[Product Review] Able Planet True Fidelity NC300B headphones

When it comes to purchasing a good pair of headphones things can become a bit confusing. Unless you’re an audiophile or know exactly what you’re looking for down to precise details nabbing a good pair of headphones can be a bit difficult this day and age. After all aside from the popular brand names like Sony and Bose there are new fangled “celeb” headphones from the likes of music legend Dr. Dre which may or may not be of the best quality.  But if you’re interested in a solid pair of headphones that get the job done on all fronts you may want to take a gander at Able Planet’s True Fidelity NC300B noise canceling headphones.

Being one of the growing leaders in the crowded headphone/audio field it shouldn’t be that much of a surprise that the NC300B are as sharp as they are. Having produced a solid product in the form of the PS500MM headphones this really shouldn’t come as that much of a surprise though.

Looks/Style/Comfort

Just like some of Able Planet’s other products the NC300B’s aren’t that snazzy looking as they don’t feature decorative trimming or a sleek brush metal look.  The headphones just have a simple black matte finish and are adorned with the Able Planet logo (which eerily looks familiar to a Wish Bear).   But the NC300B’s somewhat simplistic design doesn’t mean they don’t look good as they still have a sleek side to them that definitely exudes quality. Looking at these things you immediately know that these aren’t some simple headphones that merely had a high price point as the overall package has that high-end pro quality look to it.

The headphones themselves come housed in a very nice travel case that actually has an outline to place the headphones in so they retain their shape. This is especially nice since not that many headphone companies do this and I especially love how the headphones stay extremely snug in the travel case which itself is of a very reasonable size and depth thus truly making it easy to travel with.  One of the reasons the headphones are so portable is because the ear cups actually swivel allowing you to plop them easily in a bag or the aforementioned travel case. I also need to give Able Planet props for making the travel case an actual hard shell that actually protects the headphones instead of a measly cloth bag.

But the one thing that I absolutely adore about the NC300B’s and I’m sure a lot of other people will appreciate is that they’re roomy as hell when you put them on. In this generation of ear-buds it’s somewhat refreshing to put on a nice meaty set of proper headphones that perfectly encompass and cushion the ears. When I put the NC300B’s on I honestly couldn’t believe how perfectly they fit on my huge head and around my ears. Seriously, everyone should be comfortable wearing these things unless your name is Prince Charles or Dumbo. 

Even the sleight weightiness of the headphones actually benefits them in their comfort since it makes them feel durable since you won’t be too worried about them slipping off at the slightest movement. The headphones may not have that immediate sleek look as they’re straight forward old-school headphones but don’t let the fact that they’re not ear buds deter you from thinking they’re not comfortable as these things are a pillow for your years that just happen to emit buttery beats.

How They Sound

In my pursuit of testing the NC300B’s to their fullest extent I decided to test the headphones on the two things most of our audience would use them for: gaming and listening to MP3’s.  After my somewhat laborious tests (well at least to my ears) I can safely say that the NC300B does indeed deliver some truly sharp sound that hits all the right notes.

Testing the headphones on my Sony Walkman X I was pleasantly surprised that the NC300B matched the quality of the ear buds that were packed in with the Walkman and in some instances surpassed them.  The NC300B all around have a deeper and richer sound to them that still retains the distinct sounds in certain tracks.  Listening to an array of music ranging from the synth tunes of Tron, the funktastic tracks of Jamiroquai and the somewhat classical styling’s from the film Sparrow all showed the prowess and range that the NC300B offer.  With bass heavy tracks like those found in Jamiroquai the headphones never overdid the bass to the point where it’s nothing but an on-going thump in your ear and for the tracks that feature softer notes and instruments the balancing is simply terrific.

It also helps that you can just adjust the volume of the headphones via a slider on the cord. I personally found never found myself having to tinker with the volume on the headphones or my Walkman as everything is very consistent.  If anything the volume is more of an option for those out there with sensitive ears or who wish to go all out with their tunes by maxing everything out.

On the gaming side of things the NC300B’s are once again pure bliss. Right from the minute I turned on my PSP I was almost taken aback by how powerful the initial chime was. In all honesty, and this isn’t a knock towards the product, the headphones almost sounded better on the PSP which surprised me greatly.  When it came to the PSP the most logical game to test the headphones with was the buttery beat masterpiece that is Lumines. Sure, the game is rather old at this point but with its diverse tracks it made the most sense to pop in and try out. Let me say this: NC300B + Lumines = happiest time of my life.

Once again the headphones delivered a rich experience that never once faltered under the buttery beats that Lumines offers. Playing a more action oriented game such as Wipeout Pulse almost changed the way the game is experienced as hearing the ships zip by shooting missiles all while a techno soundtrack is thumping simply sounded terrific with the NC300B. Even with multiple layers of sound including explosions, music, and general sci-fi sound effects the audio is crisp and maintains the distinct details of each audio layer to the point where it sounds like you have a home theater sound system wrapped around your head.

Of course as per what seems to be the standard with headphones these days the NC300B’s feature active noise cancelling which helps drown out any outside nuisances. The noise canceling itself worked rather well as I couldn’t hear a damn thing while I was listening to my Walkman or playing the PSP.

Conclusion

While they may not be as stylish or feature a bevy of tech features the NC300B’s get the job done where it matter and that’s being comfortable to wear and having amazing audio quality.  On both the music and gaming side of things the NC300B performed wonderfully and are easily some of the best I’ve used.  They may not have a popular and well known name behind them, stylish looks or somewhat pointless features but the NC300B’s should please any audiophile out there and those looking for a pair of headphones that get the job done.