Detail, fantastic Bass

Volume control

Overall, these are fantastic earbud headphones for the price! They blow the Sony sports model I was using out of the water, especially in terms of the bass. The sound quality is exceptional for this type of product, and for the money I have absolutely no complaints. In fact I'm sooo pleased, I bought an extra pair. The volume control is pretty lousy, but then again when I want to change the volume I do it from my source (Sony minidisc player). If you are in the market for an earbud headphone, give these a try and you won't be disappointed.

Imaging! clarity at both ends of the spectrum. and yes, i LIKE the volume control

for the price and size and expected use: none.

These are SO much better than an identically-priced, and very similar-looking Radio Shack model, that it's ridiculous. It takes no more than 5 seconds to realize this. All aspects of music are reproduced better: treble is not muffled, bass is audible and pleasing without using the extra bass switch on the walkman radio. And I LIKE the volume control, because of the way I use these buds: I stick the tiny radio (either a Sony RF49 or a similar Radio Shack model in a shirt pocket or a belt clip, and it is actually more convenient to use the volume control on the buds' cord. Yes, I've read the comments about reliability and durability in this regard, and I'll just have to wait and see. But at this price point and for my purposes, this has got to be unbeatable.

For the record, however, the Grados remain in my opinion the best buy in audio (certainly for plugging into a portable CD player on the go), I submitted a review on them a while ago. But they are too big to drag around all day long. The Koss KS35 is excellent too, albeit roughly twice the price of the Senns.

The Sennheiser 580s can be had for around $150 on the internet, and for home stereo use they are fantastic except for the damn cords which keep coming out.

4 stars for overall rating only because a product like this has obvious limitations, but it deserves the highest possible mark for value. It isn't fair to compare it to Grados costing 4 times as much or Senns costing 10 times as much. But I cannot imagine, and have certainly not heard, anything comparable in its price range (under $20).

Similar Products Used:

similar-looking Radio Shack model; KOss KS35; Grado 60; Sennheiser 580

-Great mids and highs
-Non-overpowering bass

-Bass may be a little thin
-Crappy volume control?

To J J:
If you think the bass the Sennheiser MX 500 earbuds is very boomy, then you must be used to the old, cheap Sony earbuds (which have absolutely no bass whatsoever, no response at all below the midrange, and extremely shrill treble). Even more likely, you've bought a poorly manufactured clone of the MX 500s sold under the Optimus or RadioShack brand name at RadioShack stores! No way do they sell GENUINE Sennheiser earbuds - at least not in the USA! EEK!

Now for my REAL review of the REAL Sennheiser MX 500 earbuds:

These earbuds are WAY better than the Sonys listed under "Similar Products Used:". The mids and highs are clear; the bass, though audible, doesn't squash the detail in the lower mids (unlike the Sony 828's and 848's, which suffer from boomy bass that tends to run into the lower portion of the mids). The Sony 827G's have detailed mids, also, but is almost completely bass-less in comparison to these Senns - and the Senns may need a bit more mid-bass output for best sound (the Senn MX-500's have some low bass, but the mid-bass is a bit thin). :>@ (EEK!)

The only other complaint that I have with these earbuds is the volume control. Though mine doesn't have a problem yet, it may develop a "scratching" sound with age. That's crappy quality control on that part. :>(

Overall, the MX-500's are still outstanding earbuds for the $18 price that Headroom sells them for; in fact, only the super-expensive Sony MDR-E888LP earbuds ($80) perform better (among open-air-type earbuds). :>)

Similar Products Used:

Sony MDR-E821LP, MDR-E827G, MDR-E828LP, MDR-E848LP

Best buds ever!

NONE.

What more can I say? These babys are the best in business.