Best Headphones for Commuting

I’m sure we have all been there when commuting. Stuck on a train or sat in a traffic jam on the bus with nothing to do but look at other commuters or glaze into our phones and flick through our  endless supply of social media channels. Even when there is no delay the commute to work can be a tedious affair and any distraction on the journey can make it a much more bearable experience. I’m personally very fortuitous in that I only have a 30 minute walk to work but I still enjoy shutting the world off at times and listening to music from my phone through a pair of headphones of earphones. I’m also very lucky that I get to listen to really wide range of different products.

There are many headphones on offer and choosing the correct one can be somewhat daunting. There are technologies around such as bluetooth that can offer great flexibility and usability, some headphones fold away for portability and others can help cancel out the surrounding background noise. You then have a variety of in-ears available that can passively block out surrounding noise and also offer great comfort. I always find it very wise to not choose any kind of open back headphone when looking to use them when commuting. I like going from Genesis to Metallica and Elton John to Dave Matthews but i’m never sure the person next to me enjoys that variation in musical taste. It’s always best to remain polite and consider those around you.

Bluetooth headphones are really, really convenient, there are obviously no cables required and I have found that the new B&W P5 Wireless don’t compromise on sound unlike some other wireless headphones. The isolation when traveling is good too and they are really comfortable when listening for long durations and the clamping force is ideal. I find myself being a little self conscious when walking around with over ear headphones but I don’t find that with the P5 Wireless. They are stylish with chrome and leather and not too big when being worn. Battery life is an issue with wireless bluetooth headphones and I managed to achieve about 15 hours from these without a charge. They do come supplied with a cable that works just in-case the bluetooth battery dies.  These headphones also come with a built in mic enabling you to take calls without having to remove them. The P5, although not foldable do swivel so that they can lay flat and can easily be worn around the neck without any discomfort for when you want to socialise with people instead of listening to them.

Personally I went for the bigger non wireless brother the P7. These for me are pretty much at the limit of how big I would go with a pair of headphones for commuting. The sound quality is a step up from the P5 wireless and the beauty with the P7 is that they are an over ear design. The soft ear pads make for a snug fit that isolates very well from outside noise. Again the clamping force isn’t too strong to make your head hurt and an i device cable is supplied for taking calls and controlling the volume. The P7 also has the benefit of being able to be folded away and comes with a protective case to store them in. I often carry this with me in my bag as the case folds flat when not in use. So far I don’t have anything negative to say about the P7 for commuting. For anyone who thinks this headphones is just a tad on the big side then my recommendation would then be to look at the Sennheiser Momentum M2 wired headphones. The Momentum again has luxurious leather ear pads that are insanely comfortable and the headband isn’t quite as cumbersome as the P7. If you have an Apple device or an Android device then you will need to make sure you choose the correct version as each comes with different supplied cables to work with the prospective devices. Both the P7 and Momentum M2 are hot contenders in my opinion and I would really base your decision on the sonic signature of these headphones. I feel that the vocals are a bit more pronounced on the P7 and the bass is more present on the Momentum so that may sway you one way or another. There are many on ear alternatives but I found these to let in much of the background noise. Unfortunately this meant I had to turn up the volume and without wanting to decimate my ears I opted for over ear headphones with better isolation. However it’s getting the balance of over-ears that are not too big and bulky. The P7 and Momentum M2’s certainly cover those requirements for me.

The other option is to go for a pair of bluetooth enabled, noise cancelling headphones. We are able to offer a few of these headphones from the Momentum M2 wireless, the B&O H8 and also the Parrot Zik 2.0. All of these headphones exude quality and feature advanced active noise cancelling. Active noise cancelling headphones use a minimum of 1 microphone in each ear capsule to pickup the surround enviromental noise. In lamens terms this noise is then filtered into the listeners ears but the sound is played back with a negative impression of the audio wave that is received by the microphone. This is effectively “cancelling” out the noise. It is significantly more scientific than that but gives you an idea of what active noise cancelling is trying to do.

I must admit though that there are times when I get some what tired even of the P7’s and instead opt for a pair of in-ears when commuting especially when I ever go on the train. Now I can completely, 100% sympathise with anyone who has had trouble with using earphones in the past. It wasn’t up until only recently that I discovered why I had such an issue. The fit was continually dreadful, there was never any bass from the earphones and after a little while made my ear hurt. They were not my favourite way to listen to music but the best I could find that would actually stay put in my ear were the Shure range of earphones. These hook over the ear to keep the earbuds secure whilst giving quite a deep seal. It turns out that I have a very tight, almost right angled ear canal and when I was inserting earphones they were just point music directly into my ear bone. Not ideal and I can imagine that i’m not alone with this issue. The best thing about in-ears is their isolation once the fitment is correct. I recently found an earphone that goes extra deep into your ear canal and gives the best seal I have ever had from a universal earphone. The Flare Audio R2 range not only fits extremely well, they also sound insanely good too and I can strongly recommend the R2A for the price. When you have managed to find the correct seal then you can enjoy your music without hearing so much of the environment around you. I would advise making sure you can hear though when crossing a road!

Now here comes my final and possibly best solution for the commute! With me having such mega issues with in-ears, I really wanted to find something that fit like a glove and offered excellent sonic clarity – enter ACS. ACS have been working with professional musicians for many, many years and create custom moulded earphones that are specifically made so that they fit the irregular contortions of your ear perfectly. By making an earphone that is specifically designed for your own ears, you get the best possible levels of comfort. ACS use silicone instead of acrylic in order to ensure that the earphones are long lasting but have enough give in them for when you open and close your mouth. The deep insertion of the earphones also means that isolation is extremely good. Pretty much everything is cut out which helps your ears over long periods of time exposed to your music. This is due to the fact that you don’t have to turn up your music to drown out the background noise. This benefits your ears as you are not exposed to such high volumes. The ACS Evoke Custom’s give you the chance to experience just how good a personalised set of earphones are. The best part is that you can also choose from a range of colours and get them engraved, so you can be sure they really are personal to you.