this post was submitted on 02 Aug 2024
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BudgetAudiophile

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I love Bluetooth bone conduction earphones and I'm ready to buy something pricier, sturdier, waterproof, and hopefully sound far superior to everything I've tried.

I've had a few budget sets, and I love the convenience, portability, and weight of all of them, but the audio is obviously dog s***.

Are there any bone conduction headphones that are not dog s*** audially that any of you can personally attest to?

Thanks

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[–] [email protected] 3 points 4 months ago (2 children)

I have the AfterShokz Aeropex and I've found them to be decent at least as far as sound quality goes, but I've had them for 4–5 years now and my gripe with them is that the rubber-like material has gotten super sticky somehow and I really don't like wearing them anymore because they leave my skin sticky.

I mean yeah, bone conduction is not going to sound stellar compared to "traditional" headphones in the same price range, but I definitely thought they were worth it for jogging, biking etc. where I wanted unobstructed hearing

[–] EisFrei 3 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Use some isopropyl and a cloth to clean the rubber. You might need to do this a few times, depending on how bad it is.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 4 months ago

Ah nice, thanks for the tip

[–] [email protected] 1 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Thanks, I'll definitely look up those aftershocks.

I'm outside a lot, and my bone conduction earphones are the only ones that I forget I'm wearing after coming inside because they're so comfortable.

I listen to a lot of long podcasts and just walk around also, so I'd really like something just as comfortable as I have now(generic no-name Chinese brand) with better audio quality.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Looks like the company has rebranded itself to just Shokz and they're no longer making Aeropex, but they do have a bunch of different kinds of bone conduction models available. I've never actually listened to podcasts with them so I have no clue how well they'd deal with something that's mostly just speech, but I bet they're generally going to be better than generic chinesium ones at any rate

[–] [email protected] 2 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Got it.

I have tried some $300 shokz at a mall once, and was not blown away by the audio, but that was really my only foray.

I think I have to do some deep research, read reviews and watch videos because bone conduction isn't popular enough to gather a wide anecdotal consensus.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Yeah generally you're just not going to be blown away by the sound of bone conduction headphones, their advantages are elsewhere as you've probably noticed, but they can definitely sound better than your average chinesium ones – just never going to be stellar in that regard.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

I'm fine without stellar, just want a rung or two above.

Thanks!