[Artmuzz]

I recently bought a pair of Sony XBA-1 IEMs to replace my ageing Sony EX310 IEMs and I am afraid to say that I'm not impressed with them. My Sony EX310 has better SQ and the music feels more livelier on them.
 
I feel I've wasted money buying the XBA-1 IEMs as the Sony Centre do not take back used IEMs for health and hygiene reasons. I have changed the ear buds to get the best fit on the XBA-1 IEMs but the SQ is still not very good.

 

[yummyfur]

I recently bought a pair of xba-30 which I presume have the same earpieces and I can say that they are incredibly uncomfortable. The headphones themselves in sound quality are not very much better than a pair of phillips she9550. To get a decent fit I need to jam the headphones in so much that it's impossible to get a comfortable fit for long.
 
The white silicon seems to be too rigid. I have tried all the combinations including with and without the extra foam support.
 
The she9550 by comparison are made of a much finer black silicone and are easy to fit and seal better without any discomfort at all.
 
The Sony's have been nothing but a pain, both literal and metaphorical and I was not unhappy to discover that one of them had the foam missing from the canal resulting in me asking for repair which  was refused by Sony as I bought them directly from Japan, so I sent them back to Japan for a refund.

 

[Painful Chafe]

Quote:

I recently bought a pair of xba-30 which I presume have the same earpieces and I can say that they are incredibly uncomfortable. The headphones themselves in sound quality are not very much better than a pair of phillips she9550. To get a decent fit I need to jam the headphones in so much that it's impossible to get a comfortable fit for long.
 
The white silicon seems to be too rigid. I have tried all the combinations including with and without the extra foam support.
 
The she9550 by comparison are made of a much finer black silicone and are easy to fit and seal better without any discomfort at all.
 
The Sony's have been nothing but a pain, both literal and metaphorical and I was not unhappy to discover that one of them had the foam missing from the canal resulting in me asking for repair which  was refused by Sony as I bought them directly from Japan, so I sent them back to Japan for a refund.

 
First post and you joined 10 minutes ago just to post this?
 
I have to opposite opinion. They are the most comfortable best sealing IEMs I own.

 

[yummyfur]

Well it's just an honest opinion. I've lurked for a while, I just joined to make a specific thread about a particular topic.

 

[Artmuzz]

The Sony's have been nothing but a pain as the SQ isn't as good as my Sony EX310LP but then I allowed the XB-1's to burn in a bit and now I can here a slight improvement in SQ but still the bass is a bit weak and the sound isn't as lively.

 

[Artmuzz]

I have been unimpressed with the XBA-1. However, I plugged in my Sony XBA-1 IEMs into my Cowon D2 and I am surprised how much those IEMs have improved the SQ on the Cowon D2. I was very disappointed with the SQ on the D2 as I found the SQ lifeless and the bass muddy using dynamic IEMs like the Sony EX310LP and Panasonic HJE900. Anyway I plugged in my XBA-1 phones into the D2 and the SQ has vastly improved. The bass is less muddy and more detailed and the overall SQ has more life and sparkle to it. Strange considering the XBA-1 phones don't sound too good on my Sony DAP and iPhone 4. So my XBA-1 has found a perfect partner with the Cowon D2. Sounds like my Cowon D2 is more suited to BA phones rather than dynamic phones.

 

[Ivabign]

B&H Audio (or Photo - I forget which) had a sale ($40) on the XBA-1IP a while back and I bit - and I have to agree that I was not wowed in the least. Now should someone be wowed for $40? I also own a pair of VC02s - Now there is a dynamic phone. But back to the 1 - I thought it was a really friendly sound. The highs and lows seemed rolled off and everything else was just unobtrusive. Kinda what I imagine a kid's IEM should sound like - no highs to hurt your ears, no lows to increase your libido. Needless to say, they were sold. It was my first single BA and may be my last, unless I try one of the wild and wacky ones like the FA models or maybe an inexpensive silicone CIEM.

 

[Alez]

I just bought a pair of XBA-1. The price seemed attractive and I needed some cheaper IEMs to use outside. I have to say I don't regret my purchase in the least. Mind you, I just started listening, but I already like them a lot. They're not exceptional in any part of the spectrum, but their signature is really fun. Compared to my GR07 they lack a bit of clarity and detail, and the drums don't sound as breathtaking, but they're pretty amazing. Especially when you take the price into consideration. 

I owned the SE215s for about a year and, going by memory, these blow them out of the water. Makes me regret the $100 I spent on the SE215

 

[Butter123]

I just bought a pair of XBA-1. The price seemed attractive and I needed some cheaper IEMs to use outside. I have to say I don't regret my purchase in the least. Mind you, I just started listening, but I already like them a lot. They're not exceptional in any part of the spectrum, but their signature is really fun. Compared to my GR07 they lack a bit of clarity and detail, and the drums don't sound as breathtaking, but they're pretty amazing. Especially when you take the price into consideration. 


I owned the SE215s for about a year and, going by memory, these blow them out of the water. Makes me regret the $100 I spent on the SE215

Yes I agree, the se215 doesn't deserve the praise. It's just have too much mid bass making everything sounds muffled. I have to use bass reduction on my iPhone eq to be bearable. The construction however is great. For under $100, creative aurvana 3 is hard to beat.

 

[Alez]

Quote:

Yes I agree, the se215 doesn't deserve the praise. It's just have too much mid bass making everything sounds muffled. I have to use bass reduction on my iPhone eq to be bearable. The construction however is great. For under $100, creative aurvana 3 is hard to beat.

agreed. these are much more balanced. the bass is amazing for my taste: it's got less quantity than the SE215, but it's much more accurate. and they're currently like $35 off Amazon, so it's really a no-brainer.

 

[zaphod373]

the xba1 is now my go to phone, it is so well balanced, it takes a little bit to get used to, I also like the lightweight comfort, fit,  and isolation. Mine has a y cord and controls my nexus music well, with vol, answer or dis call, pause skip/replay, can be picked up for $30 delivered, just wow

 

[zaphod373]

Quote:

the xba1 is now my go to phone, it is so well balanced, it takes a little bit to get used to, I also like the lightweight comfort, fit,  and isolation. Mine has a y cord and controls my nexus music well, with vol, answer or dis call, pause skip/replay, can be picked up for $30 delivered, just wow

forgot to mention I like the xba1 more than the xba3, the 3 is too big for my small ears, I can get a good seal but not as comfortably as the 1, also the 1 has enough bass for me, yay

 

[lindijones]

Hi guys,
 
i am new here but i have read many articles before here in this forum.
I have to give you an update to the XBA-4 in combination with the new iPhone 5s!
 
The shimmer in the high frequencies is much much better with the iPhone 5s compared to the iPhone 5!
 
i bought a 5s yesterday and i could immediately hear the difference.
Today i took a little time to recheck that again with some more patience. 
 
And it´s obvious.
 
I want to let you know that.
 
 
Kind regards from germany.

 

[BillsonChang007]

Hi guys,

i am new here but i have read many articles before here in this forum.
I have to give you an update to the XBA-4 in combination with the new iPhone 5s!

The shimmer in the high frequencies is much much better with the iPhone 5s compared to the iPhone 5!

i bought a 5s yesterday and i could immediately hear the difference.
Today i took a little time to recheck that again with some more patience. 

And it´s obvious.

I want to let you know that.


Kind regards from germany.

Hello! How about the bass? Did it get stronger or weaker?

Billson

 

[lindijones]

Hi,
 
maybe the bass is a little more precise. 
But not heavy weight.
The sound is still very very airy...more detailed in general...
 
So don´t worry about the phones to be dump and bass-overheaded now with the iPhone 5s.
They sound just better now.
 
Regards