Sony MDR-V500DJ Monitor Series Headphones with Swivel Earcups

Other products by Sony

Product Details

Product Manual [250kb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.8 x 3 inches ; 1 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B00001W0DG
• Item model number: MDRV500DJ
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank

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  Electronics > Accessories & Supplies > Headphones > Over-the-Head Headphones

• Date first available at Amazon.com: June 15, 2003

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description
The MDR-V500DJ closed supra-aural headphones provide top-end comfort and sound quality. The headphones are part of Sony's Studio Monitor Series and are built with high-end materials using advanced sound engineering. They are designed to meet the demands of professional and high fidelity users. Sony's closed type headphones allow only a limited amount of ambient noise into the ear canal, giving your attention fully to the music. The padded earcups fit comfortably, hour after hour. For those who like to use the headphones for single-sided monitoring, these MDR-V500s come with swivel earcups. The earcups are also reversible, and have been designed to be comfortable for on-shoulder use. The supra-aural design is engineered for excellent listening comfort. With this design, the earcups rest lightly on the ear, while the driver units are positioned along the ear canal for ideal sound transport. The wide, molded headband distributes the headphone's weight evenly. The headphones are foldable for easy storage and portability; when folded, the headphones will easily fit in a backpack or purse. The three meter cord (ten feet) is made of oxygen-free copper wiring for maximum conductivity and minimal noise.

Sony has installed several key features to these headphones to enhance their sound quality. The forty millimeter drive units delivers a deep bass sound and a wide dynamic range (the frequency range extends down to 10 Hz.) Both the stereo mini-plug and the UniMatch phone plug are gold-plated to make sure sound is transported fully and accurately. The gold-plated treatment also helps resist corrosion and supports the headphones' high conductivity and low noise. The neodymium magnets allow for superb power at a minimum size; these magnets provide more magnetic energy than other inferior magnets. Finally, the PET diaphragm works to deliver low distortion.

Excellent fit, excellent compatibility, excellent portability and excellent sound: these headphones fit the bill for a sound professional.

What's in the Box
Sony MDR-V500DJ headphones and UniMatch plug adaptor

Product Description
High quality headphones for professional use or for the demanding home user Ferrite magnets for high energy and compact size; help produce ample sound output Oxygen-free copper cord for maximum conductivity & minimum noise Folding design makes for easy storage & easy portability Supra-aural design rests lightly on the ear Wide, molded headband distributes the headphone's weight over a wide area Gold-plated plugs resist corrosion for high conductivity and low noise Stereo UniMatch plug for phone jacks and minijacks

See all Product Description

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

50 of 51 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Muddled high-end for this price!? NO WAY!, March 1, 2003

By	Stevan Eidson "Steve-man" (San Jose, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Well, I embarked on finding a new set of travel headphones after my last long plane ride. The earbuds just weren't hacking it, even though the pair I have are quite good. The jet engine noise finally got to me.

I have an old pair of Sony MDR-M77 headphones which are quite good, but I wanted something new. So, I studied what was available and settled on the MDR-V500DJ headphones. After purchasing a pair, I regret my choice and I am returning them.

When I got these headphones, I immediately plugged them into my iPod and picked a favorite cut from XTC (Mayor of Simpleton). As I listened to the song, I kept wondering what was wrong, Then, it dawned on me, the treble was entirely muffled. I grabbed the MDR-M77 and did a A-B test with several tracks. Same result. The MDR-V500DJ has little or no high-end. Just as a sanity check, I grabbed my Sony MDR-V6 phones and did the same test. I consider the MDR-V6 one of the best headphones ever made by the way. Yeah, the bass was definitely richer than the MDR-M77, which seem bright in comparison, but both were much closer to what I expected than the MDR-V500DJ.

I thought it might be the iPod, so picked a coupled of CDs (MFSL Dark Side of the Moon & Bernstein in Berlin-Beethoven Symphony no.9) to try in my portable CD player. Same result. While the MDR-M77 was the brighest of the three, the lack of high end on the MDR-V500DJ made neither CD sound good. Once again, the MDR-V6 was the best and most balanced of the three.

Still seeking the perfect lightweight headphones, I went to a local Magnolia Hi-Fi to try a better comparison. I tried both noise cancelling models from Sony, several Sennheiser models, the MDR-V600, MDR-V500DJ, and MDR-V300. First of all, forget the noise cancelling models. None of them sounded as good as MDR-V500DJ. The MDR-V600 was the best of them all and reminded me of the MDR-V6 (which I understand they replaced). The MDR-V300 is definitely better than the MDR-500DJ by a long shot, and I would say the MDR-V300 is comparable to Sennheiser HD-212. I am going to try them side-by-side at home soon.

Although many of the Sennheiser phones sounded good, they seemed over-priced compared to the MDR-V600. The only one that was close in price and quality was the HD-280. By the way, the HD-280 was uncomfortable and put a lot of pressure on my head.

Unless you like listening to bass only, do not buy the MDR-V500DJ headphones.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Pros and Cons -, December 22, 1999

By A Customer

There are some pros and cons to these headphones. Most importantly though, the sound quality is quite good. Strong Bass performance and clear, smooth sound. Bass is strong and defined without being overly agressive.

The headphones don't cup your ears quite as well as a lot of other headphones; for instance, I doubt you could listen to these too loudly on a plane or a train without others around you noticing. Although I found them generally comfortable to wear, they don't grip your head that well - if I lean forward, they fall off.

What I do like though, is the fact that these can be folded up so if you need to put them in your bag like I do, then they won't get crushed and they won't take up so much room.

All in all I feel positive about these, but they are a little on the expensive side.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars great sound / hurt the ears, November 28, 1999

By	Matt Newell (mp3 raver in soma) - See all my reviews

i've always been skeptical of sony sound products, but these are really great sounding - with a lot of range and not choking on big bass beats. my only complaint being that they dont cup the ear like i had expected. listening to music for more than 7 hrs a day while coding a website can make your ears a lil sensitive.