If you are looking for NuForce truly-wireless, good until Saturday at 11:59pm eastern, B&H Photo is offering the new condition NUforce BE FREE6 truly-wireless for $40 with free US shipping and handling. There’s only one color scheme available. They have zero customer reviews and come with a 1-year warranty, charging case, 4x eartips and a USB charging cable…
Archives for April 2020
Wedn: Focal Sphear S In-Ears for $40, Etc
Earphones is the name of the game for the Wednesday 4/29/20 daily deals today, starting with Woot offering the new condition Focal Sphear S in-ears for $40, in the black color scheme, in new condition but with a 90-day Woot warranty. Free shipping only for Prime members…
Two earphones are offered in the Wednesday NewEgg daily deals as follows:
+ Apple Airpods (2nd generation) for $127.50
+ Philips Upbeat bluetooth earphones for $12
Bluetooth Earphones: Creative Outlier ONE V2 with FREE 1st Generation for $40 w/FS
For a limited time, the official Creative (Labs) online US store is offering a FREE first generation Outlier ONE bluetooth earphone set with the purchase of the new condition Version 2 (aka V2). You pay $40 with free US shipping and you get both…
The free item appears AUTOMATICALLY in your shopping cart (after you add the V2 to the shopping cart) while this promotion is running. If you no longer see it in the shopping cart, it means the promotion expired and you won’t receive
Friday: unlocked LG V40 for $250 to $300
On the PAD side of things, for Saturday 4/24/20, one of the Best Buy deals du jour is on the new condition unlocked LG V40 smartphone. You pay $250 IF you activate it (with a carrier) when you place the order, or $300 if you do not activate it when you buy it.
Either way, it is unlocked, it’s just that Best Buy is giving you a $50 discount if you activate it with a carrier because they are probably getting a cut from the carrier and they are sharing it with you [or something like that].
The nice thing about the LG V-series phones is that their model number rhymes with the Snapdragon model-name second-digit, so the V40 uses the 845, the V50 the 855, the V60 the 866, and so forth. The exception being the V35 which uses the 845, and you have to do some rounding for the V10 (SD 808) 🙂
Hifiman HE-35X Dynamic Open-Back Over-Ears for $75 w/FS & FR & 1-Year Warranty [MD]
This two-figure deal may have gotten lost in our previous Massdrop sale round-up, so it’s getting its own post to make sure people notice it, we are in the COVID-era after-all, you don’t have to spend 3+ figures on new audio gear 🙂
Hifiman has a reputation of headphones not being as sturdy as most other brands, just check the various forums. With that in mind mayhaps, Massdrop is offering this with free shipping, free returns (no questions asked) and a 1-year warranty. Plus you are only risking $75, not $2,000 🙂
With that out of the way, Massdrop is offering the new condition open-back over-ear Hifiman HE-35X for $75 with free S&H and free returns.
NOTE that this is a dynamic headphone, NOT planar-magnetic!
Thursday: Pioneer SE-MJ503-K Closed On-Ears for $14
On the budget side of closed-back on-ears, good until Thursday April 23 in 2020 at 11:59pm pacific time [or before that if sold out], New EGG is offering as one of their deals of the day the new condition Pioneer SE-MJ503-K (K for black color scheme) for $14 with free US shipping. No promo codes, no mail-in rebates! These have a folding design.
Thursday Daily Deals: JBL, B&O Truly Wireless, and Sony 1000XM3 bundled with 65″ UHD TV
It’s headphone day in the Best Buy daily deals for Thursday April 23 in 2020 as follows:
+ JLab Epic Executive neckband bluetooth earphones for $45
+ Bang & Olufsen BeoPlay E.8 2.0 truly wireless for $200
+ Sony WH-1000X Mark III headphones bundled with the Sony 65″ 4K UHD TV (with HDR) for $1030
But that’s not all. At Woot, they are offering the new condition JBL T450 wired closed on-ears for $20, available in either blue or white color-schemes, with up to three pairs per customer at the sale price. They come with a 1-year JBL warranty…
Massdrop Audiophile Sale In-Progress (15 options)
Massdrop is running an audiophile sale as of the time of writing, with the following 12 headphones and 3 amp/DACs participating… I do not know when the sale ends…
We start with the amp/DACs, in price order:
- MASSDROP X ALEX CAVALLI TUBE HYBRID AMP (CTH) for $175
- MASSDROP X ALEX CAVALLI LIQUID CARBON X AMP for $200
- MASSDROP CTH + SDAC DAC/AMP for $250
And now we go to the headphones, first the four in-ears, in price order:
- Massdrop x Noble X Universals for $125
- Massdrop Plus Universals for $200
- Massdrop x Noble Kaiser 10 Universals for $700
- Massdrop x Empire Ears Zeus Universals for $750
As you can see, being their own “brand” gives them more control over pricing. They don’t have to wait for manufacturer-authorized instant-savings promotions and MAPs and such 🙂
And now to the eight over/on-ear headphones, again in ascending price order:
- Drop + Hifiman HE-35X for $75
- Massdrop x Sennheiser PC-37X gaming headset for $100
- Drop + Hifiman HE-4XX planars for $145
- Sennheiser HD-58X Jubilee for $150
- Sennheiser HD-6XX for $195
- Beyerdynamic DT-17XX GO for $380
- KOSS ESP/95X electrostatic system for $400
- Drop + Mr Speakers Ether CX Closed for $750
Back In-Stock: Massdrop Objective 2 Head-Amp for $95 [110V Medium Gain only]
If you are a current or future member of the “Cult of the NwAvGuy”, we have good news for you! It is back in-stock at Massdrop, the new condition Massdrop Objective 2 headphone amp going for $95 with free US shipping. Up to ten per customer per shopping cart. Note however that only the 110V Medium Gain power adapter is available. The other three options are not available [greyed out in the shopping cart].
This is an “in-stock drop”, so it will ship quickly (but keep in mind COVID-19 is adding potential delays)…
Sony MDR-1A M2 for $148 [ends Wedn 11:59pm ET]
UPDATE: the sale price is $148 with free US shipping…
This is a 12-hour flash deal starting on Wednesday 4/22/20 at 12pm ET at B&H Photo and running for 12 hours (or earlier if sold out). It is the new condition closed-back over-ear Sony MDR-1A Mark II headphones. The price before the sale is $298. I do not know what the sale price will be. It will be revealed when the offer goes live at 12pm ET.
The headphones average 4.5 out of 5 based on 15 customer reviews.
M&O MOOH-BE00BT Closed Bluetooths for $45 w/FS [MD]
The normalization of bluetooth continues with CANJAM hype 🙂 These goofily named bluetooth over/on-ear [not sure which one it is] are available at the Massdrop website for $45 with free US shipping with a mid-May shipping estimate. There’s no mention of warranty in the listing…
“This” refers to the closed-back M&O MOOH-BE00BT, which come with a case and the usual (charging cable, audio cable, etc). These play with 3.5mm and over Bluetooth 4.0 with apt-X support.
They also come with a flat headphone stand. It is an unusual stand, it holds them folded, with one earcup resting on the flat stand. This is not a hanging stand [see pictures over there, easier than me trying to describe it here]. You can select in the shopping cart whether you want a clear or black stand.
Depending on the shape of the earcups of your other headphones, if/how they fold, and how their weight is balanced, they may or may not fit on these [unlike conventional standing stands that can fit most headphones].
Dekoni Eartips for $12+, AKG Earpads for $35 [MD]
If you are a fan of Dekoni “ear-thingies”, you’ve found the right post. Two parallel offers are currently running at Massdrop as follows…
The Dekoni Bulletz Ear Tips are offered for $12 in a multi-pack that contains three pairs, one in each size. You have options in the shopping cart for size (3mm or 4.9mm) and for +$3 you can get the “truly wireless” and for +$2 you can select single-size packs.
It’s easier when you play with the options in their shopping cart than describe it here in words :)… You can buy up to ten pairs and they come with free US shipping… They ship in mid-May 2020… As of the time of writing, they average 4.3 out of 5 based on 200 customer reviews…
AND now to the earpads. If have AKG headphones (and anything compatible/similar), they are offering the new condition Premium Earpads for AKG for $35 with free US shipping. Additionally, you have three options in the shopping cart that cost more for different material (sheepskin, hybrid, fenestrated).
They average 4.6 out of 5 based on 69 customer reviews as of the time of writing. The listed compatibility is the AKG K7XX, and select K6-series and K7-series models, along with their equivalent Q-series models. For more compatibility, check the reviews, comments and of course your favorite head-audio forums…
Tuesday: AKG N30 In-Ears for $80 w/FS
The official AKG store on NewEgg is offering the new condition AKG N30 in-ears for $80 with free US shipping for Tuesday April 21 in 2020 in the pacific time zone! The headphone is available in black or white. The sale goes live at 12:01am pacific time on Tuesday.
NOTE: I’m writing this about an hour before it goes live, so I don’t know if both colors will be on sale or one of them!
Sennheiser (Non-Bluetooth Wireless) RS175 for $200, RS135 for $100
If you are interested in non-bluetooth wireless headphones, the ones with the receiver base, a couple of the latest Sennheiser models are on sale at B&H Photo, namely the RS-135 RF (replaced the good old RS-120) going for $100, while the RS-175 goes for $200…
These newer models are not using the Kleer technology, while the previous models did…
Monday: Fuji Labs Sonique II earphones for $10
This is recurring every few days/weeks at the Newegg deals of the day, so if you miss it on the very important 4/20/20, you will probably find it again in the future. In the meantime, if you are reading this on time, you can get the new condition Fuji Labs Sonique II earphones with an “exercise” hook for $10 with free US shipping, with up to 20 pairs per customer at the sale price. This is sold and shipped by the Fuji Labs store at NewEgg.
They have a mic/remote, and their official “name” is AUFJ-PSQWTS306BK. You don’t need to memorize it, it won’t be on the HeadFi Semester Exams 😉
Sunday: Jabra Elite 65t truly wireless for $100
Good for Saturday April 19 in 2020, you can get the new condition Jabra Elite 65t truly wireless earphones for $100 in the titanium color scheme at the Best Buy website where it is one of their deals of the day…
Friday: Sennheiser Momentum Truly Wireless for $180, Samsung Galaxy S10e PAD, Etc
Lots of audio options are available in the April 17 in 2020 deals of the day at the Best Buy website. They are:
+ Sennheiser Momentum truly wireless for $180
+ Anker Soundcore Liberty 2 PRO truly wireless for $130
+ MEE Audio BTR bluetooth audio receiver for $25
+ on the smartphones with a headphone jack front, there are various offers on the new condition Samsung Galaxy S10e, with the lower prices on the carrier-versions. Some of them also get a $50 Best Buy e-gift-card. Per the listing this includes in the phone’s box “AKG tuned” earphones.
+ the $60 ION bluetooth speaker type thing is sold out
Tuesday: JLab JBuds Air TW for $40, Korg, Anker, Etc
A trio of retailers have headphone-related daily deals for Tuesday April 14 in 2020 as follows:
+ at Best Buy you can get the new condition JLab Jbuds Air truly wireless for $40
+ at NewEgg you can get the Anker Soundbuds Curve IPX7 bluetooth exercise earphones for $18 using promo code 93XPH74
+ at Woot Tech Favorites they have three potentially interesting audio-related items:
+ ISOtunes PRO bluetooth earphones for $56
+ Korg TM60BK Tuner and Metronome Combo with Clip on Microphone for $20
+ Saxholder Pro Instrument Holder for $25
Sennheiser HD 58X Open Over-Ears drop to $150 [MD]
IF you are 50-50 on whether to get the new Sennheiser HD 58X open-back over-ear headphones, there’s a small discount on them now at the Massdrop website tilting the scales to 52-48 🙂 You can get it for $150 with free US shipping and free US returns.
It comes with a 2-year warranty and it is an in-stock drop, which means it will ship within a couple of business days after purchase. You don’t have to wait for weeks and weeks for the order to ship. Of course given today’s #CoronaCrisis2020, actual delivery may take longer than pre-Corona…
Being a “modern incarnation”, it has a detachable cable, and it is individually serialized. It is made in Romania.
At checkout, you have optional options [LOL] for a combined purchase discount:
- Drop TRRS Balanced 2.5mm cable for +$45
- 3-year Drop warranty with Accidental Coverage (US market only) for +$20
- the Earpads and Objective 2 headphone-amp options are currently NOT available
- in the US, you can upgrade to faster shipping for +$5, or Overnight for +$15
Monday: Jaybird Tarah bluetooth earphones for $45 [also: Tascam, Anker]
Monday April 13 in 2020 comes in with a bluetooth earphone daily deal at the Best Buy website, it is the new condition Jaybird Tarah offered for $45 in the black-metallic-flash color scheme. The other two color schemes remain at the regular price of $100.
This averages 4.3 out of 5 based on 400+ customer reviews over there, and it’s a fairly small/lightweight necklace-style bluetooth earphone, so it’s not a surprise it has a six hour battery life. These are after all exercise-intended, with that little hook-thing that hooks on the inside of your ear like those Bose StayHear things… [I’m sure there’s a proper name for these but I can’t recall it at this very moment]…
UPDATE: one of the Newegg daily deals is the new condition Anker Soundcore Life 2 ANC/Bluetooth Over-Ears going for $40 when you enter the limited time promo code 93XPH73 in their shopping cart…
UPDATE #2 good until Friday 4/13/20 at 8am ET, the Musician’s Friend deal of hte day is the new condition Tascam TH-300X closed-back over-ear headphones for $40. These look familiar, they appear to have common ancestry with models sold under some other brands as well (CAD?)…
Friday: Insignia Earpods for $10, Corsair VOID, Sirius XM, Onkyo, Jabra Active Elite, Etc
Audio continues to be a theme and for the Friday 4/10/20 Best Buy daily deals with the following participating products:
+ Insignia (house brand) wired earpod-style earphones for $10
+ 4.3 out of 5 based on 820+ customer reviews
+ Corsair VOID PRO RGB SE Wireless Dolby 7.1 gaming headset in Yellowjackets color scheme for $55
+ ION Audio Sport XL 8″ 2-Way Tailgate Portable PA Speaker for $120
+ Sirius XM Onyx EZR Satellite Radio Receiver with Vehicle Kit for $25
UPDATE: but that’s not all. Audio is also the name of the game for the Friday Newegg daily deals as follows:
+ Jabra Elite Active 75t Navy Voice Assistant truly-wireless with $20 promotional gift card for $200
+ 128GB Samsung Endurance PRO microSDXC for $28
+ Onkyo HT-S7800 5.1.2 Channel Network Dolby Atmos Home Theater System for $550
FREE to Stream (Thur at 12pm ET): “DIY Mastering” class [9 hours long]
If you are interested in the artful craft of music mastering of the DIY kind, starting on Thursday April 9 in 2020, Creative LIVE will be streaming for FREE the nine hour class by Jesse Cannon “DIY Mastering”. The class will repeat overnight until 12pm ET on Friday.
If you like it after watching it, you can purchase it for $19.
A total of 26 lessons are part of the class, and there are a number of digital and audiophile related topics covered.
Lesson #3 “Dynamics and Loudness” is streaming for FREE all the time, so you can watch it regardless of the free-streaming promotion. TRIGGER WARNING: he makes some audiophile-controversial comments about the Loudness Wars. You have been warned ^_^
PS: the teacher of this class has also written a couple of music, the most recent being the 2020-updated “Get More Fans: the DIY Guide to the New Music Business” (722 pages even)…
UPDATE: I have watched the whole class, lots of interesting things if you are not familiar with the DIY mastering process. There was discussion of speakers and headphones. The three headphones the instructor uses (secondary to the speakers) are the Sennheiser HD 280 closed-back over-ears, the good old Sennheiser HD 202, and #TriggerWarning, the Ultrasone PRO 900.
Thursday: Insignia pod-style bluetooth earphones for $20
Two bluetooth earphones are on sale for Thursday 4/9/20 at the Best Buy deals of the day as follows:
+ Insignia (house brand) for $20; these are more pod-style, not in-ears, not earbuds
+ average 4.2 out of 5 based on nearly 500 customer reviews
+ Taotronics TT-BH069BB ANC for $30
+ average 3 out of 5 based on 21 customer reviews
+ also of audio interest, SiriusXM Onyx Plus Satellite Radio Receiver with Home Kit for $45, a couple of remote controls, and an ION Audio projector type of thing for $150.
Speaking of audio related, the Adorama daily deal (changes at 10am eastern every day) is the new condition H&A Professional USB Microphone For Podcasting and Studio Recording (with Stand, model HAUPM) going for $50 with free US shipping…
UPDATE: part of the NewEgg daily deals for this day is the new condition Philips UpBeat SHB-2505WT/00 truly wireless going for $38 with free US shipping, sold by NewEgg actual, with up to three pairs per customer at the sale price.
Drop + MrSpeakers Ether CX Closed V-Planar Over-Ears for $750
Massdrop is back with another Xclusive offering, this time around their co-operation is with Mr Speakers (aka Dan Clark Audio), and for $750 with free US shipping you can get the new condition closed-back over-ear DROP + MRSPEAKERS ETHER CX headphones which are not just planar but “accordion” V-planars!
They come with a 2-year warranty and being an “in-stock drop”, it ships within a couple of business days after purchase. It’s not one of those long-shipping offers…
Optionally in the shopping cart you can buy it together Drop + THX AAAâ„¢ 789 Linear Amplifier for a $25 off combined purchase discount, making the THX a +$375 on your order total (instead of +$400 if purchased separately)…
Wedn: FujiLabs Sonique SQ306 II In-Ears for $10
Good until 4/8/20 at 11:59pm pacific time, the Fuji Labs NewEgg online store is offering the new condition FujiLabs Sonique SQ306 II In-Ears for $10 with free US shipping. This is available in two color schemes. They have earhooks of sorts. Limit up to five per customer at the sale price.
They average 5 out of 5 based on nine customer reviews and they have three answers…
Sony WH-CH400 bluetooth on-ears for $30
If you are looking for simple name-brand bluetooth closed-back on-ears, select colors of the new condition Sony wH-CH400 headphones are on sale for $30 at B&H Photo, an authorized Sony dealer…
Or if you prefer to live more dangerously, you can get it for around $18 with free US shipping in various “other” conditions from various eBay sellers…
It has 30mm drivers, supports bluetooth 4.2 with NFC, supports SBC and AAC only [well, it’s a budget thing after all], with micro-USB charging…
Focal Listen Chic bluetooth over-ears for $169
Do you like purple headphones? If so, you can get a pretty, pretty, pretty good deal on the new condition FOCAL Listen Chic bluetooth over-ears, they are on sale for $169 with free US shipping at B&H Photo… The other three colors go for $299…
This is not a daily deal, so I do not know when the price will change…
Optionally you can purchase the headphone together with an AURAY headphone stand with a 20% off discount on the price of the AURAY (not the headphone)…
They come with a 2-year warranty, a carrying case, detachable cable (for 3.5mm listening) and charging cable. The bluetooth is version 4.1 with apt-X support.
I must admit, the green and blue color schemes look nicer than the purple, but not $130 nicer for sure 🙂
PS: if you don’t want them purple Listen Chics, please feel free to send them to me. I will unbox and review them eventually 🙂
Monday: Sennheiser CX 2.00i In-Ears for $18
If you are a fan of the budget stubby Sennheiser earphones (I guess one could theoretically call them in-ears) you have until 11:59pm eastern time on Monday 4/6/20 to get them for $18 with free US shipping at B&H Photo where it’s one of their daily deals. This is available in three options with Apple and Samsung remote options available (select correct listing tabs for that)…
UPDATE: speaking of daily deals for this day, the BestBuy dailies offer the JAM Tune neckband bluetooth earphones for $25…
UPDATE #2: Amazon Germany’s dailies go in the ear as well, they have Samsung truly wireless in their Gold Box…
Sunday: Insignia Closed Over-Ear Bluetooths for $20 [also: Marshall, Crown Audio]
Good until Sunday 4/5/20 night, Best Buy offers as one of their deals du jour their new condition Insignia bluetooth over-ears for $20. If you miss the daily deal, it currently goes for $18 as open-box. Insignia is their house brand…
This is a closed-back over-ear bluetooth product with an average of 4.5 out of 5 based on 2000+ customer reviews over there. It also plays music via 3.5mm. Its full name is NS-CAHBTOE01 and comes with a 1-year warranty.
When you open the PDF “Quick Start” guide shown over there, you will learn that this is a bluetooth 4.1.
UPDATE: a couple of other audio products are also offered at the Best Buy daily deals today:
+ Marshall Kilburn II Portable Bluetooth Speaker for $150
+ Insignia Tabletop FM/HD Radio for $40
And at B&H Photo, also part of their Sunday deals du jour you can get for $170 after an automatically-applied in-cart coupon the new condition Crown Audio XLi 1500 Stereo Power Amplifier…
UPDATE #2 for a limited time (does not an expiration time), Amazon is offering the digital download edition of “PreSonus Studio One 4 Artist Recording Software Suite” for $70…
Sennheiser PC-37X gaming headset down to $100
If you are a fan of gaming and Sennheiser and Massdrop too, there is a sale on the new condition Sennheiser PC-37X gaming headset for $100 with free US shipping and free US returns. And it comes with a 2-year warranty. If you want more, you can optionally purchase an extended 3-year warranty for +$15.
Good news, this is an “in-stock drop”, so it will ship a couple of business days after purchase. It is not the “classic” Massdrop drop…
Saturday: JBL Live truly wireless for $50
It’s the truly wireless party train at Best Buy, as one of their Saturday April 4 (2020) deals du jour is the new condition JBL Live truly wireless going for $50.
But that’s not all for Saturday ~ if you want to feed your DAPs or PADs or tablets and such, Newegg.com is offering the 256GB Samsung microSD memory card for $40, and you can buy up to three of them at the sale price. These are sold by Newegg actual, not iffy marketplace sellers 🙂
Shure’s $50 Bluetooth Upgrade Mail-In offer ends 4/30/20
If you don’t hate mail-in rebate with the passion of one million burning suns, and if you are into the Shure ecosystem, their Bluetooth cable upgrade offer expires on April 30 in 2020.
Now before I continue, I should point out that I do not know whether this is or will be impacted by the Corona delays, so keep that in mind.
Anyway, the offer is this: if you have an existing Shure in-ear with the Bluetooth 4.1 cable, AND you purchase a Shure in-ear with a bluetooth 5.0 cable, then you can submit a mail-in rebate (details on what to send and where at the aforelinked page) and after 8-10 weeks you will receive a $50 mail-in rebate.
This offer includes the previously mentioned Shure SE-215 SI Wireless which go for $79.
PS: if you have the Shure SE-112 which does not have a detachable cable, you’d have to send the whole thing. For the other older SE in-ears with a detachable cable, you only send the bluetooth cable, you keep the in-ears and everything else that came with it.
Shure SE-215 SI with Bluetooth 5.0 Cable and free water bottle (!!!) for $79
In the Fall of 2019, Shure (re)launched a new set of SE-series Sound Isolating earphones, and hearing (pun intended) the call for bluetooth earphones, they have launched the Wireless Noise-Isolating SE-215 in-ears in four different color schemes
These are currently going for $79 with free US shipping at B&H Photo which, for a limited time, includes a free gift, a Shure-branded water bottle (which you can also purchase separately for $10 each). Contrary to rumors heard in some forums, the water bottle is strictly for drinking water, and not for altering the sound signature of the bluetooth signal. Because when passing through water, treble spikes become more mellow 😉
Anyway, the important thing of these in-ears of bluetooth interest is that they come with a detachable bluetooth 5.0 cable with supports most the major CODECs (but not LDAC).
Accessories include eartips, a carrying case, clip, micro-USB cable and a 2-year warranty.
NOTE: that these “with Bluetooth 5.0 cable” models do not come with a wired cable. You have to use your own from previous compatible MMCX models or purchase one if you wish to use them both wired and wireless…
EU: Shure SRH-440 Closed Over-Ears for 69 euro [limit 2]
For those in the European Union, a formerly frequently recommended “under 100” is on sale at Amazon Germany, it is the new condition closed-back over-ear Shure SRH-440 studio headphones going for 70 euro with free shipping in GermanyxAustria, with up to two pairs per customer at the sale price. There it averages 4.4 out of 5 based on 840+ customer reviews…
LG V40 ThinQ PAD for $330 [ends Sat PM]
It’s PAD time! Good until Saturday 4/4/20 at 11:59pm eastern, B&H Photo is offering the new condition unlocked LG V40 ThinQ smartphone for $330 with free US shipping…
This is now two flagships behind (the latest flagship is the V60 which is about to roll out), so it has the Snapdragon 845 processor, with 6GB of RAM, 64GB of on-board storage and a microSD slot (up to a theoretical 2TB, to fill up with music). It also has the newer Bluetooth 5.0, IP68, Quick Charge 3.0, USB Type C, etc.
And of course on main audio interest is the 32-bit Quad DAC…
Recent Comments