I received these as a Christmas present after mentioning to my wife the deteriorating condition of my aging Bose QC2 headphones (flaking black ear-pads, broken folding mechanism had to be glued in the "open" position on both sides). While about 1/6 the cost of the QC2 when new and current model QC15, these are just as effective at cancelation of repetitive noise (aircraft engines, fans, AC systems, etc.). I use these primarily for travel and they perform just as well as the old QC2 for quieting noisy aircraft cabins. The ear cup area is a bit smaller but, for me at least, this makes for a better seal helping to isolate even more noise. The removable cable is also great for when I just want the noise isolation without music or video playback.
Unlike the Bose QC2s, these can still be used for music/video listening even with the noise cancelation turned off. The sound quality does seem to suffer a bit, but it's nice that they still work in a pinch (dead batter, for instance). The overall sound quality is quite neutral and pleasing, though not quite as full as the QC2. That said, these headphones don't bloat or over-emphasize bass the way many inexpensive headphones (noise canceling or otherwise) tend to.
The overall build quality is a step down from the Bose QC2 and QC15, but not so much that I'm concerned about them breaking (which the QC2 did anyway due to a poorly designed folding mechanism). The included travel case is of excellent quality with a Velcro pouch for the cord and other accessories/adapters/batteries.
Overall, I would recommend these headphones to anyone looking for a reasonably priced noise canceling headphone, especially for travel. Sound quality is good, noise cancelation and isolation is great, the travel case is handy, the cord is removable, and they can still be used for playback when the battery is dead. Excellent performance even side-by-side with Bose and a super value!
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