Griffin WoodTones Over-The-Ear review

Pros

-Seriously enjoyable sound

-Very comfortable

Cons

-Noisy headband spoils portability

-Design polarises opinion

Key Features: 50mm driver; Removable 3.5mm cable; Handsfree housing

Manufacturer: Griffin Technology

Griffin WoodTones Over-The-Ear review

What are the Griffin WoodTones Over-The-Ear?

The Griffin WoodTones Over-The-Ear are full-size headphones that are topped with wood to give them a look that’s a bit different from the competition. These are not the first wooden headphones Griffin has made – the WoodTones join a few different in-ear pairs.

Great sound and good comfort make them a solid purchase - and great value at the price - although we’re not sure about the look and a weirdly noisy headband ensures they’re not much good for use while out and about.

Griffin WoodTones Over-The-Ear – Design and Comfort

If you know Griffin, it’s probably for its phone cases or other accessories. However, these  Over-The-Ear WoodTones headphones are not the generic type of cans we often see from accessory makers.

The back of each earcup is topped with wood. We expect it’s a purely aesthetic choice, much as Griffin’s marketing implicitly suggests that it’s responsible for some of the sound’s warmth. You can choose between three finishes – beech, sapele (aboudikro) and walnut.

Although the look has won acclaim elsewhere, we’re not entirely convinced by the slightly IKEA furniture look of the beech sample we’re currently enjoying. However, if you’re reading this you may well be drawn in by the distinctive style of the Griffin WoodTones Over-The-Ear.

Aside from the wooden parts, they are of a fairly standard design, and not one that’s particularly style-driven. Rectangular cups, a headband exoskeleton that sticks a way above your head and the fairly large size aren’t going to win these WoodTones many fans among the Beats by Dre crowd.

However, they are very comfortable indeed. The plastic (apart from the wood, of course) construction keeps them light, the pads are very soft indeed and we find the auto-adjusting headband particularly comfy.

The headband is a wide strip of fake leather that’s kept taut on your noggin by an elasticated band inside it. As comfy as it is, the headband does introduce a fairly serious problem. It continually readjusts from your movements while walking, and it causes a seriously annoying creaking sound. It’s the headband rubbing against the elasticated band inside. For at-home use it’s no problem, but we don’t recommend the Griffin WoodTones Over-The-Ear for commuters. It’s a

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Turtle Beach PX22 review

Pros

-Excellent sound for the price

-Solid noise isolation and mic

-Comfortable

-Great value

Cons

-Could be more robust

Key Features: Stereo gaming headset; Noise isolating; Inline controller; PC and console compatible

Manufacturer: Turtle Beach

Turtle Beach PX22 review

What is the Turtle Beach PX22?

The Turtle Beach PX22 is a noise-isolating wired stereo gaming headset that comes with both USB and analog connectors. At £69.99 it’s a mid-range set with a surprising amount of features including an inline amp and controller that lets you adjust volume, bass, treble and mic volume on the fly as well as providing the ability to take calls while gaming.

It’s compatible with PC, PS3, Xbox 360 but also the PS4 and Xbox One.

Turtle Beach PX22: Design and Comfort

The PX22 is a well-built headset made of black plastic with soft fabric covered headband and ear cups. The top is made of a soft faux-leather material stitched with light-blue thread and has the company name – Turtle Beach – emblazoned on it. It's a good look and the detailing makes it look like a more expensive product.

The fabric is both comfortable and breathes well, which means you can wear the Turtle Beach PX22 for hours without getting sweaty ears. It clasps the head firmly enough to keep the headset in place, but not so strongly as to cause discomfort.

At 231g the Turtle Beach PX22 is also lighter than most of the competition, something that bodes well for long gaming sessions and if you want to travel. 

The headset is connected to the volume controller using a 1m cord with a 3.5mm jack meaning the PX22 is versatile enough to use as a pair of headphones too. There’s another 3m of cable coming out of the controller meaning you have plenty to spare when using it with a console.

The PX22 has clearly been designed with maximum comfort in mind and it succeeds in that regard well enough. It doesn’t feel quite as robust as some of the headsets we’ve tested, but that's one of the reasons it can keep the weight down. We’ve spent many hours using them and rarely need to remove them to give our ears a breather.

Sound quality is just as important as comfort, though, and Turtle Beach has done a storming job in that area too.

Turtle Beach PX22: Sound quality

Turtle Beach has been delivering quality sound

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Best headphones to buy 2014

1. Urbanears Humlan

Brand spanking new ‘phones look great and sound better, hence are idea for musos. Available in a range of colours, there’s a Humlan for every human. The washable parts ensure you can get these dirty, then bung them in the wash and there’ll be right as rain.

Price: £39

2. Focal Spirit One

Clearly not the pair of ‘phones to buy if you’re looking to blend in with the crowd, these are colourful and chunky, really quite chunky. No matter though, the sound is the most important part and they have a real hit of punchy noise, extremely balanced bass and great volume. Another nice touch is that they are foldable, making them nearly in your bag.

Price: £139

2. KEF M500

Boasting highly detailed sound, memory foam constructed ear pads for extra comfort and a design that just reeks of style and sophistication we have to say these cans are easily some of our favourites. The lack of sound leak is also highly welcomed – both by us and others who may wear them.

Price:

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Beats Studio review

Pros

    -Comfortable

    -Mix of noise cancellation and isolation works well

    -Head-hugging look an improvement

Cons

    -Thick sound harms separation

    -Harsh upper mids

Key Features: Active noise cancellation; Folding cups; Removable cable; 20-hour battery; Over-ear design

Manufacturer: Beats by Dr Dre

Beats Studio review

What are the Beats Studio headphones?

The Beats by Dre. Studio have, for years, been the top-end model in the highly-recognisable Beats range. And now they've been given a refresh for 2013 and beyond.

The price hasn't changed, £269.99, and for that you get a pair of great-feeling, good-looking headphones that feature active noise cancellation to make them even more commute-friendly. These are the best-sounding Beats headphones we've tried, too, but as ever with Beats headphones the sound quality doesn't entirely match the price.

Beats Studio - Design and Comfort

Beats by Dre. has simplified the Beats Studio look in this new reincarnation. Where the previous model had cups that stuck out a way from the side of your head, these stick pretty close.

Any design suggestion that these are headphones for the music studio seems to have vanished, besides the name, as the design here is clearly formulated with the commuter in mind. And really, that's no bad thing.

These are reasonably light ANC full-size over-ear headphones that are quite streamlined and classy in their lines, but there are enough loud Beats design inflections to let them sit happily among their brothers.

The trademark mix of black and red colouring is here, along with the classic 'b' Beats signifier on the rear of each cup. Their entire outer part is glossy plastic. It's eye-catching, but doesn't entirely fit with a £270 pair of headphones. And it attracts more fingerprints than a CSI crime scene.

That said, build quality seemed

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