Does anyone else hear a thump with every step? I just got a set of these headphones, and I love them for my morning commute, they block out a ton of the sound, so that I can listen to my music probably about 30% lower than I used to. Besides that, I really like the sound quality. What I'm not liking is the cord noise. That was expected though, and the clip included really helps with that to make it tolerable.What wasn't expected, is a thumping noise every time my heel hits the ground when I'm walking. Does everyone else get this? Like I said, I really want to love these for the sound quality and noise isolation, but I'm not sure that I can tolerate the thumping with every step I make. Does anyone else hear a thump with every step? I just got a set of these headphones, and I love them for my morning commute, they block out a ton of the sound, so that I can listen to my music... » Read More Does anyone else hear a thump with every step? I just got a set of these headphones, and I love them for my morning commute, they block out a ton of the sound, so that I can listen to my music probably about 30% lower than I used to. Besides that, I really like the sound quality. What I'm not liking is the cord noise. That was expected though, and the clip included really helps with that to make it tolerable.What wasn't expected, is a thumping noise every time my heel hits the ground when I'm walking. Does everyone else get this? Like I said, I really want to love these for the sound quality and noise isolation, but I'm not sure that I can tolerate the thumping with every step I make. « Show Less
851437
I noticed the thumping sound soon after I got mine and realized it was the cable bumping around. I decided to run the cable through my shirt and the thumping when away.
851438
I have the Westone UM-2s. They're absolute bliss, but the thump is sometimes heard.
851439
That, my friends is the reason why i bought a WESTON UM2. Absolutely no chord noise and the most faithful reproduction of music for the professionals.
851440
I hear it too sometimes - sounds in your skull are amplified. Try chewing gum or tapping on your forehead and you'll see what I mean. When you walk with solid heels the shock goes all the way through your spine into your skull and you actually hear it. I wear nice cushy athletic shoes often and I don't get the thump (as much) with those. I also get some microphonic cord noise - and have to clip the cord away from collars. I still think it's worth it. These are the only phones you can use in the NYC subway and still get good sound.
851441
I have the 6i's, which are a step lower than this, and I have the same issue. Actually, it's kind of an endearing quirk, the thump, and most especially chewing gum.For exercise in a gym that isn't too loud, I prefer on-ear headphones (I have a pair of $15 Sony's that work just fine), because the cord is shorter and there's no thump, but there's nothing like a pair of Etymotic Research headphones for sitting, blocking things out (libraries, airplanes, etc.), and working.
851442
Wrap the cables over your ears like how people wear Shures or customs. Your ears will attenuate a lot of the vibrations that goes into the cable rubbing.
851443
Yup, unfortunately any kind of sound isolating mechanism will create this thump. Even the $550 E500's. There's no way around it. I sometimes where just regular ol' ear plugs, and even with those my footsteps also generate the same thump.All I can tell you is that these earphones are probably more for sitting and enjoying, like on an airplane, or at work. Not so much for walking or running.
2201777
I have noticed this behavior before, it is entirely normal for any (if not all) headphones that use active noise cancellation. Generally, the cancellation sound is unnoticeable or very faint (and goes away with music, speaking, etc...). I have noticed that while rare (for me) the low-grade noise that you hear from the NC is turned on can raise in pitch slightly. Moving to a different part of the building or even room can help if this occurs.
1925336
This is only a 32Ohm unit and you maybe used to a 50Ohm unit ... so you maybe over driving the max output of the headphones. Mine are pretty loud and actually respond better on my mobile than others. I did notice a huge difference when I plugged them into a soundboard that I normally use 50Ohm headphones. (Your output device may not work well at 32Ohms.) But at the max volume when they start to distort is way too loud for me and I don't want to loose hearing.
914378
I've never had any problem with sound or music breaking or stopping for unknown reasons, these headphones have been surprisingly reliable. Not very comfortable though. I use in the house mostly. Hope this helps.
2069887
There is "sound leakage". At the moment, I have them hooked up to my computer. No special amplification, just on-board Realtek. At 75-100% volume, I can slightly hear them over ambient noise (such as my heater, which is kind of loud) while standing about ten feet away. I don't know if everyone else that answered this question listens to their music at low volume, or if their headphones have some insulation that mine doesn't but in my experience, there is plenty of "sound leakage". Also, you could actually use these as speakers while you're not wearing them. They wouldn't be loud enough to entertain anyone, but you could still listen to something while they sit on your desk. There is "sound leakage". At the moment, I have them hooked up to my computer. No special amplification, just on-board Realtek. At 75-100% volume, I can slightly hear them over ambient noise (such as my heater, which is kind of loud) while standing about ten feet away. I don't know if everyone else that answered this question listens to their music at low volume, or if their headphones have some insulation that mine doesn't but in my experience, there is plenty of "sound leakage". Also, you could actually use these as speakers while you're not wearing them. They wouldn't... » Read More There is "sound leakage". At the moment, I have them hooked up to my computer. No special amplification, just on-board Realtek. At 75-100% volume, I can slightly hear them over ambient noise (such as my heater, which is kind of loud) while standing about ten feet away. I don't know if everyone else that answered this question listens to their music at low volume, or if their headphones have some insulation that mine doesn't but in my experience, there is plenty of "sound leakage". Also, you could actually use these as speakers while you're not wearing them. They wouldn't be loud enough to entertain anyone, but you could still listen to something while they sit on your desk. « Show Less
884362
These headphones have bass in a more classic sense which is accuracy, fast, and punchy. They're not like beats where the bass takes over the sound and no amount of burn-in will help in that regard. That said, mine have plenty bass maybe you have a defective unit?
1206481
If you have these headphones, your bass should be kicking! I get strong bass even when driven from an iPod. Check the headphones with a different source, plug them into something else and see if that improves the bass. If it does, then your source is not driving the headphones well. If there is restricted bass even with another source, I think you have a bad set of headphones that need to be returned. These things are very strong in the bass. Mine were bass happy out of the box, but the recommendation to loosen them up is a good one and I support that.
208417
niether do I. yes you hear things...it's disturbing but the headphone has really good bass response and it's very comfortable while exercising. taking everything into account it's well worth buying...
1839131
It's a pretty common issue with noise cancelling headphones (I experience it when the noise cancelling is on with no music or anything). I'm assuming you notice the sensation of pressure? Happy to shed a little light on why that happens. If you go on an airplane or an elevator moving up/down pretty fast, you know how you get pressure in your ears and have to pop them? Well, when you get that pressure, it blocks your ears from hearing lower frequency sounds (sounds that your ears constantly hear, but you likely don't recognize it). Noise cancelling headphones block low frequency noise, so in your case and mine, it tricks the brain into thinking there is pressure on your ear (because you encounter the same hearing loss), even though there isn't. The pain is psychological, but that doesn't make it any less real, unfortunately. So the more simulated pressure you experience, but better the noise cancellation technology is! I would suggest switching to a solid pair of non-noise cancelling headphones such as the Bowers & Wilkins P5s or Sennheiser HD598. While they don't cancel noise like the Bose QC15s, they do a good job at noise isolation, and don't leave you with the pain. Hope this helps!
2160374
I'm not a sound expert. These headphones are super comfortable. I can wear them all day. I love them but can't really give a qualified answer to a technical question. I wear them mostly to keep my sound private from other people who are around me.
1974374
I notice very little noise, if any when walking around. Microphonics is an issue though, under abnormal circumstances. Running or fumbling around for something in your pockets for instance. Personally, I've never been annoyed by or have noticed this particular issue under normal circumstances.
2036523
I'm not a believer in break-in periods, since I've never yet heard someone claim that their break-in period worsened the sound. It's a random process so some break-in periods theoretically should worsen the sound. Its the ears that are actually getting acclimated. That said, you may not be someone who likes planar-magnetic headphones. They are very fast and can be bright. Amplification may be another possible issue. Lastly and most troubling, the headphones may be faulty. I've never encountered this issue with my pair.
1704794
depends on the genre. I mostly listen to hiphop and R&B and not at home (on the subway or when walking outdoors) so these factors definitely affect the sound, but remember I tried them once at home and they did not show much details. I got them on sale for $60 and seriously they're not worth more.
442996
Sound quality is pretty darn good! The Beats are known for a little heavier bass sound, but some people love that including me. Others might prefer to have the true sound of the music. I think they are high quality with heavier bass than some. Hope that helps.
1875443
I use these headphones at the gym... Yeah you do hear some clanging and banging in the background when you aren't listening to music, but when you are, they're pretty isolated, the volume goes up quite a bit so that really eliminates much of the external sound. But these about 3 or 4 months back and don't really have any complaints, great buy for the price!
52214
Walking on concrete they are very noisy but I did it for short distances. I did not use them on subway platforms but I don't think I would wear them to go up/down stairs. Especially not with metal steps (such as some subway entrances that have metal steps. Not allowed indoors where I went in Norway ( would damage wood floors probably). So I took them off/on as needed, a little uncomfortable to do that when going in/out of stores, but worked better with a carabiner clip (I hang them with the clip out of my bag when I went indoors).
991543
I would say they cancel it out well, in a normal setting they you will not hear anything other then your music, (my parents get mad because I cant hear them over the headphones) but for gym use, I boost it up maybe like 1 notch, however it also depends on the device your using, also I'm not one to listen to my music at extremely high volumes as well. Also the Sound quality is incredible.