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Reviews For: KOSS SB45 3.5mm Connector Circumaural Multi-Media Stereophone

Category: Headphones & Boom-microphone Headsets

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Review Summary For : KOSS SB45 3.5mm Connector Circumaural Multi-Media Stereophone
Reviews: 23MSRP: 36.99
Description:
Key Features:
Multimedia headset
Noise-cancelling Clear Voice Technology (CVT)
Premium sound at all volume levels
Anisotropic ferrite magnet structures deliver high
sensitivity and reduced sound distortion
Experience absolute comfort with soft, leatherette ear
cushions
Covered under the Koss Stereophones Limited Lifetime
Warranty
Product is in production
More Info: https://koss.com/collections/headsets-gaming-headphones/products/sb45
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00234.7
VK2LEE Rating: 2021-10-09
Excellent headset - love them - Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
These headsets are just excellent- I have an 8 pin adapter from WO3O to My Yaesu FTDX-3000 and the audio from the Electret Microphone is also excellent - much louder then the WO3O headset it is replacing - but not over loading - I will probably get another of these KOSS SB45 headsets for a spare also.. these cost $84 AUS - much more expensive than in the USA or Canada... these headsets are very well designed and fit onto My head perfectly - shutting out any ambient noise - they look very well engineered and top quality - Beautiful - Highly Recommended - and they look very well designed and made.... very happy with My purchase... VK2LEE -
EI6ITB Rating: 2021-06-08
Great VFM Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I've been using this for the past two years on an elderly Icom 735, and getting good audio reports.
I immediately covered the ear pads with cotton liners in the hope of extending the life of the black seal coating. Even so, I've no doubt I can replace the cushions with something later on, if they start to fail.
These covers are on all my headsets, along with headband padding, which transforms them all into wear-all-day comfortable sets.
My only real concern is the too-thin cable. I can see that getting snagged and broken at some point. If that happens I'll replace it with better quality cable.
N4WRE Rating: 2021-06-07
Great sounding headset Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
This is a great little headset that really works well with the Icom rigs. With the right settings you will get a ton of compliments on your audio.
N6BIZ Rating: 2017-09-05
Great Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have this headphone
Just great
KE0EYJ Rating: 2017-09-05
Growing on me Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Have started to grow on me. Seemed a bit bright on receive, at first. I learned to turn the volume down to almost silent, where just the voices pop through. Mic is a bit lacking in bass, but very clear. Happy, for the cost. Radiosport sells ear cup socks that also fit these koss headphones, and will extend ear pad life. Would give a 4.5, if I could.

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Earlier 3-star review posted by KE0EYJ on 2017-08-22

Kind of disappointed in these, mainly on receive. The mic sounds nice, but the receive accentuates the already sharp/noisy highs of my Icom 7300 too much. I get more hiss, and less midrange. I can't say I'm impressed, overall. For now, I'll be going back to the cheap Sony's I've been wearing. Sadly, they don't have a boom mic on them.

I want to add that the Koss headset is made of the same cheap earpad material that my Sony's are (this is my 2nd pair of Sony's). That cheap fake leather material is like thin paper, and after about 2 years, will begin to flake off and stick to your face. I was disappointed in seeing they come with that, also.
KE0EYJ Rating: 2017-09-04
A bit bright, but comfortable Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
The Koss SB-45's are a good headset for the money. The highs on RX are a bit bright, but I find that lowering the volume to the near minimum required to hear ends up a perfect match for RX listening (and is easier on your ears).

The microphone is somewhat bass-lacking, but very clear. The ear pads are comfortable, but will likely flake-off in 2-3 years. I would give them a 4.5, if I could.

http://thestingyham.blogspot.kr/2017/09/koss-sb-45-headset-and-sample-receive.html
WY7CHY Rating: 2016-10-18
Very Under-rated Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I'm fortunate in that money is not a real issue for me. I buy what I want and never worry about the price. I have extremely good hearing, but that makes me need to use NR/NB on my radio. That makes it a bit more difficult to hear the QSO. I was at a friend's house and we were playing some computer games. His wife was complaining to turn down the sound. So my friend let me try his SB-40. I couldn't believe how great the audio was. Especially for a $25 pair of headphones. I researched it for my rig, but I wanted to use it for my ICOM. So the Sb-40 wasn't good because of the dynamic mic. I needed an electret mic. I checked out the SB-45 which has the same headphones, just the mic is basically the only difference. I couldn't be happier. I don't use it on my Yaesu rigs because of the microphone, plus I have some excellent studio mics I use for the yaesu. But for the money; the SB-45 ($25 on amazon) performs as well, or if not better, than my $300 Rode mics. (At least according to QSO contacts). And the speakers in the SB-45, for my hearing and comfort, sound just as good as my Shure and AKG that I use for my Yaesu as well as I use to in my recording studio. There is no doubt, if you have an ICOM radio, and are looking for a headset, definitely buy the SB-45. For $25 you can't go wrong. Obviously you'll need an adapter for the 8 pin icom. You can buy one from from Heil (AD-1-IC) for about $25, or on ebay from K6VHF for $19.99 (Free S/H). Either way; this is a kick-a$$ mic/headset for the ICOM radio.
VE3TMT Rating: 2016-10-09
Get the SB40 Time Owned: more than 12 months.
As stated, the SB45 has an electret element. If this is giving you problems, get the SB40, identical to the Yamaha CM500 but with a dynamic element. I am currently using the SB40 on my FT-2000 with the following EQ settings:

Menu #
85 ttbf
125 100
126 8
127 5
128 1400
129 5
130 5
131 3200
132 10
133 1
134 400
135 -15
136 2
137 1400
138 7
139 3
140 3200
141 10
142 1

I'm always getting unsolicited compliments on the quality of the TX audio, even on AM. I run the widest setting on SSB (4Kz) and 50-4000Hz on AM.

Some advice, cover up the rear of the element housing with some electrical tape. This will take away the "mushiness" effect. For $40 at Best Buy, how can you go wrong.



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Earlier 5-star review posted by VE3TMT on 2015-07-24

Bought a used Heil Pro Set 6 Elite that basically fell apart on me. Not any fault of Heil, the ham I purchased it from grossly underestimated its condition. No way was I going to invest that kind of money in a headset again. I bought the SB-40 headset from Best Buy for $39 CAD. The SB-40 is identical to the SB-45 except it has the dynamic mic, not the electret. Running it on a Yaesu FT950.

The ear pads completely cover the ears, and the headset is very comfortable after extended use. I didn't get the impression my head was being squeezed like I did with the previous set. The RX audio from the Koss is very pleasant to listen to. The only complaint I read about before ordering was ops complained of muffled TX audio. I too found the audio somewhat dull, lacking the clarity of the Heil. I found by putting a piece of electrical tape over the back of the mic element housing effectively sealing it, it takes away the mushiness of the audio. The 950 now sounds fantastic with the processor either on or off.

I made my own filter from a piece of foam and a couple of small cable ties to hold it to the element housing.

The cord is nice and long, you can wander around the shack without fear of it unplugging. I would not hesitate to buy a second pair.
KD4W Rating: 2016-10-08
Trashed it Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I bought one of these based on the reviews here in eham. Mistake. The mic is omnidirectional and so damned sensitive that no matter where you set the mic gain it picks up everything in the county.
If you have the world's quietest station you may love it, but if you care what you are transmitting you should forget it.
Didn't not find it comfortable either. I tried changing the mic element and ended up throwing the thing in the trash.
K2IZ Rating: 2016-10-08
Good headset Time Owned: more than 12 months.
A few years ago I had bought the SB/45 to listen to my music on the computer, I started using them when I got the mic/foot switch/headphone jack for my TS-590, great audio, once you adjusted the 590 for the audio I get good reports, it also works with my 480. Accidently cut the cord for the headset and there is no way these old arthritic hands and poor eyesight could have spliced that wire so I used another computer headset/mic I had laying around, noticed right away that I had to turn up the volume from where I had it with the SB-45 but it seemed muffled, reordered the SB-45, hello, all settings are now back to where they were, nice clear sound, better then the "other" ones, they go back in the drawer in case I need an emergency back again.