I recently was looking for headphones for my children, aged 6 and 9. Often when we are in our SUV, I have to make sure that the kids have the wireless headphones at a safe level. Kids don’t listen sometimes so I was on the lookout for some headphones that have the volume set so my kids will not be deaf before they are 12. Anyway, I found that JLab Audio had the JBuddies Studio Over Ear Headphones, that have what Jlab calls safe-volume control, with built-in volume regulators. I contacted JLab and they sent me over a pair to review.
Build
Here is a close up shot of the adjustment\hinge
A shot of the headband cushioning
Upon first taking them out of the box I noticed that that they were light but felt substantial enough that they could survive being dropped. JLab uses metal incorporated into the headband that provides durability while also allowing for easy and smooth adjustments depending on your child’s head size. I found that the pads(JLab’s Eco Leather) were soft but also provided adequate isolation from ambient sound. The headphones have a nice clamping force that keeps them on the child’s head but is not too tight. The padding on the headband allowed my kids to wear them for a long time without having to take them off. While the cord is not removable, it feels substantial and has a nice strain relief installed to insure that if caught on something, that it will not be damaged easily. The cable is also covered in braided nylon that helps cut down on microphonics(electronic devices transform mechanical vibrations into an undesired electrical signal noise)when the cord is moved when walking and so on. JLab also included a 90 degree jack that should work with most anything even if the phone has a large Otterbox protective case. My daughter likes the fact that the headphones rotated 80 degrees so that she could take them and hold them in her smaller hands when going somewhere.
Controls
Here is a shot of the inline controls
Incorporated into the controls is a simple multifunction button and universal microphone. The button makes it easy to pause, by pressing once and pressing the button again to play. Double clicking moves to the next track, while triple clicking moves to a previous track. It is simple enough that my 9 year old daughter and 6 year old son were able to do it after I showed them one time. The headphones are also able to answer or hang up calls with a single click of the button. I tested taking calls with both an android Samsung Galaxy S7 and an Iphone 7 Plus, both work flawlessly.
Sound
We listened to a variety of music from classical to rock. We tried music such as Aaron Copeland’s Appalachian Spring to Kidz Bop(my daughter’s pick). The JBuddies had a decent soundstage, good stereo separation, and I could easily make out all the instruments. We used most FLAC files during our tests. Now while I do not have the proper instruments to measure whether theses headphones truly limit volume, I did try turning up my vintage Sony STR V6 while the headphones were connected, and the volume when listening seemed to stay at a safe level. The volume limiting worked, so on top of these sounding decent, they will also protect your kids’ hearing from being damaged. Of course the JBuddies are not the final answer in sound quality, but these are aimed at kids and my kids had no complaints.
Conclusion
My 6 year old son using the JBuddies
Here is my daughter Ava's quick video review
After my daughter and son have used these for the past two weeks, we all agree that these headphones are a great addition. It gives me some piece of mind that while my daughter and son is either listening to audio books, classical, or even Kids Bop, that they will not be destroying their hearing. At this price point they are great with the added bonus of a limited lifetime warranty.