u/d3medical

Considering a pair of Alden tassels on the Aberdeen last in 10E. My true size is 10, D-pushing-E width, high instep. (Wanted to get a pair of full straps and tassels eventually)

I have sensitive ankle bones and have had issues with high or stiff heel collars causing irritation. The Van last works well for me specifically because of its low, relaxed collar, I wear a 9.5D on the Van. I could probably wear an E, but figured it’s the 6243f aka the snuff suede so it’s alittle more forgiving compared to non-suede leather

Haven’t tried Aberdeen before and the seller is too far away to try these on in person. Curious if anyone with similar foot geometry has experience with how the Aberdeen heel collar behaves: height, stiffness, break-in. Does it soften appreciably with wear or stay structured?

Shoe has a return window so I’m not totally flying blind, but would love informed opinions before committing

Title

Currently rocking a pair of Bose Quiet Comfort Ultras, but after 3 hours of non-stop wear, my ears are just on fire, might not be a proper fit, but figured I'd explore my options and see what is out there. I have always bought Bose, but quality has gone downhill for me (these I had to get another pair of after I bought a brand new pair for coming DOA in one earbud). I'm also just not super impressed with the bluetooth functionality of these. I had a pair of soundsports a decade ago, and they worked amazingly, and never had problems, unsure if there is something going on with these connecting to Apple and Apple somehow intentionally making these harder to connect to apple devices, but I digress.

Would be nice to have these be bluetooth, but I recall reading that you lose a bunch of the richness/deepness of music when you do that, so something that plugs in with your generic jack would suffice.

• Budget and location - Honestly don't really have a budget, just don't want to spend 1k, when a 500 pair is equally as good where only a "trained" ear would be able to tell (like lossless option on spotify, no one can tell the difference). Want to get the best where after that point, it's really diminishing returns. Based in the US.
• Preferred tonal balance - Honestly would just like my music to sound the best, I listen to pretty much everything, yes everything, so if there is a middle of the road option, that would be cool
• How the gear will be used - Would be used at both work and home, would be cool if they had some noise cancelation function, but I'd imagine that an over the ear headphone would. With it being used in an office, I would worry with an open case back people would be able to hear my music/meetings, so closed back would be the reference here.

Thanks!!