Griffin WoodTones over-ear headphones review

The Griffin WoodTones over-ear headphones as their name suggests, are made from the increasingly popular these days natural wood. The accessories powerhouse has aimed to combine the fashionable look of the headset with top-notch ergonomics, capable sound, and affordable price tag.

I’ve experienced in-ear headphones with wooden construction on a couple of occasions in the past and found them to have pleasantly characterful sound profiles. Read on to find out how the much bigger Griffin WoodTones fare as a daily driver!

Retail package

The Griffin WoodTones ship in a really basic retail packaging. Inside it, you will find the headphones and their removable 3.5mm cable – there are no additional accessories.

The retail package is as basic as it gets

A carrying case would have been a much appreciated addition to the headset’s retail box. It is however, commonly omitted in its price range.

Design and build quality

The Griffin WoodTones sport a highly distinctive look thanks to the wood elements in their construction. Wood has become increasingly popular as a material of choice in headphones lately, so I reckon that plenty of people will find the WoodTones to be quite fashionable. That said I found the headset to look really attractive in the flesh.

The Griffin WoodTones look great in the flesh

Another design benefit which the wood elements bring to the headphones is their uniqueness. Since no two pieces of natural wood look alike, every Griffin WoodTones user can be certain that his or her headset is like no one else’s.

The wooden housing of the headphones is available in three different wood finishes – walnut, sapele, or beech. The unit I got to test was with the walnut trim which is the darkest of the trio.

Build quality is solid. The Griffin WoodTones are built from wood and high-quality plastic with a soft-touch finish. I spent a few weeks running the headset as a daily driver and found nothing to complain about the finish.

Ergonomics

The Griffin WoodTones are easily among the most comfortable over-ear headsets available at the moment. The headphones are very light for an over-ear model at approximately 240 grams, and feature rectangular design which better suits the shape of the ear. The earpieces also pivot at more than 90 degrees for easier storage and added comfort.

Furthermore, the headset is self-adjustable – there’s no need for the user to find the best fit for him or her. I found this feature to be really useful – the headset requires absolutely no time to get used to in ergonomic terms.

The removable audio cable connects to the left earpiece. It is longer than six feet which makes for a comfortable experience when wearing the headset at your desk, for example. For street duty however, I find the length to be a bit excessive. Of course, the thing with removable cables is you can always get a longer or shorter one.

The single-button remote on the cable is easy to operate.

Sound

The Griffin WoodTones are equipped with a large 50mm moving coil neodymium magnet drivers. The frequency response ranges between 20 and 20,000Hz, while impedance and sensitivity measure 32Ohms and 108dB respectively.

The sonic experience which the WoodTones deliver is really pleasant. The sound feels natural across the board (probably, to an extent, thanks to the wooden construction). I was mostly pleasantly surprised by the bass setup though – lows came out really competent without giving me the feeling that they have been the main priority of the headset’s setup.

Having a sound profile which is not heavily bass-oriented makes the WoodTones a great alternative to many headphones in the price range, tending to have a knack for powerful lows. It also complements the high ergonomics of the headset by allowing for prolonged, fatigue-free listening experience.

Final words

The Griffin WoodTones over-ear headphones are easy to recommend to anyone looking to spend long hours with a headset on. The headphones provide superb comfort and pleasantly natural sound experience. The bass could have been a lot more powerful considering the hardware on board, though I believe its restrained nature adds to the overall appeal of the headset.

The Griffin WoodTones are priced at $99.99 in the manufacturer’s online store. However, a “woodtones20” promo code valid through October 15 slashes the suggested retail to an even sweeter and easier to recommend $79.99.