Closed back noise isolating wireless headphones for outdoor work?

[J.J.]

I would like to buy a pair of good noise isolating, bluetooth headphones, closed back for outdoor work (operating tractors and mowers). Having active noise cancelling is fine, but I need the "heavy lifting" to be done by the closed back and ear pads. They also will be exposed to the elements, dirt, sweat, and sunscreen. I've seen and listened to the 3M Worktunes, which are fine, but they don't sound the best. I'm willing to spend up to $500 for the right cans, but given what I'm doing with them, I'd rather go a little cheaper. I prefer a neutral to warm sound, with good bass (not overblown). Thanks for any help you can provide!

 

[highfigh]

I would like to buy a pair of good noise isolating, bluetooth headphones, closed back for outdoor work (operating tractors and mowers). Having active noise cancelling is fine, but I need the "heavy lifting" to be done by the closed back and ear pads. They also will be exposed to the elements, dirt, sweat, and sunscreen. I've seen and listened to the 3M Worktunes, which are fine, but they don't sound the best. I'm willing to spend up to $500 for the right cans, but given what I'm doing with them, I'd rather go a little cheaper. I prefer a neutral to warm sound, with good bass (not overblown). Thanks for any help you can provide!

I'm not sure I would expect better-sounding headphones to be exceptionally durable. I use ear buds- not the best sounding, but they live long enough and block a decent amount of noise. If I wanted to find better-sounding buds, I would need to use them more often than I do but since I don't expect extremely high audio quality, the ones I have are good enough.

 

[-Jim-]

I'm sort of the same as @highfigh. I have some Bose Quiet Comfort 2 which I think are great for their cost, but perhaps not as robust as you are looking for. But they do inherently cut the noise when mowing the lawn, and do even better with noise canceling enabled. I also have a good pair of Sony WF-1000XM4 Buds for those warm days when it's just too hot to wear the Bose. I used to have a pair of Skullcandy Hesh that I used for "dirty" work, but the plastic bracket holding one ear piece in place just snapped in half when I was putting it on one day. I definitely wouldn't recommend those.

Good luck with your search.

 

[highfigh]

I'm sort of the same as @highfigh. I have some Bose Quiet Comfort 2 which I think are great for their cost, but perhaps not as robust as you are looking for. But they do inherently cut the noise when mowing the lawn, and do even better with noise canceling enabled. I also have a good pair of Sony WF-1000XM4 Buds for those warm days when it's just too hot to wear the Bose. I used to have a pair of Skullcandy Hesh that I used for "dirty" work, but the plastic bracket holding one ear piece in place just snapped in half when I was putting it on one day. I definitely wouldn't recommend those.

Good luck with your search.

If I'm not making noise with whatever I'm doing, I use the stereo in my garage- I can hear it on all sides when I'm outside of the garage and if I really want to hear it better, I can open a window. If I'm making noise and facing away from the overhead door, the last ting I want is for someone to interrupt and possibly startle me. That has happened and if I'm using my table saw or jointer, it could be a very bad thing.

 

[ab17182]

I'm sort of the same as @highfigh. I have some Bose Quiet Comfort 2 which I think are great for their cost, but perhaps not as robust as you are looking for. But they do inherently cut the noise when mowing the lawn, and do even better with noise canceling enabled. I also have a good pair of Sony WF-1000XM4 Buds for those warm days when it's just too hot to wear the Bose. I used to have a pair of Skullcandy Hesh that I used for "dirty" work, but the plastic bracket holding one ear piece in place just snapped in half when I was putting it on one day. I definitely wouldn't recommend those.

Good luck with your search.

Ah, those Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones? Great choice! They're solid performers for outdoor work, and I was actually thinking of suggesting them too. They've got all the features you're looking for, from noise isolation to durability, and they sound pretty darn good too. So yeah, go for it!