Back in November 2019, I purchased the Bose Quietcomfort 35 II headphones in the official Russian Bose store. In March 2021, the right speaker started cutting out: it appears a wire has detached somewhere and there is a loose connection. There have been no mechanical impacts (shocks, falls, etc.) to cause this issue either, they have always been used with care.
When I contacted the official Russian Bose service center looking to have them fixed, they replied that this model cannot be repaired as the manufacturer had not arranged for this model to be repairable.
Therefore, I kindly ask you to confirm whether there is no possibility to repair a pair of $300 headphones, a recent model only used for 1.5 years — is it possible to have them fixed? If not, do all the models in Bose lineup come with such dreary and prospectless post-warranty lives or is there something more reliable out there?
I am looking forward to hearing from you soon.
I’ve had exactly the same problem with two sets of QC35 II headphones, each time after the warranty has run out – I posted about it yesterday.
Bose have done everything they can to prevent the headphones from being repaired (proprietary screws, glued down parts), you might find an independent place to do it but not Bose themselves. Be careful if they offer to replace the headphones at a ‘discount’, in the UK this means paying more than the retail price in Bose’s own store on Amazon, plus they need you to send in the broken pair.
I don’t know if it’s a deliberate scam or not, the customer service is so terrible they might easily not even realise. In the UK you can make a complaint to Trading Standards as there is a 2008 law against this kind of practice – ‘Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations, 2008 Regulation 5(4)’ - but I don’t know if there’s a Russian equivalent.
I’m going to order the Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones this week, they are a bit more expensive but much more easily repaired, Sony sell all the spare parts and from what I can tell their customer support isn’t as bad as Bose.
(I do not work for Bose)
You perceptions about Bose seem accurate to me (as a Bose customer like you). In my experience, occasionally, you can send them a product and have it repaired and returned. About 15 months ago, I sent back two Revolves for battery and circuit board replacement. But I do not recollect having any of my in and over ear products these past 10 or so years ever repaired and returned. They have in my experience always been exchanged. In some cases, such as the 'infamous' QC35 slipping on/off switch contact situation, instructions for DIYer were posted here an elsewhere for fixing and in that case, users were able to fix it themselves but Bose will not - they just exchange.
From what I can tell, it makes no difference as far as repair vs exchange whether the product is under the 1 year warranty or not. The action is the same - the only difference is whether and how much you pay for the action.
And here are two more 'personal' (as a customer) observations:
1. Bose's policy has been quite consistent - their pay vs not pay decisions vis a vis the warranty is based on 1 year (unless your warranty states differently) - not on how often the product as been used since purchase.
2. The offered exchange and 'discount' will vary even perhaps during the same phone call. Sometimes yes, the offer exceeds other online prices for a brand new product. However, I recently (in 2021) needed to exchange a QC35ii and the exchange price I paid was significantly less than the going price for a QC35ii elsewhere.
The combination of a short warranty and making the product hard to repair by not supplying parts / repairs is pretty annoying. Mine just has some kind of loose wiring and Bose’s attitude of just tossing something out rather than helping get it repaired is no way to treat the environment, it’s so wasteful.
It probably varies between countries but it’s absurd to offer a ‘discount’ which is higher than the price with their biggest retail partner, especially when you have to send the old one back. Somehow bad customer service pretending to be good is worse than just plain old bad customer service.
Given they type of sound it was making I think mine has a blown speaker or a faulty connection, I’ve ordered a couple of generic replacement speakers for £20 so will give it a go. The speakers are soldered on so it will be death or glory for the headphones but they’re not much use otherwise. I can’t say I was tempted by their special discount of paying £10 more than a regular customer whilst sending them a perfect-apart-from-one-minor-fault set of £250 headphones…
Thanks for the replies. I suppose I will look for a third party service to have the headphones repaired. Can't see myself buying Bose after this, will get a Sony instead too. I'm told their headphones sound great.
I have just discovered that my trusty Quiet Comfort 35 ll is unrepairable. I am offered an exchange for earphones I don't need or want, as I already have another pair but these old ones are my favourites. I am so tired of throwing things away, of planned obsolescence--of the idiocy of making more things and throwing more things away. Our planet is not going to survive at this rate. I am going to support the Right To Repair. Bose better wake up because this is no longer acceptable.
https://www.bsr.org/en/emerging-issues/right-to-repair
Hey Canadian,
Thank you for your post and welcome to the Community!
I'm sorry to hear that your QC35 II is in need of a service.
The Community is designed for a peer to peer troubleshooting-based assistance and will not be able to assist you with customer service-related issues. I apologize for any inconvenience and would recommend reaching out to the support team again if you are unhappy with your service options.
If there is anything else we can do for you, please reach out to us again!