Well once upon a time I had a sub and new speakers installed in my vehicle and it was like listening to my music for the first time all over again. Ever since I have been looking to meet that sound quality in a portable and comfortable pair of headphones. After much deliberation and after many suggestions and reviews I was down to deciding between these and a pair of Sony XB800 headphones. I settled on the v-moda set mostly due to their smaller size. I decided I will likely be looking at picking up a more expensive higher end set of big over ears as well in the future so decided to go with the more portable M-80 for my mid-range purchase.
TL;DR I am absolutely thrilled with this purchase, I would recommend it for anyone looking for a pair of headphones that is small and portable, comes with a replaceable cord, and that actually cares about the sound quality of their music.
Pros:
Sound quality
Small size
Weight/quality of build
Replaceable cord
Comfort
Cons:
Must be full retracted to fit in supplied hard case
Won't get the best from a low quality output (hardly a con but something to think about)
May be too small for some people
PHYSICAL DESIGN
These come beautifully packaged and with a hard carrying case that has some cord management for storing extra cables, and a carabiner clip that can be put through a loop on the case so you can attach the case to a backpack,etc.
These are a nice looking pair of headphones and have a surprising amount of heft to them compared to their relatively small size. I wouldn't say this is a bulky or uncomfortable weight when carrying or wearing them, it more just makes the build quality feel excellent. I'm confident dropping them once isn't going to snap these puppies. The size is honestly just what I was looking for in this particular pair. Something that fits around my neck easily, doesn't cover my ears or make me sweat. I can wear them for hours comfortably and forget they are there.
I am a bigger guy and when these are fully extended they are almost the perfect size for my ears. This does cause some concern that these probably aren't going to fit real great for someone with a larger head. As with any on or in ear I've experienced having a good fit is very important to sound quality. The only cons I have found on the design is that the headphones need to be fully retracted in order to properly fit in the supplied case.
SOUND QUALITY
Speaking of sound quality I am surprised that some of the Amazon reviewers are having negative things to say here. I'll admit that when first plugging them I was a little... underwhelmed but through trial and error I have found out a few things. The first thing I found out is that if you can get them a source with enough power these headphones sound as good or better than anything I've put on my ears. I've never had headphones of a high enough quality to hear this distinction so clearly before. My initial thoughts on the headphones were blown away when plugging them into higher quality output sources.
I am going to say this again because it is very important...WHAT THEY ARE PLUGGED INTO MATTERS. I am by no means an audiophile but listening to good sounding music is one of my favorite things to do... with that in mind I first plugged them into my LG G3 phone first and I was underwhelmed. Come to find out this wasn't an uncommon problem, while the DAC on the G3 is good the amp has a problem pushing out high volume to high end headphones if you are used to listening to hard hitting music loudly. I plugged them into my old iPod touch and listened to the same songs and I could immediately tell a difference. It was louder, clearer, the bass hit harder, the vocals were clearer. I decided to step it up a notch and try them out with the headphone jack of my Sony home theater system and crank up some music videos from youtube on my Roku... and I was blown away. Through this output the bass, mids, and highs were all extremely clear, loud and well defined. Some subtle tweaking with the EQ levels and I could close my eyes and imagine I was rocking out in my top of the line car sound system.
When it comes to headphones I would say the most difficult thing to do is find a pair that the low end is loud, defined, and hard hitting without going over into that muddy zone that just sounds awful. Out of the box these do it extremely well. My musical tastes are quite odd and I listen to everything from Heavy Metal to Pop to Rap to Classical. I have been putting these phones through their paces with my iPod and I have been trying very hard to find a sound quality fault with them. I just can't find it. The vocals are clear and the bass is loud and hard hitting without overpowering the mids whether it be Classical piano, the loud bass-y electrical beats of pop and rap, or the hard hitting bass drum/bass guitar on heavy metal songs. I hear the bass loudly and clearly but I don't feel that it is overpowering any other sounds. It doesn't get muddy and I can hear every thumping beat of the bass drum on those hard running double foot pedal songs. Nothing gets lost.
The mids don't necessarily shine, then again in my audio systems I never really tweak them to. When it comes to mids I like them to be right there in the background without getting overpowered by the highs and lows and getting lost. These headphones do an excellent job of that I can hear every beat but the lows and highs really stand out over your mids without letting the mids get lost in the backround.
The highs are very clear, although this isn't really a rare thing for headphones. This is most obvious for me when listening to classical piano and you can really define and hear the distinct difference between all the high, mid, and low notes. The highs are very clear and sharp. High vocals sound great and again I really close my eyes and just have had a hard time trying to find a fault or a note that sounds bad with these cans.
I also made the decision to put in an order for a portable battery powered DAC/Headphone Amplifier combo here on amazon to pair with my phone and see what difference it makes in sound quality. I will update this review when it arrives and I can put them through their paces as well as updating on whether or not the 6 foot cord I ordered makes any difference in sound quality.
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- NO ADDITIONAL COST: You pay $0 for repairs – parts, labor and shipping included.
- COVERAGE: Plan starts on the date of purchase. Drops, spills and cracked screens due to normal use covered from day one. Malfunctions covered after the manufacturer's warranty.
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There is a newer model of this item:
V-MODA XS On-Ear Folding Design Noise-Isolating Metal Headphone (Matte Black Metal)
$179.99
(309)
Only 5 left in stock (more on the way).
$179.99
(309)
Only 5 left in stock (more on the way).
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Compare with similar items
 | V-MODA Crossfade 2 Wireless Over-Ear Headphones, Rose Gold | V-MODA XS On-Ear Folding Design Noise-Isolating Metal Headphone (Matte Black Metal) | V-MODA Crossfade M-80 On-Ear Noise-Isolating Metal Headphone (Shadow) (Discontinued by Manufacturer) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Customer Rating | (193) | (378) | (309) | (597) |
| Price | $199.99 | $279.00 | $179.99 | $190.00 |
| Sold By | Happybabies | SHOPSIMPLE | Amazon.com | eLGeo Corp. |
| Color | White | Rose Gold | Black | Black |
| Fit Type | Over-Ear | Over-Ear | On-Ear | On-Ear |
| Item Dimensions | 3 x 7 x 9 inches | 8.5 x 11 x 3 inches | 3.5 x 5.5 x 6.5 inches | 7 x 3 x 9 inches |
| Item Weight | 1.50 lbs | 1.00 lbs | 0.04 ounces | 1.50 lbs |
| Special Features | lightweight, volume-control | Foldable, Microphone Feature, Noise Isolation, Volume-Control, Universal Phone Control | foldable | lightweight |
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Reviewed in the United States on December 22, 2015
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