[VanBurenPhilips]

Abandoned in my laptop bag are two pairs of earphones belonging to my girlfriend, each pair dead on one side. She listens to her MP3 player pretty much every time she leaves the house, currently on naff came-bundled-with-something earbuds. I want to buy her something decent up to £20/$30 sorta price range (I'm in the UK).

Style-wise she doesn't like the poke-em-in-the-ear-canal type (one of her borken ones is a Creative IEM type thing, not sure what model), and she won't go for retro style cans or clip-ons either, so it's just old-style earbuds I'm looking for. She listens to mainly rock/indie/punk and pop. I want to get her something with a lifetime warranty; I like the Koss warranty service, but I have no knowledge of their products other than s/porta pro. Anyone else offer the same service? Lastly, I wouldn't mind decent durability even with a lifetime warranty, so she's not having to make use of it every few months.

She's not an audiophile and tbh I don't think she's at all bothered about what she's listening on now, but what the hell, it won't hurt to surprise her with something better.

In summary:

1. earbuds, not IEM
2. lifetime warranty
3. decent durability
4. up to £20/$30

What do you think, anything suitable?

 

[VanBurenPhilips]

Wow, this forum moves fast :s
Found one possibility:

V-Moda Remix M-Class. Have been unable to find opinions here, seems favourable "around the net" for what that's worth. Found some for what seems to be a good price in the UK; V-Moda's warranty seems good in the US, but UK differences are unclear. Have emailed them and the retailer for clarification.
Any opinions on these?


[edit]also, Maximo iM-290: lifetime warranty, any opinions on sound & build quality?[/edit]


Can anyone enlighten me on Sennheiser's UK warranty? MX760s may be a possibility. Skullcandy's warranty is great, but boy do they get a beating on these forums. If they're not likely to sound any better than bundled phones then I'll steer clear. I know Koss's warranty service is great, but they don't have many earbuds and they are alarmingly cheap. KEB7s? Good~terrible?

 

[VanBurenPhilips]

Been finding a lot of negative info on the net about V-Moda build quality and customer service, so I'm close to ruling those out. Doubts over Maximo build quality and comfort, so I probably won't go for those either. I've searched head-fi and it seems there are no opinions of either of those two specific models, so instead I'll ask: what can you say about these two companies' reputations generally for build quality and customer support?

Sennheiser MX760 is looking likely, shame it's not a lifetime warranty, but 2 years ain't bad for the price. Does anyone know if they offer support of any kind beyond the 2 years, like discounted replacements or whatever?

Yuin PK3 looks like a great value alternative; I gather they're quite heavy on the bass so not sure it's the right sound for her. I can't find any warranty info, and the UK website is a mess - does anyone have any info about this? Comments on PK3 durability also welcome.

 

[VanBurenPhilips]

bump

 

[tstarn06]

Koss Ksc lineup (75s, 35s).

 

[VanBurenPhilips]

Thanks, but not clip-ons. Just earbuds.

 

[bcpk]

Err, buy a pair that comes with a case instead?

All earphones are fragile, so it's not in the manufacturer's best interest to offer a lifetime warranty as they're much more prone to breaking than PortaPros.

 

[Junliang]

Quote:

Originally Posted by VanBurenPhilips /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thanks, but not clip-ons. Just earbuds.

Well, I seriously wonder if there are any other lifetime warranty phones out there then.

 

[VanBurenPhilips]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Junliang Well, I seriously wonder if there are any other lifetime warranty phones out there then.

So far it seems just Koss and Skullcandy. The Koss buds: judging by the scarcity of comment on them I'm guessing they're not stellar sound quality, and they're so cheap the thought of lifetime warranty becomes silly.

Was looking at AKG too. K 317, 319. Their service page says they offer an "exceptionally long" warranty... and that's all!

I've emailed them to (hopefully) get some real details.

I'm leaning towards Sennheisers. If I've got to compromise on something, I'll make it the warranty rather than sound quality (not much point having a lifetime supply of junk).