If you want immersive listening and strong noise cancellation for music production, choose Bose Headphones 700; if you need open-ear listening and waterproof MP3 playback for swimming, choose shokz OpenSwim Pro Open-Ear. They solve different problems, so the deciding factor is whether your priority is a quieter over-ear setup or a phone-free sports headset built for water.
Bose Headphones 700 vs shokz OpenSwim Pro Open-Ear at a Glance
• shokz OpenSwim Pro Open-Ear: open-ear listening, Bluetooth for land use, and 32GB of MP3 storage with IP68 waterproofing; the trade-off is that Bluetooth cannot be used underwater, and battery life is up to nine hours.
• Choose Bose if your music sessions, calls, or listening time call for adjustable noise cancellation and over-ear coverage.
• Choose shokz if you swim or exercise and want to listen without wearing an over-ear headset or carrying your phone into the water.
Bose Headphones 700 are the more natural fit if you want to focus on music, podcasts, or calls without as much outside noise competing for attention. Their active noise cancellation has 11 levels, so you can adjust how much noise it reduces rather than treating cancellation as a simple on-or-off feature. That gives them a clear role in a home studio or shared space where nearby activity might interrupt concentration.
For music production, the over-ear design and stated full, balanced sound make Bose the more relevant choice of these two. The headphones are described as delivering crisp detail and deep bass, which gives you more to work with when listening closely to a track. They are not presented as specialist production monitors, though, so I would not confuse their general-purpose sound profile with a dedicated studio reference setup. Their strongest case is focused listening, not a claim of professional calibration.
They also make sense if you switch between music and calls. Bose says the microphone system adapts to noisy and windy conditions to make your voice clearer, and the headphones support Alexa and Google Assistant. Touch controls on the earcups provide another way to manage listening without reaching for your phone. Up to 20 hours of wireless battery life supports longer stretches away from a charger, while the stainless steel headband and tilted earcups are designed with comfort in mind.
We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
Updated: 2026-10-20 · 7 min read · Independent comparison
Who should skip them: Skip Bose if you need a waterproof headset for swimming, open-ear awareness, or offline music playback stored on the headphones. The listed design is over-ear and noise-cancelling, not a swim-focused option.
The shokz OpenSwim Pro is designed around a very different routine: exercise on land, swimming, and listening without sealing your ears inside over-ear cups. Its open-ear fit is intended to let you remain more aware of your surroundings while listening. That may suit a run or workout where you want music but do not want the isolating feel that comes with noise cancellation.
Its standout practical feature is the combination of Bluetooth and built-in MP3 playback. On land, you can use Bluetooth to stream music or podcasts. For swimming, switch to MP3 mode before getting in: Bluetooth does not work underwater. The 32GB storage allows phone-free playback, with the product information describing capacity for up to 8,000 songs. That makes it useful for a pool session where bringing a phone along is inconvenient. The Shokz app and physical button provide ways to switch modes, while the included swimming earplugs and nose clip are relevant extras for water use.
The IP68 waterproof rating is specified for submersion up to two meters for two hours, and the headphones are also described as sweatproof. A secure, lightweight fit is intended to stay in place during workouts and work with swim caps, goggles, sunglasses, or bike helmets. Battery life is up to nine hours, with a stated 10-minute quick charge providing up to three hours of listening. That is a purposeful sports setup, but it is less suited to long stretches of noise-isolated listening than the Bose.
Who should skip them: Skip shokz if you want active noise cancellation, over-ear coverage, or Bluetooth streaming while swimming. Underwater listening requires MP3 mode and music stored on the headset.
• Best for reducing distractions → Bose Headphones 700. Their active noise cancellation has 11 adjustable levels; shokz lists no noise-control feature.
• Best for swimming → shokz OpenSwim Pro. Its IP68 design supports submersion up to two meters for two hours, and it can play stored audio in MP3 mode.
• Best for phone-free listening in the pool → shokz OpenSwim Pro. Its built-in 32GB storage is made for offline playback; Bluetooth is for land use only.
• Best for longer listed battery life → Bose Headphones 700. Bose specifies up to 20 hours, compared with up to nine hours for shokz.
• Best for keeping your ears open to nearby activity → shokz OpenSwim Pro. Its open-ear design is intended to preserve more connection to the surroundings.
• Best for calls in noisy or windy conditions → Bose Headphones 700. Bose specifically describes a microphone system that adapts to those environments.
• Best for a workout headset that can work with swim gear → shokz OpenSwim Pro. Its fit is designed to work with swim caps and goggles as well as sunglasses and bike helmets.
• Best fit for music production between these two → Bose Headphones 700. Their over-ear noise cancellation and stated detailed, balanced sound are better aligned with focused listening than an open-ear sports design.
In my opinion, I would buy Bose Headphones 700 for music production because their adjustable noise cancellation, over-ear fit, and up-to-20-hour battery life suit concentrated listening better. The shokz OpenSwim Pro is the more specialized pick for swimming, workouts, and phone-free MP3 playback in the water. I would choose shokz only if those water and open-ear features were central to my routine; for the production-focused use case, Bose is the clearer match.
Think about where you will listen before comparing the feature lists. Bose is built for over-ear listening with noise cancellation, while shokz is built for open-ear use and sports, including swimming. They are not interchangeable designs: one prioritizes reducing distractions, and the other prioritizes keeping your ears open and allowing stored music playback in water.
For swimming, the key detail is the shokz mode change. Download or store the audio on the headset and use MP3 mode before entering the water; Bluetooth streaming is not an underwater option. For land workouts, Bluetooth supports streaming, and the open-ear fit is intended to work alongside common sports gear. If your routine revolves around long listening sessions, compare the listed battery figures as well: up to 20 hours for Bose and up to nine hours for shokz.
If you are searching for the best open ear headphones for music production, be clear about what “open ear” means for your workflow. The shokz design is intended for awareness and active use, not isolation from distractions. For a quieter production environment, Bose’s adjustable cancellation and over-ear construction make more sense from the listed features.
Neither is a strong match for every specialized search. Someone looking for the best sleep headphones for music production should not assume either product is designed for sleeping; the supplied information describes Bose as over-ear and shokz as a secure sports headset, not a sleep-specific design. Likewise, the best bluetooth kids headset for music production is not established by these specifications: both product descriptions identify an adult age range. Choose based on the intended wearer and use, rather than assuming either is a children’s headset.
No. Bluetooth is specified for land use, not underwater. Switch to MP3 mode before swimming and play audio stored on the headset.
Which is better for music production, Bose or shokz?
For focused listening, Bose is the stronger fit based on its over-ear design, 11 levels of active noise cancellation, and stated detailed, balanced sound. The shokz open-ear format is aimed more at exercise and water use.
The shokz OpenSwim Pro is: its IP68 specification allows submersion up to two meters for two hours, and it supports MP3 playback underwater. Bose Headphones 700 are described as over-ear noise-cancelling headphones, with no swimming or waterproof-use feature listed.
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