Bone Conduction Headphones: Technical Challenges and How OpenRun Pro 2 Solves Them

Bone conduction headphones are a unique alternative to traditional headphones, transmitting sound vibrations through your temporal bones directly to your inner ear instead of the ear canal. This design makes them ideal for running, cycling, gym workouts, and other sports, providing situational awareness and comfort.

However, bone conduction headphones can have common challenges, such as limited bass, vibration discomfort, sound leakage, and battery life constraints. In this article, we’ll break down these issues and explain how Shokz’s flagship OpenRun Pro 2 overcomes each one, delivering the best audio experience for active lifestyles.

Top 4 Problems with Bone Conduction Headphones

There are four common problems that people ascribe to bone conduction headphones: sound quality, particularly with bass frequencies; vibrational discomfort during prolonged usage; short battery life; and sound leakage.

Limited Sound Quality and Bass Performance

Bone conduction headphones often struggle to produce deep, rich bass. This is because of the physical limitations of sound transmission through bone. Its higher density means that more energy is needed to transmit low-frequency vibrations. As a result, the bass can sound thin or less pronounced.

Vibration and Long-Term Comfort Issues

As one might expect, the vibrations that are transmitted through the temporal bones can cause some discomfort, and even headaches, after extended periods of time. People with sensitive skin can also experience irritation.

Battery Life Limitations

Because of their compact size, bone conduction headphones often have smaller batteries than traditional headphones. However, they still lack the kind of charging box that’s included with most air conduction earbuds, which can make charging more convenient and extend battery life. Bone conduction headphones also need to power the transducers that convert sound waves into vibrations, which use up battery life. Although they are reliable for most activities, long listening sessions may require frequent charging.

Sound Leakage in Quiet Environments

Bone conduction headphones are known for their distinct open-ear design, resting just outside the ear, unlike traditional headphones that use sealed ear cups or earbuds. However, this is not the reason for sound leakage. Instead, it’s because the earphone core vibrates, causing the surrounding air to vibrate and form sound waves that leak. In quiet environments, the leakage can be especially noticeable.

Why Bone Conduction Headphones Are Still Worth It

Despite the above mentioned drawbacks, bone conduction headphones still have several advantages. For starters, the open-ear design allows users to maintain situational awareness since the ear canal remains unobstructed. This provides for greater safety when cycling or running on busy streets. It also allows users to communicate with friends while listening to their favorite music or podcast, removing the isolating stigma associated with headphones.

The open-ear design has health benefits as well. It reduces the risk of damaging the eardrum and doesn’t put any pressure on the ear canal. It’s also more hygienic than in-ear headphones, which allow earwax to accumulate within the ear canal and even foster bacterial growth, due to moisture, warmth, and lack of air circulation. This can lead to infection.

Finally, the hooked structure of the open-ear design makes for a more secure, lightweight fit. So unlike over-the-ear headphones, which can be bulky, or in-ear headphones, which can fall out, bone conduction headphones are compact and stable, especially during exercise.

What Makes Shokz Bone Conduction Headphones Unique?

Shokz is one of the leading brands in the bone conduction headphone space, in large part because of its relentless pursuit of innovation. With over 4,300 patents worldwide, Shokz is constantly pushing the boundaries of bone-conduction technology in hopes of delivering the best possible user experience. Some of its biggest breakthroughs have been in sound quality, as well as comfort and stability.

Shokz headphones are created with a particular focus on active lifestyles. Their weather-resistant designs are meant to withstand whatever nature has in store. Their extended battery life also means that long excursions don’t need to be cut short or interrupted by constant charging. And because most Shokz models include microphones, users can take hands-free calls while exercising.

Why OpenRun Pro 2 Is The Best Bone Conduction Headphones

Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 is one of the best workout headphones and top-rated sports headphones on the market, perfect for running, cycling, and gym workouts. It delivers powerful, balanced sound without blocking your ears, keeping you aware of your surroundings during outdoor activities. 

With a secure, lightweight fit and long-lasting battery life, they are ideal for anyone searching for wireless headphones perfect for workouts. Whether you’re looking for running earbuds, or good wireless workout headphones, the OpenRun Pro 2 offers comfort, stability, and premium audio quality for all your training sessions.

Improved Sound Quality with DualPitch™ Technology

The OpenRun Pro 2 is superpowered by DualPitch™ Technology, which combines a bone-conduction driver for more precise mids and highs with an air-conduction driver for a deeper, more booming bass.

While most bone-conduction headphones struggle with bass-heavy genres of music, the OpenRun Pro 2 delivers louder bass without compromising audio balance, even when played at high volumes. Whether you’re running outdoors, cycling on trails, or working out at the gym, it stays comfortable and stable throughout your activity.

Reduced Vibration for All-Day Comfort

In past headphones, the bone-conduction driver sometimes produced a tingling sensation against the skin when handling low frequencies. But this problem has been eliminated with DualPitch™ Technology, which helps minimize overall vibrations by assigning low frequencies to the air-conduction driver instead.

Additionally, the bone-conduction driver, through its innovative dual-coil-and-reed design, ensures a stable vibration system so that the vocal sound is purer.

Extended 12-Hour Battery Life and Quick Charging

With a larger battery, the OpenRun Pro 2 offers an incredible 12 hours of battery life when fully charged. Its dual smart drivers also help to optimize power usage, allowing users to get the most out of their headphones.

Perhaps best of all, a little bit of time goes a long way when charging. A five-minute power boost gives you 2.5 hours of battery life - helpful for short pre-run boosts or quick gym sessions.

Advanced Sound Leakage Control

OpenRun Pro 2 features advanced sound leakage control through an integrated design, acoustic EQ, and DirectPitch™ Technology, which minimize how much sound escapes from both the bone and air conduction units. The decoupled drivers further ensure that your audio stays private, even in shared spaces.

In addition, the maximum volume of the OpenRun Pro 2 has been increased by 3dB, so users can enjoy clearer and louder sound without having to worry about leakage.

FAQs about Bone Conduction Headphones

1. Why are bone conduction headphones more comfortable than traditional in-ear air-conduction headphones?

Unlike in-ear models that can put pressure on the ear canal, bone conduction headphones rest on the temporal bone, eliminating discomfort. Additionally, the open-ear design prevents the buildup of heat and moisture, especially during exercise, which can cause irritation.

2. Does Bone Conduction Headphones Damage Hearing?

Bone conduction headphones are generally safer for your hearing because they transmit sound through your bones, bypassing the eardrum. This reduces the risk of eardrum damage compared to traditional headphones. However, listening at very high volumes for long periods can still be harmful, so it’s best to keep the volume moderate.

Conclusion

Ultimately, bone conduction headphones offer greater comfort and situational awareness but often compromise on sound quality and battery life, especially compared to their air conduction counterparts. That said, Shokz has distinguished itself as a pioneer in bone conduction technology, continually raising the bar with each and every headphone it designs – and the OpenRun Pro 2 is no exception. With DualPitch™ Technology and a larger battery, the new flagship sports headphone from Shokz offers premium sound quality, reduced vibrations, longer playback time and less audio leakage, resulting in a superior audio experience.