[size=medium]I had an old pair of Sony over ear IEMs which needed to be replaced for use at the gym. That is when I thought that I would try the Sennhieser CX-300 II. I have a pair of HD-448 full circumaural full size headphones which are really nice and I had read a lot of good things about their equipment. So, I decided to buy them at Best Buy for $50 knowing that Best Buy has a really good return policy if I didn’t like them.[/size]
[size=medium]I opened the package in the parking lot to be sure that there weren’t any problems. First of all the packaging is difficult to open. The plastic pinches the wire just below the strain relief next to the speaker unit. After getting them out of the package I was pleased to hear that right out of the packaging they sounded better than the old Sony or the Ink’d IEMs. [/size]
[size=medium]This comparison isn’t that complimentary considering that the two the Senn’s are being compared too are sub $20 units. They have a much stronger bass and fuller sound in all areas. The Ink’d are great for the gym but in a quiet environment their sound signature is full of holes. They have a lump in their bass around 200 Hz that drops out between 500 Hz and returns just after 1 kHz. The Senns on the other hand are a bit boomy in the lower bass from 20 to 200 Hz but transition well into the midrange. The highs are bright and do not suffer from the bass as others have said, But I must say that I HATE sibilance and a warmer sound is much preferred to a bright sound at the expense of too much sibilance. [/size]
[size=medium]The dreaded J-Wire…[/size]
[size=medium]Now some people like the J-Wire and some prefer the Y – Wire configuration. The 1/8 plug is 90 degrees, but sticks out rather far and doesn’t have a strain relief which is a poor design. The junction point is dominated with a ¾ by ½ chunk of plastic where the larger diameter wire meets the two branching wires going to the individual speakers. If worn casually the light weight wires are comfortable and I don’t notice them, but when working out the long J-wire tends to fly about and get caught and pull on the speaker for the right side. This configuration also prevents me from getting comfortable over-ear configuration.[/size]
[size=medium]After buying these I decided that I had to get a pair of IEMs that contained a microphone and controls for my iPod. I researched and considered getting the CX 400 or MM50 but both have the J-Wire configuration. [/size]
[size=medium]Take a Note Sennhieser… Offer your products in both configurations! It really can’t be all that difficult to produce a CX 300 IIJ and CX 300 IIY. [/size]
[size=medium]I opened the package in the parking lot to be sure that there weren’t any problems. First of all the packaging is difficult to open. The plastic pinches the wire just below the strain relief next to the speaker unit. After getting them out of the package I was pleased to hear that right out of the packaging they sounded better than the old Sony or the Ink’d IEMs. [/size]
[size=medium]This comparison isn’t that complimentary considering that the two the Senn’s are being compared too are sub $20 units. They have a much stronger bass and fuller sound in all areas. The Ink’d are great for the gym but in a quiet environment their sound signature is full of holes. They have a lump in their bass around 200 Hz that drops out between 500 Hz and returns just after 1 kHz. The Senns on the other hand are a bit boomy in the lower bass from 20 to 200 Hz but transition well into the midrange. The highs are bright and do not suffer from the bass as others have said, But I must say that I HATE sibilance and a warmer sound is much preferred to a bright sound at the expense of too much sibilance. [/size]
[size=medium]The dreaded J-Wire…[/size]
[size=medium]Now some people like the J-Wire and some prefer the Y – Wire configuration. The 1/8 plug is 90 degrees, but sticks out rather far and doesn’t have a strain relief which is a poor design. The junction point is dominated with a ¾ by ½ chunk of plastic where the larger diameter wire meets the two branching wires going to the individual speakers. If worn casually the light weight wires are comfortable and I don’t notice them, but when working out the long J-wire tends to fly about and get caught and pull on the speaker for the right side. This configuration also prevents me from getting comfortable over-ear configuration.[/size]
[size=medium]After buying these I decided that I had to get a pair of IEMs that contained a microphone and controls for my iPod. I researched and considered getting the CX 400 or MM50 but both have the J-Wire configuration. [/size]
[size=medium]Take a Note Sennhieser… Offer your products in both configurations! It really can’t be all that difficult to produce a CX 300 IIJ and CX 300 IIY. [/size]
