As someone who has spent thousands of hours on a plane or in transit headphones are an essential piece of kit. Over the years I have spent a lot of money and bought various pairs. Some good... Some bad. I thought I would share my tips and learnings. one of the biggest points I will make is that they have to be comfortable and not too tight. I remember buying one pair at the airport for £300 plus and by the time I arrived in LA I wanted to throw them away as I couldn’t wear them for more than an hour before they gave me sore ears and a headache. Check them out and please let us know if you have others you recommend.

FOR THE SERIOUS LISTENER

Beyerdynamic DT 1770 Studio PRO

Price: £397.00

Dj’s, music producers, sound technicians and real audio heads! These are headphone for you. A solidly made, Sleek design with the revolutionary tesla 2.0 technology. Brilliant highs for those crisp vocals and a warm, responsive bass that really give that spacy feeling. These headphones are in a class of their own.

Key features:

Single-sided, detachable cable with mini-XLR
Robust Steel Headband with Leatherette Cushion
Velour Ear pads for Supreme Comfort
Out of this world sound from the tesla technology

FOR THE TRAVELING LISTENER

Bose Quiet Comfort 35 Wireless Bluetooth Noise Cancelling Headphones

Price: £329.95

These headphones are ridiculous. For the person who travels a lot. Holidays, School bus or going to work every day. You need a light weight, sturdy pair of headphones that remove those annoying background sounds. Have you ever been on a plane, bus or the train and your music is just ruined by other sounds? There is nothing like the noise cancelling properties of these making them perfect for the traveling music lover. But, it gets better! No wires! There is nothing worse that traveling and moving around and the wire become tangled or the jack pops out and your starts playing out loud… Nightmare! These have the best of both worlds you have the ability to go Bluetooth and also you can connect the jack. Compact folding and superb sound.

Key features:

20 hours’ battery life per charge and up to 40 hours in wired mode
Superb noise cancelling properties
Ultra-lightweight
Volume-optimised EQ for balanced audio performance at any volume
Wireless with Bluetooth

FOR THE LUXURY LISTENER

Bowers & Wilkins P9 Signature Over Ear Headphones

Price: £699.00

Bowers & Wilkins has over 50 year of expertise in the heart of sound engineering. The P9 is a luxury headphone. The smell, feel and sound give the perfect sublime expression of quality. With angled drivers to create ‘a more natural experience’. The sound appear from the front rather than the sides. A sleek, sturdy design made from lightweight aluminium and uniquely vented ear pads consisting of multiple layers of memory foam covered in brown leather add to ultra-luxury pair of headphones. Outstand sound and the perfect balance of bass and high notes.

Key features:

Angled drivers to provide a more natural sound
Leather headband and ear cups
Optimised acoustic cabinets for total precision of drive unit
Easy folding for travel and storage

FOR THE ACTIVE LISTENER

Jabra Elite Sport True Wireless Bluetooth Stereo Earbuds with Built-In Heart Rate Monitor

Price: £229.99

When going for a run you don’t need wires everywhere. They get in the way and cause you to become distracted and you spend for time putting the headphones back in from pulling on the wire than listening to music! abra Elite Sport are a revolution when it comes to running or sport headphones! Completely wireless, water resistant, securely fitted with comfortable wings and snug ear bud to reduce noise. Each ear piece comes fitted with built in high quality microphones to take important phone calls or for siri to change the song….The best feature is the heart rate monitoring nodes on the ear pieces which when connected to the app will track your beats per minute during your session! I’m Sold.

Key Features

3-hour battery life with charging case to add additional 6 hours
3-year warranty against sweat
in-ear precision heartrate monitor
Enhance Bluetooth wireless connectivity

FOR THE BUDGETEER

Sennheiser CX 300 II Precision Ear-Canal Earphones

Price: £23.02

For the price you aren’t going to get any better. These are honestly the best headphone I have used for the price. These pack a serious punch for the size of them and the sound quality is surprisingly good! A compact and cheap but also quality pair of in ear headphones.

Key features:

High quality dynamic speakers
Powerful bass
Asymmetrical cord for anti-tangle