A great place to shop for headphones

AC Gears' wall of headphones

(Credit: Steve Guttenberg)

AC Gears sells a wide variety of headphones and gadgets in Greenwich Village in NYC. It's not a huge space, but half of the store is devoted to in-ear and full-size headphones, and I recently spoke with founder Kohn Liu to learn more about his business. The brands and model lineup change from time to time, but right now he has around 50 headphones on display. Many are in the affordable range, but there's also a decent selection of high-end brands as well. AC Gears has most Grado models on display, including the top-of-the-line PS 1000. They also have Etymotic, Sol Republic, Ultrasone, and many more, and AC Gears will be adding more brands later this year. The store opened its doors in 2008.

I asked Liu to pick some affordable favorites, and he said if you don't need a mic and remote, go for the $99 Grado iGi in-ears. For less money he likes the NOCS NS200, which has a mic and remote, and it's a customer favorite. Feel free to plug in your phone or music player, and audition a variety of headphones at AC Gears.

I noticed AC Gears doesn't stock the brands you're likely to find at the big chain stores like Sony or Beats by Dre; this store caters to a more discerning clientele. The staff is friendly and knowledgeable, so if you live in ... [Read more]