By Amazon Customer.
on 27th Mar 2002
Amazon Customer.'s Ratings| Sound Quality | 10/10 |
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| Value for money | 8/10 |
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| Overall value | 8/10 |
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 Amazon Customer.'s recommendation |
Good Points
1) Excellent, full sound. Again, this is a relative statement. Don't expect perfect acoustics, but for their size and intended application you just can't get better (with the possible exception of the Sony MDR-E888LP, which is the latest super high-end one released in the States but not here in the UK yet). The treble is very clear, but not harsh. The bass is strong, and on some tracks, can even be overpowering. It is not a boom-boom type bass that befits posers who like house-size woofers in the boots of their cars; it is a well-defined rounded bass. Though you can only get so much bass definition from something so small, so Sony obviously increased the bass volume and in the process degrading clarity, but don't get me wrong - the bass is good. The mid-range music tends to get drowned out a bit from the heavy bass, but it's still very audible. TIP: if you're like me and you're not too fond of too much bass, stick a small piece of tape over the three holes on the silver portion behind the driver units. That greatly improves the sound for me and stops the bass leaking into the other ranges.
2) Comfort is fabulous. If like me you can't find a comfortable pair of earphones, this will suit you fine. This thing actually fits IN your ear canal, so it's bound to fit. The silicon cups are very comfortable, and they come in 3 different sizes so big or small, you'll find something to suit you. You can leave this on all day, unlike all other earphones I've tried.
3) That's about it, really. Apart from all the technical mumbo-jumbo that's supposed to impress you, what from oxygen free copper to a gold-plated input - big deal. All we consumers care about is the sound. The proof is in the pudding.
Bad Points
1) The physical design. The plastic/rubber surrounding the jack is very small and flimsy (even compared to Sony's lower-end earphones). The cable is flimsy and looks fragile. A large of the portion of the actual earphones are flexible rubber, not the usual hard plastic. This thing demands care, and Sony would have done well to provide a good case for storing the earphones while not in use, which leads me to my next point...
2) The storage case is awful. Pure and simple. It's my biggest gripe about the whole package. It's a little canister that looks like an overblown medicine capsule. Get this - it holds the actual earphones rather well (and actually it's quite cool), but all the wires are left dangling out. This is rubbish, as far as I'm concerned. I would've much preferred something like the case that Sony makes for their lower-end earphones (like the case for the MDR-E848LP which you can see here on Amazon.co.uk). I own one of Sony's very low-end earphones, and it comes with a case like this and I love it. I don't understand why Sony provided this terrible case with their supposedly "high-end" earphones.
3) Ear wax. Because of the nature of the earphones, they tend to collect ear wax (and yes I do clean my ears). So sharing is not a viable idea, not so much that you don't want other people getting your wax, but more you don't want to get other people's wax. So they require a bit more cleaning than regular earphones.
General Comments
Sony MDR-EX70LP Fontopia Headphones:
1) The noise elimination. These things work on an earplug principle, meaning they expand and fit your ear-canal, so effectively when the music is on you can't hear much else. You still can hear some ambient sounds, but a lot less than regular earphones. This is good, right? Not for the guy who didn't hear the car. Up to you if this is a positive feature or a negative criticism.
2) They look cool. One of my criteria when buying earphones is that they must look good (which is also the reason why my earphones tend to get stolen a lot). They don't look as cool as a silver Sony pair that I have, but there are nice touches that let you know that it's expensive. It's the whole image thing. For example, at the point where the cables split to the two earphones, there's a cool embossed Silver Sony logo there. Also the whole thing is a dark purplish blue, not black. Even the case (the stupid case which I feel like throwing away) is a transparent blue.
The last word:
If you're like me and you want portable good sound without having to carry around a big pair of headphones, get this. The sound quality really is impressive for what it is. Though I am full of complaints about the packaging and the fragility of the thing - Sony really should have done a lot better for their "high-end" model (check out Sony.co.uk's website and you'll see that they regard this model as the ultimate pair of earphones), especially when all their lower-end models incorporate good things that this doesn't.
But am I glad I bought it? Yes. The sound is unbeatable, and that is paramount to me. It only gets 8 points because of the tainted packaging.
This review is copyright Amazon
Sony Fontopia?MDR-E818LP Consumer Headphones
grahamw on 24th Nov 2005