Vic Firth Bluetooth Isolation Headphones

Purchased these for our teenager along with his first acoustic drum kit and he absolutely loves them. They are comfortable and have a good fit to them. I tried them on while he played to make sure they were reducing the drum volume and they do an amazing job keeping the drums at a safe volume yet still allow the drummer to hear the nuances and tones of the drums. They connect easily with his phone and he loves the ability to listen to music while he plays. He hasn't complained at all about poor battery life -- and he plays multiple times each day. He's had them now for 9 months and they still look new; a very high quality product that is built for daily use. We'd recommend to any drummer without hesitation.

I was a little hesitant at the beginning because of some comments I had read, but the reality is that the headphones are great. Now I can really listen to the tracks I'm playing along to without blowing my ears. In fact, they work so well that I can keep them at a pretty low volume while being able to have a clear listen of the track. Battery life is amazing, I've used them for 2h+ everyday for a whole week and I only charged them as backup (I still need to check how far they go). Only thing to consider is if you wear glasses, you would probably need to take them off. I wear glasses permanently and the pressure of the headphones with the glasses on can get a bit too overwhelming, otherwise they aren't as uncomfortably tight as some people claim. Great headphones!

Let me just start off by saying, yes. These headphones have allowed me to play at a low volume while also barely hearing my drums. Which actually makes you wanna play with more power and passion. So now let me end this with something else…yes.Also be careful at first, I almost broke them adjusting them. The actual headphones themselves slide not the top piece that holds them in place.

I inevitably had to buy a second set. The first set after 2 years started to malfunction. The power button started to become less responsive - making it hard to turn off and accidentally calling people while trying to do so. To tackle that, I just plugged them in to turn them off. Then, the charging jack failed and had poor contact, making them nearly impossible to recharge. It was fine as I definitely got my money out of them and I was definitely not ultra careful with them (very abused). I bought a second set to replace them. The second set didn’t seem to be of the same quality. While still good sound, it was just slightly off from the first pair. At 2 weeks old, the new set made faint audible clicking sounds as I tried to turn them on with no success. I plugged them in to reset, it worked, but then the problem persisted when trying to turn them on again. It’s a fatal error that renders them unusable. Going to be returned.First Set’s Review (from 2 years ago): They really sound amazing. I am a drummer and someone who spends a lot of time with loud machinery. I wanted earmuffs not technically made to protect hearing - I have to like the sound as well. So far, I’ve not found a product that has done so till I purchased these. My 3M earmuff’s audio broke in a month. Then I just used my old Vic Firth corded headphones from the mid-naughties, but then you’re relying on the power of the audio jack to power them, so not very loud without maxing the volume and getting alerts of excessive volume from your iPhone. I went from max volume on Vic Firth corded to 33% volume on these.So glad they made this product. Battery is great, sound is great, decent price, great for drums or just loud atmospheres.

Another update (almost 2 years later): The replacement headset I received is still going strong. Upgrading to 4 stars again. The audio cable is still a weak spot. After all the time, the connection is still working, but it is super easy to accidentally pull the cable out. I highly recommend using a cable clip to fasten the cable to your clothes or you'll experience frequent disconnects.Update: I had these for 2 1/2 months and everything I wrote previously is still true. These are fantastic for drumming. But, unfortunately, the cabled audio has just failed (BT still works). It is not the cable, and it doesn’t appear to be the connector either. There’s still some faint audio coming out so it appears the internal electronics failed. Fortunately, this happened on the last day(!) of the extended return period due to the holidays. I bought these because I don’t like the thought of fixed cables as found in the non-BT version. However, the replaceable cable now appears to have created the issue of a failing electronic switch.I’ll let you know how long the replacement lasts…Original review: (5*) The mixed reviews made me wonder whether to vet these for a while but I’m glad I finally did.Let’s get some things out of the way first:Yes, they fit super tightly!No, they likely will not fit larger heads. If your head is a high dome or your ears are unusually low, these will be a challenge.Now about my experience so far. I use these with my Roland kit where the acoustic bleed-through from the pad hits used to be a major distraction. Not anymore.This headset creates a remarkable amount of isolation, even though I am wearing glasses. This is in part due to the high pressure used to get them to fit snug. I’ve been wearing them for periods longer than an hour without discomfort thanks to the padding that is just right. And I can discover NO difference in isolation between left and right side.The sound is great for drumming. Frequency response is fairly flat (if you like a booming bass these are not for you) and the clarity of the audio is very enjoyable.The audio cable is a bit too stiff (and at 5’ a bit too short) but since it has a standard 1/8” connector you can replace it with any other 1/8” audio cable. That is a big plus (and a key reason why I bought the Bluetooth version).Unsurprisingly, you can’t use Bluetooth and wired at the same time. It would have been nice so I could hear my phone ring, but I wasn’t really expecting it.Since I had these only for a few days, no experience regarding durability. As long as I don’t update this post, they will be working.

I need to get used to them. I had issues turning on/off the device (I can show my age sometimes). I honestly feel the ear pads could go down just a little bit more than where they currently sit. The more I use them, the more they become user-friendly. The music is sufficient enough to hear while playing my acoustic drum set, and it surpasses my expectations of quality of sound. I'm still getting used to them though.