Customer Reviews

Direct Sound EX29 Extreme Isolation Headphones (Black)

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

These headphones have worked pretty well for me at my office. I'm in a big group of cubicles with completely exposed air conditioners overhead and industrial lab equipment not too far away. These really let me turn DOWN the volume and still hear my music. Sound quality is certainly acceptable, but compared to nice headphones (even in the same price range) it is somewhat lackluster. Think lo-fi. The point is that these headphones have way, way better sound quality *in a noisy environment* than the alternatives. If you don't need the isolation, look at the Sennheiser model below or the Sony MDR-7506. Or AKG K240. Or something more expensive. :)

Before deciding on these, I tried a few other worthy contenders:

** Bose Quiet Comfort 2. For the kinds of noise in my office, these did not do as good a job at isolation as the Extreme Isolation did. They are amazing at getting rid of low frequency noise, however. I can see why people like them for air travel. I found these to be LESS comfortable than the Extreme Isolation after use for a few weeks. (It feels like there is a pressure difference when the isolation is turned on.) Sound quality in the Bose headphones was OK but not stellar by any means. I didn't like that the active isolation circuit (which creates an annoying hiss) has to be engaged all the time (or the headphones don't work), and I didn't like the price, which is about 3X higher than the Extreme Isolation 'phones.

** Sennheiser HD-280. The Senn's have noticably better sound (much more definition and clarity, if somewhat lacking in bass), and do have impressive isolation. But it isn't anywhere close to what the Extreme Isolation provides. These would probably work fine in a less noisy office. And they don't look as dorky, either. :)

I have had 2 coworkers try out my headphones and decide to get their own set.

One important point--when you first get the headphones, they are VERY tight. One friend initially called them the "head pinchers". This effect makes for a very uncomfortable experience, but the good news is that they loosen up over time. Now, besides the obvious bulk, I don't notice any discomfort at all. One friend successfully pre-stretched his when he got them to counteract this effect.

I was looking for a pair of headphones to use on my riding mower and these are perfect for that application!

After doing a bit of research I found that these headphones have approximately the same noise reduction capabilities as a good set of hearing protectors (30dB) for industrial use. I believe they are rated at 28dB reduction.

Another important fact is that the impedance is rated at 64 Ohms, for those of you who aren't up on your technical specs. this means that a small MP3 player or CD player will drive these headphones without a problem.

I'm also a NASCAR fan and try to go to at least 1 race a year. This year I used them at a truck race and they preformed as well as a set of specialty racing headphones I own. They are a bit more comfortable as well.

If you get these don't expect thundering bass or incredibly loud music from the drivers. The sound is very flat over the entire 20-20kHz spectrum.

Combined with the sound reduction of 28dB from the muffs and the flat frequency response they make for a very comfortable listening experience over many hours.

I would highly recommend the headphones for anyone who wants to listen to audio in a noisy environment.

I bought the Direct Sound Extreme Isolation phones for my wife to use so she can hear the movie dialog on airplanes and trains.

I had previously tried the Koss QZ active noice cancellation headphones. The Direct Sound headphones have the advantage that being passive they require no batteries and also they do not introduce the white noise hissing sound of the Koss phones. Also, the Direct Sound phones reduce all frequencies, while the active cancellation phones tend to reduce mostly the low-frequency rumbling-type noise. Overall the Direct Sound phones do a much better job of cancelling all frequencies of ambient noise.

My wife loves these headphones and now even uses them while watching movies at home because she says she can hear the dialog much better.

The Direct Sound phones are definitely a bit bigger than the typical noise cancellation phones, but the superior results overcome the inconvience of the larger size.

Because we mostly use the headphones for listening to movies, I can't speak specifically to the musical quality of the sound but several times I've tried them with music they seem fine.

I was taking starting drum set lessons and looking for a good set of isolation headphones. The Direct Sound headsets had great reviews so I bought a pair. I can't say that I'm all that impressed. They do a good job of isolating, except when I turn my head. The headsets are constructed entirely of plastic and don't exert enough pressure to keep the ear cups from flexing. Once you turn your head you're left with a gap and the isolation is shot. Since my sheet music is to my left and not directly in front me, the flexing is a real issue. They may be fine for most purposes, just not mine. Also, considering the construction I really think that these things are over priced. I might have give these a 3.5, but Amazon doesn't half stars, so 3 stars it is.

These have changed and I think I'd miss the originals if I didn't still have them. The new ones don't isolate quite as much, are lighter, more neutral, and have a heavy duty cord without the volume control. But they also have a little more resonance and smear that lowers their resolution compared to the original. It's still quite good and certainly a more comfortable headphone to have around your neck when it's not on your ears. The original could seem a little too warm, so I guess the perceived detail probably is comparable on both. They're just very different sounds. The new one improves considerably compared to the original with the use of a high-current, meaty headphone amp. It sounds too thin directly out of most consumer jacks. I'm disappointed they use those weak 1/8" PCB board connectors and slip-on adapter. I'd much rather see either a quality 1/8" with a screw 1/4" adapter or just a 1/4" plug strait onto it. I now have gone through two damaged connectors: the original snapping and my current one being intermittent in one channel and will have to be repaired.

I ordered these headphones after I discovered that my expensive Bose QuietComforts leak sound - enough to be annoying to passengers sitting next to me on a train or bus. (Okay, so I listen to music kinda loud - Blame it on middle-age. My ears are already shot.) The Extreme Isolation headphones do not leak sound to the outside - even at volumes much higher than I could stand to listen to. I did a comparison wearing the Extreme Isolations clamped to my left thigh, and the Quiet Comforts clamped to my right, and switched jacks back and forth. The QC's I could hear easily; the EI's not at all. And best of all, the EI headphones sound great - better than the QC's, in my opinion.

I was pleasantly surprised by these cans....the sound quality was much better than some reviewers noted, noticeable better than the Senn 280 cans I usually use for video sound production....
the 280 always struck me as brittle with a raspy hyped mid that was ok for monitoring dialog but not very good for using with music - live tracking was a bit of a problem as well, since they dont seal nearly as well as I had hoped when I purchased them . For tracking, the 280 was also not really very good at isolation, especially in a live rock venue.I found myself squeezing the cans on my head to try to isolate , and thats not a solution.
The ex29 isolates very well, maybe not as well as good in-ear solutions, but better than my 280 or my AKG studio headphones....virtually no bleed out, and with a surprisingly smooth sound, very flat , no noticeable hype at all.....quite good for closed back...I wore them for about 3 hours today with only minimal discomfort...I really can barely go 2-3 hours with my Shure earphones before I HAVE to remove them....to be fair, the senn 280 is quite comfortable on my head, I have gone 5-6 hours at a stretch.
Looking forward to breaking the ex29 in and seeing if I notice much of an improvement in the sound....I'll try them next week on a flight as well, but these may become my swiss knife of headphones, great for the price....
Minor complaints - could be just a bit more comfortable , a tad bit more of attenuation......however, overall, a great deal, and seem to be very well built....apparently they are 100% user serviceable, even the drivers can be user replaced...thats sweet....
I was planning on getting a pair of Ultrasones, but I may put that off, at leaste for a while....I really wouldnt mix with cans , so I'll have to see if there is any point in getting another set....

After being diagnosed with Tinnitus at the age of 16, I knew it would only be a matter of time when I would have to start really protecting ears from further damage. After spending 3 years with pair after pair of In-Ear earbuds and dealing with the discomfort of the rubber causing a vacuum of sorts in my head, i finally decided to stop dealing with the headaches and go for a pair of real noise isolation headphones.

I found the Direct Sound brand in the back of a guitar magazine with a nice picture of Paul Gilbert rocking out with a set of Ex-29s on. Figured if Paul likes them, they have to be pretty good for general music writing and drum recording. I had no idea just how well they worked though! Originally, I didnt like them because they didnt isolate sound like in-ear models do, but after a few days, I now can't even imagine not having them! they are so comfortable and form perfectly to any head after they get broke in.

One thing about them that has been repeated is the flat sound, but if you use these for recording and not for general music listening, you will never notice.

These are the perfect headphones for recording drums and not damaging your ears. They provide a flat frequency response allowing you to hear the music clearly over the sound of your drums. I recommend these to anyone who is going to be recording music and is concerned about hearing protection.

I have a pair of extreme isolation headphones from several years ago (when they first came out), They don't have a model number or anything and I have been extremely happy with them. I was browsing the Direct Sound website and saw the new model numbers (eg EX-29) and assumed the new generation of products was improved. I just received my new EX-29 today. The first thing I did was plug in my old version to compare. When I plugged in the new EX-29, I was totally shocked. There was significantly more outside noise getting through and the sound was lower quality. There was not a slight difference, but a MAJOR one. I am super dissatisfied with the product and can't even return it because they charge a 25% restocking fee. Beware!