Headphone recommendation

Any wireless headphone recommendations? I found the over-ear ones are too hot on the ear and I have a weird shape of the ear canal that if I use the one that snugly goes in, it gets uncomfortable after an hour or so.

ps: this thread might be talking about products outside wahoo’s environment, so if it’s not allowed, the admin can remove it.

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For what purpose?

I have weird ear canals as well, so can’t do fully in-ear. I’ve found the cough Apple earbud cough wired style to still work best for me. Don’t really use them on the trainer though or GOD FORBID on the road. Just trail runs and the like.

Maybe some of those sport gel ones that have the around-the-ear wire that holds them in place?

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For indoor training. I always afraid of using headphones when riding outside…

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Oh, interesting! Did you try with the wireless bud as well?
Also, what is sport gel earbud?

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My ears are wonky. The only ones that have worked for me, stay in, don’t hurt are the Bose Quietcomfort and the Bose Sport ones.

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I’ve been using the Samsung Galaxy Buds Live that look like fat lima beans. They don’t seal the ear canal and let in some ambient sound, which I like. I find them to be quite comfortable. My wife tried them and didn’t like them at all…

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I personally don’t see any appeal to wireless earbuds. They’re a solution in search of a problem, for the most part. They don’t sound that great, need recharging, short lifespan, etc. But just generally don’t like them.

Sport earbuds will usually have some sort of over-the-ear wire or support to help them stay put in the ear…

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Aeropex/Shokz OpenRun, both on the trainer and outdoors

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Fair enough. I need a wireless one due to how my trainer is set up.

Another vote for aropex bone conducting ones. Notjing in or on your ear. Can hear ambient sounds. They are great

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Oooh…techy.

:smiling_face_with_three_hearts:

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I’ll +1 the Shokz bone conducting. Those are what I use when cycling outside.

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FWIW, the I bought a pair of Shokz and just didn’t get along with the sound. It was strident and unpleasant. If I moved them around and pressed them against my head, I could get it to be OK, but they wouldn’t stay there. Also, the loop behind the neck interfered with jerseys or jackets with a collar. These, like other headphones, work better for some than others.

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Shokz Open Run Pro… hands down, incredible indoors and out. Not the best for taking calls (especially outdoors riding) but great sound stage and battery life. Live in them. Your hair and helmet may take some experimentation to determine under or over.

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I’m another fan of the Shokz headphones. I have OpenRun at the moment. My main sport is running and I have used Shokz (previously called AfterShokz) for years. I have had a few issues with the long-term reliability and have had to get a couple of pairs replaced on the warranty, but I really like how they fit -I barely notice they are there - and how the allow me to hear my surroundings. I used to love and run in London commuting in a busy urban environment, so that was crucial.

In terms of the sound quality, I mostly listen to podcasts rather than music and perfect high fidelity isn’t crucial to me. Perhaps if it was I might be less keen.

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I have used many many many many different headphones over the years. I find almost any type of earbud style to be either uncomfortable or painful and usually slip and fall out once they get sweaty. I tried bone conducting headphones and they were really hard to get to sit in the right place and they hurt and also had horrible fidelity with very little bass.

For years I had a couple pairs of Nike sports wired headphones that sit ON ear, but not over ear and found them to work the best. I used them for running in the gym. And then since they were wired they didn’t interfere with my trainer connection. I just had to get a headphone extension cable (which are a dime a dozen) so they reached my bike, and then find a way to secure them so they didn’t flap around or get in my way. But eventually I wore them out and wasn’t able to get new ones.

So I experimented with a lot of wireless BT headphones. Almost all of which have a small head strap that go behind my head (because ear buds don’t work with my ears). And almost all of them cheap models from Amazon, but also more expensive ones like various bone conducting types (see my previous comments). I’ve finally settled on a couple. One sits on my ears, but tends to get sweaty, and if I pause and take them off and rest them on my neck I get nasty acne. The others sit in my ears, but are not earbuds and have the head strap that holds them in place. They aren’t my favorite, but they are the least bothersome and give me the best sound even tho they won’t stay fully in my ears. I won’t link to them because they are only like $25 on Amazon and even tho I prefer them to any of the others I’ve used, I still don’t *recommend them, if you know what I mean.

And actually, I really need to replace these ones I am using because the batteries don’t last more than 4 or 5 hours without needing a charge while they used to last a good 12 or more.

I had a pair of wired over head and in ear headphones with my Walkman when I was in high school. Those were and still are the best I’ve ever used. But of course no one sells that style anymore. Almost everything are ear buds. And buds just don’t work with my ears. I can use the wired earbuds that came with my iPhone when I’m working on my computer, but only because I’m sitting still. Once I start moving and/or sweating they hurt and fall right out. So, it’s been 30 years and i’m still on the hunt for a pair of headphones that fit AND sound good. The search goes on…

I’ve tried many different types over the year and for quality of sound, comfort and versatility, I have landed on Shure products. They work very well for me but YMMV (your mileage may vary, if you are not familiar with that acronym). You can swap out the size and type of “gel” and they can switch between wired and wireless. Yes, they get sweaty in your ears but I clean them out on a weekly basis (the earbuds, ears sometimes twice a day). I have even swapped all my motorcycle and ATV helmet communicator speakers (Cardo, swapped out their in helmet 40mm speakers for in ear “monitors”) to Shure “headphones” and they work great, talk on the phone every day to the wife when traveling back and forth to work). I’d start with a cheaper wired pair to see if they are comfortable for you before you go all in on a full wireless pair, if you are so inclined. Shure is not the only brand out there but because the tips swap out so easily (I use the yellow ear plug variety for the motorcycles so they act as ear plugs to mitigate wind noise when not talking on the phone or listening to tunes), and the ease of switching between wired and wireless, they are my go to now for the last 5 years.

Yes, I ride with headphones in while out riding solo in the wild and have been doing so for 25+ years. I won’t do that in a group ride and this is a personal choice and risk I’m willing to take. The benefit that I get from being able to amp up my performance when jamming to 80’s hair band style rock is worth it (pun intended). I operate under the simple premise that I am invisible to the cagers and ride bikes and motorcycles with my head on a swivel. I am also very lucky in that we have a very nice paved bike trail network in my neck of the woods so the majority of the time I am vehicle free except when crossing roads.

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I use the WH-1000XM3 Noise Cancelling which is good for the trainer

Outside - Shokz OpenRun; inside been using MPow D7 (wireless BT) for a few years now, following recommendations from online team members. The latter have been rock solid, half decent sound, and cheap as chips, imagine they have something similar, but better, these days. Earbuds fall out, and never really found a pair that felt comfortable, these have over ear loops that don’t irritate me.

Wouldn’t use the Shokz inside unless I had to e.g. listening out for the door, as the trainer noise would be more annoying (direct drive, quiet but not silent) but great for outside riding IME.

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