Sennheiser PXC 250 II Collapsible Noise-Canceling Headphones (Discontinued by Manufacturer)

I am a big Sennheiser fan and, as I have poor hearing, I used a set of their fine headphones for years for my wireless TV reception (while my wife listened to our Bose speakers which I could barely hear.) Unfortunately when that original set of Sennheisers gave out I had to settle for a less than ideal Sony headset for the TV since the original Sennheiser was discontinued and the new ones were not up to the original quality--irrelevant but possibly useful information for people seeking to solve similar hearing challenges). I bought these (PXC 250 II) primarily to listen to music through my laptop or iPhone while on long flights (they are noise canceling) or while walking our property. They are admittedly a compromise, which is to say the ear cups are "on ears" not "over ears" (not entirely a disadvantage as you are able to pick up announcements, people calling your name, etc.) and thus they do not negate all external noise. However, they exclude perhaps 80%, quite adequate, of ambient noise, strikingly noticeable when you flip the cancel switch (nice that you have that on/off option--requiring an AAA battery to power the noise canceling, but the set still works conventionally without it). Most important, these collapse into an ingenious tiny spider shape that is practically weightless and snugs into a soft case they provide, taking very little room in your flight bag, unlike sets that may be a bit more effective at noise canceling but are heavy and bulky. Good sound and they do the job well. An Amazon tech specialist recommended these and I am indebted to his pro and con list of alternatives. Nothing like an expert who knows his stuff! Kudos to Amazon for providing this service.

I have owned more then a few headphones and some of them have been noise canceling. This has to be the worst I have ever bought. These were suppose to be one of the more comfortable traveling headphones with noise canceling. Well I work in a Datacenter that has allot of equipment noise and these headphones hurt my ears after just an hour. They only reduce the noise by about 50%.I have a $20 pair of headphones that are more comfortable and the sound is superior. I tried to save a few bucks this time and wished I never had. Its back to the Bose headphones for me, at least I can wear those all day and they reduce over 90% of the noise. Should have known better.

I've owned more than half a dozen of both the original PXC-250 and PXC-250 II models in just as many years. They've become a "must" item in my backpack alongside iPod for every trip I take and have traveled with me all over the world.I find them to offer an optimal combination of sound quality, active noise cancellation, comfort and size.No, you probably won't be happy with the level of noise cancellation for "quiet" times (for that you might want Bose and whatnot)- after all, these are rather small on-ear headphones, so can't possibly reduce the noise the way a big supra-aural (over the ear) headset would. But the noise cancellation is sufficient enough to drown out airplane engines and NYC subway noises while listening to your tunes.In fact, I've auditioned about a dozen noise-cancelling headsets in the $200-300 range at an electronics shop, most of which were also bigger and bulkier, including Dr. Dre/Monster Studio Beats and none came close in accuracy and quality of sound reproduction to Sennheiser PXC-250.And even know I own other regular (i.e. not noise-canceling) headsets, I practically never use any of them, as I prefer the sound quality of PXC-250 with the noise-canceling turned on even in quieter environments. They sound better with noise-canceling ON no matter where you are.I can wear them for hours on end (like on those transatlantic or transpacific flights), without my ears getting hot or achy from pressure (and I'd say my head is fairly large- I wear size L for headgear).They are super lightweight, and compact (fold-up nicely to a very flat package), yet super sturdy- I haven't had a single pair that would break (except for the switch- more on that below). Even the wires seem to be of very high quality, as even when I'd accidentally pull hard on a wire that got caught on something, I never ripped it or damaged any connection points.Unfortunately, every pair I've previously had (including PXC-250 II) sooner or later developed the same problem- the switch that's turns noise cancellation on/off would start working intermittently and then stop working altogether. In some cases, there would also be a "scratchy" sound when the switch is flipped. (I'm very careful with all my toys and there was never any "abuse" of the switch or the headphones- they're always in the pouch when not in use, etc).I was hoping that PXC-250II will not have the same issue, as the "in-line" battery compartment with the switch was redesigned completely from the original PXC-250 and only uses one AAA battery now, but I've already had at least one pair with a failed switch. Onto my 2nd pair of PXC-250's II.In all instances Sennheiser was pretty good about replacing my faulty units, which is how I ended up with so many of them over the years (about half were replacement sets). It's always a pain to have them shipped to Sennheiser and wait several weeks for a replacement, but surely beats having to buy a new set.One would think, this issue alone would make me not want to buy them again, but frankly I still haven't found a comparable replacement and I've been looking extensively. The combination of sound, size and features is just unbeatable !

Sennheiser PX series are the best travel headphones. Foldable, economically priced & crystal clear sound. I have been buying these for the last 10 years.

Estoy muy agosto con la calidad y el sonido. Son muy cómodos.La musica se escucha nítida, son pequeños y ligeros.El unico problema es lo molesto de la caja de volumen y la pila, es un poco incómoda.De cualquier forma los recomiendo.

Funcionan mejor de lo esperado, perfecto para avión, tren o ambiente ruidoso. Cómodos, discretos y elegantes. El sonido perfecto. Merecen la pena frente a los Bose por relación calidad precio.

Une petite casque avec reduction de bruit active qui se transport facilement. Tout ce qu'il me faut pour mes voyages.

I bought a pair of the original PXC 250 headphones way back in 2003 or so and used them frequently since that time, mostly at home or work. When Amazon recently mailed me a notice that the PXC 250 II was on sale for a hundred bucks I jumped at the opportunity to replace them because the earpiece and headrest foam finally wore out so badly that the old ones were a little uncomfortable to wear.Sennheiser has improved these cans in a few ways, mostly in the electronics: the noise cancelling module is now lighter and inline with the cable, the cable is a little longer, and the module uses a single AAA battery now (I use a Sanyo Eneloop rechargeable). Also besides the light-up power switch they have now provided a handy volume control. I also notice somewhat less background hiss when the noise canceling is turned on as compared to the original phones.Functionally they work every bit as well as the originals, giving excellent sound and rich bass, especially when noise cancelling is enabled. These are great general purpose headphones for daily use, and of course make terrific travelling phones too.