[Nospam]

So, is the MX500 really any better-sounding than the stock earbuds that come with the iPod?

Yes, I know that headphones and canal phones sound much better. However, I want something very portable, which rules out headphone. In addition, I am not interested in canal phone, due to safety issues, i.e., I want to know if a car/bike/etc is about to run me over

Anyway, if not the MX500, what else?

 

[commando]

Consider Sharp MD33 canal phones, they provide some isolation but not as much as Etys or Shures. http://audiocubes.com

Edit - removed incorrect advice.

 

[Mr.Radar]

From what I've read they should be much better (great for their price), tough if you want even better sound you should look at the Koss PortaPro family (the PortaPro, PortaPro 2 (only available at Circuit City), SportaPro, KSC-35, KSC-50, and KSC-55) or the Sennheiser PX100.

 

[thewaka]

Quote:

Originally Posted by commando I thought the iPod stock buds were MX400s or something anyway.

Karma comes with MX300s.

Diana

 

[SunByrne]

The standard iPod buds are not Senns. The MX500s are substantially better than the Apple buds.

 

[strid3r]

Yes the MX500s are better. I bought the MX500s a while back and gave the stock Ipod earbuds to a friend. Getting the Radio Shack foamies helps a lot with the fit/comfort as well.

 

[thewaka]

Quote:

Originally Posted by strid3r Yes the MX500s are better. I bought the MX500s a while back and gave the stock Ipod earbuds to a friend. Getting the Radio Shack foamies helps a lot with the fit/comfort as well.

My Creative Zen Xtra also came with not-very-good buds but I tried them out to see if I liked wearing them. They were nice, but fell out easily. Do the Senns stay in well? And how uncomfortable? More than one review at amazon mentions discomfort.

Diana

 

[strid3r]

Without the foamies, I couldn't get the MX500 to stay in my ears. It was very loose and of course, loose fit = bad sound. So for 1.99, I decided why not, let's give the foamies a try. What a huge difference in fit. I can go jogging and not have to worry about it coming loose. It was a nice upgrade over stock earbuds for 17 bucks.

 

[Silas]

Sony MDR-EX71SL are a lot better than the stock earbuds. Stylish and comfort.

 

[SunByrne]

Many Head-Fi'ers dislike the EX71s, as they find them muddy.

I also had trouble keeping the iPod earbuds in my ears, but I have no trouble with my MX400s.

 

[dfense]

I used the iPod stock buds for all of a day before I switched back to the MX500, which i had been using on my previous player. The MX500 is definitely better, and a worthy upgrade considering the price, if you plan on sticking with buds.

 

[h-man]

It's amusing reading this thread - everyones' ears are really different

I find the ipod earbuds stay in my ears much better than the mx-500. Completely agree with the sonic superiority of the mx500s though!

 

[Hell_Gopher]

The MX500s are wonderful for the price. They even preserve a (very) little of the Sennheiser sound from the 580/600/650 series - a warm, considered sound. No problems with fittings here.

 

[cellophane]

I just bought a pair of mx500's for my sister, who refused to let me buy her any other tyoe of phone but buds. She loves her Panasonics!

Thier blue color is pretty cool, better than the white (but then again I'm a Rio person). I'll see if she admits to hearing a difference in the phones.

 

[Jahn]

My KSC-35s blow the ipod buds out of the water. I agree the ipod buds are quicker to stuff in the ears and go (sometimes it takes a bit to get those koss clips on) but once they are on they stay on, and after a while you forget they are there. and i can wear them with hats and not have to worry about the headband smashing the button on top of my baseball caps into my cranium.