So, last week i finally bought a pair (obviously, the viridian blue one
), got them for 100€.
Well, i can only confirm the first impressions i got when i tried them in the shop. This cans are really good.
I really like the sound signature, quite balanced, with just a tad of bias for the lower frequencies, making everything really enjoyable, even for really long listening sessions.
I really like the bass, it's energetic without getting in the way of the rest of the presentation, and feels quite textured, too. The highs are really spot on for me, quite detailed and extended, but in no way harsh. The mids are a bit more recessed than i'd like them to be, but not really much, in fact vocals are really enjoyable with these headphones, and i've gotten used to it really fast.
Also, i hear a good separation, i can really tell one instrument from the other, as opposed to every other earphone and headphone i owned in the past (for example, now that i've been using the 100aap, the se-215 sound like a crowded mess, really closed in and just not exciting at all).
Ah, one last thing: it's really hard for the 100aap to show any sibilance. Even with tracks that have REALLY strong sibilance, the headphones deliver just a hint of it.
Comfort wise, these headphones are top notch. I can wear them for hours without even noticing them, and even thought it's been quite hot in the past few days here, i didn't have big issues about my ears getting hot. The headphones are light, and the pads are really soft. Also, the pressure on the head is light, so it doesn't get uncomfortable when wearing them for long.
Finally, they seem pretty sturdy, i don't get any crackling when handling them, and the build is really good, as one could expect from sony. Oh, and these things are sexy as hell, whoever has seen them has told me how cool they are.
I really don't get why sony didn't push more on them, advertising them properly as much as possible. They got a really good sounding, good loking and well built headphone in a fairly affordable price range, and yet managed to make them go unnoticed. And now, after not even a year from their announcement, it seems they're even dismissing them. Really, really strange, considered they didn't even release a real successor like they did in the case of the mdr-1r with the ,dr-1a.
Now, i apologize for any inconsistency in my impressions, i'm just a newbie in the audiophile world, but i wanted to share what i feel about these headphones. I'm really loving them, the only real issue is they didn't come with a hardshell case. They're stunning, sound good, and are strudily and well built. I think i would have been really happy even if i had paid the full retail price.
