.

[@fnregistration]

looks like the headphones we had to use when they tested our hearing in elementary school in the '80s

[@shmehfleh3115]

Anyone who went to public school in the 80s ought to recognize these suckers. I remember them being plugged into old Voice of Music record players.

[@POEMS466]

Great review! Thanks for the info. Cheers!

[@ryoncon]

Those crappy Califone headphones... My high school (in a large Ecuadorian city) had them in their English language labs, as they call them. Their audio quality was horrid. Very uncomfortable to wear, some of my classmates switched to their Discman headphones if they had the adaptor. Some headphones, even without one year of use, had issues with one or both speakers and even the 1/4" jack. That was between 2000 and 2003, and worn-out cassettes played with boomboxes of questionable fidelity were the norm. Eventually, I learned a bit of English by myself.

[@croolis]

I had a pair of Philips headphones when I was a child in the early 80s. Identical to your black headphones with the stereo/mono switch and volume controls. Around 1988 or so I had got hold of a pair of Pioneer SE-205 'coconuts' and although they were still budget headphones (and very heavy) I liked their tonal quality. At the time, around 1991 or so, I had bought a pair of headphones branded 'Pro Luxe Digital 2000' and those, I remember, had incredibly good sound. These days I have quite a few headphones to choose from, but I find myself going back to Grado SR80e when I am at home, Sennheiser Momentum OE2 when I am outside. Thanks for the interesting video & the trip down memory lane!

[@marcberm]

"Lección tres, ejerciccio dos. Listen to the model, and repeat the phrase when prompted..."

[@a1white]

neodymium magnets have improved headphones so much since then

[@saricubra2867]

I have the legendary DT770 Pro 32ohm that i bought on amazon Black Friday and Amazon cards for 56 dollars. The competition would be a HIFIman Sundara which is electrostatic, Sennheiser HD600 and 650 (legendary as well).

[@autoteleology]

​@@saricubra2867 Hifiman Sundaras are planar magnetic, not electrostatic.

[@twocvbloke]

We've all used them I'm sure, the Nova 28/57 kind I remember in school music classrooms hooked up to the Casio keyboards, I don't recall the brands we had being in the UK (that and I finished school in 2001), but I do recall those volume knobs and the Stereo/Mono switches, and them not being very good quality, I think my dad even had some pairs of both kinds for metal detecting for a while too... :\

[@KentTeffeteller]

They were bought because of being cheap. The Koss high end Radio Shack headphones suffered from tubby bass, and my neck muscles hated them. Which is why my radio career began with a pair of Sennheiser HD-414 cans in 1973. (my boss bought me a pair when he saw my neck in the position it was in). The Sennheisers still work great (I have a newer pair as well).

[@SmallSpoonBrigade]

I personally just buy Shure and Sennheiser at this point. I've had the same Shure e2c ear buds for more years that I can remember, and the only reason that I am onto my second set of Sennheisers is because I got fancy and didn't want that screw that I had to insert due to me messing up the adjustments. Spend the money on a decent set and it'll probably last many decades as the sound quality is about as good as they're likely to ever achieve. Upgrading made me reencode my MP3 collection because what had been tolerable quality isn't with better listening equipment.

[@angelfire2023]

13:46 The acting here makes it seem like whatever he's listening to is progressively getting worse and worse, and he's trying his best to act like he is enjoying what he's hearing. xD

[@Stevie-J]

"Stay calm and don't say anything if you want to see your loved ones again. Instructions to follow..." 😬

[@mediocreman2]

Unlikely they were even 'on'.

[@eskeletor]

nice skycorp cameo

[@federicoae7671]

Smithers O'Neil FTW

[@EddieJazzFan]

Speaking of Califone, I'd like to get one of the old "built like a tank" Califone classroom record players, but they have gone up in price recently.

[@P3SS3SSOd]

Great work! I picked up a pair of vintage B&O Form 2 headphones for the full 1986 experience on my WM-F100 and they really did the job beautifull. I recently picked up one of those Surfans lossless portable players and they sound absolutely incredible on that too. But, bear in mind I really wanted something that didn't cut out all my hearing when walking to work, which isn't very fashionable apparently with all the noise cancelling technology these days.

[@MistaMaddog247]

When I was in high school during the late 80s, my mom bought me those types of headphones from Radio Shack because I kept blasting my rap tapes too loud. As a teen I balked at the size and 70s style compared to the "modern" marshmallow headphones I use for my Walkman...but once I used them the required bass, for hip-hop , sounded much better than the mini stereo speakers which were cheap. So I kept using those types of headphones eventually moving up to the Koss brand. Even now I use an expensive wireless headset to block out outside noise and immerse myself into the music and games on my PC.

[@audubon5425]

I bought four of these two years ago when headphones were on the school supply list, they were Califone 2924-AVPS in translucent blue. No mono switch and one volume knob. Two made it back home at the end of the school year (guess the other teachers kept them.) My oldest daughter blew her pair with her mid-90's Optimus/Soundesign stereo. One is still hanging around.

[@STR82DVD]

I literally have 10 pair of Koss Porta Pros. That's what I always used on my Walkmans lad. Bloody brilliant sound reproduction that does not need to be equalized.

[@KC4RAE]

I had a pair of Pro 25s when I was growing up. They were really good headphones. I used them all the time and, if I remember correctly, it had a inline volume control. Never could find anything that sounded that good. I couldn't wear them at the radio station, so I never looked for another pair when they got lost.

[@shaneluttrell532]

I ordered a pair of Koss KTXPro1 headphones on Amazon just now, based on your recommendation. Thanks!

[@DirectorCM]

Man, stop. I LOVED these headphones!! Back in the 80s and 90s these are the headphones I used to use with my Walkman because I hated the little cheapo headphones that came with the Walkman. My father would let me use a pair of his headphones because he was a musician and had about 6 pairs. Riding the subway to and from school, blasting music into my brain. Good times. The only thing that sucked was using the adapter to turn the huge jack into a small one.

[@JacGoudsmit]

Those black headphones are exactly the same as the ones I got around 1982. Mine were Philips branded. The sound quality was very low and they started hurting your head after just a short while, so I didn't use them much, but the stereo-mono switch made them perfect for checking the azimuth on my tape and cassette recorders.

[@Choralone422]

Those old giant headphones bring back memories! My parents had a set of them in the early to mid 80s. I used to love to plug them in to the giant Montgomery Ward branded console stereo they had. Even though the sound quality was poor it was the only way to listen to music really loud! In the early 90s I saved up and bought myself a good Sony Walkman, model WM-FX 43, and with it used multiple sets of Radio Shack Realistic PRO-25 headphones. The headphones were $39.95 each at the time and I loved the awesome sound they had. I used them everywhere and usually ended up having to buy a new set about once a year for a few years. These days I still prefer over the ear headphones. I have set of JBL branded ones for music listening while I use my computer and an inexpensive bluetooth set for when I do yard work with the mower or string trimmer.

[@themaritimegirl]

Going by your test as a comparison, the modern Peerless drivers I put in my Nova 10s have indeed improved the sound quality a lot, but the design of the casing itself still reduces it quite a bit.

[@AttilaSVK]

I used a pair of Koss Porta Pros for a couple of years, and later switched to Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro (the 32 ohm version) for travelling and DT990 Pro 250 ohm for home use. 5 years ago I got myself a pair of Bose QuietComfort 35 IIs because my phone didn't have a 3,5mm jack socket anymore.

[@joshuaford4460]

Even if I've got better headphones for home use and iems/earphones for portable use, I still keep my PortaPro Communication in case i ever need a headset with a mic on the go. It's the best headset mic ive experienced so far, damn near rivaling the desktop mic i typically use. Koss definitely makes some good stuff for the price (KSC75 also comes to mind).

[@AttilaSVK]

@@joshuaford4460 I remember modding my pair of PortaPros with replacing the cable with one from an Apple headset, so I'd have an inline remote control and microphone as well.

[@nelson_r_904]

Great video. Took me way back 👍

[@pipiferry]

Those black headphones are featured in young sheldon season 7 episode 4, when sheldon comes in his dorm room only to meet another student (that student is wearing the headphones).

[@K6LCM]

Crazy! When you did the out of phase example, your voice came out of the rear channel of my surround sound system.

[@DKbananas]

Another video I didn't know I needed. Thanks vw

[@foorje]

I appreciate the little stereo mic recording of the headphones. Personally, I've retrofitted a couple of these older headphones with some nicer modern (but still cheap) chinese speakers of brands like Superlux.

[@ka7hqp182]

The Radio Shack versions were usually everyone's first set of "Cans" many many years ago. Sound was improved by placing a sock inside the headphones behind the speaker to dampen the sound and slightly improve the low end. Next we moved up to the Radio Shack LV-10 headphones that actually were OEM by KOSS, (HV/1) and the plastic molded headphones actually still had the name KOSS on them even though they were badged LV-10 and sold by Radio Shack. The LV-10 and HV/1 response was 20 - 20,000, very good, but the big brother to them in the same form factor, same looks, was the KOSS HV/1A with the superior driver with a response of 20 - 30,000. While no one can hear 30,000 hz, the accuracy of all of the audio frequencies that you can hear, is quite clear and will really surprise you. We're not talking newer CDs, mp3s or FM radio here, those all lack real audio definition. And not just Classical, but vintage Rock like Yes, Pink Floyd, Procol Harum and many others. Never accept what other opinions are regarding headphones as everyone has different ears, ear canals, and interpretations of how things should sound. Some like a Boom Boom Boom sound where a real audio purist wants to hear every instrument. And notice that no longer do they provide actual printed test specifications, just unscientific opinions.

[@bandombeviews6035]

yep, had these in elementary school in the late 2000s/early 2010s. They were in the computer lab, but teachers normally had like 10 pairs of those on ear koss sets

[@KeritechElectronics]

Got something similar - a pair of '70s/80s Tonsil SN60. Made in Poland, they were really good quality, no deterioration through all these decades. I could experiment with out of phase headphones for the fun and curiosity, haha. You talking about Nova 45 phones almost makes me wanna give Hounds of Love a spin again. Man, do I love that album!

[@ergosteur]

Oh god we had these at my elementary school for listening to books on tape and language learning tapes. They taught me at the age of 6 how big headphones don’t mean good sound. The only thing I liked about them was that it was my first exposure to 1/4” jacks. Definitely used to turn the volume up and use them as speakers lol😂

[@DoodiePunk]

@9:20, finally someone had a description for out of phase audio! Listening to it on one speaker leads to no sound.

[@matthewmathis62]

I love listening to your voice. By the way, I think we have a pair of the Realistic Nova 10! We use them to listen to audio coming in from an Audio Interface Recording Device while recording (mostly) nature sounds (rain, frogs, thunder...). They are definitely comfortable. They work well enough, and I don't have much to complain about them. Thank you for the interesting video!! :)

[@FranklyPeetoons]

Memories. My first 'phones were new-old-stock Radio Shacks from the 70s, identical to your examples. They cost a pittance at a thrift store, with the original yellowing paper inside. Often I fell asleep wearing them, listening to FM radio and custom-recorded tapes of rainstorms. An adapter was necessary to use them with the tiny jack on my radio/cassette player. I had that same pair for decades until they fell apart.

[@HisXLNC]

My dad worked at a Sound Warehouse in the 80s and brought home a few pairs for use in his home studio. The last pair finally got thrown out about 8 years ago during a move. One pro tip he had was to replace the ear cushions with cut sponges. That solved the sweat issue.

[@buckykattnj]

I had a pair of Nova 40 headphones... I think a lot of people were put off my the beige color and hard plastic... but I thought they sounded great for the time (around 1986). I used them everywhere for a decade. They really took a beating, including one night I accidentally dropped them into my aquarium for a few hours... while I dried them out, the hard plastic warped a bit... but they kept working and I used them regularly for another few years. I still have them... but the plastics got icky. They sit in my box of old headphones and broken headphone parts waiting for the day I just chuck it all... with my Skull Candy Bluetooth units working well enough and sounding well enough, I'm probably not going back to cords. It was only because I found replacements that were more comfortable and lighter that I stopped using them... but the trade-off was the newer units broke and fell apart in short order. It probably wasn't unit 2004 that I found a pair that I actually preferred the sound of.

[@clarkesuperman]

One of the writers of Stranger Things must have had a pallet of those old Nova 45s they couldn't get rid of.

[@mayw6571]

Oh man the Pro 25s. I remember having exactly that paired up with my portable tape player back in the 90s, though I do believe they were the Radioshack named versions. What a throwback!

[@nightbirdds]

Ah, yeah, these bring back memories. The school I went to as a kid actually used these, and for voice they were 'just fine'. And oof on the ReviewTech clip. What a self-destruction he had.

[@fungo6631]

You do realize that VWestlife touches grass and doesn't care about KZbin drama and only cares about a clip being relevant, informative or otherwise useful?

[@nightbirdds]

@@fungo6631How about funny? Because saying they're equi elant to $200+ headphones is certainly that.

[@fungo6631]

@@nightbirdds Maybe they really are.

[@nightbirdds]

@@fungo6631 I can safely say, they are not. I think VW's choice of that clip was an ironic one.

[@PainterVierax]

​@@fungo6631 Pretty sure 200 bucks on a reputable brand (even Beats, so almost anybody) gets you a better sound than those cheapos. This is measurable through testing freq response with lab instruments. Serious reviewers do measurements. Don't trust old near-deaf feelings from audiophiles full of placebo effects, otherwise they may convince you to buy some overpriced vintage equipment or fancy new gadgets.

[@alisharifian535]

I remember the second one, our school had a language lab installed in 2002 or so. Really comfortable to wear as you mentioned, but didn't sound Hi-Fi for sure, and they had microphones.

[@VeitLehmann]

Those big black ones really were everywhere. I bought one as a kid in a supermarket in Germany. They are great headphones... to take apart and see how they work. That's what I did, because even back then, I hated the sound and was thinking I could improve them by messing with them 😅 Now I just bought another pair of big black headphones that won't go away even after being produced for almost 40 years. But which sound great. Guess which 😁

[@brantisonfire]

These remind me of the ones we would wear in elementary school when they did the hearing tests and told you to raise your hand when the beeps were coming from the left or right earphone.

[@EdHelms1]

Great video, always like seeing Radio Shack products. Have you ever done a video showing all of the different in store brands that Radio Shack offered? Seems like each line of products had their own name, like Nova, Realistic, Optimus. Btw - I still use a large over the ear pair of headphones at work because that is the best way I have found to keep people from bothering me.

[@jimroberts3009]

Here in the UK Radio Shack was know as Tandy.

[@ugzz]

Great vid and some fun history! I couldn't agree more on the notes at the end about good cheap headphones. If I'm not using my Sennheiser HD set with a pretty beefy amp... I'm using Koss Porta-Pros... and for what they are, they are amazing. And I got em for like $30. They even made some cool beige limited edition ones! I end up using the Koss as much if not more than the Sennheiser! (btw, i'm NOT saying they sound better.. but they sound great and are infinitely more usable, and easy to drive off anything)

[@Markimark151]

Those big headphones like Califone weren’t too bad for just listening to audiobooks in elementary school, I remember we were in the library and listening to Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, group of eight students with those headphones in the listening station.

[@KarlAdamsAudio]

9:20 Bravo! I've got to pay that one - and yes, I was listening on headphones. I remember growing up we had a pair of the 'Nova-10' style headphones with K-Mart branding, they were just as bad as all the others.

[@ThejasonJaw5442]

Love you video's - well explained

[@ronniepirtlejr2606]

In 1984 when I was 14 years old , I bought a pair of headphones from Kmart (the big studio type) for $25. They sounded great! I used the smaller pair with my Walkman.

[@BlackAmV0]

8:44 No, "putting the left channel on all ears" is the correct way to connect it to mono device with mono TS-plug. Trying to plug these headphones in mono in a mono device will cause a short-circuit.

[@gammaboost]

That's why they should include a diode on each of the channels to prevent the audio from travelling in reverse.

[@halenmartini6705]

i had these as a kid in elementary school from kindergarten to 5th grade, all throughout that time those headphones were still extremely uncomfortable. i also managed to half blow one of them out and a lot of times kids would tear the decal off the side/rip off the foam pads

[@Bagel7723]

I remember those things too. Whenever they'd bring them out, there'd always be at least one pair in the box that was missing a pad. I will give them credit for their durability though, I've never seen a pair of them just outright broken.

[@1171karl]

I had a set of Philips branded Nova28/Califone some years ago. I thought they were alright at the time but a small child broke them - he's 23 now!

[@Stryford1]

I never thought I would ever see the same Optimus Pro25 headphones in 2024 as the ones I bought a long time ago and still own. Even though I still own them, I haven't used them in a couple of decades since it doesn't work properly and don't know how, or want to pay, to fix it. I had no idea there's still a version of that for sale now!

[@RebrandSoon0000]

Now I want the new headphones, good video.

[@BrettsHistoryClub]

I like the designs of the Walkman earphones more than the modern earphones (then the little earbud with little to no protection are garbage!). The modern earphones are ones I've been using for a large part of my life, and they feel pretty good.

[@volvo09]

They had no bass response though.

[@chinmeysway]

yes it’s just hard to come across that type of design but i have found new ones like that w the old design but a bit cheapo (from office depot)

[@jtchoi2003]

Basically, on-ear headphones? You can still find new cans with a similar design, like a lot of Koss headphones.

[@AndyBHome]

I believe the Koss KTX-Pro1 "Titanium" headphones are the world's champion underrated headphones. They sell for near the bottom and I think they perform like $200 headphones. The one drawback you them is of course their build quality which is just cheap plastic. But they're very well designed; comfortable and reasonably durable considering their price. There very easy to drive, and they sound great on good equipment!

[@jasonschubert6828]

We had these when I was a kid, ironically branded _Realistic._ I remember they were too big for my head so I needed to use a folded up facewasher so they didn't slide down off my ears!

[@JH-pe3ro]

I remember our HS language lab having the older model of these in the early 2000's. I recall the color on them being either beige or avocado green, although maybe I'm mixing that up with even earlier appearances of them. That language lab also had Apple IIe's in the early 2000's. The monitors needed percussive maintenance to not invert the color. The software for German grammar practice was actually better than the Mac software though, it would give helpful corrections.

[@albear972]

I remember having a pair like those in the early 90's. A giant pair of cheap plastic Sony branded ones, they cost $39.99 But they were Sony. Back then that was a very prestigious brand. 3:36 No highs, no lows, they must be Bose! Kidding, even though I still have my Bose 301 speakers from 1995 which I like, I remember that quote from the so-called gullible and easy to scam audiophiles. And dang! I still remember seeing that Garfield comic from 1987. I was a 14-year-old kid then.

[@GuyPerson-jt9tv]

Just gave me flashbacks to using these in my elementary school's computer lab in the early 2000s.

[@axelprino]

I'm pretty sure that my dad had a pair of those when I was a kid, that black boxy design looks so familiar, and it was during the mid to late 90's so it checks up. I remember he used them with a discman. He was one of those people that are a lot more picky about the shape and fit of headphones than their sound quality, he hated in-ear ones for some reason.

[@123four...]

The universal choice of headphones for schools across America

[@dimebagdave77]

Yes, thank you for not using that first term 👍😁 great video

[@duprie37]

Surprisingly, even on my Pixel 7smartphone speakers I got the gist pretty well of the difference between the three pairs of headphones.

[@31337_alex]

Unsurprising considering that most of them lack bass.

[@Nerd3927]

Yep, they were in my language classes in the Netherlands too.

[@1001Hobbies]

First, there is NOTHING ELSE I have to hear while listening to music, so the headphones are doing their job.....shutting out all distractions. I have a vintage pair of Pioneer SE-30A or SE-50 headphones. I have to look at them again. I picked them up at a flea market in the original padded box. My dad bought a pair brand new, and after he passed away I used them for years. They finally failed, and repairing them was not even a thought. Anyway, I have another pair, and they are incredible.

[@Saturn49YT]

Those Pro-25s were made by Koss. My pair had Koss embossed on the 3.5mm jack's rubber molding. But the volume slider was pretty bad and always had a slight imbalance in the left/right until you wiggled it a couple times.

[@thekidfromiowa]

Never heard the term "donut" before. Now I reading a glossary of radio jargon.

[@sirus2496]

I'm still listening to the Pro-25's today! They're awesome!

[@Snardbafulator]

The OG light headphones were Sennheiser and the principle behind them is that without the ear seal, you could have a much lighter element and better transients because the element wasn't driving a sealed pool of air between rubber pads and ear that resists the element. I had a small pair of Sennheisers in the mid-70s and they were very good. The Skullcandy sealed phones I owned absolutely sucked and they burned out in a year, anyway. I have a new pair of Sundara Hifiman phones, about $270 and worth every penny. Nanomembrane elements (drivers). My EQ is flat and I can't tell the difference between them and my excellent Bose speakers. Wearing sealed phones gets tedious after a few hours even with a very comfortable pair like these but I appreciate that they cut out room sound.

[@davidperry4013]

The Nova 45s sounded much better than other 2 headphones. One of the best headphones of the 1980s and 1990s are the Sony MDR-7506.

[@PaulTaylor1]

Johnny Hates Jazz, excellent choice!

[@techbaffle]

6:17 they're like the ones we had at school - I remember people always messing with the levels on each ear, wondering why they're not working properly 😂

[@markmaxwell1013]

Totally agree about the Koss titanium lightweights! Been using those since they first came out. They are very comfortable and very accurate and don't get so loud that they destroy your ears instantly. Can't think of any product that is a better bang for the buck! Are there ones out there that are 30% better? Sure, but they cost 10 or 20 times as much!!!! I'll stick with these👍🎷🎹🎸✌️

[@williamjones4483]

@09:09 The speaker in your right hand is wired incorrectly. Unless it's some sort of oddball speaker, if you place the speaker terminal down, red should always go to the left.

[@RainDownpours]

9:20 That also made this part completely silent on my phone which is in mono. And the thing is, when I plug in my cheap earphone, that part is actually in phase! So, I've been listening to out of phase audio the whole time. Edit: Oh, also thanks to the caption, I can actually understand that part. Otherwise, I would be confused. I would like to thank you for putting captions in every video! I always turn it on.

[@OptomodMix]

We had those black ones in the 80s in New Zealand. Now I enjoy the KOSS port-a-pro.

[@vtec5862]

I'm a big headphone enjoyer. The amount of times i lost those stupid earbuds i'm never going back to them

[@LapisandHamtarolover]

Moreso with the modern earpods wireless designs!

[@mechadeka]

@@LapisandHamtarolover ?? You put them in the charger when you take them out.

[@Warp2090]

@@mechadeka No you dont. You only do that if they are dead

[@Warp2090]

Same. Headphones usally have better sound quality, plus they stay on much better than earbuds

[@SmallSpoonBrigade]

@@mechadeka Some of the more recent designs have a charger built into the case. You put the ear buds into the case, and a small battery starts to charge them. Get home and plug the case into the charger and everything stays charged.

[@Quacks0]

4:48 An easy way to fix the left/right channel mix-up would be to unscrew the plug's cover, de-solder the two positive wires at the plug, and then switch them before you re-solder them onto the plug's terminals. Or if the headphones just have a one-piece molded plug and so the soldered wires are not readily accessible at the plug, you could remove the ear-pad and cover on the left (i.e., cord) side of the headphones and switch the left/right lead-wires there.