Sony MDREX38iP/BLK EX Earbud with iPod Remote Control - Black

I'm really impressed with these. Recently my beloved Sony MDREX 58V headphones took a turn for the worse. Unfortunately, Sony doesn't make them anymore so everyone who has them are charging twice as much as I got them before so I had to look for an alternative.I ended up with a pair of Senty headphones. They sound awful compared to the Sony's I had so I immediately ordered these. I should've went with these in the first place because they sound incredible, if not better than the 58's and these also have a mic which I was not expecting.To be honest, I wouldn't have bought these if I knew it had a mic because every headset I've bought with a mic hasn't sounded as good as the headphones I've got without a mic. To my surprise that isn't the case AT ALL with these and these might actually be the best sounding headphones I've ever owned.Much like the Sony 58's I had before, these sound almost perfect. The sound they produce is so well balanced. The right amount of everything, treble, mids, and bass.A lot of people like headphones with exaggerated bass but I can't stand it. I also don't like the more boomy bass as well. These Sony's have the more desireable deep bass. They sound a lot like a Bose speaker system would. Deep bass, crystal clear treble, and well projected mid's.'They also fit perfectly which is crucial. With any pair of in ear headphones, the rubber needs to create a perfect seal to sound right. Other headphones you need to wiggle around to hit the sweet spot and can be dislodged from that sweet spot just by walking. These headphones fit perfectly right when you put them in and stay that way. I don't think there's any way they could fall out unless you yank them out yourselfAlso, seeing that they have the same design as my previous Sony's, I can assume the sound doesn't degrade over time like most other in ear headphones do. The problem with other headphones is they often get some waxy build up on the tip of them. The problem is it's very hard to clean because if you get any moisture at all inside of headphones like this, there goes all your treble. Your headphones won't be able to produce treble the same way if even a little bit of moisture gets inside them. Its happened a few times with the ultra popular $7 Panasonics I've tried and pretty much every other headphones I've tried other than Sony's. Even just wearing some headphones too much during humid weather or during a rain storm can ruin the treble of them and they'll sound totally different over time to the day you bought them.That is somehow not the case with these sony's. Not only are the rubber ear pieces designed differently but the tips themselves are as well and it somehow does the trick and protects these things to make sure they'll sound good as new for a very long time. That was the case with my last Sony's and I had those for almost 2 years which is forever for me. Most headphones only last me a few months other than Sony's.

I haven't gone out and spent >$50 on a set of headphones (except my Turtle Beach XP500's which don't match the great music audio quality of these buds), because I've loved these Sony earbuds! I went through two of the basic (non mic) versions of these, because they were cheap but had great bass, audio quality, and ambient noise blocking. The mic'd versions have caused a bit of distress, but I think that's because of 3.5mm female jacks not liking the modified, microphone jack and not providing consistent stereo connection to the buds (not the headphone's fault, per se).Yes, they're not very durable.. But, I'm harsh to equipment and intentionally buy the best, cheap version I can, because I know at some point my abuse will catch up to anything. I think I got something like 2 years out of each of my pairs of the non-mic'd version (and I think I lost my second pair). I only got one year out of my first set of the mic'd version, before one (right?) of the earbuds went silent. This is a problem I've read that other people have. If I was less lazy I would grab a scalpel and try to find the joint that needs to be re-soldered. One note: when I bought my first pair of the mic'd version, they were $17 at best buy in 2011, now they're $26... Inflation? I don't know, but I also bought a spiffy set of $45 LG (HBS 700) Bluetooth earbuds which were rated incredibly well (4.5 stars, 2k reviews), but I think the audio quality is CRAP!Case and point, I'm going to buy two extra sets of these, because I know either they will fall apart, or I will destroy them. The point is that the audio quality is so excellent that I don't want to be without a working pair on hand.These are the best audio quality for the price. I might be able to find better audio, but for the price I pay I doubt they'd last any longer. If anyone has experience otherwise, please let me know!Happy listening!

I purchased these earbuds in October 2010 and have not had any regrets with my purchase.The sound quality is great for listening to music and podcasts for on my walk to work, and phone calls come through nice and clear as well.I've not had any complaints about the quality of my voice through the attached microphone, and I can speak at a normal volume level to be clearly heard (even while walking outside in light winds).The inline volume controls and multi-function button (play, pause, answer, hang-up, voice control) work great as well and have been very handy to have.I love these earbuds, so you may be wondering why I only give them 4 stars out of 5. There are 2 main reasons:1.) Build Quality. So far these have lasted very nicely, but I feel certain that in the next few months they'll likely die off, just like my old Sony earbuds did after 6-8 months that were built the exact same way (minus the microphone and volume controls). I have a newer set of Sony earbuds, the Sony MDR-XB40EX (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001RB24U0/ref=oss_product), that has a much nicer build quality and a tangle-free cord that isn't so skinny that I feel like it's going to break at any second.2.) This set of earbuds came with a small velvety bag to carry them in that attracts all kinds of dust and lint. I don't actually use this bag, instead I use the very nice carrying case that came with my Sony MDR-XB40EX earbuds instead as it has a semi hard card that feels like it provides significantly more protection.Overall I am very happy with this set of earbuds for my iPhone and I would recommend them to anyone, especially at the price listed on Amazon :) Compared to similarly priced earbuds with inline controls and microphone these are a steal!

These will last as long as you like... until you put them in the washer. Don't be like me. Take them out of your pants pocket. They don't do well in the washer.