Using Wireless Bose 700 Over the Ear headphones in Wired Mode

 

 

Bose product name

Bose NC 700 HP

Country

USA

Firmware Version

Not sure how to get this, cannot access from app, but it should be up to date

App Version

4.4.3

What devices were you using that were affected and what version are they on (e.g. Samsung Galaxy S9 on Android 11, iPhone X on iOS14, etc.)
IPhone 

Detailed description of the issue and steps to reproduce

I purchased a lightening to Microphone adaptor (highly rated from source) and wanted to compare my Bose NC 700 HP Headphones wired and blue tooth.  However, there really is no guide or suggestions on how best to do this.  Do I power them On or Off (silly question, I know) or is there any preferred connection?

 

My experience is that using an iPhone 11 Pro Max with the wired headphones sounds TERRIBLE.  Bluetooth is better.  Using a MacBook Pro I can tell a slight difference between the wired and Bluetooth.

 

 

 

I ordered a popular and highly rated DAC converter for my iPad (USB-C) and hope that is better.

However the wired cable provided is WAY TOO SHORT.

 

What environment do you experience the issue in? (e.g. noisy office, quiet kitchen, etc.)

Quiet Bedroom

When did you start to experience the issue? Did it work correctly previously?

Since the beginning

Any troubleshooting steps you took

 

 

With the cable you can use them in passive mode (power off) however you obviously lose the noise cancelling.  What some people don't realise is you also lose the equaliser, so sound quality is worse.

 

Use them wired with the power on and you get equaliser and Noise cancelling.

 

I can't think of why your phone would sound worse than the Macbook, but the lightning to 3.5mm adapters are notoriously fickle (whether they were rated well or not).  I've seen ones that work differently on mulitple devices, some good, some not at all.  Even when trying on two of the same device I've had different results.

Okay, The issue was with the cable supplied by Bose.  The adaptors I purchased from A*zon work fine.  I saw someone else complain about the Bose cable, and I bought a third party one, and it resolved my issue.

 

One think that I noted is that the VOLUME changes on the actual headphones when wired, and changing the volume on the headphone (by touching the right ear cup) DOES NOT change the volume on the phone... they are independent.  So tweaking this also has an impact.

 

That being said, I notice a difference between wired and wireless, but not sure I can say it is BETTER.

 

Wired- I can hear some subtle sounds and a wider range of tones, but the sound is a little compressed (mushy)

 

Wireless- I cannot pick up some subtle sounds as easily, and the very highs and lows seem a little mushy (just a little), BUT midtowns seem a little crisper.

 

I tested listening to Brahms Piano Concert 2 by Anna Tsybuleva, the 2021 recording (an Apple Digital Master).

 

Played on Apple iPhone 11 Pro max and iPad Pro 2018 (12.9")

After further blind folded tests, I have determined that the sound quality coming from the iPad Pro (USB-C) was better than the iPhone (lightening).  I played the same song 5 times (J. Williams, Caddillac of the Sky) and had my girlfriend connect it to either the iPad or the iPhone with my back turned (pretending to remove the adaptor each time).  I was able to identify the  source 5 out of 5 times.

 

Not sure if the issue is the SOURCE device, or the lightning to 3.5mm audio adaptor...