I've covered 12 Black Fridays in my time at What Hi-Fi?, and if there is one thing I've learned spending weeks trawling through sales online every year it is that the very biggest discounts rarely represent the very best deals. The best buys are, in my experience, markdowns on the gear that performs best and is the most recommendable regardless of discounts.
This year, Amazon has curated a Top 100 Black Friday deals section (which it has just started labelling 'Cyber Monday' deals) and the three pairs of headphones in it are on the Sonos Ace, Beats Solo 4 and Bose QuietComfort Headphones, which are up to 51 per cent off.
- Beats Solo 4 headphones
was $200now $100 (save $100) - Bose QuietComfort headphones
was $349now $170 (save $180) - Sonos Ace headphones
was $449now $349 (save $100)
All three of these wireless over-ear headphones are attractively discounted, yes, but none is the best you can buy at its price. Below I have found you better alternatives for each.
3 Amazon Top 100 headphones deals
In my mind, the best of Amazon's headphones deals in its Top 100 is the Bose QuietComfort for $170. These are seemingly modest updates to the four-star QuietComfort 45 wireless noise-cancelling over-ears and what I would call good value at their current 51 per cent discount. You can expect fantastic noise cancellation, a 24-hour battery life and decent sound quality.
The Beats Solo 4 for $99 certainly look tempting, I admit. Now, I haven't reviewed this relatively new model myself, but I haven't heard a pair of Beats over-ears I've loved (or to be honest, even liked) in my 12 years of testing headphones, and that includes their predecessors, the Solo 3, which our reviews team awarded only three stars for their lack of detail and subtlety. Even with their 50 per cent discount, I reckon you can do better.
Lastly, we have the Sonos Ace at $100 off. These new wireless noise-cancellers came with high expectations but ultimately were disappointing, mainly due to their uncompetitive sound quality – they lack clarity, dynamic expression and rhythmic drive compared with the class leaders. Our Sonos Ace review describes why they are only three-star performers.
Ultimately, I wouldn't recommend any of these three as your number one choice, but would instead urge you to consider these discounted, similarly priced class-leading alternatives instead:
3 better alternatives
