HAS160A Flat Headphones - Blue

I bought these along with the somewhat coveted JLabs Rewind ( gen 2 ) Bluetooth headphones. I bought both because I've been looking for something that won't cause me physical ear fatigue or hurt immediately upon wearing. I REALLY wanted to love the JLabs because they offer something that the JVC Flats cannot.... No wires. I LOATHE wires. That said. I will take the cables on these JVC Flats ANY day of the week because of what they offer over the JLabs Rewind. Before I state what that is exactly, let me just say that the JLabs are about as comfortable as the JVC Flats. Maybe more... But not quite, without modifications. I'll explain, because it's relevant. I have small ears. And small ear canals. This is why I can't wear in-ear buds for too long, and is also why certain headphones hurt my ears or skull, depending upon how where and how they sit on my head and ears. It's a freaking curse. I started looking for headphones where one of the main selling points is being lightweight and comfortable. Both these JVC'S and JLabs seemed to fit the bill when looking at their descriptions and reviews. So, I bought both. I went into buying the JVC Flats knowing there was no mic or volume control, which I am actually fine with. So I won't ding ding a star for it. What I wasn't expecting from the JVC Flats though.... Was how freaking good the sound quality would be! I have had several pairs of JVC marshmallow in ears, and now that I think about it, those sounded great, and are like fifteen bucks, so... Maybe I shouldn't be surprised? I should not that I also primarily wanted these for podcasts. But when I heard the JVC Flats, I put on some music and was kind of floored. They instantly reminded me of Koss PortaPros, but with a tad more forward low and mid bass, maybe? I used the PortaPros A LOT in my 20s and 30s and am now 53, so I've lost frequency range throughout the years. And they're LOUD! I don't need them to be this loud, but this is a terrible issue with the JLabs Rewind. They're incredibly low. Maybe lower voltage to increase battery life, but it's horrible. I'd have to put the volume to about 85% on the JLabs for basic, comfortable listening levels, whereas with these JVC'S, it's about 40% or less. Fantastic. And again, loud means nothing if it's loud and garbage. These are loud and clear with no real bass mushiness even at uncomfortably loud levels. Crystal clear. Awesome. They fit snug on my ears, and the ear pads are cushy and fairly soft. The outer layer is that faux leather material that always seems to eventually tear on headphones, so we'll see on that one.... My only wish is that the actual driver housing was a TAD wider because while the driver seems to be positioned perfectly against my ear canal, the housing edges kind of hit the edges of my ear, causing some minor discomfort. Someone with normal, non-freakishly small ears, (which is most people), won't be bothered by this I guess. What else. The head band, even though it has no padding, is barely noticeable. Likely due to how light the frame is. The band adjustment gives you a really pleasing tactile single groove click when adjusting. Nice touch. I might give the JLabs a slight win in comfort, but ONLY if changing the foam pads on them, to something more foamy/cushy and soft. As they are, the JLabs driver housing is very rigid and my ears really feel that. If I kept them, I'd modify them with some extra foam. Otherwise, they're lighter than the JVC 's with a smaller earpiece frame. I might actually try to modify these JVC ear ups to make them wider. I'll likely also buy a few spare sets because this pair is a gem. Great job JVC. If there's one negative thing I can say about them, it's that they're not being made with USB-C instead of just the 3.5mm input plug. I hate having to use dongles. I already had one, but I hate cables as it is, so.... Anyway, if you're cool with cables, don't have freak ears, and want something super comfortable and want very good sound quality at a STEAL of a price...( Get a few now before the tariffs double their price), GET THESE! P.S. PortaPros are more detailed and have better soundstage. But for $13 bucks, these are the ONES to beat.

I have been on a search for over the ear or on-ear headphones that when used with a laptop sound good, are not expensive, and (here's the big eliminator) are comfortable to wear. I am going to compare 4 phones which are readily available: Panasonic RP- HT 21 (current prices as of 4/12 - $4.49), Koss Portapro ($18.72), JVC HA-S160-B ($14.23) and AKG K240 (4.5) ($93.90) The AKG's were to be used as a sound benchmark. I listen mostly to classical music, soundtracks, and jazz. I used the following music: Katsarsis playing the Kreisler Praeludium, Rattle and the LA Philharmonic doing the adagio from Rachmaninoff's 2nd Symphony, and von Karajan and the Berlin doing the opening of Strauss's Thus Sprach Zarathustra. The phones were powered only by a laptop because that is what most people will use lightweight phones for (that or other small listening devices) For that reason the AKG's were not a good choice because it could not reach even moderately high sound levels from my Toshiba laptop. The sound was super smooth on the AKG's but the lightweights were more compatible with the laptop. The Panasonics sound good with mid range music, like the Kreisler piano music, but their weakness showed in the Strauss. They could not handle the complex, loud tones with any finesse. I give the JVC's a small edge sonically over the Koss's overall because while they both handled detail and loud volume about the same, the JVC showed a bit more reality in the music. By that I mean, e.g., horns sounded more like horns and not synthesized sound. Both Koss and JVC allowed you to hear the decay and space in the Strauss opening. Now, on to comfort. The Panasonics are very small and light and one can wear them for a long time without even noticing them. The Koss's have a clumsy headband, and I found the pressure on the ear uncomfortable after 15 minutes or so. The JVC's, which use a simple headband, were almost as comfortable as the Panasonics. The AKG's, like many over the ear phones, started becoming oppressive after 15 minutes. Note: I have a large head and this comfort level assessment may not be true for people with smaller noggins. I would use the Panasonics for times when they might receive heavy handling, such as when commuting on public transportation. They are cheap (and a real bargain) so damage will not be costly. The Koss were just a bit too clumsy to use - Koss needs to abandon its weird headband design. The JVCs were a clear choice for everyday listening with smaller devices. I think the AKG's just need a real amplifier to power them. In short, I thought the JVC's were a clear winner in this bargain/comfort category.

I've been testing these headphones for a week now and here are my thoughts... I'm always surprised by the rave reviews that people post about the sound quality of entry level headphones. I don't know how many dozens of cheap headphones that I've purchased over the past decade (primarily for my children that seem to break or lose at least one set every few months), and you basically get what you pay for... sub-par sound quality. Having said that, I do think that the sound quality is slightly better than other headphones in a similar price range. You do get a pretty good bass punch, but it is also pretty sloppy bass that tends to muddy the sound a bit. Realistically, though, you're not going to get much cleaner, tighter bass until you get to the $100 range of headphones. I bought these headphones primarily so that i can watch Netflix as I run on my elliptical trainer, and for this purpose these headphones work very well. They are very attractive, and fold nicely to lay flat for packing into a backpack. They are also very lightweight and comfortable over the ears. I feel I could wear these for hours without being bothered by them at all, which is more than I can say for most of the over-the-ear headphones I've tried over the years. I am giving these headphones 4 stars because I don't think it's fair to compare them to much more expensive models. For a sub-$15 pair of headphones, it's hard to beat them. The sound quality is just as good as anything else you will find in this price range, and the sleek design and comfort put it toward the top of its class. I've just purchased a second pair for my daughter who is heading off to college.

Before I purchased these JVC HAS160A headphones, I had looked at an compared a large number of "cheap" headphones. These seemed like the best value hands down. I had considered price, lightness, comfort, looks, compactness, and apparent durability. And I was looking for fairly accurate sound quality and the ability keep my sounds to myself during audio/video computer labs at school. In actual use the phones exceeded my expectations - in all areas. Something I hadn't anticipated was their helpfulness in reducing the level of distracting ambient sounds. The ear pads are not so huge as to cover the ears entirely and their unobtrusive shape allowed them to be positioned comfortably either on or slightly off of the ear. That way I found that I could quickly and easily adjust how much outside sound to let in. I'd owned other cheap headphone units and they all broke fairly quickly under my ownership. Surprisingly, these JVCs were sturdy enough to last well over a year through a ritual of daily abuse (being crammed into and taken out of my heavily loaded backpack; with no protection for the phones whatsoever). The speakers swivel sideways to become somewhat compact so they've always acted like "compliant citizens" while in the pack. The point of failure was one of the black plastic pieces that rise above each speaker enclosures. That piece's function is to handle head-size adjustment by accommodating a sliding metal band into the top end, and also to hold a swivel on the bottom end where it meets the speaker enclosure. The piece is lightweight but sturdy plastic of some sort; but it eventually cracked under my abuse, the detented adjustment mechanism inside quit keeping the metal band in place. And eventually the plastic piece failed entirely & broke off completely. It would have needed some duct-tape/epoxy magic to keep it in service. As a recently graduated student of audio/video production, I do not anticipate these as being accurate & precise enough for the professional reference applications that I'll be growing into as a professional (like mixing music and video post-production); but I think they might make a serviceable backup. And for me, a lifetime music lover and recent student of audio/video production, they've done the job admirably. I've never found any aspect of the units sound to be an issue when listening to sound effects and/or music of all styles. I hear a consistently clear and balanced sound that seems to cover the entire range of human hearing. And from some of the better classical recordings, I even think I can hear subtle 3D placement of instruments within the sound stage. I also hear nice clear stereo separation and time-based effects on modern pop and rock recordings. And when used with either Mac or PC at higher volumes, I've never heard any evidence of these gems being over driven - my ear drums have always complained before ever getting that far... The JVC HAS160A Flat Headphones have found a place on my "practical lifestyle list" - for the price there's no reason not to always have a pair or two around. So I just purchased 2 more sets...

JVC Flats review. These are nice headphones, very light. Minimalist folding phones. The sound quality is excellent. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Even small and light phones like these will inevitably cause ear pain for me after extended use unless they are modified to relax the clamping pressure somewhat. When new, and lying flat, the bottoms of the two ear cans meet or even overlap. I stretched the sides of the top steel band slightly (past yield) and observed the headphone in lying flat position. When there was about 1" open gap between the bottom of the ear cans I found clamping pressure much reduced, the headphone much more comfortable.

These really do have excellent sound, far better than you might imagine for the price. The bad news is they break really easy and I've been through several pairs. As long as you're very gentle with them they should last a while. The main culprit is right where the ear cup connects to the headband and that's pretty much where they all broke. The actual headband is it's very durable. Also the cable that leads from it is very thin so you have to be gentle with that too. They really do sound phenomenal but JVC should do something about it's durability because I've been through five pairs of these over the years and they all broke in the same exact place. One or the other ear cup breaks off work connects. My current pair I just glued it back on with super glue and made sure it was angled right to fit on my ear properly.

These little headphones sound big. Yet are light and comfortable to wear. I lost my first ones and had to get another one. So loving the sound of music on my phone now. I highly recommend these headphones.

Great headphones for the price. Doesn’t hurt my ears super light weight. Crisp audio and good volume. Use them for work, YouTube and music production.

Muy bien producto, excelente relación calidad precio.

I’m very pleasantly surprised by these little headphones. I just wanted a cheap pair to have to hand for casual listening when I don’t want to get out my expensive Sennheiser ones. Obviously the JVC headphones don’t have the clarity of separation or the flat eq of monitor headphones. The JVCs have an enhanced bass, good prominent mids and the higher frequencies feel about right, not too harsh but still there. Basically their eq settings are set for enhancing musical playback. These will suit most people who just want to listen to music. The bass comes alive, vocals are in the right place, not too prominent and not drowned out either. Just a really well equalised set of headphones for general music. I can’t recommend these highly enough. When I feel like listening to music & hearing every instrument separately with a flat eq I use my higher end monitor headphones. When I just want to enjoy being immersed in music and feel the emotion of the song I go for these JVCs. For that purpose these are excellent. In short these are very well equalised headphones perfectly set up for enhancing general music. For the price you can’t go wrong. I’d expect these to cost a lot more based on the sound, I think the cost has been kept down by keeping build quality to a minimum. They’re not cheaply built by any means, just small, light & very basic. The sound quality far outweighs the build quality. I bought them in violet (more a deep metallic purple) and I absolutely love them. Best £12 I’ve ever spent.

If you are looking for a budget wired light-weight headphone, look no further. The sound is good and the price is affordable.

Great for occassional use. Have bought 3 of these over the years and would buy again.

the phones are great for the money.