The word Jam can be assigned to many things. It is a tasty food, a song by Michael Jackson, it’s what you get caught up in when there is a big queue of traffic and it is also what some guys do with their penis into a girls arse. Well now we can add another to that varied list, because Jam is also the name of a company who claim to make high quality audio equipment. The Jam Transit (not to be confused with the popular van by Ford) is one of their better known products and is a lovely looking wireless Bluetooth headset which retails for £59.99. But is it really worth the money?
Well first impressions are everything, and I must say that the Jam Transit made a brilliant imprint on my mind. It came in a see through plastic casing with a handle, something you can keep and use to store your headphones in to offer protection when you take them out and about but aren’t wearing them on your head. This is much better than some of the cardboard/plastic boxes that you usually find your equipment arriving in which you then have to throw away. The next thing that blew me away though was something you never find, and I mean NEVER. A small sticker on the case saying that the headset was fully charged and ready to be used straight out of the packaging. Now I’m used to a half charge now and then, but they always recommend to charge fully before use anyway so for me this was a real winner.
So far so good, and this is before I’ve even really spoke about the headset itself which is very stylish and strangely comfortable considering the lack of padding on the headband. The one I received came in a matt black with black leather pads on the ear cups, making it look very stylish indeed. The ear cups did look a little small but were comfortable enough whilst wearing, but what impressed me most was that they were able to swivel to fit the shape of your head for optimum comfort. Strangely though the headrest had no padding, just the matt black rubber material that covered headband. I thought this would mean minimal comfort and cause irritation but I was wrong, it was strangely comfortable as it didn’t dig into your skull like I was expecting. Still for prolonged use it would’ve been nice to have a little cushion, even if it did risk harming the fashionable design.
The headset also had built in controls on the outside of the right hand ear cup; these allowed for the user to adjust volume, switch tracks and to play/pause. The buttons uses don’t just do that though as when connected to a mobile device you were also able to use the buttons to take a call, instantly moving between music and speaker phone. Which at first glance you wouldn’t guess because the mic is so well hidden, but nope there is one there, and what amazes most is considering its hiding place it picks sound up really well without too much interference from the background noises around you.
The one downside about the design for me was the leather covers for the padding on the ear cups. Now they weren’t entirely uncomfortable despite their small size and they were really good for blocking out background noise so you can enjoy listening to music or playing games in peace. The issue for me was that after a prolonged session of use the leather makes your ears sweat profusely; I understand this is different from person to person but I only ever get it when using leather covers, if they were a mesh fabric like that of my Plantronics RIG then I’d have been much more happier as it allows your skin to breath more. At first I thought maybe that is why the ear cups were smaller than I am used to, to allow your ears to stay cool but it didn’t seem to be the case unfortunately.
As for the other features of the Transit they’re just as impressive as it looks. The wireless connection is done through Bluetooth and is picked up when searching from your device with minimal effort, whether it be your mobile phone or your laptop. As for the wireless connectivity it should reach up to 10 metres according to Jam, but having tested it I think they underestimated it as I actually managed to get more like 15 metres away before the connectivity became poor, and at that point I had a couple of walls between me and my phone. The manufacturers were a little more accurate though when it came to the time that the charge lasts in the device, which they say is up to 11 hours and I managed to get 10 and a half before they needed charging again. Now they weren’t completely flat as I could still using them, so it may have gone a little longer, but I don’t like draining the battery until it is dead; I’m the same with my phone battery and petrol in my car, it always has to have some juice in it.
But the important part of the review is the sound quality; after all the primary purpose of a headset is to emit sound for our enjoyment, unless you plan to torture somebody by making them listen to the brown note, screechy chalkboards, somebody chewing or One Direction. I won’t bang on about the specs too much as I have listed them all below, but it can’t be ignored that the Transit does pack a bit of a punch in what can be considered a small sized headset. The sound quality was bloody fantastic, it came through without any delay and and was as clear as spring mountain water. Surprisingly as well the bass wasn’t nearly as weak as I thought it would be, which when everyone says their headphones have superior bass thanks to precision drivers like Jam have, you usually think “here we go again” as they don’t usually walk the walk having talked the talk. That said this is probably the only point where I will compare it to the Ford Transit because the headphones let out a roar like the 2.2 TDCi diesel engines do at maximum revs.
So to sum up, if you’re looking for a really decent set of wireless bluetooth headphones that you’ll want to look good and be ready for use after unpacking them, then this is a must buy for you. They look classy and deliver high quality performance, making them a good value purchase compared to the likes of Beats headphones which you pay over the odds for due to the name. They have pretty much everything you could want, except for the only two flaws I could find which are both personal opinions rather than actual faults, and they are the small sized ear cups and the leather material used which I really don’t like wearing. That said I can’t fault them in any other way, I just wish they came in a mesh fabric.
Specs
| Speaker power | 18mw |
| Max Power Output | 20mW |
| Speaker sound level | |
| Frequency response | 20Hz – 20kHz |
| Signal-to-noise ratio | |
| Impedance | 32Ω +/‐15%
@ 1kHz |
| Bluetooth Version | Bluetooth v2.1 + EDR |
| Power options | Li-on |
| Battery life | up to 11 hours |
| Battery Size | 195mAh |
| Battery Weight | 4.6g |
| What’s in the box | User Manual, Headphone Charging mini USB |
| Microphone/speakerphone | Yes |
Disclaimer:All scores given within our reviews are based on the artist’s personal opinion; this should in no way impede your decision to purchase the game.
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