Archives for July 2017

Used Jaybird X2 bluetooth earphones for $26

Amazon Warehouse Deals has launched another Bargain Bin Clearance with over 20,000 items participating, and lo and behold, here’s a used earphone doorbuster! The Jaybird X2 Sport Bluetooth earphones are available in “Used – Very Good” condition (cosmetic imperfections, damaged original packaging) in the Storm White color scheme for $26~. Prime members get free 2-day shipping. For non-Prime members, it’s the new usual of $25+/$35+.

Only the Storm White is available at this super low price. Supplies of used items are limited. It averages 3.3 out of 5 based on 5400+ customer reviews. This is the previous generation model, replaced by the X3.

Used V-Moda Crossfade On-Ear Metal Shields for $8+

If you want to decorate your V-Moda Crossfade On-Ears with different color shields, and don’t want to break the bank with new condition pricing, and want to put your Prime membership to work (or you are planning a larger purchase to get free S&H as a non-Prime member), then…

… to the Amazon Warehouse Deals we go where a variety of Used V-Moda Crossfade On-Ear Metal Shields are on sale going for $8+ depending on color. Red is $8.44, Deep Purple is $8.64, Gold is $10.38, etc. The link in this paragraph shows the lowest price per color. To see more options per color, click on the “See all offers for this product” blue link (over there) next to each color of interest.

I am not familiar with shield compatibility of the various V-Moda headphones, so be sure to read reviews and forums and such if you are wondering which V-Moda headphones are compatible with this.

Used Sony XB950 Bluetooth Closed Over-Ears for $58+

Sony’s latest Extra Bass bluetooth over-ears are the XB-950-B1 headphone (currently going for $150~), replacing the XB-950-BT. I am adding dashes in the model names to emphasizes the “B1” vs “BT” difference in the model name. If you prefer the previous model, or want to pay a much lower price, and you are comfortable with used headphones…

… then to the Amazon Warehouse Deals Bargain Bin sale we go where the XB-950-BT closed-back over-ear extra-bass headphones are available at Amazon Warehouse Deals (AWD), sold by AWD actual (not iffy marketplace sellers) for $58+ in the red color scheme, $61+ in the red color scheme, and $68+ in the black color scheme. The link in this paragraph shows you the lowest price per color…

… but if you want to see the detailed listings per color, click on the blue link over there that says “See all offers for this product” next to each color. This will take you to the detailed listings. For example, here are the blue detailed listings.

All the links above only show the used options offered by AWD actual. If you want to see all used options by all marketplace sellers (used Sony product listings often have iffy sellers and scammers, you have been warned!), start at this listing and filter by color and other options.

Used Sennheiser Momentum 2.0 On-Ears for $86+ [Android] or $99+ [iOS]

If you don’t want to wait for a future sale/clearance on the Sennheiser Momentum 2.0 On-Ears [remember, Sennheiser has renamed this line going forward as the “HD1” line], some of those options are also participating in the Bargain Bin Clearance of Amazon Warehouse Deals.

Just like the previously mentioned B&W P3, there are multiple options in the listings, so let’s try to sort out this veiled spaghetti 🙂

As of the time of writing, the lowest used price is for the Silver color scheme with the Galaxy/Android remote buttons/cable, going for $86~ in “Used – Good” condition (cosmetic imperfections, damaged original packaging). It’s also available in “Used – Very Good” condition (cosmetic imperfection, damaged original packaging) for $92~. Both are sold by Amazon Warehouse Deals actual.

The lowest price option for the models with the iOS/Apple remote/cable is the black color scheme starting at $99~ in “Used – Like New” condition (damaged original packaging). There are four listings like this for the black iOS option.

Note that the headphones are the same. The difference between iOS and Android is the included detachable cable that has the compatible iOS or Android buttons. If you don’t care for full button compatibility or have your own compatible cables, then it doesn’t matter which OS version you get.

Used Bowers & Wilkins P3 On-Ears for $43+

The latest model in the Bowers & Wilkins P3 model is the second generation. If you are going to get the first generation, you might as well get it used. Which brings us to the red color scheme of this model available in “Used – Good” condition (cosmetic imperfections, repackaged) going for $42.54 with free shipping at Amazon Warehouse Deals. Meanwhile at the same place, you can get the black color scheme in “Used – Like New” condition (original packaging) for $54~.

But wait, there are more options to this. The same listing has both the new condition and the officially recertified models. And each one of these has used options. And the headphones are available in four different colors each. So, as a summary, this listing shows the lowest price per color/option for the new condition and the recertified. Prices start at $74 for the recertified and $100 for the new condition.

Because of the way the Amazon listing is structured, there is a “used recertified” option. This means someone purchased the recertified headphones at Amazon, and then returned them. Then Amazon listed the return as a used option under the recertified listing, thus a “used recertified”.

PS: side-effects of this listing include fried brains 🙂

[DEAD] Audio Technica ATH-WS55-BK Solid Bass On-Ears for $31

This lightning deal expired…

It is not a big discount, but it less than the “default” price, good until 6:20pm ET tonight, the new condition Audio Technica AUD ATHWS55BK Solid Bass Headphones are on sale for the very specific price of $31.44 by a marketplace seller with the order fulfilled by Amazon, so they are Prime-eligible. The price before the sale was $37 last night.

[DEAD] Wednesday: Philips M1 MKII BK/27 On-Ears for $40 w/FS

This daily deal expired…

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[DEAD] Wednesday: Philips L2BO/27 Semi-Open Over-Ears for $80

This daily deal sold out…

[Read more…]

[DEAD] Wednesday: Gibson Trainer On-Ear Headphones with Five Freebies for $90

The 1-day sale is over, the price is back to $250 (!) as of 7/20/17!

[Read more…]

Ultrasone GO Portable headphones with Samson USB Mic and Dragon NaturallySpeaking 13 Premium software for $150

The new condition Ultrasone GO portable closed-back headphones are bundled together with the Samson GO USB microphone, and the Dragon NaturallySpeaking 13 Premium software, all together going for $150 with free shipping at B&H Photo. You just add the bundle to the shopping cart and proceed to checkout. There’s no coupon, no rebate, no hoops to jump through.

Astell & Kern AK Jr. Hi-Res Music Player for $249

More DAP sale action, the new condition Astell & Kern AK Jr. Hi-Res Music Player is on sale for $249 with free shipping by a fulfilled by Amazon seller along with B&H Photo. This has 64GB on-board storage and a microSD storage (up to 256GB cards).

Fiio X5 DAP (2nd Generation) for $180

The Fiio digital audio player (DAP) has grown in all directions now-a-days. If of all the available models out there it is the new condition X5 II the one you want, it is curerntly on sale for $180 with free shipping at New York’s B&H Photo.

PS: I don’t have this model, but I have a text and pictures unboxing of the Fiio X1 (first generation). A review of it is coming 🙂

Bose QC25 Quiet Comfort ANC Over-Ears for $279

If you prefer the previous generation Bose ANC over-ear headphones, without bluetooth, you can get the new condition Quite Comfort QC25 for $279 with free shipping in either the iOS or Android version at B&H Photo and Adorama. You also earn $14 promotional rewards at both places.

The same price is also offered at Amazon actual with a limit of up to three per customer. You don’t earn promotional rewards at Amazon, BUT if you are a Prime member, and pay with either one of the Amazon-branded credit cards (Chase VISA or Store Card), you earn a 5% statement credit, which is around $14.

The latest model, the QC35, that comes with both ANC and Bluetooth, goes for $350 in new condition at authorized dealers, but if you prefer to pay a lower price for the QC35, you can get it for $260 in factory-renewed condition with a fully warranty from the official Bose eBay store.

Refurbished Denon AH-D7200 w/1yr warranty for $749

Temptation time! The Denon AH-D7200 rolled out a few weeks ago in the US market for $1000, but if you want don’t want to pay full price, there is now an alternative. You can get it dealer-recertified for $749 with free shipping from well-known and reputable A/V dealer OneCall.com (fixed link), which is the online persona of B&M A/V retailer Huppin’s.

Or if you have Amazon gift cards to spend, they are also selling it at the same price thru Amazon. It comes with a 1-year warranty from OneCall as it is a dealer recertified model. If you are a Prime member, you receive Prime-like speed, but it ships directly from OneCall in Eastern Washington, not far from NCAA Basketball Championship finalist Gonzaga, which for the first time in many NCAA tournaments was not GoneZaga 🙂

PS: speaking of Denon, their DP-300F Fully Automatic Analog Turntable is on sale for $199 with a limit of up to three units per customer.

Audio Technica ATH-AD*X Sale (three options)

The sale that was promised is now live at NewEgg Flash, a trio of open-back over-ear Audio Technica ATH-AD*X headphones are on sale, offered by seller “aSavings” which is an online persona of Focus Camera. The offers come with free shipping and run until Sunday 7/24/17, aka Game Of Thrones Season 7 Episode #2 day (easier to remember).

The prices are:
+ AD500X for $64 vs $66+ at Amazon
+ AD700X for $95 vs $99+ at Amazon
+ AD900X for $115 vs $135+ at Amazon

The AD1000X goes live next Monday, after the three above expire.

Sony MDR-XB950AP Extra Bass Closed Over-Ears for $56.49 w/FS

NewEggFLASH is back with another sale, it is the new condition closed-back over-ear Sony MDR-XB950AP/H Extra Bass
headphones (H for Gray), going for $56.49 with free shipping by Focus Camera thru FLASH. NewEgg FLASH is their Groupon-like competitor. The sale ends on this Saturday (or earlier if sold out).

[DEAD] Tuesday: Beyerdynamic Custom On-Ears for $30 w/free S&H

This daily deal expired but it returns every few weeks at NewEgg…

[Read more…]

[DEAD] Wednesday’s Offers: Audio Technica WS55, Status Audio CB-1, Etc

Wednesday is over, and so are its lightning deals…

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[DEAD] Tuesday: Skullcandy Hesh 2 Bluetooth Headphones for $42

This daily deal disconnected (okay, expired; bad bluetooth joke!)…

One of Tuesday’s Gold Box daily deals ending by 3am eastern on Wednesday (or earlier if sold out) is the new condition Skullcandy Hesh 2 Bluetooth Headphones, in the black color scheme, going for $42 with free shipping with a limit of up to three units per customer at the sale price. This is sold and shipped by Amazon actual. It averages 4.2 out of 5 based on 1500+ customer reviews. It also has over 400 answered questions if you are curious about it.

New Weekly “Headphoolia” Round-Up is Here!

We have a new Weekly round-up, a Plain Jane e-Zine of the week that was in the world of headphones, covering up to today July 16 (2017). So while you are anxiously waiting for Game Of Thrones Season 7, escape to the new This Week in Headphoolia. Among other things, a new blind test audio experiment has been launched (MQA vs HiRes Audio), Innerfidelity has a new set of monthly measurements, and more audio show reports.

If you missed any of the previous installments, or if you want to revisit them, there are exactly 20 previous versions in the Headphoolia archives.

This was a two for one special week, as we posted in mid-week the Headphoolia installment that covered the previous week.

[DEAD] Monday: Rosewill EX-700 earphones for $20 w/FS

This daily deal expired…

[Read more…]

KZ Earphone Sale: ATR for $6, ZS3 for $8, ZST for $12 [Free S&H from China]

KZ earphones are now available from various Prime-eligible sellers if you prioritize quick delivery over lower price. But if you are not in a hurry to receive them quickly, then you can get them at a lower price with free (slow) shipping from China.

A couple of KZ models are currently on a flash sale at GearBest as follows:

+ the KZ ZS3 earphones with detachable cable for $8

+ the KZ ZST Wired On-cord Control with detachable cable for $12
+ this is the colorful “Colormix” edition – the picture over there explains 🙂

+ the KZ ATR earphones for $5.67

These come with free Unregistered Air Mail (slow shipping) from China. Other shipment options are also available but not free. But except for Expedited shipping, the “Registered Air Mail” and “Priority Line” are fairly low and much lower than the price of the earphones.

In-Stock Again: Apple AirPods for $160

The Apple Airpods have been rather hard to find. If you need them from a reliable retailer, they are currently in-stock and shipping for $160 by Verizon Wireless with a limit of two units per customer. Anyone can buy these, you don’t need Verizon phone service 🙂

Beats Studio ANC Over-Ears for $100 (red only)

If you like headphones in a red color scheme, and if you like Beats headphones, you are in luck! The red color scheme of the Beats Studio Over-Ears (with active noise cancelling but not bluetooth) are on sale in new condition for $100 with free shipping at Verizon Wireless. You can buy as many as you like. The other two colors are out of stock and cannot be ordered. These are USB powered (built-in rechargeable battery).

PS: no contract, and no Verizon phone service needed. Everyone can buy accessories 🙂

Beyerdynamic DT 770 (16 ohm) for $100

If you are looking for a closed-back over-ear headphone that is smartphone-friendly (in terms of impedance), the new condition Beyerdynamic DT 770 (16 ohm edition) is on sale for $100 with free shipping by BuyDig on eBay and by their sister site Beach Camera fulfilled by Amazon (and Prime eligible).

There are many options in the DT 7-8-9 line-up, their family tree is almost as convoluted as the Targaryen family tree, so if you are not familiar with them, be sure to read up on the various options and trade-offs and such. Plenty has been written on these 🙂

Xiaomi Pistons (Original Fresh) for $6 w/free S&H (from China)

There are many variations now of the Xiaomi Pistons after they were riding the Chi-Fi Hype Train for many months. One of those variations is on sale at GearBest, it is the new condition Original Xiaomi Piston In Ears, the “Fresh Version” in the black color scheme, going for $5.79 with free shipping (unregistered Air Mail). This ships from China, so factor that in the shipping delivery time. Only the black color scheme is on sale.

As of the time of writing, over 1000 units are available, and 35 hours remain in the offer. They timed this to end when Game Of Thrones Season 7 begins 🙂

Heads Up: Monday 5am ET: Audio Technica AD900x and AD500x sales

UPDATE: the start time has been changed to 12pm ET instead of 5am ET…

ORIGINAL POST
According to the schedule posted at NewEggFlash Headphones, starting at 5am eastern on Monday 7/17/17 (in case you are too hyper to fall asleep after the return of Game Of Thrones), there will be a sale on two Audio Technica open-back headphones, the AD900x and the AD500x. As the “D” in the name hints at, they are open-back. Remember our little mnemonic, “D” is shaped almost like an “O”, O for Open 🙂

The price and the seller will be revealed when they go live. There are no hints of them ahead of time. Here’s a screenshot of the teaser to make sure I am not hallucinating 🙂

[DEAD] Sunday: Sonic Solace ANC/BT Over-Ears for $51 + S&H after coupon

This coupon expired…

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[DEAD] Monday: Astell&Kern AK120 II DAP for $749

This daily deal expired…

Good until Monday at 11:59pm ET, you can get the new condition Astell&Kern AK120 II DAP for $749 with free shipping at B&H Photo where it is one of their daily deals. This supports up to 5.6 MHz DSD.

[DEAD] Blue Microphones Mo-FI Powered Over-Ears for $175

This offer expired. For the latest updates, check the Latest Deals Summary

[Read more…]

[DEAD] Used Mitchell and Johnson GL1 hybrid-electrostatic portable headphones for $140

As of 7/20/17 re-check, the used options have sold out…

The Mitchell and Johnson GL1 hybrid-electrostatic portable headphones go for $200 in new condition, but if you are comfortable with used headphones, they go for $140 in “Used – Very Good” condition (scratches, original packaging) through Amazon Warehouse Deals.

The planar world is getting too crowded, so now companies are moving into less cultivated crops, electrostatics 🙂

SHARKK Bravo Headphones Hybrid Electrostatic Headphones for $72 after coupon

This Kickstarter Electrostatic hybrid was not greeted as a liberator by audiophiles, so its prices keep on falling. If you have read about it, it being the SHARKK Bravo Headphones Hybrid Electrostatic Headphones, do read the reviews, and you are comfortable with its trade-offs but you are still curious and want to buy it, coupon code PBACK2SCHOOL20 drops it from $90 to $72 with free shipping BREED on eBay (98%, Miami). Coupon expires 7/17/17 at 3am ET and it is part of this eBay promotion.

Sony XB950 N1 Extra Bass Over-Ears (with both bluetooth and ANC) for $158 after coupon

The new condition closed-back over-ear Sony XB950 N1 (with both bluetooth and active noise cancelling, and Extra Bass too) goes for $200~ in new condition at authorized dealers, but thanks to the eBay coupon promotion, you can get it for $158~ with free shipping from Video and Audio Center on eBay (Southern California B&M A/V retailer) when you enter coupon code PBACK2SCHOOL20 over there. Coupon expires 7/17/17 at 3am ET.

Sennheiser HD 4.50 BT with ANC for $160 after coupon

I am going through some of the headphones featured in the eBay coupon promotion and here’s one that defeats the current prices. The Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC closed-back over-ear bluetooths with active noise cancelling go for $200 at authorized dealers. Coupon code PBACK2SCHOOL20 drops the price by 20% off, going from $200 to $160 at authorized dealer Video and Audio Center on eBay (Southern California retailer). Since they are a known B&M authorized dealer, you get the 2-year Sennheiser warranty with these.

PS: these came in with the January 2017 wave of new Sennheiser products at CES 2017. Sennheiser has been rolling out new products left and right these days.

PS: I just verified it, the coupon works and as of 2:18pm ET, it says it is the “last one”.

20% off select Headphones with eBay coupon (340+ options)

eBay is back with another with another coupon promotion featuring almost forty different sellers. Coupon code PBACK2SCHOOL20 gets you 20% off participating items, with an individual price of $25 or higher.

There are some recognizable sellers that offer headphones, and when you navigate the sub-categories to the Headphones category there’s almost 350 options over there.

There are many ways to further filter them down on the left-hand side of the page there, eg, by manufacturer, headphone type, and features. Or you can sort them by price on the top right corner of the page.

The coupon restrictions are like this: the minimum item price must be $25+, which is solved by the links above since they are prefiltered to include items in the price range. The maximum discount is $50. So items priced over $250 get a flat $50 off discount. Eligible items priced between $25 and $200 get 20% off.

Only the participating items and sellers are eligible. Of course it doesn’t hurt to try the coupon regardless, but it’s not expected to work on non-eligible items. The coupon expires 7/17/17 at 3am Eastern time.

NOTE: there is a mix of sellers with various warranty options, some are authorized, others are not. The products too can be in different conditions. So to cut a long story short, check the condition and warranty of each item; do not assume they are all new condition with USA warranty!