Sony MDR-XB50AP In-Ear Extra Bass Headphones with In-Line Control - Black

Product Information

So I have been on a tirade of buying earbuds, from 10 dollar cheap-ies to Bose 99.99 earbuds.... and I have to say I am blown away.

The cord feels a little cheap, but it's not too bad. I'm kinda paranoid about crappy cords because I tend to get them tangled up and they end up breaking the earbuds. The actual ear buds are kinda big, as a few people have mentioned. I have medium sized ears and I would say they are pretty big. The sound quality was very obviously marketed towards the average consumer/basshead, considering that's what the whole point of the earphone is, then I'd say that the sound quality was actually quite decent. It started off very harsh on treble when the volume was above 50% but eventually one they burned in, the sound treble became less harsh and actually quite recessed. The bass is easily the biggest selling point on these, they are quite bassy and give a good umph. The highs are very present but not too overpowering. Mids were decent but overtaken by the bass as you would imagine. The overall sound quality of these were quite decent, a large emphasis on bass but the rest of the sound stayed relatively present.build quality: pretty good. Cord/earbuds get caught in couch and other furniture often...so far haven't noticed any damage. The silicone pieces earbuds itself sometimes detaches tho, but haven't lost them so far. They come with a soft little carrying pouch with a pull-string closure as well as three pairs of different-sized tips.

They are quite comfortable for wearing over long periods of time, including with mild pressure (eg. when slumped over on the bus)the earphones depending on your ear shape which in terms of mine, the headphones do fall out by themselves not constantly but enough to be annoying . First off, my use case is for my cellphone only. I use these with my Google Pixel XL like all earbuds I buy. Which means no EQ tweaking, not much power driving them, just cell phone spec usage. Great IEMs with punchy and powerful bass, clear mids and okayish highs. The build quality is great and they look awesome (I got the one in red color). How comfortable they are will depend on person to person, but I felt they I could wear them for extended periods of time without any problems. The sound isolation is decent, but its not enough to isolate the noise of a subway train when you are traveling.

Some of these "pros" or "cons" will be a matter of opinion, so I'm just going to list them all together: For me, they fit really well in my ears. I've used them at the gym, while running, while on the bus, walking to work...etc and they've never fallen out. Finally, the comparison. I have reviewed sennheisers (which I am a huge fan of their normal studio headphones, but not their earbuds) and other cheap off brand as well as cheap known brand earbuds. These sound the absolute best. Even comparing to the 99.99 bose earbuds, these sony's just sound way better. The only difference between the sony's and the bose is that if you want to lay your head down on a pillow, resting on the side of your face and ear, the bose are way more comfy and you can sleep with them in, while these protrude just a little to where you might get some ear agitation which isn't a huge deal. So at the moment I use the sony's as long as I can, and IF I sleep with my earbuds in (binaural beats use) then I will switch to the bose so I can lay on my ear with zero discomfort or ear pain. If you are looking for cheap IEMs that wont break your bank but at the same time can be your daily driver and sound outstanding, these will be the right fit. If you are looking for critical listening, then maybe its worth looking into more high end IEMs.If you're in the market for a pair of earphones, then the Sony MDR-XB50 might just fit the bill. Worn in-ear, they weigh 8 g and are designed for comfort. They are VERY loud - about 110dB. As AMAZING as these sound on full blast, please do not listen to them that loudly, especially for long periods of time. You'll be asking for permanent ear damage. The cord is made of some type of plasticy material. I know some people like braided cables, but I have to say how exceptionally durable this cable has been. For 2.5 years these ear buds came with me jammed in the bottom of my very full purse. I use them in bed and often fall asleep with them (which is not safe, don't do this at home kids) so they would crumple under me, including the ear pieces. The cable still looks IMMACULATE. There was zero external sign of wear-and-tear. I sort of "double knot" my ear buds when taking them with me, but they've got a tangle-free design that seriously prevent any damage from occurring. I'm extremely impressed. The actual ear pieces also still look perfect, save a few scratches. disclaimer: just wanted headphones for listening to music/compute use. not an audiophile or in the audio/studio related professions

I've tried a variety of sounds with this pair of headphones - my music preferences are a bit swingy so I've tested rap, edm, country, acoustic instruments, pop, indie....etc.The #1 complaint I, personally, have about these earbuds is that the microphone bit feels like it's cheaply made. Don't get confused - the microphone itself is great quality. I use it to communicate multiple times every week and I have only been told that it sounds great - loud, clear. The issue is the plastic "casing" around the microphone. It is made with cheap plastic. I would NOT recommend these ear buds if you are looking for something to use while you're walking if you are wearing a rain- or winter- coat. Against material that isn't soft, you can hear the microphone casing brush against hard your clothing THROUGH your audio. It sounds almost like somebody breathing into a microphone, and you hear it over your music. It's weird. So these ear buds are great if you're sitting down, but not great for walking outside in cold conditions. They're also VERY noise-cancelling, which I'll get to later, so they're not the safest for walking along roads or sidewalks in.