Bang & Olufsen Headphones

• Beo U-70

Manfactured: 1978 - 1984 Designer: Jacob Jensen

Bang & Olufsen U70 stereo headphones offered quality, convenience and comfort. Whether you were seeking perfection - music straight from the system without colouration from room acoustics - or privacy, you needed accurate contact between your ears and the ear cups. 

Bang & Olufsen's U70 headphones were probably the most useful accessory you could buy at the time of their introduction, for your hi-fi system. Unless you lived alone and had only yourself to consider, or were lucky enough to have a separate room devoted exclusively to music, headphones were, and still are, virtually a must. They not only provide a private world for the person who wants to listen without distraction, they also allow others in the household the freedom to talk - or watch TV - uninhibited by the music.

U70 headphones were lightweight (only 300 grams) and were very comfortable to wear, even for long periods. The ear cups could be individually adjusted both vertically and laterally and locked into position. You could also adjust their height using the inner headband. The softly-padded ear cups were of the semi-open type: they excluded most extraneous noise but were not so completely sealed that you could not hear the phone ring.

Technically the U70s had a power handling capacity of 2 watts RMS and used the ortho-dynamic principle to reproduce sound with all the accuracy and fidelity of a good loudspeaker. They were supplied with 3 metres of cable fitted to a jack plug. Connecting the plug to the headphone socket of your Bang & Olufsen receiver automatically switched off the main speakers.

Connection: 3-metre cable with 6,5mm jackplug

Finish: black and natural aluminium

In 1979 three more of Jacob Jensen's designs for B&O were included in the Design Collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York including the U70 Headphones.

U70 Headphones Product Specifications

Application: stereo Principle: orthodynamic Sensitivity 94dB: 8mW Continuous load: 2 W Frequency range: 16 - 20000 Hz Impedance: 140 ohms Distortion: <1% Length of cord & plug type: 300cm, jack Weight: 300g