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

Product Information

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. 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.

working out with these are cumbersome due to the cable (duh) but is more prone to falling out then normal. The bass is as described; strong, vibrant, and quite stable. I did notice a decent improvement between these and my previous non-bass-boosting headphones, but I personally believe that it's attributed to a variety of factors, not just the "extra bass" 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. The first thing to know about this product is that I found the box containing it impossible to open without tearing the cardboard, and the earbuds were jammed into the plastic insert inside, so even if I wanted to return the product, I'm sure it wouldn't be accepted as a return with a torn box.Easily the most impressive part of this product, the isolation almost made me believe that there was active noise cancelling (which there isn't). I can listen to music at moderate-low volume on noisy buses, transit, or at the gym. At home it virtually cancels out all other sounds. This greatly improves my music experience, as I can experience the sounds and basses without interference, which in turn makes them a lot more vibrant.

Other than the mic casing, these are made from quality material. You can feel it, and I was able to see it over the years with these ear buds.They come with a soft little carrying pouch with a pull-string closure as well as three pairs of different-sized tips. One of the best aspects of these earphones is the isolation. They provide incredibly good isolation which in turn greatly improves bass response. The isolation is comparable to Panasonics ergo fit line which I consider to be some of the best isolating non noise cancelling earbuds.

The ear pieces are big. I thought this would bother me, but I actually don't mind it. They don't feel heavy when worn and I've never had an issue with them falling out of my ear. 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. 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.

I've had these for about two years now and I don't have any complaints so far. The build quality is superb - I like that these wires dont tangle and are strong enough to withstand fairly rough use over these two years. The cable noise is noticeable. The microphone is okayish - I prefer not to use it to take calls. The color on the housing of these IEMs has started coming off (as you can see in the picture). The quality of silicone ear tips is great - I never had to replace them and they feel comfortable sitting in my ears for extended period of time (8 hours+). The sound isolation is fine but not enough to fully isolate the noise of engines when taking a flight or the sound of a subway train when traveling for work. Maybe it would be worth investing in foam ear tips that conform to your ear canal for better seal.

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. Some of these "pros" or "cons" will be a matter of opinion, so I'm just going to list them all together: I’m a musician and I play bass. Sound definition is important for me, with a special focus on bass. These do just that. Maybe, as some people say, the highs could be better. But it’s not been a problem for me. In fact, since compression algorithms such as Mp3’s tend to make a mess of higher frequencies, maybe it’s a good thing that these headphones don’t render them too faithfully. I don’t know. In any case, I’ve never noticed a deficiency there personally. These earphones had quite good comfort, the tips fit nicely in the ear and sit quite deep. For me they get a bit uncomfortable after prolonged periods of use but that could just be due to me generally getting uncomfortable listening to music for longer than 3 hours. They don't fall out of the ear too easily and don't ever feel too heavy. Overall a very comfortable earphone and which securely fits in the ear. 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.