Yet another headphone thread

I am looking for a headset mic for my work MacBook Pro. These are the requirements:

1) Wireless, hopefully BlueTooth
2) NO speaker, just a mic
3) Good sound quality for the people that have to listen to me on calls

I can search the interwebs for something, but would like to hear from anyone who has personal experience with a good one. My first instinct is to check out Plantronics' site, which I will do after work.

Budget would be under $50, I hope.

Maybe, just maybe, I would go with some sort of puck-mic that sits on my desk. I still don't want a speaker in it, even if it can be disabled. It can be wired, I guess, since it would sit on my docking station.

TIA for suggestions!

-BEP

bepnewt wrote:

I am looking for a headset mic for my work MacBook Pro. These are the requirements:

1) Wireless, hopefully BlueTooth
2) NO speaker, just a mic
3) Good sound quality for the people that have to listen to me on calls

I can search the interwebs for something, but would like to hear from anyone who has personal experience with a good one. My first instinct is to check out Plantronics' site, which I will do after work.

Budget would be under $50, I hope.

Maybe, just maybe, I would go with some sort of puck-mic that sits on my desk. I still don't want a speaker in it, even if it can be disabled. It can be wired, I guess, since it would sit on my docking station.

TIA for suggestions!

-BEP

If it wasn't for your price limit, I'd suggest the Shokz OpenComm. Great mic, bone conducting sound so you don't look like you've got on a big bulky gaming headset, and really comfortable for me. It's also not just a mic, so that might eliminate it even if price didn't.

IMAGE(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/tTwAAOSwK1tgUo7~/s-l400.jpg)

Note that the new model (UC in the name) now includes a dongle, where the one I have is just bluetooth. MS Teams did an update last year that caused the headset to do a verbal notification that Mute was on, then beeped every five seconds. Seemed to be related to the chip in the headset, as other brands like Sennheiser have reported issues as well. They sent out a dongle to many of us that eliminated the problem, but it looks like they've updated the headset to include that, and bumped the price. If you don't use Teams, not sure that dongle is needed.

If you're not using Teams, you're probably fine with the non-dongle version. It's multiples of your budget, but I really like mine if you decide to spend more.

My wife and I both have Shokz OpenRun for our phones and love them. I like the sound coming through the MacBook Pro so prefer just a Mic, no speaker. I'm glad you like the OpenComm because I recommended someone to get it based on my OpenRun experience.

-BEP

bepnewt wrote:

My wife and I both have Shokz OpenRun for our phones and love them. I like the sound coming through the MacBook Pro so prefer just a Mic, no speaker. I'm glad you like the OpenComm because I recommended someone to get it based on my OpenRun experience.

-BEP

The mic on these is a couple of steps up from the OpenRun (I have those, too). And it has good ability to filter out background noises.

I live half my workdays on calls, so it's worth it for my use case to spend some money to get the comfort and mic that blocks out occasional dog barks (as long as their not too close). But my use case isn't the same as yours. Good luck.

Have you looked at mod mics?

For that matter, any regular desk-bound USB mic like a Snowball ICE or Elgato Wave 1?

I thought I responded to this. Apparently not. I appreciate the replies.

A deskbound mic might work, but it would need to be small and sit flat on the desk - but then it would be one more thing on my desk and space is at a premium as is.

It looks like I'd need an existing headset to attach a Mod Mic to and I don't have that.

It appears that a wireless mic that goes on your head that doesn't have speakers is not something people want based on the lack of things I'm finding in my searches.

-BEP

I got around that with a small microphone arm that clamps to the edge of my desk, and plugging earbuds into its monitor jack. Why is it that you specifically don't want speakers/ear pieces?

Kurrelgyre wrote:

Why is it that you specifically don't want speakers/ear pieces?

I'm fine with the sound from the MacBook and it will be better than any cheap(ish) headset sound. Earbuds don't work for me - they all fall out. I will end up dealing with something that has speakers in it, I just prefer not to. I can always tell the MacBook not to send the sound through the speakers but then what's the use of having them?

Basically, I'm just being picky.

-BEP

I found this:

https://www.amazon.com/Microphone-Go...

If you are looking for a headset to connect a modmic to this one is cheap and has great sound.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...

Any thoughts on cheap to medium Bluetooth headphones for chores and travel on airplanes?

Sounds like two use cases with pretty different priorities. For a plane I like a big chonky set of cans with active noise canceling, for chores I like something small and light (less likely to slip off).

I don't travel often, so that's less of a priority, I do chores every day.

Looking for full headphones or earbuds? Active noise cancellation something that interests you or not?

I really like my Aftershokz OpenMove bone conduction headset for chores. Light, stays in place, and doesn't block my ears so I can still hear environmental sound e.g. housemates trying to get my attention.

Bone conduction means they have virtually no bass, though, so better for podcasts / audiobooks than music, and the not blocking environmental sound would make them terrible for airplanes.

Everyone has a different definition of "cheap," but I got mine lightly used for $50 on eBay, which is cheap enough that I can buy two pairs. I'm hard on my headphones, so when I find a model that I like that's not too expensive I buy two so I have a backup if I mess one up somehow.

Mixolyde wrote:

Any thoughts on cheap to medium Bluetooth headphones for chores and travel on airplanes?

Any of the Soundcore products should do the trick. They cover the whole gamut of features in their lineup.

For over the ear you can get the Q30s for $60 on sale pretty often. They are comparable to the Bose Quiet Comfort II. For earbuds the space A40 go on sale for the same price. They are slightly better than the Galaxy Buds 2. I think the regular price is around $80 for each.

I think the Q30s are what I have for airplanes or podcast editing, use cases where noise cancelling and/or audio quality are paramount. Probably thanks to a recommendation on this very thread. Anyway, they're solid. Also not for nothing, been using them pretty regularly for years WITHOUT having to buy a second pair, which is rare for me and headphones.

EvilDead wrote:
Mixolyde wrote:

Any thoughts on cheap to medium Bluetooth headphones for chores and travel on airplanes?

Any of the Soundcore products should do the trick. They cover the whole gamut of features in their lineup.

For over the ear you can get the Q30s for $60 on sale pretty often. They are comparable to the Bose Quiet Comfort II. For earbuds the space A40 go on sale for the same price. They are slightly better than the Galaxy Buds 2. I think the regular price is around $80 for each.

I was going to go that route as well. Only caveat is that parent company Anker has done some sketchy security stuff lately with their Eufy cameras, so I'm not quite as enthusiastic as I was.

hbi2k wrote:

I really like my Aftershokz OpenMove bone conduction headset for chores. Light, stays in place, and doesn't block my ears so I can still hear environmental sound e.g. housemates trying to get my attention.

Bone conduction means they have virtually no bass, though, so better for podcasts / audiobooks than music, and the not blocking environmental sound would make them terrible for airplanes.

Everyone has a different definition of "cheap," but I got mine lightly used for $50 on eBay, which is cheap enough that I can buy two pairs. I'm hard on my headphones, so when I find a model that I like that's not too expensive I buy two so I have a backup if I mess one up somehow.

I like my Shokz (the new brand name) for similar uses, but if he's thinking about them for travel they may not be the best. I couldn't imagine using them in a loud plane without also using some ear plugs.

Mixolyde wrote:

Any thoughts on cheap to medium Bluetooth headphones for chores and travel on airplanes?

I just got a pair of Amazon Echo Buds 2 for $60 with an Echo dot thrown in (I think they're $80 now). They have ANC and pass through and sound quite nice overall. For the price I think they're great. The little ear hooks are, IMO, uncomfortable so they aren't great for high impact workouts but I think they'd fit both of your needs well.

Thanks everyone!

MannishBoy wrote:
EvilDead wrote:
Mixolyde wrote:

Any thoughts on cheap to medium Bluetooth headphones for chores and travel on airplanes?

Any of the Soundcore products should do the trick. They cover the whole gamut of features in their lineup.

For over the ear you can get the Q30s for $60 on sale pretty often. They are comparable to the Bose Quiet Comfort II. For earbuds the space A40 go on sale for the same price. They are slightly better than the Galaxy Buds 2. I think the regular price is around $80 for each.

I was going to go that route as well. Only caveat is that parent company Anker has done some sketchy security stuff lately with their Eufy cameras, so I'm not quite as enthusiastic as I was.

I have a couple of the cameras and read those articles. Certainly not as secure as they claimed but they are outdoor security cameras so I don't really care. If I had them indoors I would be thinking about replacing them.

EvilDead wrote:
MannishBoy wrote:
EvilDead wrote:
Mixolyde wrote:

Any thoughts on cheap to medium Bluetooth headphones for chores and travel on airplanes?

Any of the Soundcore products should do the trick. They cover the whole gamut of features in their lineup.

For over the ear you can get the Q30s for $60 on sale pretty often. They are comparable to the Bose Quiet Comfort II. For earbuds the space A40 go on sale for the same price. They are slightly better than the Galaxy Buds 2. I think the regular price is around $80 for each.

I was going to go that route as well. Only caveat is that parent company Anker has done some sketchy security stuff lately with their Eufy cameras, so I'm not quite as enthusiastic as I was.

I have a couple of the cameras and read those articles. Certainly not as secure as they claimed but they are outdoor security cameras so I don't really care. If I had them indoors I would be thinking about replacing them.

Same here.

Not exactly headphone but I'm looking for new ear tips for my Echo buds 2. I found that the medium ones are too small and I can't seem to find the box it came in. I'm using some larger ones from a super cheap set I have but they aren't great. Looking for some that help the buds to say in the ears better.

Inexpensive and offer an assortment of colors, shapes, and sizes: https://a.co/d/4jrRijL

Any thoughts/advice on cheap bone conducting headphones?

WizKid wrote:

Any thoughts/advice on cheap bone conducting headphones?

I bought 2 nice ones from (After)Shokz and immediately lost one. I really like them. Then I bought another, but after I searched for good cheap ones.

I couldn't find any that were cheap(ish) and had good reviews. If you do find some, let us know. I show my Shokz to a lot of people and they like them until they hear the price so I would like to know a cheaper alternative to suggest to them.

-BEP

I've been buying my AfterShokz from eBay. There are a million different models, all of which seem functionally identical to me, so if you look for older / cheaper models used you can find some deals. Which still just brings them down to the "not insanely expensive" range, not really the "cheap" range, but like bepnewt, all of the actually cheap brands I could find have middling to poor reviews.

There seems to be a ton of off brand ones on Amazon in the 50$ - 40$ range. I’ll probably bite on one of those.

WizKid wrote:

There seems to be a ton of off brand ones on Amazon in the 50$ - 40$ range. I’ll probably bite on one of those.

I'd look at Youtube reviews on any brand you think you might want. Some of the reviews of the off brands are pretty bad. There is one other brand on the level of Shokz that I saw in a runner's publication review, but I can't remember the name.

WizKid wrote:

There seems to be a ton of off brand ones on Amazon in the 50$ - 40$ range. I’ll probably bite on one of those.

My wife recently bought some for walking and she loves them. They're the Tayogo brand, but are currently not available. Others which look the same are probably made by the same factory.