Note: I think this product is already discontinued but you can also try out Sony’s newer EX Monitor series headphones.
I was hunting for replacement headphones for my iPod Nano mid last year. Not because I lost the original white ones but because the white earbuds does not match the color of my black iPod. You see, having the black tune player hooked up to white earbuds with white colored wires simply look.. funny.The MDR-EX85 better match my black iPod Nano
The Sony’s EX Monitor series claims to offer studio monitor sound quality and true to life sound. So, how true is this?
MDR-EX85 is an in-ear canalphone which means you plug it into your ear canal. However, unlike most canalphones there appears to be two grid area for the driver, one inside the removable rubber plug and one on the outer ring. Fact is there is only one physical driver unit (13.5mm) each side. During playback both these grids emit the sound. Supposedly the area in the rubber plug makes the bass sounds stronger, and the outer grid complements by making the mid and high notes sound better. The existence of this outer grid, however also means you will ‘share’ your tunes with people in your immediate surrounding.
Compared to the white buds that comes with the iPod Nano unit, I would say this canalphone is way far superior in audio quality. The bass is much stronger and higher notes sounded very crispy clear. Turn the volume all the way up and you won’t hear any distortion (given your audio track is properly encoded, of course). The plugs also act as ambient noise isolators so unless you are in a cinema or clubbing the MDR-EX85 is highly capable of isolating (passively) surrounding sound giving you only your tunes.
The MDR-EX85 is light and comfortable for prolonged listening too.
If you are hunting for a new pair of headphones to please your ears, I’m sure you can’t go wrong with Sony’s EX Monitor series, especially given the price range is more comfortable for most as compared to the likes of Shure, Bose and Klipsch.
