Sennheiser MX550, thoughts?

[IpodSF]

Any of you guys own the Senn MX550 earbuds? If so what are your thoughts? Better than the iPod earbuds?

 

[DaHoboFest]

i dont have them, but from a similar discussion people said that the mx 550 will be better than apple buds, but the mx 500 are better.

 

[TURBO]

I do have it. Yes, they sound better than the ipod's stock and louder too. I do use it for occasional hearing, but I prefer canal phones. What bother me is that they doesn’t stay put easily. It’s always falling off my ears. Hate that design, but if you stay static, it works fine.

 

[DaHoboFest]

i just ordered the fantopia ex51, they should fit better

 

[Cyclone]

i have the 450's (same thing) and they are much better than the stock pod buds IMO, from comfort, SQ, to durability/build quality. For comfort they are fine with rat shack bud covers but i didnt like the stock one's cause they were to stiff and made pressure points on my ear. They fit my ears great and i dont have any problems with them popping out unless someone yanks on the cord (oww).The bass is weak but i suppose you can expect that from ~10 dollar buds, the mids are very nice, and the highs are a bit sharp and bright. over all, i would say they're great for their price but i wouldnt buy them again i think. I feel like upgrading to the ex51's or mabey those panasonic ones that are based on the ex71.

 

[picklgreen]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaHoboFest i dont have them, but from a similar discussion people said that the mx 550 will be better than apple buds, but the mx 500 are better.

How can u say the mx500 are better? have u listened to them both? According the sennheiser rep, the mx550 are the replacement to the mx500!

 

[dvallere]

I used to own the MX550 and they were all right before I started visiting head-fi. My only other headphones were the awesome-but-painful Senn HD280 Pro. The MX550, of course, could not compare with that closed, inthehead sound, but they were all right. Slightly better than the stock buds that came with my Sony MD-R55 or whatever it was in 1997.

However, I too have other preferences these days. I have the PX100 which are lightweight and have way good sound, and the UE Super.fi 5 Pro which provide outstanding isolation and have way good sound. To me, earbuds don't do either of those things. The sq is mediocre at best and the fit makes them un-isolating.

The PX100 are very well received and they fit into their own little carry case like an eyeglasses case but slightly bulkier. About $45 at Amazon if I'm not mistaken. You just can't go wrong with them. I say skip the buds. But that's just me.

 

[Pumpkin72]

Quote:

Originally Posted by picklgreen How can u say the mx500 are better? have u listened to them both? According the sennheiser rep, the mx550 are the replacement to the mx500!

Well, believe it or not, I've tried both and prefer the MX500's. I tend to trust my ears more than any commercial information

The MX550 provide no bass at all (imo), though maybe mids and highs are (way) better. Ergonomics where much worse than in the MX500, even if these are bigger. And finally the MX550 leak too much sound, I wouldn't feel comfortable "sharing" my music with everybody around.

 

[Andrea]

Quote:

Originally Posted by IpodSF Any of you guys own the Senn MX550 earbuds? If so what are your thoughts? Better than the iPod earbuds?

I've had the MX450 and these are very good earbuds.

And, they're better (warmer tone, livelier treble, tighter bass) than the MX500 for me.


PS: they need burn-in to shine, after which the midrange is better sounding than the MX500's while at first it sounded a bit "congested".

 

[EvilDwarf]

Hmmm. Earbud burn-in.

I know burn-in is controversial per se, but with earbuds...

 

[Andrea]

Proven by my own (much trusted) ears.

Funnily, it may have been even more obvious with these earbuds, than it had been with my full sized cans (which was already obvious enough).

 

[MarcusL]

Have the 450, 500 and 550. I also noticed that the 450 and 550 had more changes thru burn-in. But thru time, the 500s still won it for me. The detail on the 500 is slightly better. They kinda have a slight crispy edge with orchestra music. Portable sources: iAudio X5, Sharp minidiscs, Rio Karma. On the other hand, when I used the 450 with an ipod and sony minidisc, the mids were nice and lush but needed the foamies to get sufficient low end as opposed to the 500. The 450 mids kinda remind me of the Audio Technica buds. The 550s, after weeks of use, still have a bit congested highs but can be remedied with eq.

 

[Andrea]

You're likely right. I hadn't the chance to compare them directly, myself, only from memory.


Btw, since you tried them both, would you say the 450 and 550 are just the same thing, apart from the color & the volume control? I'm curious about that.

 

[MarcusL]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andrea Btw, since you tried them both, would you say the 450 and 550 are just the same thing, apart from the color & the volume control? I'm curious about that.

Nope. There's a slight difference in the treble with these three phones. The bass of the 450 and 550 are also different. The 550 seems to have a slight hump. I'd say the 450s have the best mids out of all of the three with current portables' power unamped. Bass would go to the 500s (if you have a good fit). If you have a power portable (like a Karma or legacy PCDPs, the 500s sound very very clear bass, mids, highs. The 550's treble seems anemic while the 450s are just right (neutral?). I guess there's a reason why headroom didnt include the 550s

I'd say these phones are excellent starter phones for those looking for phone replacements from stock buds on student budgets.

 

[Claude]

I had the MX500 for years and was quite happy with them, but after I bought a pair of AKG K14P earbuds (which cost the same) I was glad I made the change.

The AKG have a bigger sound with a flatter frequency response. Their cable is also much more flexible than the Sennheiser cable, which makes them more comfortable.