Reviews

176

I just had to get these... I mean, the reviews on it were simply amazing. Well actually I got the 71s (white) but they're pretty much the same. I'm still in the process of breaking them in, but compared to the earphones that came with my mini iPod, these are like a million times better. I have to admit, its very very weird at first because you actually stick the dang thing in your ear... I mean, this really re-defines the term "in-the-ear earphones" for me. But you get used to it in no time. Easily worth the $50 price tag.

Posted by joits in West Covina, CA on March 3, 2005 at 9:11 AM (PDT)

177

I picked these up from Amazon for $30 on sale back in December. They sound great but I really dislike the asymmetrical cable design and the little bead on the cable in that design often gets caught on my shirt collar and pulls the earbud out of my left ear. I also find that the cables tend to be noisy in my ear if they move against me when I am walking, although that could be more due to the closed type design (this is my first pair of headphones of this type).

Posted by waffffffle on March 5, 2005 at 9:25 PM (PDT)

178

Anyone looking for replacement rubber earbuds for these headphones can get them from Sony by calling their parts dept. @ 1800.488.7669. At a cost of 4.95 + tax per piece, not pair.

Posted by Fraz in Baltimore on March 11, 2005 at 6:02 AM (PDT)

179

THE best $50 i have ever spent. They are so freakin comfortable and i love to wear them. Also the sound is superb. I'm no audiophile, but dang. The comparison between these and the stock iPod phones are like Bill Gates and a hobo. I think everyone should have a pair of these.

Posted by theipodman on March 20, 2005 at 4:26 PM (PDT)

180

I read the reviews on this page before I forked out 100 AUD for my Sony's.

Based on the reviews I read, I purchased the Sony EX70SL because

a. the sound was reportedly good
b. the would stay in your ears whiule you worked out
Yeah, the sounds okay, but if you want to work out with your iPod, don't buy these buds, at least the short cord version of them anyway.

The plug which connects to the extension cord sits around chest height and weighs quite a bit. This means that when you are running or jogging or do anything remotely active, the weight of the connection pulls the buds out of your ear.

A total waste of my money.

Posted by randm in melbourne on March 30, 2005 at 8:08 PM (PDT)

181

After reading such raving reviews, I am extremely tempted to buy a pair for myself.

I totally agree with Mat's comment. My earbuds ahve nearly worn out so luckily, I have an excuse to buy a new set. At the moment I'm leaning towards a pair of the Sony 71's in white :D The problem is, that I want to buy the iPod remote and the only way I can do that, is if I pay for another set of earbuds as well. ($AU75 for earbuds and remote)
ANNOYING!!!

Posted by Katherine G in Australia on April 1, 2005 at 2:26 AM (PDT)

182

Ok, after spending several DAYS reading and re-reading the reviews for these earbuds, I decided to purchase them (EX71-SL) from buy.com (decent price and pretty fast service, received them within 3 days after clicking "purchase")... I chose the black earbuds because of the increase in theft of iPODs in NYC (figured if I use a different color, I could possibly deter theft).

I'm hoping that I made the right purchase... but, as it stands right now, it's not looking like I did!!! I plugged these into my ipod, and was very disappointed that I wasn't "hearing" what so many other reviewers were hearing... absolutely no bass, pure treble and my music sounds as though there it has absolutely no EQ... It sounds as though all of the bass is GONE... as though my music was obtained from a cheap clock radio!!!!

I re-read thru the reviews, to see whether or not I should give these badboys a chance... and decided to "break them in" to see if maybe a few hours or so of loud music will adjust the sounds to what I "should be hearing"...

I'll give these buds till the end of this week...

If I don't hear any improvements, I will return them and deal with the ones that came with my ipod or try to find ones that will satisfy my needs

I will say, though, that these earbuds truly do block out sound, all I hear is music (treble and all). And the fit is superb!!! The extension cord is a bit quirky but, eh Sony's trying to revolutionize the way earbuds are made so I'll deal with their "new, ergodynamic" design. The cord seems thin, as though the slightest tug will pull it out of the socket (again one of Sony's new designs).

I'm really hoping that these buds will develop into the rave that I've been reading... it would really suck if they didn't!!! :(

Say a prayer for these earbuds, and I will post the results of my experiment.

Posted by Luv_Mah_ipod in NYC on April 7, 2005 at 12:36 PM (PDT)

183

Update:

Approximately one day into pumping loud music into these earphones, and the sound has improved somewhat...

I checked the buy.com reviews and many of them say that these earbuds are good, one also suggested "breaking them in," so something must be right with these or so many couldn't be wrong...

I'll continue with the experiment, and will post my results.

My only peeve is WHY do I have to break them in???!!! They should work right away!!!!

Posted by Luv_Mah_ipod in NYC on April 8, 2005 at 6:29 AM (PDT)

184

Results:

After almost 24 hours of pumping music at full stereo capacity thru these things, I truly feel that I am going to have to return them.

Although the sound has improved, but only slightly, I decided to plug these into a cd player to see if maybe the sound would be different compared to that of the ipod... they sounded better in the CD player!!! I personally do not feel these buds were meant for the ipod.

I even asked someone else to take a listen thinking that my hearing may be going... that person concurred... the Sony MDR-EX71SL's are GARBAGE!!!!

The reason why these earbuds originally sold for $80 ($29 at buy.com) is beyond me...

To those who have already purchased these earbuds, do the "break in" test and see if the sound improves...

But, as I stated in my previous post, I don't see why I should have to break in any damn earbuds... as soon as I plug them in to any equipment, they should deliver what is advertised: superior bass and premium sound right away... especially if they're fresh out the box.

As far as the rating and the rave reviews that they've received.... I look at it like this: opinions are like buttholes, everyone has one!!!

Posted by Luv_Mah_ipod in NYC on April 8, 2005 at 10:53 AM (PDT)

185

I've had these Sonys for the last 4 years, and I've always thought they were great, but flawed. Sure, if you're used to the Apple earbuds, you'll be amazed at the bass these put out. But if you're looking for audiophile-quality sound, forget it. They would sound pretty nice if only they weren't so boomy. Don't get me wrong- I love bass (I'm a bass player), but Sony went overboard with these. I have accumulated about a dozen other earphones at home in my search for great portables, and since the EX70 came out so long ago, I figured there must be something better by now. So I did some research, and decided to give the Panasonic RP-HJE50 a try (and it cost less than half as much as the Sony). A very similar design, but a very different sound. At first, next to the EX70, it sounds like it lacks bass, but after burn-in and with a little extended listening, I realized the HJE50 is much more balanced, with a much more realistic low end. The EX70 has a little better high end, but I find them fatiguing due to the boomy bass. The HJE50 has a great, rich, full sound, and is much nicer to listen to for longer periods. My new away-from-home favorite.

Posted by rodneyg on April 12, 2005 at 7:12 PM (PDT)

186

These are great headphones, i just picked them up today. They are definately worth the money, I might even buy them for $75!!!

Posted by Fastball723 on April 16, 2005 at 9:50 PM (PDT)

187

Does anybody know where I could get the Altec Lansing iM3 for a cheap price, like for around $100?

Posted by Fastball723 on April 16, 2005 at 9:53 PM (PDT)

188

Just got a set of the MDR-EX71LP and they are a great improvment over the factory buds

Posted by falman308 in Indy on April 18, 2005 at 7:43 PM (PDT)

189

DONT order them from AUDIOCUBES.COM. They sent me the wrong color (I ordered the pair in white, but got them in black instead) and now are expecting me to pay for the shipments back and forth from Japan to fix their mistake. Horrible costumer service.

Posted by ezmei on April 23, 2005 at 11:04 AM (PDT)

190

I got them from Best Buy in white for 50 moola

Posted by Fastball723 on April 23, 2005 at 9:30 PM (PDT)

191

I bought these headphones due to the excellent review. I returned them only after 1 day. Bass
while powerfil is totally lacking in detail. Mids are dull and lifeless. Highs are tinny. The earbuds that came with my mini are significantly better. I would rate these Sony's a F. I ordered a pair of Shure's 3c's recommended by a salesman at a local high end store.

YF

Posted by YF on May 20, 2005 at 11:20 PM (PDT)

192

Shure 3c's generally retail around $200...these headphones retailed at $50...that's like comparing a $80K BMW with a $20K Honda! Which one do you THINK will be better? heh, that just struck me as funny...

I've had these for over a year, and despite shortcomings (cord length, the tendency to lose those damn rubber parts), I like them a lot.

I'm not an audiophile, but I don't exactly have an untrained ear, either, and I think these headphones _definitely_ sound "$50 earbud good" under ideal circumstances. Then again, people's opinions vary so widely, your mileage may have a big part to do with the way your ear is shaped, or which pair you get (maybe Sony has bad quality control on these, or their component toleranes are too high). My advice would be to find a friend with them first and try theirs if at all possible...if not, buy them someplace you can return them.

If they get pulled out of your ear ever so slightly they lose a lot of quality (all the low frequencies drop off almost immediately) - that said my main uses are walking/riding my bicycle around and underneath my motorcylce helmet. Their ability to block outside noise relatively well, and extremely compact design, naturally are major factors for using them with my motorcycle, since with regular headphones (assuming they'd fit) i'd have to crank the sound to hearing-damaging levels to hear over the road noise on the freeway, but with these, I can keep it at a comfortable level.

Posted by Lanceka on June 22, 2005 at 2:36 PM (PDT)

193

I recently order the JVC HA-FX55 Gumy phone from warehouse123.com. It's only 25 bucks. Comparing to the EX71, it is a lot difference compared to my old Sony EX-71s. Sound stage is greatly improved with vocals becoming very clear, and the bass is powerful but not as deep as the Sonys, but then again the ex71s never really had any mid range like that of the FX55.

Posted by servers_max on June 23, 2005 at 10:35 AM (PDT)

194

These are great, BUT: Having owned a pair of the 71SLs for about 6 months now, my cord has torn in a few places. AH! First off, I do take very good care of these headphones, I do not jog with them, etc. The extent of my use is ~2 hrs a day commuting on a train.

The soft, rubbery material that covers the wires has proved to be not at all durable. The three tears have exposed the wires underneath, forcing me to tape them, which obviously looks ghetto.

I'm upset about this because these truly are great headphones otherwise--they're quite comfortable and provide awesome sound. So now I don't know what to do--it seems pointless to buy another pair if they're just going to tear again; but I can't give up the quality!

Posted by zzaug on July 7, 2005 at 7:47 AM (PDT)

195

my pair were delivered in the week before christmas '03 and have been excellent. Unfortunately, the right bud stopped completely today (had been a bit sporadic for a while wrt volume). when investigating this, I found that the wire had worn thin from within the metal piece where the R earbud's wire branches from the main cord. it cannot be fixed easily and i am pretty peeved. given this, i will be buying another pair (costs more now) from bluetin (where i got it last time) because they ship to australia at a non-murderous cost.

given this, it was not my actions that caused the break. with the rigid-metal piece over the branch, the very-thin cord is forced to bend if you place the cord behind your ear (as opposed to a chinstrap). It is a design fault (i would say), but the headphones are cheap and good enough for me to warrant buyinh another pair despite them only lasting about a year and a half.

still to anyone out there, they are really worth it.

Posted by t i m on August 7, 2005 at 3:37 AM (PDT)

Page 9 of 11 pages « First  <  7 8 9 10 11 >

Recent News

Recent Reviews

Recent Articles

loungeStore: iPod Accessories & more...