Max Minimum
500+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Apr 19, 2004
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Well, here's my first stab at a review. I hope you find it interesting, and not too sharp. Um, and hopefully not too long.
REASONS FOR PUCHASE
Basically, what I wanted was something I could listen to in a wide variety of situations. I had that with the stock 'phones that came with various cd, tape and hd players I've bought, but the problem is that they all sounded like car stereo full-range paper drivers from some old Chevette that's been sitting in dump for the past 15 years with it's windows broken out, exposing it to the weather.
I wanted good sound.
And the listening environments I had in mind would be, in descending order of eartime: work, exercising (running/bicycling), and bed with maybe a little bit of close listening while hooked up to my main sources as well. So, to accomodate these varied environments, I decided to go with a set of earbuds. At work they're easy to take out quickly in order to talk to coworkers - most importantly, to me, I'd be able to hear when someone was trying to get my attention. There are better things to be greeted with than the frustrated face of a coworker who's been trying to get your attention for a while, especially when said face is explaining that you've missed a couple of intercom pages from a VP. For exercising, they are very light and do not get in your way if you have a short cord or can attach the cord to your shirt. Also, they do not isolate much, so you can hear that bus nipping at your heels. And, if you don't listen to your music too loudly (which you shouldn't), they don't impose themselves on people close by (spouses, girl/boyfriends, coworkers - even in bed... and which of the preceding are you in bed with anyway?).
Keep reading to find out how well the CM7's met my expectations.
VENDOR
I bought the 'phones from Audio Cubes (a Head-Fi sponsor, as you're probably aware) for $138 U.S.. This includes shipping/handling. Ouch, pretty expensive! But wait, I could've spent dozens more on the titanium version. I'd asked around a bit and it sounded like there was a marginal difference in sound, at best. Someone will surely disagree, but that was (and still is) my thinking. Anyway, Audio Cubes/FedEX got them to me (that's from Japan to southeast USA) in less than a week! What more can you say about that?
BUILD QUALITY/APPEARANCE
These earbuds are VERY solid. I feel sure these will last a good many years without needing to be babied much, though I'll never feel right about being completely carefree with something I spent $100+ on.
As for their appearance, I am somewhat divided on them. If you're looking at them while they're just sitting there on the desk or in your palm, they look fantastic. Like many Audio Technica portable 'phones, they have an attractive psuedo-industrial/techy elegance - seemingly paradoxical perhaps, but true. They make my Senn MX500's look like I pulled them out of one of those prize packets you find at the bottom of a box of cereal. But then you put them in your ears and take a look in the mirror. That's when they set off the Macho Lobe deep within the brain, if you happen to be male. "Oh no!, everyone's going to think I'm wearing big earrings! - ah, screw'em..." Now, I know. Plenty of guys wear earrings - maybe a loop here, a stud there. But these, from a distance, can look a bit like you're wearing your Grandmother's earrings. Well, I got used to it. My Grandmother rocks anyway.
COMFORT
This is where we meet our first real problem, for some people. These are not as big as the MX500's and thus fit in your ear easily, even if you have smallish ears, though I suppose some small percentage of people could still have difficulties. So, what's the problem I encountered? Well, part of what makes them look so cool is their angles. Where the Senn's have a nice, smooth curve leading to the stalk, the CM7's have a sort of disc shape with a near right angle around its perimeter with the stalk attached to the disc. So, if you do a lot of adjusting and really like to jam them in there, you're going to be feel some discomfort - almost assuredly during adjustments - and possibly soreness with long-term use. To make matters worse, Audio Technica implemented a neat idea that gives you a visual cue as to which bud goes in which ear. The reason this good idea is a bad one is that this visual cue takes the form of a notch cut out of the aforementioned disc. Imagine the shape of PacMan's mouth just before it closes and you're pretty close to what this looks like. In other words, you've got two sharp points. Each of these cutouts is supposed to indicate that THIS is the LEADING edge going into the ear. Now, before everyone starts thinking, "No WAY I'd buy those things now", let me tell you that it's not as bad as I've made it sound, really. This disc shape I'm talking about is a good deal smaller in diameter than is the true leading edge of the bud (the portion that's covered by the foamies). So, my guess is that people with smallish ears (like me) will have small issues with this (as I do). However, I've learned how to put them in pretty deeply with no pain or irritation. One thing that helps is that the portion of these buds that goes in your ear can be rotated a bit relative to the stalk. Now that I've gotten accustomed to them, it's no problem for me, though I still find the Senn's to be more comfy. And people with larger ears may wonder why I brought it up at all. The reason I've made such a big stink of this is that it's just rediculous design. If anyone from Audio Technica or someone who knows someone, etc., is reading this, round those edges and ditch the cutout. Just replace that with a small, circular notch placed inward from the edge of the disc. It's really a great visual cue, much better than tiny L's and R's, I think. This simple change would be an easy win for them since it'd be a simple fix to a pretty obvious oversight. I still may try modding them myself somehow - we'll see. The more I use them, the less I think it's necessary. Perhaps my ears have adapted as well. I'm listening to them right now with no discomfort whatsoever.
SOUND/ISOLATION
Now, this is what REALLY sets these buds apart from the competition, such as it is. In testing these, I've used for comparison two other 'phones - one set of earbuds (Sennheiser MX500's - not really a fair fight) and one set of regular headphones (Sony MDR-CD777's - old, but what I've read leads me to believe they're nearly comparable to the V6's). I listened using two sources, for the most part - a Creative Zen Xtra and an SB Live card leading to a Yamaha HTR-5640 receiver, in both cases using 320 kbps mp3 files. I did a little bit of listening with an actual cd player connected to this system as well. All in all, though, the differences in these 'phones were extremely consistent regarless of what I was connected to, so, aside from mentioning that the reciever's amplification both emboldened and tightened up the bass a bit while making the highs a tad more natural, I won't talk about sources.
I've found that the MX500's and the CM7's sound there best with little or no tinkering (eq and such). Just plug them in and listen. However, the 777's are overly bright to the point of harshness straight off. Turning the treble down on the receiver by about 2 - 4 db works well, depending on the piece. Here are some listening specifics that are illustrative of the other differences I found between these 'phones.
First up is 'Simple Song' from 12th Planet's album 'Global Refugees'. This is a very laid back track with delicate vocals and restrained guitar, mostly acoustic guitar with electric bass. The acoustic guitar sounds pretty darned good with the 500's, I must say, especially considering the sub $20 price for these buds! The bass is well-represented in the output from the Senn's, but is pretty loose compared to the other two 'phones (note: The Senn's compare well to other buds at similar prices in this and other areas, so I'm not bashing them at all). The treble is rolled off a good bit, but in decent balance with the rest of the range. Moving to the 777's, things really open up. Despite moderately cutting the treble, they are a bit bright (cutting the treble further cuts out too much low treble/high mid sound), but the jump in extension on both ends, tighness, quickness and detail resolution are very much worth it if you're not going to need to be mobile. The vocals and guitar seem to be just for you. Every slight modulation, rasp, tap and slide across strings is clear and present for your close examination. There is plenty of bass extension for the kick drum to come over naturally and I have a hard time imagining more treble extension. I imagine it's already beyond the range of human hearing. On balance, you get a very nice sound, though perhaps fatiguing over time. I've owned and listened incessantly to these for some 15 years, so I'm used to it and it doesn't bother me now. Well, it didn't until I heard the CM7's, that is. The CM7's are very well balanced. They do not over-emphasize anything, to my ears. In every area, other than comfort, they are orders of magnitude superior to the Senn's - extension, tightness, quickness, soundstage and balance even (they expose a little bassiness in the Senn's). Compared to the 777's, they are missing the very lowest bass extension, though they do go a good bit deeper than the Senn's. The balance of the CM7's makes them much more user-friendly than the Sony's, though. You trade just a smidgeon of detail for that balance, I feel. Still the vast majority of people listening to music out there have probably never heard this level of detail. Here's how I'd rank'em (based on the best sound possible, including tinkering):
Sony MDR-CD777: 8
AT ATH-CM7: 7
Senn MX500: 5 (good mids go a long way with me)
and just for comparison...
Koss The Plug: 2.5
Stock buds from the Zen: 3
Next is Beethoven's Symphony Number 3 (Eroica). From the beginning hit, the Sony's are superior with the CM7's much closer to them than to the trailing Senns (poor guys). All the way through, I'd rank them like this in all areas, save for balance where the CM7's win again:
Sony MDR-CD777: 8
AT ATH-CM7: 7.5
Senn MX500: 4.5
On to 'Sucker' and 'Breakfast With Girls' from Self's album 'Breakfast With Girls'. Just a quick note here... This is an incredible album if you're into a mix of weirdness and pop, just brilliant. Mix They Might Be Giants with Beck and G. Love and Special Sauce and you've got something like what a quarter of this album sounds like. The rest is all over the place with relatively straightforward songs and then some that appear to be pop style parodies. Anyway, an interesting thing happened when listening to these songs. First off, I have to reiterate what a good job Sennheiser did with their cheapo earbuds. They actually beat their much more expensive competitors on these two songs! Okay, so I'm lying. I knew this would be a tough test for them because there is so much important sonic information at the extremes in the frequencey range here. Still, they brought out much more detail than one might have believed possible - a very commendable job. But, alas, they just didn't have the extension to really compete. The truely interesting thing that happened when listening to these two songs was that there was no clear winner. As I've already said, the 777's have more extension of frequencey range, but their brightness really hurt them with this set of tunes, in comparison to the CM7's anyway. The 777's still sounded really good with this music, but harshness in the highs let the CM7's catch up. Both of these 'phones had the bass required for the constantly sliding low frequencies of 'Sucker' to give you the intended dizzy effect, with the 777's being a bit more defined. So, a slight win for them there. Then, listening to 'Breakfast With Girls', I noticed, for the first time, more midbass in the CM7's than in the 777's. This really helps this song's groove, too. That and the nearly perfect highs, which avoided the slight shrillness of the Sony's, gave the AT's the win on this one. Over the two songs it's a dead heat. Both get high marks for bringing out an enormous amount of detail.
Sony MDR-CD777: 8.5
AT ATH-CM7: 8.5
Senn MX500: 4
I decided also to try these three out with some older music. I chose 'Heart of the Sunrise' by Yes, from 'Fragile'. This is a fairly demanding song as it passes through a wide range of styles and emotions during its 11:32 length. Poorly balanced 'phones shall not pass. There are soft, intimate passages, stop'n'go segments and periods of frenzied proto-metal. Here's how everyone came through the journey. The Senns again brought their trademark non-user-challenging, but perfectly enjoyable perfomance to this piece and did not let you know much about the recording. In comparison, the CM7's really lift the veil. Cymbals sound more metallic and the drums just have more pop overall. Vocal timbre is much more evident and I noticed that later on in the song, in a passage where the piano is the dominant instrument, I could actually here not just the notes but also the actual impact of the hammers on the strings. And the bass, oh man, the bass guitar - it sounded as ragged as ever in its lower range, just the way it supposed to. I'd say just about ditto the CD777's on this one, except that they are again afflicted by some brightness. Of course, they were their usual super-detailed selves and get high marks for it, but this one goes to the CM7's for pure enjoyability.
Sony MDR-CD777: 8.5
AT ATH-CM7: 8
Senn MX500: 4.5
And here's an extra note or two on something I found intriguing about the CM7's. While listening to a variety of music (Stereolab, Jack Johnson and the Beastie Boys, to name a few, The bass was sufficiently deep and resonant enough to really get my ears vibrating, a very strange feeling, by the way. And for a really intimate music experience, you need to hear Jack Johnson with these.
As far as isolation goes, don't expect much with any of these, particularly the CM7's. I can hear my computer's fan easily during quiet moments during songs. This can be a good or a bad thing. As I mentioned, it's great for work, bed (if you have kids, cats, dogs or worry about not hearing someone break in in the middle of the night!) and running. However, if you're listening to these while sitting in one of the passenger seats in a car (surely you don't drive listening to 'phones, right?
) or while riding a bicycle, the low rumbling you probably had never really taken much notice of completely robs you of bass. I bet you'd do better in these situations with something like the Sharp MD33's, but I don't really know as I've never heard them myself.
END NOTES
These are now my favorite 'phones. While I still feel you can coax the best sound from the CD777's, you have to really put effort into it sometimes and you may find yourself considering how to better tweak the sound rather than concentrating on the music. I'd say you get 90%+ the sound quality of the Sony's from the CM7's just by plugging them in. And while the Senns are a bit more comfortable, the AT's are still, to me, more comfortable than full-sized cans, though ymmv. I heartily recommend them as a near all-rounder set of 'phones.
I'm going to bed now...
EDIT: I've now attatched a few rather pathetic pics. I keep having problems of one kind or another with my camera. I seem to have no control over whether the flash goes off and what the shutter speed is, so please forgive the quality of these... Still, you should be able to see some of the things I mentioned earlier such as the cutout, the swivel motion and the angle at which to wear them that I find provides greater bass response (actually this was mentioned later in the thread).
REASONS FOR PUCHASE
Basically, what I wanted was something I could listen to in a wide variety of situations. I had that with the stock 'phones that came with various cd, tape and hd players I've bought, but the problem is that they all sounded like car stereo full-range paper drivers from some old Chevette that's been sitting in dump for the past 15 years with it's windows broken out, exposing it to the weather.
I wanted good sound.
And the listening environments I had in mind would be, in descending order of eartime: work, exercising (running/bicycling), and bed with maybe a little bit of close listening while hooked up to my main sources as well. So, to accomodate these varied environments, I decided to go with a set of earbuds. At work they're easy to take out quickly in order to talk to coworkers - most importantly, to me, I'd be able to hear when someone was trying to get my attention. There are better things to be greeted with than the frustrated face of a coworker who's been trying to get your attention for a while, especially when said face is explaining that you've missed a couple of intercom pages from a VP. For exercising, they are very light and do not get in your way if you have a short cord or can attach the cord to your shirt. Also, they do not isolate much, so you can hear that bus nipping at your heels. And, if you don't listen to your music too loudly (which you shouldn't), they don't impose themselves on people close by (spouses, girl/boyfriends, coworkers - even in bed... and which of the preceding are you in bed with anyway?).
Keep reading to find out how well the CM7's met my expectations.
VENDOR
I bought the 'phones from Audio Cubes (a Head-Fi sponsor, as you're probably aware) for $138 U.S.. This includes shipping/handling. Ouch, pretty expensive! But wait, I could've spent dozens more on the titanium version. I'd asked around a bit and it sounded like there was a marginal difference in sound, at best. Someone will surely disagree, but that was (and still is) my thinking. Anyway, Audio Cubes/FedEX got them to me (that's from Japan to southeast USA) in less than a week! What more can you say about that?
BUILD QUALITY/APPEARANCE
These earbuds are VERY solid. I feel sure these will last a good many years without needing to be babied much, though I'll never feel right about being completely carefree with something I spent $100+ on.
As for their appearance, I am somewhat divided on them. If you're looking at them while they're just sitting there on the desk or in your palm, they look fantastic. Like many Audio Technica portable 'phones, they have an attractive psuedo-industrial/techy elegance - seemingly paradoxical perhaps, but true. They make my Senn MX500's look like I pulled them out of one of those prize packets you find at the bottom of a box of cereal. But then you put them in your ears and take a look in the mirror. That's when they set off the Macho Lobe deep within the brain, if you happen to be male. "Oh no!, everyone's going to think I'm wearing big earrings! - ah, screw'em..." Now, I know. Plenty of guys wear earrings - maybe a loop here, a stud there. But these, from a distance, can look a bit like you're wearing your Grandmother's earrings. Well, I got used to it. My Grandmother rocks anyway.
COMFORT
This is where we meet our first real problem, for some people. These are not as big as the MX500's and thus fit in your ear easily, even if you have smallish ears, though I suppose some small percentage of people could still have difficulties. So, what's the problem I encountered? Well, part of what makes them look so cool is their angles. Where the Senn's have a nice, smooth curve leading to the stalk, the CM7's have a sort of disc shape with a near right angle around its perimeter with the stalk attached to the disc. So, if you do a lot of adjusting and really like to jam them in there, you're going to be feel some discomfort - almost assuredly during adjustments - and possibly soreness with long-term use. To make matters worse, Audio Technica implemented a neat idea that gives you a visual cue as to which bud goes in which ear. The reason this good idea is a bad one is that this visual cue takes the form of a notch cut out of the aforementioned disc. Imagine the shape of PacMan's mouth just before it closes and you're pretty close to what this looks like. In other words, you've got two sharp points. Each of these cutouts is supposed to indicate that THIS is the LEADING edge going into the ear. Now, before everyone starts thinking, "No WAY I'd buy those things now", let me tell you that it's not as bad as I've made it sound, really. This disc shape I'm talking about is a good deal smaller in diameter than is the true leading edge of the bud (the portion that's covered by the foamies). So, my guess is that people with smallish ears (like me) will have small issues with this (as I do). However, I've learned how to put them in pretty deeply with no pain or irritation. One thing that helps is that the portion of these buds that goes in your ear can be rotated a bit relative to the stalk. Now that I've gotten accustomed to them, it's no problem for me, though I still find the Senn's to be more comfy. And people with larger ears may wonder why I brought it up at all. The reason I've made such a big stink of this is that it's just rediculous design. If anyone from Audio Technica or someone who knows someone, etc., is reading this, round those edges and ditch the cutout. Just replace that with a small, circular notch placed inward from the edge of the disc. It's really a great visual cue, much better than tiny L's and R's, I think. This simple change would be an easy win for them since it'd be a simple fix to a pretty obvious oversight. I still may try modding them myself somehow - we'll see. The more I use them, the less I think it's necessary. Perhaps my ears have adapted as well. I'm listening to them right now with no discomfort whatsoever.
SOUND/ISOLATION
Now, this is what REALLY sets these buds apart from the competition, such as it is. In testing these, I've used for comparison two other 'phones - one set of earbuds (Sennheiser MX500's - not really a fair fight) and one set of regular headphones (Sony MDR-CD777's - old, but what I've read leads me to believe they're nearly comparable to the V6's). I listened using two sources, for the most part - a Creative Zen Xtra and an SB Live card leading to a Yamaha HTR-5640 receiver, in both cases using 320 kbps mp3 files. I did a little bit of listening with an actual cd player connected to this system as well. All in all, though, the differences in these 'phones were extremely consistent regarless of what I was connected to, so, aside from mentioning that the reciever's amplification both emboldened and tightened up the bass a bit while making the highs a tad more natural, I won't talk about sources.
I've found that the MX500's and the CM7's sound there best with little or no tinkering (eq and such). Just plug them in and listen. However, the 777's are overly bright to the point of harshness straight off. Turning the treble down on the receiver by about 2 - 4 db works well, depending on the piece. Here are some listening specifics that are illustrative of the other differences I found between these 'phones.
First up is 'Simple Song' from 12th Planet's album 'Global Refugees'. This is a very laid back track with delicate vocals and restrained guitar, mostly acoustic guitar with electric bass. The acoustic guitar sounds pretty darned good with the 500's, I must say, especially considering the sub $20 price for these buds! The bass is well-represented in the output from the Senn's, but is pretty loose compared to the other two 'phones (note: The Senn's compare well to other buds at similar prices in this and other areas, so I'm not bashing them at all). The treble is rolled off a good bit, but in decent balance with the rest of the range. Moving to the 777's, things really open up. Despite moderately cutting the treble, they are a bit bright (cutting the treble further cuts out too much low treble/high mid sound), but the jump in extension on both ends, tighness, quickness and detail resolution are very much worth it if you're not going to need to be mobile. The vocals and guitar seem to be just for you. Every slight modulation, rasp, tap and slide across strings is clear and present for your close examination. There is plenty of bass extension for the kick drum to come over naturally and I have a hard time imagining more treble extension. I imagine it's already beyond the range of human hearing. On balance, you get a very nice sound, though perhaps fatiguing over time. I've owned and listened incessantly to these for some 15 years, so I'm used to it and it doesn't bother me now. Well, it didn't until I heard the CM7's, that is. The CM7's are very well balanced. They do not over-emphasize anything, to my ears. In every area, other than comfort, they are orders of magnitude superior to the Senn's - extension, tightness, quickness, soundstage and balance even (they expose a little bassiness in the Senn's). Compared to the 777's, they are missing the very lowest bass extension, though they do go a good bit deeper than the Senn's. The balance of the CM7's makes them much more user-friendly than the Sony's, though. You trade just a smidgeon of detail for that balance, I feel. Still the vast majority of people listening to music out there have probably never heard this level of detail. Here's how I'd rank'em (based on the best sound possible, including tinkering):
Sony MDR-CD777: 8
AT ATH-CM7: 7
Senn MX500: 5 (good mids go a long way with me)
and just for comparison...
Koss The Plug: 2.5
Stock buds from the Zen: 3
Next is Beethoven's Symphony Number 3 (Eroica). From the beginning hit, the Sony's are superior with the CM7's much closer to them than to the trailing Senns (poor guys). All the way through, I'd rank them like this in all areas, save for balance where the CM7's win again:
Sony MDR-CD777: 8
AT ATH-CM7: 7.5
Senn MX500: 4.5
On to 'Sucker' and 'Breakfast With Girls' from Self's album 'Breakfast With Girls'. Just a quick note here... This is an incredible album if you're into a mix of weirdness and pop, just brilliant. Mix They Might Be Giants with Beck and G. Love and Special Sauce and you've got something like what a quarter of this album sounds like. The rest is all over the place with relatively straightforward songs and then some that appear to be pop style parodies. Anyway, an interesting thing happened when listening to these songs. First off, I have to reiterate what a good job Sennheiser did with their cheapo earbuds. They actually beat their much more expensive competitors on these two songs! Okay, so I'm lying. I knew this would be a tough test for them because there is so much important sonic information at the extremes in the frequencey range here. Still, they brought out much more detail than one might have believed possible - a very commendable job. But, alas, they just didn't have the extension to really compete. The truely interesting thing that happened when listening to these two songs was that there was no clear winner. As I've already said, the 777's have more extension of frequencey range, but their brightness really hurt them with this set of tunes, in comparison to the CM7's anyway. The 777's still sounded really good with this music, but harshness in the highs let the CM7's catch up. Both of these 'phones had the bass required for the constantly sliding low frequencies of 'Sucker' to give you the intended dizzy effect, with the 777's being a bit more defined. So, a slight win for them there. Then, listening to 'Breakfast With Girls', I noticed, for the first time, more midbass in the CM7's than in the 777's. This really helps this song's groove, too. That and the nearly perfect highs, which avoided the slight shrillness of the Sony's, gave the AT's the win on this one. Over the two songs it's a dead heat. Both get high marks for bringing out an enormous amount of detail.
Sony MDR-CD777: 8.5
AT ATH-CM7: 8.5
Senn MX500: 4
I decided also to try these three out with some older music. I chose 'Heart of the Sunrise' by Yes, from 'Fragile'. This is a fairly demanding song as it passes through a wide range of styles and emotions during its 11:32 length. Poorly balanced 'phones shall not pass. There are soft, intimate passages, stop'n'go segments and periods of frenzied proto-metal. Here's how everyone came through the journey. The Senns again brought their trademark non-user-challenging, but perfectly enjoyable perfomance to this piece and did not let you know much about the recording. In comparison, the CM7's really lift the veil. Cymbals sound more metallic and the drums just have more pop overall. Vocal timbre is much more evident and I noticed that later on in the song, in a passage where the piano is the dominant instrument, I could actually here not just the notes but also the actual impact of the hammers on the strings. And the bass, oh man, the bass guitar - it sounded as ragged as ever in its lower range, just the way it supposed to. I'd say just about ditto the CD777's on this one, except that they are again afflicted by some brightness. Of course, they were their usual super-detailed selves and get high marks for it, but this one goes to the CM7's for pure enjoyability.
Sony MDR-CD777: 8.5
AT ATH-CM7: 8
Senn MX500: 4.5
And here's an extra note or two on something I found intriguing about the CM7's. While listening to a variety of music (Stereolab, Jack Johnson and the Beastie Boys, to name a few, The bass was sufficiently deep and resonant enough to really get my ears vibrating, a very strange feeling, by the way. And for a really intimate music experience, you need to hear Jack Johnson with these.
As far as isolation goes, don't expect much with any of these, particularly the CM7's. I can hear my computer's fan easily during quiet moments during songs. This can be a good or a bad thing. As I mentioned, it's great for work, bed (if you have kids, cats, dogs or worry about not hearing someone break in in the middle of the night!) and running. However, if you're listening to these while sitting in one of the passenger seats in a car (surely you don't drive listening to 'phones, right?
END NOTES
These are now my favorite 'phones. While I still feel you can coax the best sound from the CD777's, you have to really put effort into it sometimes and you may find yourself considering how to better tweak the sound rather than concentrating on the music. I'd say you get 90%+ the sound quality of the Sony's from the CM7's just by plugging them in. And while the Senns are a bit more comfortable, the AT's are still, to me, more comfortable than full-sized cans, though ymmv. I heartily recommend them as a near all-rounder set of 'phones.
I'm going to bed now...
EDIT: I've now attatched a few rather pathetic pics. I keep having problems of one kind or another with my camera. I seem to have no control over whether the flash goes off and what the shutter speed is, so please forgive the quality of these... Still, you should be able to see some of the things I mentioned earlier such as the cutout, the swivel motion and the angle at which to wear them that I find provides greater bass response (actually this was mentioned later in the thread).
