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Bose Headset plastic repair?

cawmd82

cawmd82

Well Known Member
Today I managed to mangle both sides of a Bose X headset breaking the ears off the grey plastic pieces that slide on the headband. It is a simple plastic part but Bose will not sell you the part--they demand $175 for a "full reman"+ shipping cost-----for 2 lousy plastic parts.:mad:

I do not want a $175 reman! I want a simple part or to repair the ones I have!!!

I am determined to find the right superglue, epoxy, JB weld or whatever and fix these---there is a reasonable amount of 3-d contact area. Anyone have product suggestions? Aside from buy a Lightspeed??? Duct tape, zip ties, safety wire, and pop rivets have already been ruled out for one reason or the other.
 
If you're talking about the plastic that supports the earcup, I used superglue to tack them back in place and then laid a bead of epoxy and flox on the backside in the hollow area. Be sure to rough up the back side before the epoxy treatment.

Paige
 
Good luck with Lightspeed. Sorry.

I have to reply to this one.

Aside from buy a lightspeed eh... Sorry but... Lightspeed is a tremendous company.

Maybe tell Bose this story and they just might fix your headset for free!!

I had the very same thing happen to my lightspeed 6 weeks ago. The headband plastic broke and the headset just literally fell apart. I phoned up lightspeed and asked if they could just send me a new headband and I would fix it. She insisted that i send it in to her and they would fix it and tune it up and send it back. She never even asked how old it was or when I purchased it. She gave me an authorization number so I sent it in. BTW the headset was five years old. Two weeks later I received my headset back home, opened it and there was the like new headset. They had a list of all work compiled. They certainly tuned it up!! They changed the ANR board, the headband, the battery box, mic boom, ear seals, etc, etc. In short I think the headset was replaced with an entirely new one.

I was once considering purchasing a BOSE headset, but I will most certainly buy another lightspeed headset in the future, their Customer Service is the best I have EVER seen and they do really deserve the business.

Jarvis Siegel
 
Bose

Hey Doc, let us know what the final outcome is with your headset, I have to decide whether to keep the Bose I got for Xmas or keep the Clarity Aloft I already have. Ron
 
I've sent several Bose headsets back for this problem (it's a weak point in their design) and they have all been repaired under warranty.
 
Ditto the good customer service from Bose. The three times I have called them, starting the conversation with "I believe I have a warranty issue: . . . blah, blah, blah" has resulted in an RMA and quick, excellent (twice pleasantly excessive) service to my headset.

And I could still get $750 for them on the secondary market, so I always chuckle at the "OMG! $1000 headsets?" comments.
 
Agree on Lightspeed.....

I currently have another headset on it's way back from Lightspeed with NO hassle whatever for a mic problem. Bose basically told me to go pound sand you know where or pay $175. It really is a weak point in design but hard for me to call a warranty thing. I just want the 2 silly plastic parts for $5 or $10 or whatever.......

Maybe I will try and get someone more cooperative today.....
 
Bose fixed my broken yolks for free and did the reman process. Charge me a total of $0.00.

Send them in, they will probably take care of you.
 
Good news....

A second call to Bose today after all the encouragement from the group has probably saved my headset from no telling what horrors of attempted repairs with Loctite plastic and probably a hose clamp or two.

While today's call started out just like yesterday a simple request for a supervisor got the $175 fee waived.

I would hate to be one of their stockholders--they could just send me the two bit parts---but if they want to go through it at no charge I will complain no more.

Thanks for the insights and encouragement....
 
Bose

I'm terribly conflicted re: Bose. After years of wearing David Clamps and having my tragus (look it up) become too tender to touch, and after trying three different $500 ANC headsets (who'd ever be dumb enough to spend $1,000 for a headset), I finally broke down and got a Bose. WOW! They were everything I was looking for. Then the mic broke off at the base where it attaches to the ear cup. Just plain broke. No abuse. No nuthin. I was in the middle of an seven day Excellent Adventure so managed a repair with JB Weld. Worked and looked OK, but I was worried that it might not hold. When I later contacted Bose, I was informed that since my headsets were "just out of warranty", there would be a $175 charge. I heatedly complained and referenced both Lightspeed's, and Clark's repair policies, saying that I felt for what I had paid I felt their policy s__ks. The guy wouldn't even let me talk to his supervisor. After 20 minutes of my ranting, the guy very condescendingly said that since I felt so strongly, he would put the repair down as a "courtesy repair". My mistake was that I then told him the issue was not so much the money, but their policy, and I felt the ill-will generated would hurt them in the aviation community.

The repairs were made, the headset came back in two days. Everything is right with the world, right? When I got my VISA bill, there's a charge to Bose for $175!

Joker
RV8
Cincinnati
 
Bose repair

I work for a company that owns a whole bunch of bose 10s. Something like 8 or more. They are abused all the time. Including stepping on the cord when the headset is hanging and ripping the cord out of it. Bose has always repaired them at no cost. They also upgrade them with new head pads and other parts if there is an upgrade. You don't even need to call them. The Bose Headset Repair adddress is the owners manual. Just throw a P.O. in the box with the headset and a couple of weeks later the repaired headset arrives at the door.
Aaron
 
Resurrecting an old thread here for a current datapoint.

I trashed a Bose X yesterday getting out of the airplane in a hurry, I hooked the cord on my foot and snapped the left side plastic yoke that holds the earcup to the headband. This set is way out of warranty so paying for parts was never in question. I called the Bose product support guys, told them that I just needed the little $4 plastic yoke part (OK, maybe $10, tops) and of course they said they couldn't sell me just that part. Option one was a $225 refurb to replace that part plus all the other things on the headset (that were working just fine right now), or option two was to upgrade to A20's at a $300 discount. I asked him why they won't sell just the plastic piece, he said that's because their engineers determined that if the user is not careful installing that piece, it is possible to make the problem worse. I responded that this was not possible, because the headset is completely useless in its current condition, so there is no possible way to make it worse. I also pointed out that I had successfully built my own experimental aircraft and considered it highly likely that I would also be able to successfully install the plastic yoke holding the earcup.

I told him Repair Option 1 was not going to happen regardless of whatever else was decided, I was not going to pay $225 to fix a bunch of things that weren't broken, I don't care how hard they try to sell it. I need a $4 plastic part and anything else was going to be a non-starter. Option 2 was also not likely to happen, since Lightspeed has a product that is every bit as good, competitive on price, and treats their customers better than Bose for out-of-warranty repair, based on what I'm hearing during our conversation.

The upshot of it finally was that I'm getting the plastic yoke piece I need in the mail, no charge, no refurb fee.
 
airguy said:
Resurrecting an old thread here for a current datapoint.

I trashed a Bose X yesterday getting out of the airplane in a hurry, I hooked the cord on my foot and snapped the left side plastic yoke that holds the earcup to the headband. This set is way out of warranty so paying for parts was never in question. I called the Bose product support guys, told them that I just needed the little $4 plastic yoke part (OK, maybe $10, tops) and of course they said they couldn't sell me just that part. Option one was a $225 refurb to replace that part plus all the other things on the headset (that were working just fine right now), or option two was to upgrade to A20's at a $300 discount. I asked him why they won't sell just the plastic piece, he said that's because their engineers determined that if the user is not careful installing that piece, it is possible to make the problem worse. I responded that this was not possible, because the headset is completely useless in its current condition, so there is no possible way to make it worse. I also pointed out that I had successfully built my own experimental aircraft and considered it highly likely that I would also be able to successfully install the plastic yoke holding the earcup.

I told him Repair Option 1 was not going to happen regardless of whatever else was decided, I was not going to pay $225 to fix a bunch of things that weren't broken, I don't care how hard they try to sell it. I need a $4 plastic part and anything else was going to be a non-starter. Option 2 was also not likely to happen, since Lightspeed has a product that is every bit as good, competitive on price, and treats their customers better than Bose for out-of-warranty repair, based on what I'm hearing during our conversation.

The upshot of it finally was that I'm getting the plastic yoke piece I need in the mail, no charge, no refurb fee.
Click to expand...

I too have a broken yoke on my older X model. I called customer service, got the same bs about $225. I told him what I thought of them not selling parts, and that I'll make decisions about what to purchase next time based on it. What did you do to get them to actually send the piece?
 
AlexPeterson said:
I too have a broken yoke on my older X model. I called customer service, got the same bs about $225. I told him what I thought of them not selling parts, and that I'll make decisions about what to purchase next time based on it. What did you do to get them to actually send the piece?
Click to expand...

I simply explained to them that I had a non-functioning BOSE headset that would either remain nonfunctioning or get repaired - and made it perfectly clear that BOSE was not going to do the repair. If it was going to happen it would be me doing it, with the parts I need shipped to me from Bose. If that could not, or would not, be complied with by Bose then I would throw away my non-functioning Bose headset and buy the Lightspeed to replace it, and Bose would lose a customer for life.

They chose to ship me a $4 part at no cost to avoid losing me permanently and telling others publicly about my experience.
 
I've had several major repairs done at their booth at OSH. I've never been charged for the service. Dropping them off at the booth every year is just about the headsets getting a fresh annual and tune-up.
 
airguy said:
I simply explained to them that I had a non-functioning BOSE headset that would either remain nonfunctioning or get repaired - and made it perfectly clear that BOSE was not going to do the repair. If it was going to happen it would be me doing it, with the parts I need shipped to me from Bose. If that could not, or would not, be complied with by Bose then I would throw away my non-functioning Bose headset and buy the Lightspeed to replace it, and Bose would lose a customer for life.

They chose to ship me a $4 part at no cost to avoid losing me permanently and telling others publicly about my experience.
Click to expand...

Frustrated by Bose about their Four-dollar-part and lack of cooperation and now fueled by this thread, I called them back and refused their $225 service offer. I am to receive a call from their service center manager to discuss options. If I can not get a reasonable offer, I have already decided and will opt to dump Bose for another manufacturer.
 
Bavafa said:
Frustrated by Bose about their Four-dollar-part and lack of cooperation and now fueled by this thread, I called them back and refused their $225 service offer. I am to receive a call from their service center manager to discuss options. If I can not get a reasonable offer, I have already decided and will opt to dump Bose for another manufacturer.
Click to expand...

Thanks to all - let us know how you come out! The guy I spoke with wasn't too interested in helping. You could point out that there are almost 10,000 views of this thread to date by pilots watching...

They can certainly run their business however they please, just as we can take our business anywhere we please. And, we can hang a broken headset conveniently in plain sight next time at Oshkosh, along with a friendly little note...
 
3-D Printing

Maybe someone out there with access to a 3-D printer could make replacement parts. I'd buy them!
 
I'll chime in and repeat that Bose still fixes up headsets if you take them to OSH for free. I took 2 sets in last summer. They no longer do them during the show, but give you a certificate for you to send them in.

In addition, while I was standing there with 2 Bose headsets in my hand, one of the show guys walked up, thanked me for being a Bose customer and handed me a set of earphones they make for phones and tablets and such. Great quality and I use them all the time! I do switch back and forth between the Bose and my Clarity Aloft for flying though depending how I feel at any particular moment. They each have their strengths....
 
Bose ripoff

I too broke a plastic wishbone on my -10's about two months ago. I spent over twenty minutes on the phone with Bose. I talked to three separate people. I even explained I own five of their headsets personally, and have sold many for them because students get to use them during instruction. Long story short - I ended up having to send them in for the complete overhaul for $225.00! I will never buy another headset from them for their rudeness on this issue over a ten dollar part they would not sell directly nor install without forcing me to fix other things that were fine......

Jim Baker
RV-6
N699JB
CFI IA
 
Last edited:
Veetail88 said:
I'll chime in and repeat that Bose still fixes up headsets if you take them to OSH for free. I took 2 sets in last summer. They no longer do them during the show, but give you a certificate for you to send them in.

In addition, while I was standing there with 2 Bose headsets in my hand, one of the show guys walked up, thanked me for being a Bose customer and handed me a set of earphones they make for phones and tablets and such. Great quality and I use them all the time! I do switch back and forth between the Bose and my Clarity Aloft for flying though depending how I feel at any particular moment. They each have their strengths....
Click to expand...

My 2 cents and feeling about fixing heads sets during OSK is obviously an attempt to spin a friendly face for a ?good? customer service where they are obviously failing in a larger audience. As evident here or on e-bay for the number of headsets that have suffered from this weak design and yet to charge over $200 each time to replace it. I believe Bose will need to address their policy regarding this issue instead of trying to put up an image that is contrary to their usual practice.
 
the best upgrade is to the new bluetooth module. the original one only connected to the phone for phone use and not even music. well now the the new unit will connect to any blue tooth device, including both my phone and iPad at the same time. i had 4 of them upgraded last snfun for FREE. call them asap and and get it done before your 2 years runs out. press them to do it for as little as possible. if it is an 'old' unit they will finally give in for $175 to send you the new stuff. you install and send back the old stuff. you will now get audio alerts from firelight like, entering runway 30, 4,800 feet left, :eek: .
enjoy your flying. bose is still tops in my book. free service at snfun rocks.
P1020277.jpg
 
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