i just got these panasonic canalphones. seems like almost every major japanese audio manufacturer is jumping on the canalphones bandwagon.
price:
i got the hje50 at roughly the same price as the sharp md33. so i would consider the price to be average.
construction:
the panasonic hje50 phones' design is based on the design of sony's ex70/71/51 and sharp's md33 canalphones. the rubber sleeves are interchangeable between the sony, sharp and panasonic canalphones. the stem of the phones (where the wires come out from) is hard plastic, similar to that on the sony ex51, unlike the rubber soft stems of the sony ex71 and the sharp md33.
the wires are thinner than those found on the sharp md33, which makes them more pleasant to wear as the wires wouldn't weigh down the earphones. on the sharp md33, i have to use a clip to clip the wires to my shirt to prevent the weight of the wires from tugging the phones loose and breaking the seal. the wire on the hje50 is short for use with a remote and come with a 1m extension cable if you do not want to use a remote.
the casing is made out of a piece of plastic, which feels pretty sturdy and robust. the appearance of the phones look similar to the sony ex71, because they both have a shiny plate on the earphones.
the sound holes on the hje50 are covered by a very thin layer of fabric material. i think this acts as some sort of damping. i would imagine the phones to sound very harsh if the fabric is removed.
it comes with 3 sizes of rubber sleeves and a small cloth pouch, similar to those that comes with minidisc players.
sound:
the sound of the hje50 is not bad at all. when i first listened to it, they sounded quite tinny, harsh and vocals sounds recessed, but after about 1 day of break-in, they sound quite alright.
bass: the bass is tight, not boomy nor overwhelming as compared to the sony ex71. compared to the sharp md33, the panasonic hje50 has a little less bass but not by a lot. i have to turn up the bass level on my iriver ihp-100 by a notch to have a similar bass level to attain the level of bass on the sharp md33.
mids:
the panasonic has lesser mid-range than the sharp md33. however, it still trumps the sony ex71, which has one of the most recessed vocals i've heard on a headphone. on the ex71, it is as if the singer forgot to switch on his mic and all the other instruments overwhelmed his voice! on the hje50, the vocal sounds just right, not too forward nor too recessed.
highs:
the highs is comparable to the sharp md33 here. like the sharp, the highs on the panasonic is clear and crisp. cymbals and hi hats sounds crystal clear, not like grinding sand sounds which i hear on some phones. the panasonic has more highs than the sharp md33. i had to turn down 2 notches of treble on my ihp-100 when listening to the hje50.
overall:
the hje50 is quite pleasant to listen to but it may be more fatiguing due to its foward presentation. it has a wider sound stage than the sharp md33. the panasonic also sounds more crunchy, which makes it suitable for rock music. electric guitars on distortion sounds more angst-filled. compared to the smoother-sounding sharp md33, listening to music on the hje50 is more 'involving' because of its more crunchy and forward sounding nature. however, this also makes the panasonic sounds less refined than the sharp canalphones. the panasonic hje50 also do not have the 'boxy' and 'plastic' sound that the unmodded sharp md33 has.
the panasonic does not sound sibilant to me, but bear in mind i also can't hear any sibilance on the sony ex71 too, so it might be different for you.
in term of efficiency, the hje50 goes pretty loud, losing out to the sharp md33 by a small notch, given the same volume.
overall, a value-for-money pair of canalphones to buy. recommended to those who are looking for a cheap and good pair of canalphones.
