MDR-XB1000
4.7
5
7
7
My first headphone purchase
To go from my stock ipod earbuds to these has changed the role of music in my life. This was my first personal audio purchase and I must say I am beyond pleased. I don't need to explain why I was unhappy with my Apple earbuds, so lets skip that part. In the beginning of my "musical revolution", I knew I wanted over-the-ear headphones that put emphasis on low frequencies. I assume that if you are reading this, you have a similar interest. My search begin with the Studio Beats by Dre. I was fascinated with the sleek design and all of the fuss about them. However, before I hastily swiped my plastic at a Best Buy, ditching a good chunk of change, I decided to do research. I started hearing claims that all of the Beats by Dre products were a waste of money. So I read about the Sony Xb line and decided to try them on at BestBuy. I compared the $400 Pro Beats by Dre with the Sony MDR XB 500s and I honestly prefered the 500's. A lack of availability as well as more research led me to the purchase of these 1000's. I am insanely happy with them. I use them everyday for anywhere between 15 minutes to 3 hours and they are constantly comfortable on my head. The bass is not in-your-face the way the 500's were. It is extremely deep and clear. I have never heard anything like it, I am simply amazed. The mids and highs are also very clear. I am sure that you can find better high frequency producing headphones out there, but I assume you are here for the lows. With these, you will get, as far as I know, the BEST lows and great mids and highs. You will turn heads wherever you go, so prepare for that! Good luck finding anything from the XB line in the next several months though. Listen responsibly and enjoy!
February 29, 2012
Different Strokes for Different Folks
First off, I'm completely content with my purchase and don't regret purchasing them. They are quite expensive though. When only comparing the amount of sound you get compared to the MDR-XB500's (which are +$200s less), it is only slightly noticeable when using my iPod classic, but definitively significant when hooked up to my desktop. Also, when hooked up to my portable amp it won't distort at maximum volume, while the 500's will distort while connected to my iPod with the mini amp. These headphones will produce all the sound a normal human will need so don't worry.
The difference in pure clarity of sound, the high's, mid's, and low's are not highly noticeable when compared to the 500's in my opinion. I would not consider myself an audiophile though and I don't have a supreme sound system, so keep that in mind. The bass is definitively stronger though.Compared to "Beats by Dr. Dre" neither the 1000's or 500's will lose out. They are just as good if not better. Also, everybody you know has "Beats," so who wants to follow that bandwagon now? These have the quality sound that you are looking for at around those prices.
So in conclusion these headphones are simply a step up from the MDR-XB500's and similar to "Beats" with some slight differences (build quality and comfort being two of them). I wouldn't consider the step a $200 step when simply speaking about the sound quality, bass, and power. The thing is though, YOU SHOULD NOT BUY THEM FOR THAT REASON. These headphones bring something else with them, the "WOW" factor. These are honestly the largest headphones I have ever seen or owned. When I used to walk around campus with the 500's around my neck, people would gaze at me like I was Princess Leia, asking me what I had around my neck, are they better than "Beats," etc. Now that I have the 1000's people now think the 500's are seemingly normal because the 1000's are honestly twice as large. I simply love the expressions I get on people's faces as they don't even know what to make of them. That is the reason I gave these headphones 5 stars. While giving you the quality sound you expect with Sony, you also get the "Oh My Lord, Wow" Factor you simply can't buy with most other headphones. That is why you should buy these. If you don't want that, get the 500's.
February 28, 2012
Comparison with Dr. Dre Beats
I absolutely love these headphones. I bought these, while an acquaintance of mine bought the Dr. Dre Beats Pro, and we had a side by side comparison with 4 (four) non-biased test subjects. 3 (three) of the 4 (four) agreed that these beat the Beats in size, bass, volume and comfortableness. The 1 (one) that disagreed said that the Beats had a better look to them and they better due to the noise cancelling capabilities. The rest all agreed that looks do not matter nearly as much as functionality does. They also added that since the MDR-XB's had no battery, they could be used for longer periods of time if needed. These headphones beat Dr. Dre's money making scheme any day of the week. Plus, the box that they come in is extremely amazing.
This is me opening the box: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTp10ZV2bMM
January 13, 2012
COME AT ME BRO!!!
And boy will these babies come at you. At first glance when you pull them out of the box they are almost intimidating by their sheer size. The first thing you will want to do is look in the mirror to see how much percentage of your face they take up!
Now they are brand new and like any new speaker or headphone, they will need to be broken in. What I can say, is even out of the box, these bad boys BUMP! The first thing I hooked them up to is my Pioneer VSX-31 ran through my AudioSource EQ sourced from my ZuneHD. I was blown away. I like House music and the BEATS nearly gave me a headache from the powerful pounding. Impressed there. The second thing I did was play a movie. Not the best there but the powerful kick from the 70mm drivers made me do a doubletake at my subwoofer. I have never owned a pair of headphones that felt like there was a built in subwoofer. I used to have a pair of Ultrasone ($650) headphones and these are much better on the beat and bass end of the spectrum. The highs are not compairable to the Ultrasone's but you don't really need them to be. The highs are darn good enough. And it really does find those low frequencies most other headphones miss. And the size of these babies will make all of your friends jealous.
Lastly, and where I was most impressed: I pluged them directly into my ZuneHD and iPhone 4. You willl NOT be dissipointed!!! Both units drove the headphones extremely loud with no loss of the beat and bass. My origional fear was these will be stay at home headphones. NOT!!! Now I don't care if the other people on the plane think I look like a freak with 2 huge speakers on my face!
October 20, 2011
