I am looking to upgrade my music experience. Due to noise issue, I can not have loud music in the house but I'm also not willing to get another pair of headphones. Since I love surround sound, I was thinking if I should consider buying Bose Soundwear. But there are some questions:
This tech almost 4 years old, are new gen planned to launch anytime soon?
Are they worth the price?
Any other brand alternatives I should consider?
I mainly listen to classical and classic rock music. I appreciate balanced sound with instrument details in audio.
Thanks.
It's amazing that Bose don’t actually include this information on their product page, leaving users in the dark.
Have Bose discontinued the Soundwear? If so, why? And what is a good alternative?
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Been eyeing on the soundwear for a while but the price never came down. I have a LG tone studio but the bose soundwear sounded way better. Have anyone found some good alternative to the soundwear? Would love to have something thats more affordable and give closer sound quality to the soundwear?
Only other alternative I know of is from JBL. Not sure if sound is comparable though as I’ve never tried it.
You won't find one with as good of sound. You get a ton of bass from the waveguides that go through the neckband. Not to mention it looks way better and is more comfortable than all the competitors. Not everything Bose makes sets a standard, but this one definitely does.
I feel like I completely missed the boat, I only learned of the Bose Soundwear recently. I managed to buy one used, and it is really neat. I'm disappointed that they discontinued it.
I get it that it had limited utility for people, but it makes perfect sense for people who are out walking, like walking the dog. I don't understand how people are comfortable wearing earbuds in that situation, the earbuds block out way too much environmental sound - so you can't react to things coming up behind you like cars, bikes, or even people. Now, when I walk the dog, I can listen to music, but still be aware of my surroundings.
The bass on the device is very nice, typical for Bose.
I hope that they someday reintroduce something similar.
I bought mine as a $250 fuck you to corporate for nixing our headphones.
I loved the Soundwear! I unfortunately didn't treat it well and it started having speaker problems awhile back so I had to ditch it. I've tried Sony's version of it but it doesn't match up. It doesn't sound as good and it can only connect to one device at a time. That said, it's the closest I've found so..
I hope Bose relaunches an updated model at some point!
Bose one is $300. Too expensive for me.
Is there any cheaper alternative that does Directional Sound (only user can hear the speaker while others couldn't hear / hear little sound)
Not looking for great sound, I just need to hear it.
I never thought I'd get one of these but just won an auction on Ebay for a good deal, so why not. I have a few Bose headphones so I'm not new to the Bose sound signature. For all you that use it, how do you like it? So if you have the volume to lets say 30%, just loud enough for you to hear it, can people from 5ft+ away hear it? Along with using them at home, I wanted to try using these at the office. My desk is in a corner and the nearest cube to me is about 8ft away. This person is a customer service rep who takes calls most of the day. I just don't want to cause a distraction.
Right now, I have a Bluetooth speaker on my desk that I use at a low volume. I'm wondering if using the soundwear would be any different?
The SoundWear would be perfect for your office. You can see what it would sound like for your coworker by setting it to the volume you would listen at, then taking it off and moving 8ft away. You probably won't hear anything. From nearby you could likely hear some treble, but the bass will mostly cancel out after a couple feet.
I wouldn’t use it in an office
I've had mine for over a year and it is an absolute revelation, a game-changer.
(I'm not sure if they invented the concept, but they certainly perfected it.)
An oft-levelled criticism was it doesn't quite have a use, or it's too niche, but I've found it to be infinitely useful in a number of situations.
You don't lose ambient noise - it can be quite anti-social in certain scenarios to walk around with headphones on. This allows you to be present but also immersed in your content - I use mine for videos rather than music generally, although even for music it is excellent at low volumes. It's also really handy to stay connected to the sound if you're moving about. When I'm cooking for example and have the iPad on the shelf, I may move about the kitchen or jump into the next room but I can keep the sound on me. The range is considerable, allowing you to retain audio as you go about your chores - rather than the old technique of pausing or rewinding. I never use them in public, but behind closed doors, they're on me almost all day. It's also far easier to hear clearly. My ears took a hammering during a well-spent youth, and I need the TV to be a certain volume to catch everything or have to strain to concentrate my ears on the sound, but with these, it's effortless even at low volumes.
The sound and build quality are brilliant although it did have a high price point for an experimental product. It's lightweight enough to be barely noticeable, or at least minimally off-putting - many have commented about how light they feel compared to what they expect. Sadly instead of finding cult status amongst dedicated users such as myself, it didn't quite gain traction in the market and appears to be discontinued. I fear the day mine break or the battery runs out and I'm not able to replace them.
Who else is a member of the Soundwear Companion fan club?
I have seen the soundwear and thought it would be good when I play disc golf or do yard work. Any of you use one and have an opinion about it? Thanks
It's perfect for personal listening where you still want some situational awareness. It's not completed isolated though, so if you're close to other people it will be slightly audible to them. I don't use mine at the office, for example. I think it would be great for disc golf and that sort of thing.
Mine sits well when doing things like playimg with my dog or sprinting.
I just got one of these and I have to say it’s pretty cool! I really enjoy keeping my ears open since I am blind and having a speaker that sounds pretty good at all times. Also the battery life on this thing is incredible! I have some echoes a Bose surround sound system but chose to listen to the baseball game this last night and only went down 10% after 5 hours of use! I’m sure I’ll find more uses for it it’s one of those products that I sort of wondered what I really need it but now that I have it it’s very personalized if that makes sense?
It’s nice that people are finding uses for this. I was hoping that people wouldn’t be wearing these, blasting their music in public. LG came out with a similar product and people blasted their music and phone calls in public with those.
But everyone’s uses so far haven’t been obnoxious, which is a good thing. This is a niche product but at least it’s finding its niche users.
I have a service animal and when we go outside and play I can put these on and continue playing with him while also listening to the game where before I moved around in the yard the speaker became diminished in parts.
I listen to music 24/7 . I own a ton of Bose products . Last few years I am relying on the Bose Soundwear neck speaker. I like them so much that I have 3 sets so I can keep swapping without having to wait for a recharge. They are great for when I am working. But not so great at the gym as they do fall off during certain excercises. Sooo.. I ordered a refurbished pair of Ultra Open Earbuds from Bose. Within seconds of listening I knew these will become my goto music listening device. They sound as good as the Soundwear Companion, as good as my qc 2 earbuds.. Without falling out of position.. even when exercising. I love the immersive mode better than the regular stereo mode. Positioned properly and you will have adequate bass. Crazy thing is I cant even feel I have anything attached to my ear.
Pretty sure i will be getting another set .. who has time to wait for battery charging
I've been a loyal Bose user for a long time, and over the years I think I’ve come up with a general rule of thumb:
Headphones? Fantastic. They’ve always delivered solid sound, comfort, and noise cancellation. Honestly, still my go-to for travel and long listening sessions.
Soundbars? Overpriced for what you actually get. Not saying they sound bad, but there are other options out there with better value.
Earbuds? RUN. I've had way too many issues with connectivity. Re-pairing constantly, random disconnects, and sometimes just refusing to work properly. It’s been a frustrating experience.
If you’re in the Bose ecosystem or considering jumping in that’s my two cents. Would love to hear if anyone else has the same experience, especially with the earbuds.
Anyone who knows what is like to for example ride a bike or walk /run outside with this?
Looks like a necklace, is it possible to lock the companion so it doesn't drift off?
Decent sound while outside /biking?
I bought the bose soundwear companion speaker a couple of years ago and it was working fine until one day my little brother accidentally stepped on the right side of the speaker creating a dent in the grill, i tried fixing it but to no avail 2-3 weeks later while i was using the speaker it started vibrating and cutting off audio when i moved my neck in certain angles 1-2 weeks after that it stopped charging completely and i tossed it to the side and forgot about it. Now i found it again but the problem is it still doesnt want to charge (when i put it in the charger the charging light flashes but then turns off) can someone help?
I just bought an open box Soundwear companion off of ebay and everything seems to be working well, except the left and right speakers sound wildly different. The left speaker has tons of mids and treble but not bass, and the right speaker is all low mids and bass. It makes listening to any music sound super weird.
Is this an issue that other units have had, or should I reach out to the seller on ebay and see if I can get another one?
They said it was a display item, but it's been in storage til now.
$77. Worth it?
Or better to get the Monster Boomerang for $50 on aliexpress?
I've always been curious about these.