Sony MDR-EX71SLB Fontopia Headphones - Black

When fitted correctly (see below), all external noise is cut out and, with my Sony MD / MP3, I'm rewarded with strong (but not overbearing) bass; treble which has "presence" without being tinny; and crisp clear vocals.

Combined with their unique design - which makes them for me by far the most comfortable in-the-ear phones I've ever owned (plus, they never fall out!) - and I'm one v. satisfied customer...

One point to highlight: to ensure the best depth and clarity of sound from these little gems, it's important to use them with the correct size of (silicone) earpiece for your ear (S, M and L are supplied). They should be a tight, although comfortable, fit. With all external noise blocked out, you'll be rewarded with great sound. I highlight this because when using mine for the first time (with the medium earpieces that were fitted) I was dissapointed by the quietness of vocals and a bass that was too powerful. However, this problem was quickly resolved by my replacing with the larger earpieces.

Since I bought these phones for their sound quality - rather than the accompanying accessories - I won't comment on, for example, the small plastic carry case. Suffice to say, it adequately does its job but is easily lost.

Although not cheap, for their quality, I think these headphones offer good value for money. I'd recommend them to anyone looking for a comfortable, lightweight design, combined with outstanding sound.

The usual problems with in ear phones are:

1) They dont fit in your ear correctly, and you are very lucky if they do not hurt. A rigid design based on the average ear size is the problem here.

2) Mid-range and bass is lost, you really cannot hear the whole presence of the sound without pushing the headphones deep into your ear and holding them there, not an ideal situation.

The sony headphones are excellent, they have a flexible rubber earplug design which is guaranteed to fit any size of ear completely. They come with three sizes of earbud attachment, the medium will probably fit most ears. The main thing here is that the earbud is flexible and changes shape with the shape of your inner-ear, thus not being constrictive, and at the same time filling your ear completely so no sound is lost.

This is important as it cuts out most of the background noise that you hear using conventional earphones, and thus the full range of sound reaches your ear drum and is not lost to the outside world, nor is it distorted by background noise in your listening environment.

This really makes a difference, you can hear the bass fully and you also do not need to have your mp3 player (or whatever) turned up as loud, i reduced my volume by 20% thus protecting my ears.

The best way I can describe the sound quality compared to conventional ear phones is by listening to music and pressing the ear phones into your ears, listen to the difference, with the sony Fontopia earbuds it is like that all the time.

It's not so much that the audio quality is that much better than most other headphones. Rather, it's that these headphones block out almost all background noise. I tend to listen to music on the move, and these headphones are able to block out almost all nearby conversations or traffic noises - a real godsend, it has to be said. I've lost count of the number of times I've been unable to hear a song properly when walking alongside a busy road or sitting next to some loud-mouthed fool on the underground.

The cords are of slightly stupid lengths, but this is only a minor quibble. Also, because, these headphones go further into the ear than most, certain actions such as coughing or talking/singing become more problematic...(stick your fingers in your ears and say something and you'll have some idea what it will sound like). In other words you can't really sing or hum along with these headphones. It's a minor point but may be an issue for some people.

Anyway, if you listen to music on the move, then I'd definitely recommend these headphones (just make sure you've fitted them correctly before rushing to judgement!)