Boxman90
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Dec 22, 2008
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Since nobody replied in the other topic and this is a pretty active forum, I figured I'd have to make a new thread to enlighten my case.
The Problem
To start with, here's the case. Once some time ago, I bought a genuine Sennheiser CX400 from a local shop, and I was quite happy with them as an accessory to my iPod. I paid something like 70 euro's for it.
Then, not too long ago, I came across a certain site that shall remain anonymous, settled in Hong Kong, that also sold the Sennheiser CX400, for the bargain price of 25 dollar. I read alot about these fakes, but I was so eager to find out what quality the 'fakes' were, that I decided to buy a pair.
Here's the funny thing. They sound exactly the same as my own earbuds, except for the fact that there might be a slight difference (a difference me nor my father can point out actually) due to the 'new' set not being 'burnt-in'. For this, me and my dad concluded they were both the same quality.
The really funny thing is this: according to those so called 'fake tests', my 'fake' headphones from China are half genuine and half fake. That is, the clip and the carrying thing are genuine, but the pouch is nonoriginal because it's plastic, and the earbuds are nonoriginal because the grill is flat and it should be bent (??!?!!). I saw pictures of that, so I know what is meant.
Moreover, my ORIGINAL set is half FAKE according to those things! (?!). That should be because my original set also has a flat grill and a plastic pouch.
My opinion on those 'fake-identifying tests':
Factories often change production processes to save a little bit of money while keeping the retail price the same. Obviously plastic is cheaper to produce and handle than leather, so I think Sennheiser just wanted to save money on that because it wouldn't matter for the sound quality anyway.
Same goes for the grills. The only difference according to those fake-tests is that one is bent and one is not. But in my opinion it's ridiculous to call earbuds fakes upon such a small detail. I'm sure Sennheiser doesn't make those grills himself, but just buys them from another (metal) factory. So I don't think it's so unlikely for a factory to run out of those things, and receive a new batch thats marginally different then the first batch.
Plus the fact that they just sound the same (which is really good), than they can't be anything else than original I gues?
My opinion on the "how did that website get originals then?"
Here's what I think is happening. A lot of stuff is just made in China, mostly because that's cheap. However, those Chinese aren't crazy themselves.
First they just get an assignment to produce a certain amount of CX400 earbuds. Nothing wrong with that. They produce it, but once the quotum is met, I think that Chinese factory just thinks "ah what the hell" and lets the belts run for another few hours, if you catch my drift.
This way they can sell their produce for probably more on the internet than they get from Sennheiser itself.
And ofcourse we all know that one asks gold for a product wearing a famous brand name.
In Conclusion
I think it's very well possible that some of these so-called 'fakes' are actually the same earbuds. The only nonoriginal thing about it, is the price, and the fact that it hasn't gone through Sennheisers own distribution net.
So couldn't it just be that these fakes are from the same production line, only with the cheaper price, because Chinese factories just want to make more earnings (regardless of the legality of it ofcourse).
I'd really like some opinions about this.
The Problem
To start with, here's the case. Once some time ago, I bought a genuine Sennheiser CX400 from a local shop, and I was quite happy with them as an accessory to my iPod. I paid something like 70 euro's for it.
Then, not too long ago, I came across a certain site that shall remain anonymous, settled in Hong Kong, that also sold the Sennheiser CX400, for the bargain price of 25 dollar. I read alot about these fakes, but I was so eager to find out what quality the 'fakes' were, that I decided to buy a pair.
Here's the funny thing. They sound exactly the same as my own earbuds, except for the fact that there might be a slight difference (a difference me nor my father can point out actually) due to the 'new' set not being 'burnt-in'. For this, me and my dad concluded they were both the same quality.
The really funny thing is this: according to those so called 'fake tests', my 'fake' headphones from China are half genuine and half fake. That is, the clip and the carrying thing are genuine, but the pouch is nonoriginal because it's plastic, and the earbuds are nonoriginal because the grill is flat and it should be bent (??!?!!). I saw pictures of that, so I know what is meant.
Moreover, my ORIGINAL set is half FAKE according to those things! (?!). That should be because my original set also has a flat grill and a plastic pouch.
My opinion on those 'fake-identifying tests':
Factories often change production processes to save a little bit of money while keeping the retail price the same. Obviously plastic is cheaper to produce and handle than leather, so I think Sennheiser just wanted to save money on that because it wouldn't matter for the sound quality anyway.
Same goes for the grills. The only difference according to those fake-tests is that one is bent and one is not. But in my opinion it's ridiculous to call earbuds fakes upon such a small detail. I'm sure Sennheiser doesn't make those grills himself, but just buys them from another (metal) factory. So I don't think it's so unlikely for a factory to run out of those things, and receive a new batch thats marginally different then the first batch.
Plus the fact that they just sound the same (which is really good), than they can't be anything else than original I gues?
My opinion on the "how did that website get originals then?"
Here's what I think is happening. A lot of stuff is just made in China, mostly because that's cheap. However, those Chinese aren't crazy themselves.
First they just get an assignment to produce a certain amount of CX400 earbuds. Nothing wrong with that. They produce it, but once the quotum is met, I think that Chinese factory just thinks "ah what the hell" and lets the belts run for another few hours, if you catch my drift.
This way they can sell their produce for probably more on the internet than they get from Sennheiser itself.
And ofcourse we all know that one asks gold for a product wearing a famous brand name.
In Conclusion
I think it's very well possible that some of these so-called 'fakes' are actually the same earbuds. The only nonoriginal thing about it, is the price, and the fact that it hasn't gone through Sennheisers own distribution net.
So couldn't it just be that these fakes are from the same production line, only with the cheaper price, because Chinese factories just want to make more earnings (regardless of the legality of it ofcourse).
I'd really like some opinions about this.