Intro
 
First of all, I want to start my review by declaring that I'm no audiophile and never cared for such signature in my cans. Critical listening, with everything flat isn't my forte nor what I wanted. I'm all about the bass, to be specifically, unbloated, deep bass. And this set, oh man do they deliver! 
 
I once bought the CAL! as a recommendation from HeadFi buddies, and despite their strong bass response, they are nowhere near basshead territory. The mids where something else, as they were excellent, but nevertheless, it wasn't what my ears craved. Around that time I started checking other choices, and found the Beats brand to underperform. Bass was there but they bled into the mid frequencies, it was unacceptable. That's when I heard about Sony's XB line. To be sincere, I thought they were a scam, with more mid bass than real bass with bass leaking into the mids. In the beggining, all I could find were reviews and recommendations for the XB920, which really didn't catch my eye due to being over the ear rather than around the ear, and that's when my search took a 360° turn. A post here mentioned the XB700 as a discontinued but highly sought set of cans, and as impossible and crazy as it might have been (specially as the used price was sky rocket high, around 300ish), I found them in a web site, mildly scratched but at an incredible affordable tag (95 dlls), so without thinking twice, I grabbed them and went home ASAP.
 
Sound signature
 
V shape, mids are recessed, but due to the extreme bass boost. Highs are boosted too, but not as high as the bass.
 
Bass.
 
Well, what can I say? they do live up to the hype! They have a 10~12dB bass boost around 70hz that decays evenly until the mids start to kick in, making this headphones powerful on the bass department without mid leaks. Just clean heavenly bass. DO NOT EXPECT MID BASS, as they will disappoint, this is all about the deep bass that you can hear in a kick drum, for example. If you are looking for a pair of warm sounding headphones, these aren't quite what you are looking for, don't misunderstand, they aren't sterile sounding, with ice cold bass, but they aren't fuzzy warm either, they sit right in between.
 
Mids.
 
I didn't really expected a lot, but they do the job. Mediocre at best, mids are recessed but nothing too bad. Thinking about it, they might sound recessed because the bass is boosted to insane levels... anyway, the plus is, they are CLEAN. Let's be honest here, you don't buy this set with creamy mids in mind, it needed to have a trade off.
 
High.

Highs are ok, they do sound a bit harsh in the beinning, but they start to sound more musical after being burned in. By the way, these must be burn for about 200hrs, the sound improves in this area the most.
 
Comfort
 
They have these oversized cushions that make love to your ears, but they do get hot, nothing to worry about though. My only gripe is that the head padding isn't as generous as I'd like it to be, and because of the substantial weight, they may get long in the tooth after a few hours. The inside of the cushion will fit ALL ears, unless you are a hagrid sized guy, you should be fine.
 
Conclusion.
I wouldn't trade them for anything, they are perfect for me. In the end, it all depends on what you are looking for. But if you ever want the blistering experience of ultra textured deep bass, without mid bass humps and acceptable highs, give them a try, they are worth the hassle.

Sound Signature.
 
If I were to describe this cans, the V shape would be fitting, but it is just a moderate V shape, nothing overly pronounced but not flat by any means.

Bass.

This is where the cans excel at. The bass is pronounced and continues with a mid bass emphasis. I'm more of a sub-bass craver rather than the mid bass hump because I feel it steals clarity to the mids, so this left something to be desired, though nothing that made me regret my purchase. I find myself enjoying pop, edm, rock with this pair to the point of losing sight of the background, I see the average joe digging this set for this, but truth be told, the sub bass is a notch below the mid bass. If I they could reverse this, they'd be perfect for me.

Mids.

Withdrawn, but not by much, the mids are clear but again the mid bass steals the show. Male voices sound powerful with depth. Guitar cords sound beautiful. Overall very enjoyable mids.

Highs.

This cans do have a boost around the 10k. I tend to like my headphones with a little less highs, nevertheless, they never sound fatiguing or excrutiating, on the contrary, they give the cymbals a spot in music that you can easily distinguish without being overbearing. This is what gives the headphones the somewhat clear feel.
 
Isoaltion

Mediocre, just as good as the average closed cans.
 
Comfort
 
Clamp pressure is almost non existent, but they won't fall off your head, so this are really confortable, you can use them literally for hours without pain. The ear space could be bigger. They fit mine, but just barely, and I'm 6 ft tall with average sized ears. Bigger heads should stay away they won't fit. 
 
Value
 
I paid 70 dlls, but they do give a lot more than what they offer. They are not meant for bassheads nor audiophiles, but will appeal to everyone looking for a "jack of all trades". Enjoying music is what they are meant for, and these, well, they just deliver that in the sub $100 range.