My first encounter with in-ears took place when I had purchased Apple In-Ear headphones back in 2003. While I still despise earbuds for not being able to stay in my ears with any kind of physical activity, those Apple in-ears were no better. Just moments after they would be jammed into my eardrums, they always found a way to slip out...even with no movement!
Shortly after I started working for the Apple store back in 2006, I joined what was formerly Cingular Wireless and took on a Sony Ericsson W810i(this was obviously before I discovered qwerty with my first Palm Treo 680). This was my first foray into Sony's in-ear headphones, and I was definitely impressed. The small rubber inserts not only stayed inside my ear canals and blocked out background noise, but they also produced great sound. Those digital music tracks that had been transferred to a 2GB MemoryStick Pro had never sounded so good...let alone from a small music phone! To replicate this listening experience on my iPod at the time, I decided to purchase the Sony MDR-EX71SL headphones in white. I was in heaven. Despite having to deal with the extended cord, I really liked this model and relied on it for many months following.
Even with this in mind, I was curious as to which alternate brands produced equal if not better sound. I had taken this chance to test these different headphones: Shure, V-Moda Vibes, JBL Reference 220, and an unknown earplug variant from Koss. I was shocked and mortified to realize that the Shure brand sounded horrible for the amount of money being paid! I am not an audiophile by any means, but I do like to have some bass in all of my music. Not necessarily the excessive house music kind, but just a little bit to add some texture to the sound. Having too much treble and an overall flat delivery immediately turns me off, so the Shure and Koss brands were returned ASAP.
The V-Moda Vibes and JBL Reference 220s left a good impression on me, but due to a lower price at the time I chose the JBL model. What I liked about those headphones was the feature set of a cushioned zipper case, airport adapters, and alternate ear inserts. The fact that the cord exterior was like threaded fabric versus the typical black rubber really set them apart. Another factor to consider was the Y-form of the cord as it hung from my ears. This appeared to balance the weight so that one side was not prone to being pulled out. The sound produced by JBL was a bit lighter than the Sonys I had been accustomed to, but there was sufficient bass support. After a few months of usage on my runs and at my work desk, these had simply died on me. Not knowing what the reason could have been at the time, I just spent the extra money for some V-Moda Vibes instead.
I believe that my introduction to V-Moda happened in 2007 right when the first iPhone had been released. Shortly after getting the regular model, I do remember exchanging them for the V-Moda Vibe Duos which included a built-in mic and call button for the iPhone I used to own at that time. V-Moda basically takes the in-ear and adds a touch of design flair with its metallic components. There was no doubt that these were the most beautiful of any models I had ever owned. Not wanting to spend money on any other headphones, I decided to keep the V-Modas and go back to my trusty Sony EX71s ever so often.
After a while the Sonys had died and were replaced with the cheaper Sony Fontopia EX51s. I had stayed with my V-Moda Vibe Duos and the Sony MDR-EX51s until I discovered a new Sony model in mid-2008.
During my PC conversion back then, I was in search of a music player that could integrate with Windows Media Player. I eventually discovered the Sony Walkman NWZ-A726 in black and was introduced to its stock headphones: the MDR-EX85LP. Needless to say, I was blown away by the sound quality matched with the output of the Walkman player. I have been a Sony fan ever since. I cannot speak too much on the sound experience of the EX85LP model since I'm not an audiophile. I just know that they worked perfectly for me in everyday usage with every music player I happened to own. I had long ago sold the Walkman player to a friend when I converted back to Mac, but I kept the headphones for myself...yes, they were THAT good! However, I recently allowed a friend to borrow them (with different rubber inserts, of course) and received them back with the left channel dead! Upon talking with my friend about this situation, I just figured the best solution would be to blame no one and simply go back to using my old V-Moda Vibe Duo and Sony EX51 to save money.
As my 5 mile runs become more common with spring approaching, I discovered problems with both the Sonys and V-Modas. The cheaper Sonys couldn't stay in my ears as I ran, so this required many moments of pressing them into my ears for a better fit. This was a minor inconvenience in comparison to the V-Moda problem. While running with my 32GB iPod Touch with the built-in Nike Sport app, the audio would cut out at random moments with no effect on the iPod itself. As I continued running, I realized that the microphone from the headphones had been picking up the high winds and interfered with the music audio. I verified this by blowing into the mic myself and had the same result of the audio cutting out.
Not willing to deal with either of these problems on future runs, I went on a search for new headphones. At Target I bought a pair of Denon AH-C351 versions for $50. Nothing much to say about this model, but should have known better from reading an online review. On headphoneinfo.com, it was said that the Denons were no different than the Apple In-Ear brand in regards to sound delivery. Nonetheless, I was curious and wanted to try them anyway. Within a few minutes of listening to a number of songs on my iPod Classic, the Denon model was back in its case to be returned to Target.
Upon going through that waste of time, it is now clear to me that the Sony EX85LP is the absolute best for me. Fortunately, this model is also available at a local Best Buy.
TRENT
Sent from my Nokia E71
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