My search has ended! (Sony MDR-EX90 review)

dvdrsmth

Over the last couple of years I have been on a quest to find a reasonably priced (~$100) replacements for the stock iPod earphones. Over the last few years I have demo'ed and returned/sold the following:

1. Sony E71
2. Shure E2C
3. Shure E3C
4. Etymotic ER-6i
5. Apple in-ear headphones
6. Bose IE (I was curious!!)
6. Misc ones not worth mentioning

Again, I ended up either selling or returning all of the above either for overall poor sound quality (Apple, Sony 71's, Bose) or the feeling of having a medical device crammed into the inner depths of my skull (Shure and Ety's). Until Sony released these little gems my favorite portable headphones were the Sennheiser's PX200's. Still, even with the great sound quality and portability of the PX200's, what I really wanted was a solution without the extra bulk.

In all fairness, the Shure E3C's/ER6i's have better overall sound quality, but I could never get past what was required to get them to sound good; i.e. the fit. When I was listening to the Shure's I was constantly reminded that they were in my ears (deep!). The outside noise isolation was great on the occasion when I needed to block out noise (riding bus, etc) but in the end the extreme isolation really turned out to be more a nuisance than a feature.

So, back to the EX90's. Overall the sound is balanced yet detailed and revealing. The highs can be a bit harsh at times. The harshness seems to be more apparent at higher volume levels. I find myself wanting to listen to the 90's at a higher volume level to get a similar bass response of other headphones I've used (this is where a sealed system like the Shure's will always win). However, don't get me wrong, the bass is still satisfying at moderate volume levels. I'll break out the Sennheiser's or another pair of cans when I want jaw rattling bass. Tip: try the different ear inserts to get the best fit as this does help the bass response (since the 90's are an "open" design, getting a good seal is not crucial given the large drivers).

All-in-all the engineers at Sony hit a homerun with the MDREX90's in my opinion. I believe sound quality compromises were made in all the right areas for this design. The end result is a highly satisfying product that is comfortable, reasonably priced (at least on sale), and stylish.

Finally, the sound of the 90's does change some with time (especially in the first couple of hours). Allow at least one night of break-in before passing final judgment.

ceres

The Ex 90, along with the hje 70, prove that a huge engineering budget goes a long way to finally churn out a great product at a very reasonable price. While I do not agree on the harsh his or the er6i being anywhere close to the ex90 (not even close to the cx300), I would like to point out one design immanent flaw that may potentially be a deal breaker: serious sound leakage. I currently run the new flash walkman 706 along with the ex 90s and with volume cranked up to exactly 50%, about 60% on the 2g nano, sound leakage becomes a major hassle. Anything beyond that is insufferable on the subway ( a place that screams for more volume)
That´s where IEMs come in...

dvdrsmth

Mmmm crow tastes so good! Call it fate, call it curiosity, call it a lack of satisfaction, but I felt the overwhelming need to give one of the forum favorites a try, and I'm so glad I did! The cans in question? The Ultimate Ears super.fi 5 Pro. In a few words... blissful audio nirvana. I would have tried these so much sooner if I only understood that despite their closed in-ear design they are very comfortable! Given my past uncomfortable experiences with closed in-ear phones (Shure, Ety) I wrote them off. There's really no need to go on from here. There are so many glowing reviews on the net and most are spot on. While the $180 price tag does bug me a bit I can honestly say that they are worth every penny!

If you have been unsatisfied with other replacement buds/headphones/whatever you owe it to yourself to demo a pair of these.

Happy listening!

p.s. in the back of the product manual it states in bold letters, "LISTEN TO YOUR MUSIC FOR THE FIRST TIME" and I whole-heartedly agree.

ceres

(Originally Posted by MrDisco)

why did you go with the UEs just after receiving the EX90?
how much did you pay for your pair (the EX90 that is)

Let me tell you I did the same thing. To me sound leakage on the ex90 was a major problem.
The UEs sound immediately superior imo even considering the huge markup. However, I find the new, transparent cables way to sturdy as well as the in ear unit big and intrusive, relative to the ex 90s, of course. Unfortunately my UEs lasted 4 days before the right bass driver died. I am having a really bad streak here...
I will continue to use the ex 90s for working out, however. They are best in their class for this purpose. If you have a 100 USD budget the sonys are a great deal.

drevo

Weird. I could have written dvdrsmth's entry!!! Virtually identical headphone history and the same opinion on the Sony MDR-90 phones. They are excellent, but with one major failing; almot no isolation from external noise. Don't even try to use them on a plane - I did recently on a new B737-800 and they were useless. Back to the Shure e4c.

Incidentally, they really show up the differences between current ipods. The new shuffle is an excreble thing for which Apple should be ashamed; it's tiny, but with horrible noisy un-musical sound, so what? It's blown away by the old shuffle. BTW with the old shuffle, the sound quality with the 90s is fabulous - musical, stereo separation and depth, crystal clear imaging. it's everything a portable music player should be.

And the price of Sony's masterpiece? £30 new (sealed carton) from the UK ebay shop. Nothing can touch them at that price!!