EU: Sennheiser HD 559 Open Over-Ears for 73 euro

Sennheiser is a German company, so it’s not a surprise that some of the best prices for their headphones can be found on Amazon Germany, such as the new condition open-back over-ear HD 559 headphones currently going for 73 euro, with a limit of up to three per customer at the sale price. These are sold and shipped by Amazon actual.

VAT is included and no additional taxes/customs are charged in European Union countries. Outside the EU, it depends on your location. The shopping cart may give you estimates though.

I haven’t heard this or the predecessor HD 558, but some of the customer reviews say they prefer the predecessor. Check those and forums and such. It is not uncommon for some people to prefer a “previous generation” model as headphones are not like smartphones 🙂

October 14, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With:

Sunday: UrbanEars Hellas Bluetooth On-Ears for $49

Running until Sunday 10/14/18 at 11:59pm eastern time, as one of the “deals du jour”, New York’s B&H Photo is offering the new condition Urban Ears Hellas bluetooth closed-back on-ear headphones for $49 with free shipping in your choice of three color schemes. They average 3.8 out of 5 based on six customer reviews. I have not used or seen these, so YMMV…

October 13, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Budget Monoprice Two Pairs of Earphones with Free Shipping

Good until the end of day (in the pacific time zone), Monoprice is having an audio sale that also has two “secret” coupons! Coupon code EAR10 gets you TWO pairs of the MP10 budget earphones for $14 total with free shipping, while coupon code EAR20 gets you TWO pairs of the MP20 budget in-ears for $24 with likewise free shipping.

PS: the MP20 mayhaps look a little bit Symphonized?

October 11, 2018 Filed Under: in-ears Tagged With: ,

Used Audio Technica ATH-WS1100 iS for $95+

As of the time of writing, you can slash the new condition price in half for new closed-back Audio Technica ATH-WS 1100 iS, part of their closed-back “Solid Back” series. Sold through Amazon Warehouse Deals (AWD) by AWD actual, you can get it for $95~ in “Used – Acceptable” [a higher risk condition], or $109~ in “Very Good” or $116~ in “Used – Like New”. These headphones average 4.4 out of 5 based on over 110 customer reviews.

October 11, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Plantronics Backbeat Sense for $55 [bluetooth]

The “bluetooth on-ear” market is getting more and more price-competitive, so down it goes the new condition Plantronics Backbeat Sense Wireless (bluetooth) with mic, in the white color scheme (it’s not white, it’s a white-brown-etc blend), selling at the moment for $55 by a marketplace seller with the order fulfilled by Amazon where it averages 3.6 out of 5 based on 32 customer reviews; a sign of trade-offs, so read up on it if you are not already familiar with it….

October 11, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Used Focal Spirit One S closed-back for $49

FOCAL started slow with their headphone line-up before going on an audiophile big bang that got us many options, such as the Elear, Clear, Utopia and so forth…

Of the first wave of closed-back models, the Focal Spirit One S is currently offered in “Used – Like New” condition [no further details provided] for $49 with free shipping by marketplace seller “Fique” (96%, 730+ ratings) through Amazon Warehouse Deals. This ships directly from the marketplace seller and it is NOT Prime-eligible, so there is some higher risk since you won’t be dealing with Amazon shipment and customer service for any order-related issues…

October 10, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Sennheiser Urbanite XL Closed Over-Ears for $70

The Urbanite was one of Sennheiser’s attempts at counter the ever-growing popularity of the pre-Apple Beats headphones. It hasn’t grown as much as the Momentum line (now sold as HD1 in some markets) in terms of model line-up, but their new condition over-ear closed-back wired model, the “Urbanite XL” is currently on sale for $70 with free shipping by Amazon actual with up to three pairs per customer at the sale price… At Amazon, this averages 3.8 out of 5 based on nearly 200 customer reviews. I have seen them but have not listened to them…

October 10, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Used Sony MDR-1A Closed Over-Ears for 92 euro

UPDATE: as of 10/22/18 recheck, the price increased to around 92 euro for the silver color-scheme in the same condition. The other color is slightly more…

And now off to Germany we go, where the closed-back over-ear (previous generation) Sony MDR-1A is offered in multiple listings and in various conditions starting at around 87 euro in “Used – Good condition” by Amazon Warehouse Deals actual, with prices rising to 92~ euro in “Used – Very Good”, and 97~ in “Used – Like New” on the fifth page of the results.

Strategically, given all these listings, one can play the waiting game and see how low the Amazon price computers will drop their prices given all the pages and pages of listings.

October 10, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Audio Technica ATH-AD700X Open Over-Ears for $96

There are not that many open-back options under $100, especially with Philips bowing out with their half-legendary SHP-9500/S [see our unboxing] and the Status Audio OB-1 being hard to find… But Sennheiser and Grado are not the only games in town either! Audio Technica has its own ATH-AD series and the second entry in this line, their ATH-AD700X open-back over-ears is currently on sale for the very specific price of $95.72 by Amazon actual…

October 10, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Used Sony XP550 AP Extra Bass for $20

If you want to try the Sony Extra Bass line without breaking the bank, you can go the way of the used, as as of the time of writing, Amazon Warehouse Deals has the black color scheme of the 2017 model of the XB550 AP Extra Bass for under $20 in “Used – Very Good” condition with free shipping for Prime members. Make sure AWD itself is the seller [or any other sellers you recognize]… Of the other color schemes, the blue is available for $22~ BUT it is only in “Used – Acceptable” condition, so that’s a higher risk…

October 10, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Used Sony WH-CH700N ANC/BT for $90

If you are a fond of used, and bluetooth and ANC, the Sony WH-CH700N headphone is available at the moment in “Used – Very Good” condition for the very specific price of $89.50 with free shipping by Amazon Warehouse Deals itself (AWD). Make sure AWD is the actual seller, and not the iffy sellers over there…

We have a text and pictures un-boxing of this very headphone… The PORG is NOT included 🙂

October 10, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: , , ,

[DEAD] Used Grado SR80e open on-ear for $84

As of a 10/18/18 re-check, this sold out in used condition, but such is the cycle of used Grados on Amazon. If you wait, it will eventually return…

If you are Grado-curious but don’t want to pay the full price, then Amazon Warehouse Deals comes to the rescue as they currently have a “Used – Like New” (comes in original packaging [that’s a spartan “pizza box”]) for the very specific price of $84.15 with free shipping. The new condition price at authorized Grado dealers is $100… This is an open-back model and a low-risk entry-point into the “Grado sound”…

October 10, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Wedn: Philips O’Neill The Construct (Closed On-Ears) for $29

One of the Woot daily deals for 10/10/18 at Woot Electronics is the new condition Philips SHO7205 O’Neill The Construct closed-back on-ear headphones going for $29 with free shipping for Prime members or $5 flat (regardless of order size during a single calendar day in the central time zone) for non-members. It is available in two color schemes with up to ten pairs per customer.

PS: speaking of on-ears, the Monoprice lightweight closed on-ears are in, and an “unboxing post” is in the works. These appear to share a common ancestry with the AmazonBasics version [which appear to be gone from Amazon’s USA and Germany websites] but I don’t have them anymore, so I can’t compare them directly. From early listening, it sounds like they have a similar sound signature: tastefully bassy, better suited for modern music; not classical…

October 9, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With:

[DEAD] EU: Used Creative Aurvana LIVE 2 for 41 euro

As of a 10/22/18 re-check, the used options sold out…

[Read more…]

October 2, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

EU: Yamaha EPH-M100 In-Ears for 34 euro

UPDATE 10/22/18: this price is now offered by a 3rd-party seller that is fulfilled by Amazon.

If you are a fan of the Yahama earphones, the new condition EPH-M100 in-ears, in the white color scheme (it’s black and white) is currently on sale for 34 euro at Amazon Germany. No additional taxes for EU residents. Elsewhere, it varies depending on your situation.

October 1, 2018 Filed Under: in-ears Tagged With:

Amazon Germany sale: Sennheiser HD 4.50 SE for 120 euro, Denon MM400 for 199 euro, Etc

Amazon Germany is having an Autumn Deals theme with various deals coming and going and these days there is a headphone themes sale as follows:

+ Sennheiser HD 4.50 Special Edition for 120 euro with up to two pairs per customer
+ these are closed-back over-ear bluetooth headphones (with apt-X) with active noise cancelling (ANC) technology

+ a Denon and Polk sale that includes two Denon headphones, the Music Maniac AH-MM400 for 199 euro, and the AH-D1200 for 139 euro

+ a sale of budget audio includes the Anchor Sound Core Spirit X bluetooth earphones going for 28 euro

These get free shipping with orders of 29 euro or higher in Germany. All European Union countries pay the same price, no customs or additional VAT.

September 27, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

EarStudio ES100 bluetooth DAC/amp for $89 after coupon

For 9/26/18 only, you can feed your DAPs, PADs (Phones as DAPs) and backup or network your digital music with external hard drives as part of the Amazon Gold Box. They feature high capacity Sandisk memory cards (microSD and SD), along with external hard drives from Western Digital (WD) and G-Technology.

On the other hand, with no deadline set in stone, there’s a $10 off clip-on coupon [nothing to type, just click on the empty box next to the coupon name while logged on to your Amazon account] that drops the price of the new condition EarStudio ES100 24-bit Bluetooth DAC/amp from $99 to $89, with free Prime shipping for members of said service. This critter averages 4.5 out of 5 based on 150 customer reviews and it has 120+ answered questions by viewers like you. However, 7% of the customer reviews are 1-star, so read those to consider the trade-offs and potential issues.

September 26, 2018 Filed Under: amps and dacs Tagged With: ,

Ends Sat 3am ET: EarStudio ES-100 Bluetooth DAC/amp for $75

Into the Amazon Forest Gold Box we go where we find one of the deals of the day running until Saturday at 3am Eastern on the 1st of September in 2018 is the new condition EarStudio ES100 24-bit Bluetooth DAC/amp going for $75 with free shipping. This is fulfilled by Amazon, so Prime members get free 2-day shipping. You can buy as many as you want.

Its review profile has beefed up since the last time I checked, it averages 4.5 out of 5 based on 110+ customer reviews, with 6% of them being 1-star and 92% of them being 5 and 4 stars. Out of five that is. This has lots of buzzwords including apt-X, apt-X HD, AAC, balanced output, 24-bit, custom app, etc.

The marketers aim high for this, as picture #3 in the product gallery is a high end Sennheiser headphone…

August 31, 2018 Filed Under: amps and dacs Tagged With: ,

Audio and Musical Instruments as part of Prime Day 2018 sales

The Prime Day sales include a dedicated Audio and Musical Instruments sale that includes a trio of famous Audio Technica “Studio” headphones, the M30X for $52~, M40X for $74~, and the M50X for $112~. There’s also a few AT turntables and mics, JBL speakers, the Shure SE-112 BT1 bluetooth earphones for $69, a budget “getting started” electric guitar kit for $75 (Prime shipped), and various other guitars and musical instruments.

Separately, they are offering the new condition nuraphone smart headphones for $299 with free shipping…

July 16, 2018 Filed Under: audio gear Tagged With:

Bose QuietComfort 25 Acoustic Noise Cancelling Headphones for $125

The Prime Day sales are under way, and among them, the new condition Bose QuietComfort 25 Acoustic Noise Cancelling Headphones are on sale for a limited time for $125 with free shipping in your choice of iOS or Android buttoned models. Limit up to three per customer at the sale price. These are an older model with ANC but no bluetooth. They average 4.2 out of 5 based on 3370+ customer reviews and they have 1000+ answered questions.

July 16, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

In-Stock: Audeze LCD2 Closed for $899

It is not hard to lose track of the various Audeze headphones as they have similar names and variations on a theme. One of their latest models is the LCD2 Closed-Back planar over-ears and as of the time of writing, five units of these are in-stock and shipping for their starting price of $899 by World Wide Stereo (WWS), through Amazon. Prime members get them with Prime-like delivery speed even though they ship directly from WWS.

July 16, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: , ,

Prime Day starts later today, including 10% back on B&O

Get ready Prime members who happen to be shoppaholics! Prime Day 2018 begins later today at 12pm pacific time (Amazon server time; translates to 3pm eastern). But in the meantime you can participate in some of the Statement Credit promotions if you are a Prime member and have either on one of the Amazon credit cards (either the Prime Chase VISA credit card, or the Prime Amazon store credit card). Among the cashback (statement credit) options offered:

+ 10% back on Bang & Olufsen products

+ 10% back on Musical Instruments which include a variety of headphones under the Studio Product category. There’s 80 of them in the headphones sub-category but there are also other related products in other sub-categories – as it is often the case with categorization, it’s only as good as the methodology and the people implementing it ~ and nobody’s perfect.

UPDATE: among the latest Prime Day offers currently in progress you can get the new condition Beats 3 Studio Wireless headphones in the Matte Black color scheme for $200 with free shipping, sold and shipped by Amazon actual, with up to three pairs per customer at the sale price…

Of audio interest, Amazon is bundling the SONOS ONE smart speaker with a $50 plastic Amazon.com gift card, all together going for $200 with free shipping.

NOTE that the Prime Day offers, as the name suggests, are offered for Prime members. If not a member, you can start a free trial and join in the shopping party…

Meanwhile starting at 8:15pm ET on Monday is a Prime Day lightning deal the new condition Jabra MOVE closed-back on-ear bluetooth headphones…

July 15, 2018 Filed Under: store sale

Open-Box Bang & Olufsen BeoPlay H6 with DJ Khaled for $115

Another refill of the longer running Woot Plus headphone sale includes the open-box Bang & Olufsen BeoPlay H6 with DJ Khaled (obviously DJ) headphones going for $115 with free shipping for Prime members (or $5 flat for non-members) and with a 30-day Woot warranty. These are wired closed-back headphones, no bluetooth here…

June 30, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Monoprice MP5 Earphones for $4.49 w/free S&H

A doorbuster at the Monoprice website. Not only it is on sale, but it gets the all important free US standard shipping, even if you only buy one pair of earphones! It is the new condition Monoprice MP5 earphones going for $4.49 with free US shipping (no minimum order amount), with up to ten pairs per customer at the sale price. The other nice thing of the free shipping on this, if you buy other items that don’t get free shipping, the free shipping promotion may absorb some (or all ~ depending on items) of their S&H fees.

PS: a handful of other Monoprice headphones and audio products are on sale and/or get free standard US shipping.

June 26, 2018 Filed Under: in-ears Tagged With:

Tuesday: Master & Dynamic MH-30 On-Ears for $130 w/FS

This recurring daily deal at the Best Buy website has returned, good until the end of day on Tuesday night 6/26/18, you can get the new condition Master & Dynamic MH-30 On-Ears, closed-back, in the gunmetal/black color scheme for $130 with free shipping or free store pickup where available/possible…

June 26, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With:

Sony XB-950 B1 Bluetooth Over-Ears for $100

Like a choir, authorized Sony USA dealers have currently dropped the prices of the new condition Sony XB 950 B1 headphones to $100, such as Best Buy and Amazon itself. This is a closed-back over-ear headphone with bluetooth (hence the “B” in its name) but not ANC.

June 24, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Monoprice MP10 Earphones for $8 w/free S&H and more

The Monoprice website has a trio of coupons running until Monday but they also have some stand-alone sales with free standard US shipping:

+ MP10 In-Ears for $8 with free standard US shipping
+ these look like stubby shallow insertion basic earphones with a 4.1 out of 5 based on 17 customer reviews
+ these are eligible for the coupons but your order total must reach the coupon minimum amounts before you get the coupon discount
+ five of these are $25+, making them eligible for the $5 off $25+ coupon [see below], making them $7 per
+ limit ten per customer

+ open-box Monoprice 25 Watt Stereo Hybrid Tube Amplifier with Bluetooth for $80 with free standard US shipping
+ not coupon eligible

Coupons Ending Monday 6/25/18
+ GOAL5 is $5 off orders of $25+
+ GOAL20 is 20% off orders of $150+
+ GOAL25 is 25% off orders of $300+
+ these minimum purchase thresholds must needs be reached with products that are eligible for the discount. Non-coupon-eligible products don’t count towards the minimum needed to activate the coupon discounts

June 22, 2018 Filed Under: store sale Tagged With: ,

Make your own eBAY deal: 15% off $25+ orders

eBAY is back once again with another coupon promotion for select retailers. The offer is this: enter coupon code PLAYFUL15 and receive 15% off orders of participating items/retailers of $25 or higher. The coupon expires at the end of day on 6/23/18. The coupons that are unconditional typically only last eight hours, while the coupons that run for multiple days (like this coupon) are only eligible for select retailers…

When you follow the menus, there are over 430 items under the Headphones category. More related items are under the “Portable Audio” category, and other six degrees of separation items under various other categories.

June 19, 2018 Filed Under: store sale Tagged With: ,

2-Day Sale: M-Audio Micro DAC (USB) for $24 w/FS, RS160, Senal, Etc

New York’s B&H Photo is running a big 2-day sale until Wednesday at 11:59pm eastern on June 20 in 2018. Among the items offered:

+ M-Audio Micro DAC USB Digital to Analog Converter for $24 w/free S&H

+ Sennheiser PMX 684i neckband earbuds for $20

+ Sennheiser RS160 wireless (Kleer technology), previous generation, for $85

+ Senal SMH-1200 studio headphones for $60

+ Tascam VL-S3 14W + 14W 3″ Powered Studio Monitor (Pair, Black) with free On-Stage foam speaker platforms for $50

June 18, 2018 Filed Under: store sale

Sunday Daily Deals: $20 Truly Wireless, $120 Tascam Bundle, $250 M&D MH40

A couple of headphone related offers are part of the daily deals at New York’s critically acclaimed B&H Photo until 11:59pm eastern on Sunday as follows:

+ if you want to try “truly wireless” without breaking the bank, the new condition Pom Gear Pilot True Wireless Earbuds are on sale for $20 with free shipping in your choice of three different color schemes

+ Tascam Trackpack 2×2 recording bundle for $120 with free shipping
+ includes 2×2 USB audio interface, the well-regarded for their low price TH-02 headphones, and the TM-80 microphone

Next up, we move to Best Buy where one of their daily deals is the new condition Master & Dynamic MH-40 in the brown color scheme going for $250 with free shipping or free store pickup. Different Master & Dynamic headphones are frequently featured in the Best Buy daily deals this year…

June 17, 2018 Filed Under: headphones, truly wireless Tagged With: , , , ,

Sat: refurb AKG N60NC for $80, N60NCBT for $130 [w/1yr W]

Good until Sunday at 1am eastern, Woot is offering a couple of factory refurbished AKG on-ears. The wired N60NC (noise cancelling) goes for $80, while the bluetooth + ANC N60NCBT goes for $130. They come with a 1-year AKG warranty.

Note also that Woot has added a new benefit for Amazon Prime members. Eligible products will get free two-day shipping, not just slow free shipping! This levels up the benefit to the regular Amazon website. Products that are not shipped/fulfilled by Woot-Amazon will not be eligible for free 2-day shipping as usual.

June 16, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: , , ,

Now shipping: the Monoprice M600 and M650 Open-Back headphones for $130 and $150

It’s the Attack of the Name Clones and they are now in-stock and ready to ship! The Sennheiser HD 600 and HD 650 are two of the most influential open-back headphones in the history of audiophoolia, so of course Monoprice “had to have” two open-back headphones with the 600 and 650 numbers 🙂 I haven’t seen or heard thee new Monoprice headphones, so check reviews and forums and such for more details…

But if you have already researched them, or you are ready to boldly go and give them a try, the new open-back M600 headphones are in-stock for $130, while the open-back M650 headphones are in-stock for $150. They get free standard US shipping which is a plus since Monoprice does not have predictable free shipping like Amazon or Best Buy.

Just like Sennheiser itself undercut the HD 600 and HD 650 with the Massdrop-exclusive HD 6XX, Monoprice is now undercutting the HD 6XX with their M600 and M650 duo.

June 15, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Monoprice 2-Day coupon: 20% off $150+ eligible orders

FriYAY is here once again, and with it it brings the recurring Monoprice.com 20% off orders of $150+ in eligible products promotion. This time around the coupon name is SIZZLIN20 and it expires Saturday night. Unfortunately none of the Monolith headphones are eligible for the coupon. Also not eligible is the in-stock and shipping $100 Monolith USB DAC/amp…

Speaking of Monoliths, their Monolith line of products continues to expand in many directions! Note however that I only tested the coupons on the headphone-related products, I don’t know if they work on the other products.

June 15, 2018 Filed Under: store sale Tagged With: ,

Audio-Technica ATH-DSR7BT “Pure Drive” Bluetooth Over-Ears for $200

The Best Buy daily deals have also triggered a price-match of this at Amazon by Amazon actual, it is the new condition Audio-Technica ATH-DSR7BT closed-back over-ear bluetooth headphones using the recently revealed A-T “Pure Drive” hype-technology/buzz-word. Limit three per customer at Amazon. They support apt-X HD.

June 13, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: , ,

Wedn: Sennheiser PX684i neckband earbuds for $20 w/FS; LG V30S ThinQ for $600

There are two headphone-related offers at the B&H Daily Deals running until Wednesday at 11:59pm eastern (or earlier if any of them happens to sellout ahead of time).

We start with the earphones, they are earbuds, of the neckband type. IT is the new condition Sennheiser PMX 684i In-Ear Neckband Sports earbuds with iOS remote control buttons for $20 with free shipping.

Next up, on the PADs front (Phones as DAPs), the new condition factory unlocked LG V30S ThinQ Smartphone (128GB onboard) is offered for $600 with free shipping with two different color options to pick from. This was among the last Snapdragon 835 smartphones with a headphone jack [the latest models have the 845], with 128GB of on-board storage plus microSD slot for even more FLACs and WAVs and such, Android 8.0, 6″ screen, a solid 6GB RAM which should be more than enough for all your music streaming and equalizing and visualizing needs, Bluetooth 5.0, apt-X HD, FM radio, USB Type C version 3.1, and so forth. And of course the famous V-series DAC technology.

June 13, 2018 Filed Under: digital audio players, earbuds, neckband earphones Tagged With: , , ,