[IGNORE THIS LISTING - OLD]nuraphone — Wireless Bluetooth Over Ear Headphones

I was a little sceptical that they could sound as good as others had described in their reviews, but I was very wrong! Without doubt the best headphones I have ever put on my head. Although I have not timed the battery life, Nura claim 15-20 hours per charge, however it is very good, I use mine for a minimum of an hour a day and charge them every 7 to 10 days. If you are a little unsure as to the sound quality, buy a pair, you can always return them to Amazon, but I bet you won't! The best headphones, just got better since the release of the G2 firmware, they were very good at noise isolation, but the firmware upgrade adds ANC active noise cancelling and several more options. I found the following write up in New Atlas (formally Gizmag) and as an owner agree with everything in the article. After first testing Nura's near-magical auto-adaptive headphones in 2016, we jumped straight in and bought a couple pairs. To this date, they're still the best headphones we've ever heard, but what we didn't expect was a free software update that would take things up a notch with active noise canceling, social mode and a bunch of other new features. I have several pairs of Bluetooth headphones around the house, and I can honestly say I've never gone out of my way to run a software update on any of them. This G2 update from Nura is a very different proposition. Free to all Nura owners, it takes what's already a transcendent headphone experience and … well, the best way to describe it is that it tidies up around the edges and adds some exciting new functionality. We've been pre-release testing the G2 update for the last week. Active Noise Canceling (ANC) Honestly, the way these cans are designed almost precludes the need for noise canceling. As well as the over-ear cups, Nuraphones add in a springy silicon earbud that pokes right into your ears, giving them terrific sound isolation even without an active system. But it turns out, all the requisite microphones and componentry to give these things active silencers were already built in – perhaps we should've been tipped off by the fact that they work so well as phone headsets while making calls. With the G2 update, noise-canceling is turned on by default. Interestingly, there's no easy switch or button option that lets you turn it on or off on the go. It's either on or it's not. Which is fine; you can play with it in the app to see if it's worth the hit to your battery life. Some ANC systems can introduce their own sound. For example, I've got a set of Sennheisers that give a quiet low-frequency buzz when they can't find any stable noise to cancel. There's nothing with the Nura system, not a sausage. And the system does a great job of eliminating constant noise, such as the roar of an aircraft cabin or road noise, to the point where it's so quiet I can hear little else but my own tinnitus. That's ok; play something through the headphones and my brain has something else to concentrate on. Social Mode These were already pretty savage cans to wear in an office situation; the in/over ear design's high degree of isolation alone makes it pretty tough for colleagues to get your attention. The new ANC takes things to a new level, and thus it's terrific to have the option of turning on a new "social mode" to blend outside sound with the music you're listening to. It's very well implemented here. I've got it set as a double-tap on my left ear, and when you turn it on, the volume of the media signal is dropped, and the outside world suddenly appears in your ears – including your own voice. It feels surprisingly natural to have a conversation with headphones on – the only real difference is that your own voice is a little boomier in your head, but you can easily judge how loud you need to be talking, which is a big deal. There are also more devious uses. Put these cans on and you look like you can't hear anything in the office. Click Social mode on, and you can hear everything, crystal clear, and get some sense of what your co-workers really think of you. Try it at your own risk. Multiple Bluetooth Sources This is another nice upgrade for anyone who needs to switch between a smartphone and a computer a lot. You don't have to go in and disconnect from one device in order to connect to the other any more. Just click "connect" on the second device and the Nuras switch over. Other upgrades There are a few other bits and bobs worth mentioning in the G2 update, like audio prompts that let you know what the battery percentage is doing, and an audible confirmation when you plug them in to charge. The automatic on/off power setting has been re-jigged; it now pauses whatever music is playing when you take the cans off, but doesn't disconnect for 60 seconds. Touch button commands now include double-tap functions, which expands the number of things you can program them to do. This solves a problem I had where I kept accidentally bumping the buttons. It happened often enough that I turned off all the button functions. Now, with double taps, that happens far less often. So that's all I use. And noise canceling tech has been added to voice calls, improving your ability to make calls in noisier environments. One key thing that has not been fixed Not once in the dozens of times I've run the Nuras' adaptive hearing test routine have I managed to get ticks on both sides to indicate that I've got a decent seal for a proper test. Every single time I've tried it, with every single person I've shown these to, we've had to "continue anyway" and ignore the fact that the headphones felt there wasn't a good enough seal. It doesn't seem to matter too much, they still sound terrific. The hearing-adaptive otoacoustic equalization routine on the Nuraphones remains unique despite several other adaptive headphone companies springing up since we first saw these things. Having tried some of the others, we'd also rate the Nura approach as far quicker and more impressive, doing everything automagically in about a minute instead of making you take a 15-minute hearing test. The sheer horsepower, audio fidelity, synaesthetic visual detail and insanely immersive skin-conduction bass boost effect makes Nura still our go-to listening tool when it's time to put music under the microscope. This G2 update is a sweet and unexpected free cherry on the top of a fantastic sundae. Nuraphones retail for US$399, AU$499, £349 or €399 depending on your region. If you're quick, there's an Amazon Prime Day deal that lets you grab a pair for 25 percent off.

Are these the best headphones I have had? Would I buy them again if anything were to happen to them? The answer to both these questions is ‘yes’. I had been looking at these headphones for a while, and when my recent deafness turned out to be nothing more than earwax coupled with an Amazon deal of the day with 25% off, and with the kind permission of my good lady wife of course, I took the plunge and pressed ‘buy’. I had seen all of the ‘wow!’ videos on YouTube so had a good idea of the setup procedure (a Star Trek come medical hearing test experience) and what to expect from switching from generic to personalised listening. My first impression wasn’t one of being blown away as per the videos, I think at this point I was expecting even more from them somehow ... an ephinany maybe? I ran the setup again and the relating profile matched the first exactly. At this point, I popped that headphones onto my wife’s head and ran the setup for her. Now ... her face did light up like in the YouTube videos; she was definitely very pleasantly surprised by how good the headphones sound. What’s more, my profile was very different to my wife’s, and neither of us cared much for each other’s setup - we definitely much preferred our own. The other thing I have noticed is that the quality of the source matters. If headphones are going to pick up detail previously unheard, they are also going to pick up unwanted sounds resulting from file compression and format. I purchased a 3.5mm lead and a lightening connector and I am convinced that this improves the sound considerably - I am not a great fan of Bluetooth. I have plugged the headphones into my hifi, Naim separates, and CDs are definitely in the ‘wow’ category. I have a premium Spotify account, and through both the naim streamer and the iPad app, the sound is exceptional. I have Sony and Bose headphones and earbuds, and to my mind the sound of the Nuraphones is better and not just marginally better either. The profiling and personalisation is not a gimmick and the separation of the bass, middle and treble by design definitely works to very good effect, producing the sort of detailing I have wanted in a set of headphones. Comfort-wise, I would say I am getting use to them. Certainly, I have not experienced any fatigue from actual listening, which can sometimes happen with some sound setups on some headphones. The ear plug elements are more comfortable than earbuds and I can’t imagine that they will be pushing wax into my ear canal like my buds had been doing. I won’t be taking them to the gym or an plane journey anytime soon as I have definitely bought these for home use only. They don’t have noise cancellation, but I would rather spend my money on quality sound rather than noise cancellation. Finally, build-quality. I think these are the real deal in this respect. They have a new luxury car quality to them, in terms of smell and feel. I am not left with an impression that they will scratch easily, crack, flake or peel. They have a solidity about them and I don’t find the weight an issue at all. In summary, whilst I wasn’t blown away at first blush, I am now. Like I said, I have other headphones but I wouldn’t dream of wearing them now to listen to music, the radio, or anything else ... unless I am in the gym of course.

I'll jump straight to bullet points as soon as possible as nobody wants to read an essay but all those videos where people go boggle eyed and go "oh...my god" in the adverts? Not plants as I suspected they were. These headphones do that to you. They aren't perfect and for the sake of clarity I'm comparing these to my other, similarly priced headphones, the Bose QC35s. Anyway, bullet points: REACTION TO OTHER REVIEWS - Yes, the "vanilla" audio mode (before it tunes to your hearing) isn't brilliant but c'mon, they want the tuned mode to be as impactful as possible when you switch across. It's a little bit sneaky but I don't see the harm. - Wearing them is super weird at first. You kind of expect the earplugs to go all the way into your ear like earbuds but they don't so at first they feel like earbuds that are about to fall out. But after a couple of days you just get used to it. CONS - Really would have liked a volume control on the headset. You can make the tap buttons on either cup do stuff but each button can only have 2 functions (one for single tap, one for double) so for me I had to choose between skipping tracks or volume. Hoping there'll be a triple tap option in a future update. - Not the best in terms of portability. It'd be grand if they folded somehow as the case is MASSIVE. Also quite heavy and not a summer headphone as while the silicon cups form a great seal around the ear they do get pretty warm. - If you're a beanie wearer the design is an issue since if your ears are covered you can't wear them properly. - The setup is a pain in the bum, especially the test where you have to ensure the cups are on properly. Thankfully this is a one time thing. - Non standard USB lead connection and it's £15 to get a spare. Boo that. PROS - The sound quality is as good as people say it is. If you like bass heavy music it will make you exclaim out loud. The idea of playing treble through the earbud and bass through the cup is inspired. - Noise cancelling is better than the QC35s which I never thought I'd say. They managed to block out everything on a child filled plane taking off which is impressive. - Once you get used to the fit they're really comfortable. - While the setup is fiddly I like the app, it's very cool. - Battery life is outstanding; I use them roughly 4 hours a day and only charge them every 3rd day. - Everything feels super solid and well made If you're in the market for high end noise cancelling Bluetooth headphones in the 3-400 pound range I'd say your choices are these or the Bose QC35s. For absolute pure sound quality at the expense of all else, get the Nuraphones as nothing comes close to them that I've ever tried. However if you're looking for something more portable and user friendly go for the Boses. Either way I promise you'll have no buyers remorse.

I never imagined myself buying over ear phones, I have always had in-ear phones, and my core purchase last year where some Fantastic Sony WF1000x the had some great reviews and I was very happy. But then something caught my eye something that was both, as an avid tech watcher on youtube Unbox Therapy did a nuraphone unboxing. I had to have some, there was a little bit of guilt purchasing a $400 pair of phones but the risk was worth taking. So apologies for the Epiphany but its so you know where Im coming from now a breakdown. Packaging and carry case. One of the great features of these phones is their look, the box has you intrigued from the off and upon opening your presented with a very solid carry case, it feels well made and good quality wipe clean soft touch material and that clasp, when opened you see the phones, but inner felt is clean and adds to the premium feel and the magnetic cable holder is just the icing on the cake. If you didn't know already you know why these are $400 and its because they mean business and you haven't even listened to them yet. Connectivity Pairing is straight forward and as you'd expect a very slick affair. Pick up the phones and put them on your head they talk to you and guide you through the process on the app. Saying that, once your setup, your introduced to your first experience of the sound visually as you hear it. From then on in your greeted with the profile name (my name in my case) every time I put them on take them off within no time at all they turn off conserving that power. Charging is indicted by light beep and the percentage is said to you every time you put them on. Easy Build quality. Soft cups supported by a rigid outer shell that again adds to that premium feel these aren't some plastic moulded affair. They twist, flex and bend which ever way and aren't going to lose shape very quickly sorry...at all. The inner ear is the uniqueness and you know about that because that's whats intrigued you in the first place, the over ear part is very comfortable and the inner ear has that same comfort feel and I will say it does take 5-10 wears to get used to them properly but after that you will put them on perfect every time. Sound and Noise Cancelling This the reason you hear (sorry) from the first setup your looking for that track you wanted to hear not necessarily your favourite track but one that gives you that vibe. Myself I took them off....put in my sonys and listened to the track on them first, I then put on the nura's, it was like a different track, the sound was separated I could hear the individuality in the recording. They immerse you in the track like no other headphones I have tried, you cant help but jig about because its like the artist are literally right behind you. That Track was the Giles Martin remastered Sgt Pepper Lonely Hearts Club Band by the Fab four. So you may wonder are you going to be that guy/girl everyone looks at because you phones are bleeding sound..not these, your cocooned in you own moment, they cant hear you and you can't hear them so much so I would pick-up your visual scanning if your out for a walk with these on because you can hear nothing but your sound. The sound you hear is your own sound the setup of your personal signature. Its very heavy base heavy at times and some quick adjustment is needed on the app, and that would be one gripe, the ability to set my own immersion profiles that can be selected via the headphone taps would be a great addition. As for the ear tap settings changes, these a very quick and responsive and have a good array of adjustment to their function whether muting, skiping track etc. Verdict overall You will understand the price, once you realise that these aren't some run of the mill headphones with a huge marketing machine behind them, but that they are actually punching into the earshot of the big brands and the money you have dispatched to make them yours is very much worth it. A sound quality that is unique and perhaps they wont be for everyone but everyone I have shown them to has literally been blown away. I have no reason not to recommend them, yes there probably are other headphones giving the same quality of sound but I will guarantee that these will be my headphones for a very very long time and they will out last most if not all their competitors due to that build quality. Kudos goes to Nura for going 'out-there' and trying something different and then making it perfect. Thanks for making music sound great again. Russell Liverpool England

I’d been debating whether to get these for months, looking at lots of different reviews, and finally decided to take the plunge. The first thing I noticed when putting them on was the uncomfortable fit with the earbuds digging into my ears, and having to constantly adjust for minutes until they were sat properly on my ears and head. I did change to the included smaller earbuds which were better, now just uncomfortable rather than painful. I did get slightly more used to this discomfort over time, but I always found myself more relieved to take them off than I was looking forward to putting them on again. After the initial set up with the app, which was fairly straight forward, I wasn’t blown away with the sound as I expected to be, perhaps the ads of people's reactions had given me too much of a high expectation. After a bit more listening and re-doing my hearing profile several times, I can say the sound is good, possibly very good, but not quite the revelation I was expecting from them tailoring the sound specifically to me. Unlike other reviews I found my hearing profiles to be very similar each time, and a friend did his own which looked and sounded very different, but he said he actually preferred the neutral mode without the personalisation turned on. I compared them to his pair of Bose QuietComfort 35's (Series II) and the Nuras definitely sounded better with better mids, but the comfort of the Bose was overwhelmingly better. The immersion mode (basically a bass slider) is a little bit pointless I feel; when it’s off there is very little bass, but turn it any higher than a third of the way up and the bass just starts to weirdly vibrate the sides of my head, turning it up all the way is totally pointless as it completely distorts the sound with too much bass. I feel that with the headphones adapting the sound to how you hear, the bass should be more included in that process and not be able to be adjusted. Some good points other than the sound is the noise cancellation which works well, the battery life and the auto on/off feature. Other negatives include the weight and the fact that it’s very hard to stretch these to put them on your head without adjusting the height of the ear cups, which is crucial to be equal to get a proper fit and not have one earbud digging into your ear more than the other. I’ve kept these for a couple of weeks to see if I can get over these issues and see if the quality of the sound would outweigh these for me, but it hasn’t. They are simply too uncomfortable for me to sit and enjoy them for more than a few songs, and that discomfort distracts from the enjoyment of listening to the music; you can’t just close your eyes and get lost in it, because you always have that feeling of the earbuds digging into your ears and having to adjust them every couple of minutes to try and get a better fit, which unfortunately never really happens. I think the concept of these headphones is a good one, and the sound is good, but they are not the complete package. I never thought the (dis)comfort of these would be an issue for me as I’ve never really had a pair of headphones, even in-ear ones, that I’ve found uncomfortable; I think it’s the weight of the rest of the ear cup pushing the earbuds into the ears that makes them worse than normal in-ear headphones. I really wanted to like these, but I have to say I was disappointed with the Nuraphones. If these sounded the way they do and were also even remotely comfortable I would have happily said goodbye to my £350, but they are not and I have had to return them.

Headphones arrived when stated they would and function as detailed on the write up on Amazon and Nura website. If you like bass in your music these are definitely the headphones for you, the sound is awesome. Overall sound quality excellent and battery life 20 hours as advertised. Some additional points: - Initially getting the headphones to sit snug on your head for the ear test may take a few attempts to get right. I think this is partly related to the shape of your head, getting used to the in-ear plugs and using the sliders on the sides. It took me 5 attempts to get ticks on both the left and right ear. After this however the set up was very easy. - On day 1 I thought the headphones were very uncomfortable and was considering whether they were right for me but I persevered for a couple of days and it’s about setting the sliders on the sides correctly for you and getting used to the in-ear plugs. Note: I was previously using the Bose in-ear headphones so I’m used to in-ear phones but these are different. Give it a week or so before making up your mind. - I also initially thought they were a little heavy, but I’m used to the Bose noise cancelling lightweight in-ears so again had to get used to the additional weight, the better sound quality though more than compensates for the extra weight - A slightly annoying point is that when you’re charging the headphones you can’t see the progress and have to put them on and wait for the ‘sirilike’ voice to tell you the level of charge, small point but a little frustrating - You have to get used to having no volume, track skip, on/off buttons on the app. You can set the this functionality up, you get the choice of two functions per ear can (operated by tapping) play around with this a little to see what best suits you, it’s not intuitive at first to tap your ear, but again you get used to it. I do wish there was the option of more that 4 choices as you have to sacrifice something. _ Maybe it’s just me, but at first I didn’t notice the noise cancelling button on the app and hadn’t realised that the dotted circle surrounding the headphones meant that noise cancelling was off and you needed to press to get the solid line to activate, might be in the guidelines somewhere and I just missed it. - I bought the Apple adapter, haven’t used this yet and not sure when I will, maybe wait before splashing out for this as it cost £29.00. I was initially hesistant to pay so much for a set of headphones, but overall I’m very impressed with them and think it was money well spent.

These seem utterly floored in so many ways I hardly know where to start. Worst issue is probably fit. You have to get them in the exact right spot for them to work. Wear them walking for more then 2 steps they slip and you cant hear anything. The terrible slider/button combo is joke. They dont hold them at the same size and if you touch them to correct you trigger the button which gives a loud noise in your ear and triggers an action. Turn off this action and there are no buttons left to change volume, skip track or anything. Next worst is probably the noise 'cancelling'. In mine and my partners experience they amplify noise making it louder than before! Try using them somewhere actually noisy and the drivers seem to max out and give you ear splitting cracks and pops. Then there is the sound profiling which obviously thinks I cant hear any high tones so boost everything over 1k so bad it's unusable. Worst bit is now manual correction so all you can do is ask all your friends to try it and attemp to pick one of their profiles. You could turn the profiles off but the 'default' one is so purposely bad you'd get better quality from a £30 pair. Then there is immersion mode which gives you the option to have the drivers flap around aimlessly making random distorted noises that don't resemble the music you thought you were going to be listening to. You can helpfully turn this off but then your basically using earbuds with all thr inconvenience of overear cups, pointless. On top of all that they are over priced with poor build quality, charging you £25 extra for each cable you need. Use a proprietary connector so leave it at home and your stuffed. Don't work if the battery goes flat either and don't fold for travel. Save yourself the grief and buy a pair on Sonys instead. Not fussy on positioning, better sound, actually noise cancel, come with cables, better controls, more comfortable without buds jammed in your ears, work with flat battery via 3.5mm jack and fold for travel. They are even cheaper! Regret ever wasting my time on this junk.

I bought the Nuraphone after a lot of deliberation and research but unfortunately they didn't live up to the hype for me. Sound: The normal unpersonalised output sounded flat and as good as a pair of regular earphones. The personalised sound was much better however it seemed to limit bass to only the left side of the headphones even after trying multiple personalisation attempts. The one thing the nuraphones were good at however were bass, sounding rich as long as you use the immersion slider. Its important to note however that this immersion slider can only be used when you're connected to the app via Bluetooth and only when the personalised sound is being used. The personalisation itself was interesting but ultimately seemed like an automated EQ slider, giving results that can be done on most phones or music apps. I also felt like the adverts depicting this process were misleading as the personalistion didn't impress me too much, it was only once this was played alongside the immersion setting that the music sounded substantially better and was probably what nura used for their marketing. ANC: Another good aspect of the nuraphones, their noise cancelling was adequate and blocked out most background noise. However I'm unsure how this compares to Bose or Sony as i haven't owned a pair. One big point for me is that there are no on ear controls to turn ANC on/off as this isn't an option for the touch sensitive buttons. Comfort: This was the deal breaker for me, the headset was too heavy and slid around my head when moving about despite having a snug and correct fit inside my ears and around the headband. The small ear probes inside the nuraphones were the most uncomfortable part and hurt continuously despite changing earbud sizes. Usability: The touch buttons are useful and now seem to be a standard on top of the range headphones. However i find the choice to put them on protruding bolts on the sides of the headphones strange and found myself accidentally pressing them multiple times when adjusting the headphones or taking them on/off. Connectivity: Given that i purchased mine off of amazon my pair didn't come with a 3.5mm jack which would have been a quick and easy way to connect to my phone if i didn't want to drain my battery using Bluetooth. The quality of the music via BT was good as mentioned before but when paused i could hear tiny high pitched beeps presumably from the headphones electronics. The app itself was nice and straightforward during setup but a little hard to navigate afterwards e.g. i couldn't find out how to rename a personalisation profile. Misc: I also find it aggravating that the charging lead it uses is unique to nura, costing £15 to replace which is a bit of a joke. A USB type C would be much better in my opinion. So overall, good concept and i can see why some people would like them. However they're really uncomfortable for me and didn't really impress me as much as i had expected a pair of £300 headphones to do so. I'll be returning them asap.