Sony XBA-C10 Balanced Armature In-Earphone - Black

Good sound. Comfortable.

Gotta wonder what the wirecuttter reviewer was smoking giving these 5 stars. The dynamic range is poor as the other reviewer states.

The sound from these earbuds is very clear, and they are very comfortable - they block out noise quite well. But the bass SUCKS

It really should be more like 4.5 stars.I think the XBA-C10 has a bit of an undeserved bad reputation, so let me try to defend them a little. I am by no means an audiophile, but I listen to a lot of different kinds of music, which means that I prefer a more balanced sound. I think we can all agree that they are comfortable and isolate sound well, but it's the actual sound profile that people take issue with. Here are my thoughts on these earphones.Balanced Armature: These earphones use a different kind of technology to produce their sound then the vast majority of other earphones on the market. As a result of using BA technology, the dynamic range of these headphones can be a little limited, but I think that saying that they don't have bass sounds is a little misleading."Lack of Bass": I wouldn't say so much that these headphones "lack" bass sounds, there just is not as much headroom for kick drums in these earphones. What I mean by headroom is that the sound out of these headphones will sound a bit shallow or compressed, but it's not as though there is no bass. It's not anything that EQ cannot fix. In truth, the reason why people feel this way about the bass is because of the efforts that companies put in these days to emphasizing bass frequencies. As a result, most people are actually accustomed to a heavier bass sound with screeching and rough treble.Treble and Mids: The sounds in this range (vocals, instruments/melody, snares, hi hats). The mids are decently reproduced, making these earphones really work well in music where the vocals and melody are emphasized. Overall, these sounds also include accurately voiced high frequencies that give the earphones a good sound texture. Often times treble can be a bit abrasive or grating in cheaper earphones, but the BA driver does a great job of making the treble feel softer and less abrasive. Acoustic music, rock, and radio podcasts will also sound much more realistic because of the presence of these frequencies.Bottom line: If you are a fan of extremely strong bass, these are obviously not for you. If you prefer a more "balanced sound" and more detailed sound, then I would recommend these to you. These earphones are great for acoustic music, rock, most "indie" music, andsoul or vocal centered music (aka songs with melodies). Do not buy with the expectation that music that focuses on dubstep drops or hard hitting bass notes (dubstep, electro house, "rave music", etc.) will sound especially good.

No lower frequencies at all, I cant believe how bad they are, definitely not worth the money. These are for the bin. A $10 Panasonic or Phillips are way better in sound. Shame on Sony.

Best earbuds/IEMs under $50.

The wire is thin...really thin. You have to take care of it like an Egg but the sound profile is unbelievable. Check if all the tips can fit your ears (if you like comfortable sealed ears).Do i have plans to return this, no.

The sound is not for me. It sounds a bit muffled and high. I may have gotten a slightly imperfect one, or maybe that's what this headphone really sounds like. Feels comfortable in the ear though, I could wear it for a long time. The wires are a bit fragile feeling and thin enough that it might be bad for this headphone to tangle up.