Testing and Results

Sound Quality

I tested the sound quality with a nice eclectic mix of glam rock, jazz funk and dubstep.

For music, the sound quality was pretty damn good. Both crisp and clear, with quiet bass in the background. This latter part was a little understated and I’d have preferred a set with a bit more oomf at the lower end in reality; it especially let down the dubstep portion of my testing. Whilst the product promises a soft bass, it’s not what you need for bass-heavy music on the go.

The smaller ear cups didn’t dampen outside noise too well either, whilst not a bother for home use it wasn’t as great travelling on the bus. I had to tuck my ears inside the cups to get the best I could out of them which did prove uncomfortable over long periods of time.

Comfort

The Duos only have one thing working against them that will be universal. The headband and the padding surrounding it is unusually stiff. To top it off, the material used sticks slightly to hair and pulls it taut.

The padding for the ears on the other hand is phenomenal. It’s smooth and comfortable, and in contrast to the hair-sticking problem, it sits on the ears very lightly. Fortunately it doesn’t stick to skin like it sticks to hair as well.

As I mentioned in the Sound Quality section up there; the cups were slightly too small for my ears. I had to tuck my ears into them which isn’t exactly comfortable for more than 20 minutes. Not something I recommend doing frequently if your ears are as big as mine.

Build Quality

Considering the low retail price, I was expecting cheap, plastic crap. The reality was quite the opposite though. Whilst the outer casing is the average quality plastic you can find anywhere on the market, there’s a metal frame inside the band that really adds to the sturdiness of them as a whole.

The hinges have a similar treatment as well. Radiopaq have opted for metal hinges as opposed to the normal plastic pin affair.

I’ll admit I accidentally stood on these once (…Okay twice) and they didn’t so much as buckle even slightly. It makes a difference from the last headset I bought which snapped when I took an accidental misstep onto my bag one summer eve.