Paww Wavesound3 BT Noise Canceling Headphones

Recently I went on search for noise cancelling Bluetooth headphones to use while travelling, and also while using noisy outdoor power equipment. My criteria were simple- reliable wireless performance, all day comfort, extended battery life, and high quality sound. Though I am not an “audiophile” snob, I have been buying and enjoying high end stereo products since the early 1980s, and I understand and enjoy high end sound. For that reason I eliminated the trendy and costly but sonically horrid Beats line and focused on the three models you see here. I broke the review down into sections, so that you can focus on whatever categories mean the most to you. First up is comfort: The Bose QC35 weighed 8.3 oz (235 Grams). They are the lightest in the test, but their outstanding comfort is due to more than just reduced mass. Everything about these headphones is comfortable, including fit, adjustability, and clamping force. They just slip on your head flawlessly, and it is almost possible to immediately forget you are wearing them. They are amazingly comfortable for long periods. Rating 10. The Dylan QS1 weighed 10.5 oz (298 Grams). That is a bit heavier than the Bose, but very nearly as comfortable. Cushy padding on the ear cups and headband, plus a full range of tilt, swivel, and extension adjustments on the ear cups mean these will fit anyone with great comfort. Astonishing, really, for a headphone that costs just $75.00, or 22% of the Bose. Rating 9. The Paww Wavesound 3 weighed in at 12.0 oz (341 grams). The heaviest of the lot, obviously, but the comfort issues do not end there. While the metal headband is appreciated for its probable durability, it is insufficiently padded to equal the other two. It seems okay at first, but a few hours of extended wear had me adjusting these cans on my head periodically. Not horribly uncomfortable, they are just unable to measure up to either of the others. More troubling was the undersized ear cups, which sat on my earlobes instead of fully surrounding my ears (I’m an averaged sized guy). Additionally the ear cup padding was not as thick and luxurious as in the Dylans, meaning that the mesh covering the speakers could press against the edges of my ear. I found these comfortable only for an hour or so. Rating 7 On to the Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) feature: The Bose are simply magical. If this is your priority, stop reading right now and buy the Bose. It really isn’t even close. Bose ANC is not perfect, but is the best anyone has yet created. Switching on the headphones in Bluetooth mode activates ANC, so it is impossible to use these in BT mode without the ANC active. (The other two allow you to turn the ANC on and off at will in BT mode). That would normally trouble me, but since the Bose is the ONLY one that sounds great with the ANC on, I didn’t deduct for this. All of these ANC systems work best on low pitched sounds such as motors, airplane cabin sounds, or the murmur of crowds. The Bose system is astonishing. As if someone turned off the world, muffling and eliminating 80% of the background noise. In my laundry room, they completely block the sound of a clothes dryer (I had to touch it to make sure it was actually running) and greatly muffle the higher pitched sound of the exhaust fan running. I even took them out and ran my powerful leaf blower at full speed with ANC active. While I was certainly able to hear the blower, although at a greatly reduced volume, I did not have to turn the music up to hear every note clearly. Not one notch of extra volume needed. I rate these a 9 because, as I said, nothing is perfect. To rate a 10, they would have to block all sound, something no headphone can do. The Dylan does muffle the sounds, but not nearly as well as the Bose. The instant you switch on ANC without music playing, you hear a generated white noise sound. To be fair, this sound is far less audible once you start the music. But you will be aware of it during every quiet passage. The Bose simply don’t do this. Again, the ANC is more effective on low rumbling sound (dryer) than on higher pitches (exhaust fan). The leaf blower while using ANC is louder than with the Bose, but the music is still audible (though not as isolated) with the leaf blower screaming. I didn’t need to turn up the volume, and the shriek of the blower drowned out the generated white noise. I rate these a 6. Pretty good. Fantastic if you factor in the price. The ANC on the Paww headset is not impressive at all. It can easily be turned on and off in BT mode. It does muffle deeper rumbling noises, but creates a noticeable and distracting white noise hiss at all times. White noise is especially loud when a higher pitched noise (exhaust fan) is present. You could wear the other two without music playing just to block out the world and let you focus, but the Pawws are pretty much worthless for studying or quiet time. The leaf blower is much more noticeable than with the other two, and requires increasing the volume to clearly hear the music. These are only marginally qualified to be called noise cancelling. I rate them a generous 4. As for appearance and build quality: The Bose are just very unimpressive in this regard. They don’t look premium at all, as they are made of basic plastic. My pair is black, because I went to Best Buy and saw the silver display model. Due to all the handling they receive, the color had begun to wear off of both ear cups, giving them a mottled and unattractive look. I’m glad I did that, because new the silver look more impressive, and I almost ordered those. The best I can say about the Bose look is that I can’t see them when I’m using them! As for build quality, they feel quite light and plasticky, prompting me to spend an extra $50 on a two year comprehensive warranty. I rate the appearance a 6, the build quality a 7. The Dylan offer impressive build quality and choice of materials. They look and feel more expensive than the other two, despite being the cheapest. Fantastic! This is one seriously good looking, great feeling headphone. The “hundred stars” lady was right about that. Dylan should not be able to sell this for such a low price! Every switch and control feels high quality, and the action of the sliding and swiveling ear cups is fantastic. Feels like German engineering. If you tell your friend you paid $200 for these cans, they would have no cause to disbelieve you. These get a rating of 10. The Paww headphones are well crafted, premium looking headphones. Metal instead of plastic in many places adds weight, which is why the comfort suffers. But these are the headphones I feel could survive being thrown off my roof repeatedly. The smaller, less plush ear cups put them a step behind the Dylans. I rate these a 9.5. Finally we come to controls layout and function: The Bose offer you very standard, minimalist controls. Just the on off /pairing slider on the right earcup, and a multifunction button on the edge of that same ear cup. (Play/Pause in the middle, which also can be double clicked to skip ahead or triple clicked to skip backwards. Volume up and down above and below that.) The center button also allows you to answer and end calls, activate Siri, etc. In short, the buttons operate exactly like the ones on your earbud cord. Unimaginative, yes, but there is no learning curve. This rates an 8. The Dylan has a strange arrangements of controls. The small slider switch on the bottom of the right ear cup that goes from Off to BT to BT with ANC is too easy to overshoot, turning off and unpairing when you just meant to just turn off BT. A big triangular button on the right ear cup has a control in each corner. Play pause is in one angle- that works for me. The other two corners are more problematic. One corner you click to skip to the next track, or hold to raise the volume. The other corner is a single click for previous song, or hold to reduce the volume. It is way too easy to skip songs while attempting to adjust volume. Why multifunction buttons? ONE function per button please. Also the volume buttons are backwards- the lower button raises the volume, and vice versa. I rate these only a 6. The Paww headset gets it almost exactly right! The on/off button is in the center of the right ear cup, surrounded by four logically arranged large buttons for Volume Up, Volume Down, Skip Forward, and Skip Back. Perfect! No learning curve at all. The sliding switch on the left ear cup turns the ANC on and off. BUT it is loose, and rattles audibly every time you move your head, which is unacceptable, given that the sound is transmitted directly to your left ear. I could fix it with tape or putty, but why should I be asked to? How can the switch have passed QC? Also, turning the volume up or down results in a beep every notch. Annoying and unnecessary! I rate these controls a ten, with an asterisks for the loose ANC switch (which other reviewers have mentioned, so I don’t think it’s only my set) and the volume adjustment beep. So close to perfect!! So how about sound quality? This is where the rubber meets the road, and in this regard, the three are surprisingly close, especially considering the massive difference in pricing. The Bose have a really great sound, clear and accurate. They effortlessly produce the entire range of sound, from the highest treble to the deepest bass. Fortunately, they suffer none of the booming, overboosted bass so popular in trendy, athlete-endorsed “premium” headsets. The midrange is clear and unmuddled, even when layered over a strong bass line. Everything is faithfully reproduced, and the effect is just pleasing, balanced sound at any volume level, across all genres. Listening to Holly Cole’s “Train Song”, for example, I find that individual instruments are well located and easily discernable. The way the flute stands out even in the midst of the tight thumping bass line is truly extraordinary. And the fact that this all plays out against the backdrop of the eerie silence created by the active noise cancelation is an advantage the others just cannot match. My rating is a 10 (the best you can hope to hear with wireless headphones). The Dylan headphones do a remarkable job reproducing good sound, if you consider the amazingly low price. For a tiny fraction of what the Bose cost, you get easily 80% of the sonic purity. Back to back listening will reveal that the bass is boomier and less controlled, the midrange a bit muddy, and the highs not as clear and distinct with the Dylan. Instrumental location is a bit compromised, as is ultimate dynamic range. Still, if you listen to these without experiencing the Bose, you will likely love them. They do sound better and clearer with the ANC switched off, so whenever possible I think you should go that route. In a noisy environment they will still sound good and do a reasonable job cancelling external noise, and as I stated earlier the ANC generated white noise is tolerable with music playing. I rated these a solid 8. The Paww headphones were the biggest surprise to me. They provide an extremely pleasant listening experience, far beyond my expectations. Several times I found myself just amazed by the accuracy of the notes provided. Being very picky, the bass is a bit “looser” than what the Bose creates, but again, the price must be considered. For my money (yes I paid for all of these; no one offered me anything for my review) them Paww midrange and treble fully match the Bose. For the current cost of $90, these are a sonic steal. Highs and midrange are very well done, and instrumental positioning is amazing. I give these a 9.5, very nearly as good as the $350 Bose offering. IN SUMMARY: The Bose are by far the best of the lot, especially in terms of that amazing noise cancellation. If $350 is not a lot of money for you, buy these and never look back. If that seems like a too much, grab the Dylans and save over $280 on a headset very nearly as good. You will give up almost no comfort, almost no sound quality, and have a more premium looking set of cans. Just be aware that the noise cancellation cannot compare to Bose. The Dylan are a wonderful of headphones, but being the cheapest here makes them an unbelievable bargain. If you can live without world class noise reduction, this is the pair to buy without hesitation! The Pawws are a very good set of BT headphones. They look fantastic, are solid and substantial, and sound just as good as the Bose at $260 less. I would recommend them to anyone who does not need ANC. Just be aware that stronger materials and tougher build do add weight, which becomes noticeable and irritating after several hours of continuous use. Also the noise cancellation is pretty much useless, and the rattling switch that controls it is simply unforgivable. Pawws would be better off losing the noise cancellation and that switch, at least until they can figure out how to do it better. Especially if they could then drop the price. Will any of these headphones give you pristine, studio sound? No. If that is your objective, buy a pair of Sony MDR7506 for $80.00 and learn to live with wired sound. You will then have the world standard for perfect headphone sound. But if Bluetooth and ANC are must haves for you, then you’re very likely choosing amongst these three headphones. (I am deliberately ignoring the offerings from Beats, which suffer major sonic flaws (such as lousy, overboosted bass) while costing far more than they are worth. Hope this review helps!