Just curious whats your current home and work setup looks like.
Personally livingroom IM running Denon DRA H800 w Klipsch 2xRP-8000s floor speakers and monoprice 12" sub and in the office IM running DAC to Yamaha HS8s studio monitors & Yamaha sub
just using Bose NC700 headphones now everywhere. i have a bunch of speakers but don’t use any of them.
the Bose don’t really sound but i like the noise canceling even for home use.
it reduces the noise of HVAC, my computer and so on so i can listen at a lower level thus protecting my hearing.
to fully enjoy music when there is ambient noise you have to turn it up to levels that aren’t safe long term.
if i only used headphones at home i would maybe look at Sennheiser Momentum ( whichever is the latest wireless noise canceling version of it out now ) as they tend to sound better than Bose but Bose is more compact and has better phone call quality so for all-around use ( in the gym and so on ) it’s probably a better product.
there are also some niche brands entering the market now like Focal which could potentially be very good but i haven’t researched those.
Focal is likely too expensive to wear to the gym anyway.
hmm Im the opposite I hate wearing headphones at home but I do enjoy my airpods w NC for outside when i walk/jog … I should probably get some better over the ear ones for the gym.
don’t pick gym headphones based on sound alone.
pick ones that stay on your head while using the bench or whatever kind of training you do.
and make sure you can lift your hands over your head with headphones on.
also make sure they are sturdy enough to survive a few drops.
if the gym has their own music noise isolation would have to be very good.
if you can, test them in the gym and return if they don’t work out.
i had to return Sennheiser Momentum ( an older version from way back in the day ) because i couldn’t lift my hands over my head in the gym with them on for example due to their size and shape …
as for my Bose NC700 they seem to do well on accidental drops with their unique non-folding metal headband design but the earpad ripped all by itself - it separated at the seam which isn’t stitched but rather just glued together and it separated just like Adidas Pool Slides tend to separate at the glue joint …
i haven’t checked if replacement pads are available …
before NC700 i had Sennheiser PXC 550 which also failed on their own - they developed a sort of static sound due to corrosion in headband contacts and one ear started going out …
so for me both Sennheiser and Bose used in the gym failed for non-gym-related issues but i tend to be more careful with electronics than most - never had a phone screen cracked for example.
then again i had to adjust training slightly so for example i don’t use flat bench anymore because headphones probably wouldn’t stay on. they stay on for incline bench as long as you tilt the head forward a bit.
the bottom line is if you can - test them in the gym.
Earbuds are better for the gym. The pads on headphones get really nasty and stinky if you work out with them.
they don’t for me.
probably depends on material of earpads.
basically if the material is nonporous you shouldn’t have a problem IMO. my NC 700 earpads get wet after workout but it seems to wipe right off on my shirt. it doesn’t seem to soak into the material. my earpads ripped though ( at the seam, which is glued but not stitched ) so i switched headphones with somebody else who accepted my ripped ones in exchange for their non-ripped NC 700. i haven’t bothered trying to find replacement pads yet.
Sennheiser Momentum uses sheep’s skin i believe and that may not be intended for working out but most headphones like Bose are designed to be used in the gym and i never hand a problem in many years of use first with Sennheiser PXC 550 ( which are cheaper than Momentum, but were more ergonomically suited for gym use ) and now Bose NC 700.
i would say your concern is understandable but it simply has never happened to me yet. but it’s possible that with some more luxury models ( like the Momentum ) it may be an issue if they use a more porous material designed for “premium-ness” rather than gym use.