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New Sony EX450 and EX650.
Oct 21, 2014 at 9:49 AM Post #16 of 82
Don't mean to hijiack this thread but does anyone know how the EX650 compares to the older MDR-XB90EX?
 
I created a thread for this here. http://www.head-fi.org/t/739246/sony-mdr-xb90ex-vs-mdr-ex650
Any insight will be helpful. 
 
The cord, jack, and overall build quality of the EX650 looks way nicer and it's still cheaper than the MDR-XB90EX which I think was about $20 more expensive when making it's debut 2 years ago. But ofcourse the other important factor is sound. 

EX650 is currently $51 here in Japan and XB90EX is about $65.

 
 
Nov 25, 2014 at 10:54 AM Post #17 of 82
I recently bought the Sony EX450 IEMs and I am very impressed with the SQ. The soundstage is quite deep and they are very crisp clear with good bass, mids and highs. Great sound for under £40.
 
May 15, 2015 at 6:37 AM Post #19 of 82
artistray said:
  Not sure if anyone else has seen this, but "What Hi Fi" awarded EX650 as the best earphones of 2014.

http://www.whathifi.com/sony/mdr-ex650ap/review
Click to expand...

 
 
This fact further solidifies "What Hi-Fi" as a consumer-oriented, short-researched-opinion-peddling publication, as these headphones at the price of ~70 Euro are not at all "bang-for-buck."
 
This is a great headphone (has good clarity, thick bass, etc.), but you pay Sony's overhead when buying it at that price. If we're taking only final sound quality result, it should be at the EX450 price of ~40 Euro, and the EX450 should be ~20 Euro cheaper, or not exist altogether. It is certainly not a "Best Of 2014" headphone, and any further research-delving into "Head-Fi" will promptly reveal that to anybody.
 
Moreover, "What Hi-Fi" takes into account what is more-or-less predominantly widely available at shops/distribution centres around Europe (and the world?), for the general consumer to purchase, when making their evaluations of products - thereby automatically eliminating hard-to-find diamonds from their, and by extension their consumers', awareness sphere.
 
This is a very ironic state-of-affairs, when one has "What Hi-Fi" on the one hand catering to the general consumer, and giving true sonic gems like the ATH-MSR7 (for example) terrible scores for not being the most consumer-friendly headphones (or sound signature), and on the other hand you have the ultimate consumer-oriented, consumer electronics site "CNET" lauding the same ATH-MSR7 headphone for its exact constitution as an affordable, extreme Hi-Fi/Hi-Res headphone with impeccable sonic clarity and other such qualities, and objectively quantifying the merits vs. the pitfalls resulting from its pre-conceived purpose as such.
 
In other words, it's wise to be inquisitive of "What-HiFi" gear evaluations, and to corroborate their findings with other experiences/sources, such as - you guessed it - Head-Fi. 
 
Jun 25, 2015 at 9:10 AM Post #21 of 82
chiek said:
I love my Sony ex650. Simply outstanding warm sound that I can listen to with joy for hours.
Click to expand...

 
I was going to write a detailed review on my newly purchased EX650AP until I heard them. Bass response is impressive for a small canalphone, unfortunately I found the treble region to be harsh, sibilant and distorted (the kind you can't fix with EQ). That kind of killed my enthusiasm for these, considering the rave reviews they have gotten from popular websites.
 
Jun 25, 2015 at 10:13 AM Post #22 of 82
Everything is subjective in life and to the anotomy of your ears and the chemistry of your brain cells. Don't know your favorite genre.but mine is folk rock. Sony Ex 650 is amazing for folk rock lovers like me.
 
Jun 25, 2015 at 10:26 AM Post #23 of 82
Sadly I have to agree about EX650 not being all that (despite having it on my avatar, at least it looks good). It's hard to take the phones seriously when nowadays you could get unbelievable sound for really cheap from the likes of KZ and some Chinese companies.
 
KZ ED9, for example, obliterates EX650 in all front, except build quality, it's not even funny, and I paid $13 for it compared to $70 for EX650.
 
Jun 28, 2015 at 2:16 AM Post #24 of 82
ianeith said:
This fact further solidifies "What Hi-Fi" as a consumer-oriented, short-researched-opinion-peddling publication, as these headphones at the price of ~70 Euro are not at all "bang-for-buck."

This is a great headphone (has good clarity, thick bass, etc.), but you pay Sony's overhead when buying it at that price. If we're taking only final sound quality result, it should be at the EX450 price of ~40 Euro, and the EX450 should be ~20 Euro cheaper, or not exist altogether. It is certainly not a "Best Of 2014" headphone, and any further research-delving into "Head-Fi" will promptly reveal that to anybody.

Moreover, "What Hi-Fi" takes into account what is more-or-less predominantly widely available at shops/distribution centres around Europe (and the world?), for the general consumer to purchase, when making their evaluations of products - thereby automatically eliminating hard-to-find diamonds from their, and by extension their consumers', awareness sphere.

This is a very ironic state-of-affairs, when one has "What Hi-Fi" on the one hand catering to the general consumer, and giving true sonic gems like the ATH-MSR7 (for example) terrible scores for not being the most consumer-friendly headphones (or sound signature), and on the other hand you have the ultimate consumer-oriented, consumer electronics site "CNET" lauding the same ATH-MSR7 headphone for its exact constitution as an affordable, extreme Hi-Fi/Hi-Res headphone with impeccable sonic clarity and other such qualities, and objectively quantifying the merits vs. the pitfalls resulting from its pre-conceived purpose as such.

In other words, it's wise to be inquisitive of "What-HiFi" gear evaluations, and to corroborate their findings with other experiences/sources, such as - you guessed it - Head-Fi. 
Click to expand...


The overhead you pay for an exotic IEM must be way more than the overhead you pay for Sony buds. 90% of the price of an exotic IEM seems to be for R&D. Thats sometimes funny with speakers, going up one speaker in a line might add one driver but also adds 3500eu/speaker. Thats all R&D of the driver.

I really do believe that people could be more enthousiastic about these if they where made by some company like RHA. The EX650's have a very well designed driver to deliver smooth and organic sound. That it is a bud that everybody could like, from a company that everybody knows, doesnt mean that you are getting ripped of.

I think the ex650's are very reasonable priced compared to some other options. I like them better than my HD448's which cost twice as much.
 
Jun 28, 2015 at 2:22 AM Post #25 of 82
blazer78 said:
I was going to write a detailed review on my newly purchased EX650AP until I heard them. Bass response is impressive for a small canalphone, unfortunately I found the treble region to be harsh, sibilant and distorted (the kind you can't fix with EQ). That kind of killed my enthusiasm for these, considering the rave reviews they have gotten from popular websites.
Click to expand...


Maybe these are just not for you but you could give them a good burn-in. I kind of get where you are coming from, these babies really smooth out over 500+ hours.
 
Jun 28, 2015 at 3:10 AM Post #26 of 82
mcmalden said:
Maybe these are just not for you but you could give them a good burn-in. I kind of get where you are coming from, these babies really smooth out over 500+ hours.
Click to expand...


500+ hours for burn in?!
 
Jul 27, 2015 at 6:28 PM Post #30 of 82
This I can :)
 
The EX650 sounds more balanced and exciting in general. Personally I like it better. The MMX102 has a relaxed, smooth-sounding signature with greater emphasis on lower frequencies and significant treble roll-off. As a result, I find its mids rather unnatural sounding, warm and rich though they may be. Individual notes sound more defined through the EX650, with clearer edges, while they sound rather rounded on the MMX102. The vocals on the EX650 are positioned slightly forward, with the rest of the soundstage expanding out behind it. On the other hand, I find that the bass and low mids steal the show with regards to the MMX102. Not that I like it though; I prefer tighter bass signatures. No amount of burn in helped in my case. Sense of space, separation and perceived clarity are better on the EX650. The MMX102 delivers a more intimate kind of performance.
 
However, do note that this comparison is purely based on memory as I have given the MMX102 to my sister a while back after deciding I prefer the EX650 after a side by side comparison. Components involved are my laptop, an audioquest dragonfly v1.2 dac, a graham slee novo solid state amplifier and an ipod nano 7g.
 
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