Loud, decent sound quality, stable during workouts

May be uncomfortable to some listeners

Since these vertical in-ear headphones were introduced in 1995, I bought a pair of each of them over the years, starting with a pair of MDR-W20G, when I was dabbling with small, bass-heavy headphones. I was initially impressed with most of them; however, as I bought better-sounding conventional earbuds, I became rather disappointed in all of these vertical headphones. Or so I thought. So last month I bought a pair of Sony MDR-A44L headphones from a Sony-owned store on Chicago''s Magnificent Mile. And I feel that it''s worth the $25 price that I paid for it. Here''s why: When I first listened to the MDR-A44L, the sound was muddy. But after several days of burn-in, the MDR-A44L sounds very good for vertical earbuds - most of which were unimpressive at best. The deep-bass extension of these headphones is better than that of most earbuds, but at the expense of somewhat boomy mid- and upper-bass. The midrange and treble are warm-sounding and quite detailed in a real sense, unlike what most people consider "detailed" (bright). And once I listened to my burned-in MDR-A44L''s, my old MDR-A34L''s sounded flat and lifeless in comparison, and my MDR-A30G''s sounded even boomier and tinnier than my MDR-A44L''s. And if I own one of the newest portable CD or MD players, I should take heart: At 108dB @ 1mW efficiency at 16 ohms impedance, these headphones are well suited to extremely weak portable audio players. The vertical design of these headphones makes them well suited for exercising (working out). That''s because they are much less likely to fall off the user''s head than traditional earbuds (without a headband). But this stability comes at some expense of comfort: I couldn''t stand wearing these headphones for more than one or two hours without complaining of inner-ear fatigue and excessive interior ear wax build-up. The MDR-A44L features an extra-wide "double" headband that folds up for compactness. That feature increases stability even further, but at a very slight expense of pocketability. The hinges on the MDR-A44L are much stronger than those of the cheaper MDR-A30G and MDR-A34L models, so my MDR-A44L''s shouldn''t fall apart in use (unlike the cheaper folding vertical Sony models). Overall, the MDR-A44L is much better than the cheaper MDR-A30G and MDR-A34L headphones, despite their being supposedly similar in design.

Similar Products Used:

Sony MDR-W20G, MDR-A30G, MDR-A34L

Great sounding.
Foldable for easy portability.
Cool looking. ;o)

Kinda expensive.

These headphones are great sounding and are just the thing for carrying with a portable MP3 player in a pocket. I love them. I used them for over a year and have just now had one side of them break. Highly recommended. I think Sony's dropping support for them, as I can't find a store anywhere near me that sells them.