On one of my most memorable trips, where I spent over nine months traveling abroad around Europe and Northern Africa, I found that one of the best ways to pass the time was with audio books and of course, some tunes. When you’re spending an average of five to ten hours in some sort of transport, the need for entertainment is great. There were days when I would literally hop on a bus, then a plane, then shuttle to train to taxi to boat. It’s happened, and since I toured over twenty countries in that time, it seemed as if almost everyday I was left to suffer hours of boredom and contemplation. But I found ways to avoid that sinking dullness that comes with comes with constant travel…
As I mentioned in the opening line, during the down times I found solace in audio books and music, which may sound typical, but when you’re stuck on a plane for thirteen hours or on a bus for nine, or are required to pass through five or more modes of transport in one day (yes, it does happen!), then you need to be prepared, otherwise, the travel may get to you. I felt it coming on once, and decided it was time to find a cure. So I went out and found a nice pair of headphones, with bluetooth and noise-canceling capabilities and loaded my phone with the first five books of George RR Martin’s Game of Thrones series and a slew of new music, and I was off. The ability to turn on a fantasy world within my imagination to escape from whatever process I am physically apart of saved my life, and my sanity.
For me, when I’m looking for a successful pair of headphones for traveling, there are a number of attributes and features I look for… A few of which are of course, quality of build (because I don’t want them breaking in my rucksack), quality of sound (because even though sound quality isn’t as important with audiobooks, it absolutely matters when you switch to a bassy style of music), and breakdown size (because there’s nothing worse than adding something heavy and bulky to an already tiresome rucksack, and back). I’ll tell you right now, perhaps my absolute favorite headphones company is the sound masters at Master & Dynamic. Why, you might ask? Well simply, because their passion for making the finest pair of headphones comes screaming out from their product, even when it’s still in the box. Sound wild? Well, allow me to explain.
I’ve worked with Master & Dynamic’s headphones in the past, and every time I test their work, I come away very impressed, not only because their sound quality is amazing, but because they make a product that will last for decades. How many products are made by such a standard these days? Not many. Most companies seem perfectly fine with producing things readymade to fail; literally designed to fail. Why? Because they want you to come back to buy another one. Why do you think Apple’s little lightning to AUX headphone dongle breaks so easily, because they want you to keep coming back and buying more. In a day and age when profits are all that matter is when planned obsolescence will run amuck. But based on my own experience, I can say that Master & Dynamic are a different breed entirely.
For me, when I’m looking for a successful pair of headphones for traveling, there are a number of attributes and features I look for… A few of which are of course, quality of build (because I don’t want them breaking in my rucksack), quality of sound (because even though sound quality isn’t as important with audiobooks, it absolutely matters when you switch to a bassy style of music), and breakdown size (because there’s nothing worse than adding something heavy and bulky to an already tiresome rucksack, and back). I’ll tell you right now, perhaps my absolute favorite headphones company is the sound masters at Master & Dynamic. Why, you might ask? Well simply, because their passion for making the finest pair of headphones comes screaming out from their product, even when it’s still in the box. Sound wild? Well, allow me to explain.
I’ve worked with Master & Dynamic’s headphones in the past, and every time I test their work, I come away very impressed, not only because their sound quality is amazing, but because they make a product that will last for decades. How many products are made by such a standard these days? Not many. Most companies seem perfectly fine with producing things readymade to fail; literally designed to fail. Why? Because they want you to come back to buy another one. Why do you think Apple’s little lightning to AUX headphone dongle breaks so easily, because they want you to keep coming back and buying more. In a day and age when profits are all that matter is when planned obsolescence will run amuck. But based on my own experience, I can say that Master & Dynamic are a different breed entirely.
M&D specializes in producing high quality headphones that are built to last decades, and the MW60 model is no different; with its stainless steel body, heavy grain lambskin headband and ear pads, and aluminum antenna. The MW60’s are Master & Dynamic’s bluetooth-enabled over-ear headphones, which keep consistent their high quality sound and build, yet bring a new and modern flare to an already brilliant design. The MW60’s bring 4x industry average signal range and a 16-hour rechargeable battery life (charges quickly via USB). These bad boys do travel a fantastic range from the device sending your headphones the audio signal, which is very convenient in my line of work, considering I typically set my pack down and roam around when possible, be it for photos or for simple wanderings. Last, but definitely not least, M&D has installed volume, mute, and bluetooth control buttons on the body of the headphones. How cool is that?!
Overall, I found the MW60 wireless headphones to be some of the most impressive and versatile headphones on the market today. They are built strong and they feel comfortable when worn for long periods of time, and have the capability of offering fantastic sound quality with a wire or without. For me, the way they fold up and close up into a small bag is a huge selling point, as I do a lot of backpacker travel, where every inch and ounce matter greatly. But even when applying Master & Dynamic’s MW60’s features to when I’m home and writing, they exceed my expectations. The only knock I have, which is something that applies to all bluetooth in 2017, is that the sound quality lessens, just a smidge, when playing high fidelity music over bluetooth, but once you plug in their versatile audio wire, that high end and powerful sound comes roaring back; so it isn’t the headphones themselves that are to blame, but it is the bluetooth technology that hasn’t quite lived up to the traditional wire. All in all, I’m very impressed and very excited to experience the wonderful world of sound on my next trip abroad.\
For more information on Master & Dynamic, click here.
Article written & Photos by Brandon Scott / Eye & Pen
Overall, I found the MW60 wireless headphones to be some of the most impressive and versatile headphones on the market today. They are built strong and they feel comfortable when worn for long periods of time, and have the capability of offering fantastic sound quality with a wire or without. For me, the way they fold up and close up into a small bag is a huge selling point, as I do a lot of backpacker travel, where every inch and ounce matter greatly. But even when applying Master & Dynamic’s MW60’s features to when I’m home and writing, they exceed my expectations. The only knock I have, which is something that applies to all bluetooth in 2017, is that the sound quality lessens, just a smidge, when playing high fidelity music over bluetooth, but once you plug in their versatile audio wire, that high end and powerful sound comes roaring back; so it isn’t the headphones themselves that are to blame, but it is the bluetooth technology that hasn’t quite lived up to the traditional wire. All in all, I’m very impressed and very excited to experience the wonderful world of sound on my next trip abroad.\
For more information on Master & Dynamic, click here.
Article written & Photos by Brandon Scott / Eye & Pen
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