Nixon’s Trooper headphones are worth a look for many reasons, but the one that really stands out is the giant volume-knob. It’s not clear from any of the product shots, but around one of the ear-pieces is a ring that twists and adjusts the volume, just like the one on your dad’s big old stereo back home.
Apart from this big knob, the award-winning design also has some nice portability features. The earpieces hinge in two directions, adding a twist to the usual up-down adjustment. This, combined with a folding band, lets you collapse the cans down for stowing in a back. They also have a jack-socket instead of a hardwired cord so you can avoid braking the cable when in a bag, or replace it when it breaks.
They’re also cheap, if you look in the right place. The Trooper Three Button (with inline mic and redundant volume buttons) are listed at $70 on the Nixon site, but opt for the mic-less version and you can find them for as little as $15 on Amazon.
Finally, they look cool, and as your wear headphones like you’d wear clothes, that’s important. In fact, the only thing stopping me from buying a pair is the stack of headphones I already have. Like bags, it seems you can never have enough.
