Polk Audio UltraFocus 8000 Active Noise Canceling Headphone Review

Polk Audio UltraFocus 8000: Out of the Box and In Use

The Polk Audio UltraFocus 8000 comes in an impressive box that reminds you of the effort and presentation that Apple puts into their packaging. Inside the box, you will find very nice Polk Audio case containing the UltraFocus 8000 noise cancelling headphones, a 55-inch cable, a 1/8 to adaptor, a Skype adaptor, an Airline adaptor, External attenuator, shirt clip, and two AAA batteries.

The UltraFocus comes with flat planar cables that should get rid of all the tangles and kinks that normal round cabling are susceptible to just look at your year-old headset cables that came with your mobile phone! The flat cables are also oxygen-free designed to enhance conductivity for superior sound quality.

After installing the batteries and picking out the correct cable to use with our computer, we fitted the headset on to our heads and turned the power on. Instantly, we could hear the outside world fall away and ambient noise, such as the drone of an air conditioner, fan, or traffic noise goes away.

These headphones really come alive when the music is turned on. We listened to a variety of high-quality music and was incredibly impressed with the quality and depth of sound. They easily blew away anything else we had in the Legit Bunker. With the noise cancellation function, playback of classical recordings had more life and feeling as the recordings were clearer even to the point of hearing musicians move their hands up and down the frets. When listening to Electronic Dance Music (EDM), the sonic variations that you get as the various layers come in and out during playback are accentuated more and the music just sounds better. Of course these features were already in the music that you downloaded or ripped, but with the noise cancelling headset, you ears arent fighting the ambient noise and the music is simply clearer.

The controls on the side work very well when used with an Apple-branded product. The 3-button remote control and microphone buttons do a great job of controlling your Apple iPhone, iPad, and iPod so that you dont need to keep looking at your mobile device. Unfortunately, these controls do nothing when the headset is connected with your laptop or other mobile device (such as your Android or Windows OS phone).

Even though the UltraFocus 8000 can be considered a heavy headset at 12.6 ounces, we were able to wear the headsets comfortably for an entire work day as well as several cross-country flights with little problems. With many headphones and headsets, there is pain somewhere on your head after only a short time listening. The UltraFocus 8000 balances the weight so that neither your head, nor do your ears feels the weight of the headsets.

The battery life for these active noise cancelling headsets are rated to last 40-60 hours, and we found that we were cranking the music up for weeks before thinking about replacing batteries. We used these headsets all day at work and sometimes forgot to turn them off after the day ended, but we still never changed the battery more than once a month. We never did try rechargeable batteries, but this is obviously a great way to protect your pocketbook.

Polk Audio has a rich history of designing and delivering high-quality audio products and the UltraFocus 8000 doesn’t miss a beat. Although a little too large to go jogging with around town, these headsets are perfect for any student who is trying to “tune things out” when studying. Audiophiles will love this headset as the music delivered is crisp and clear with no distortion whatsoever heard. With a 1-year parts and labor warranty, the headphones are priced at very reasonably at $199.00 and compare very favorably to competitors like the $305.88 Beats By Dre Over the Ear noise cancelling headphones found at Apple, or the $299.00 Bose QuietComfort 25 Acoustic Noise Cancelling headphones.

Legit Bottom Line:

The Polk Audio UltraFocus 8000 Active Noise Cancelling headsets gives great overall performance when it comes to overall sound quality, comfort, and compatibility. There are other more affordable headsets on the market, but you will be hard pressed to find a better overall performer.