$9 Headphone Review: Sony MDR-ZX110

[whazzup]

Oh my, I did not realise the headphones that came free with my long dead Z5 phone was that good.... it's been collecting dust for the last what, 4 years? I feel so rich now... nah, still not going to use it.

*hmm....apparently the AP version has 'extra bass'....
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/comp...ny_MDRZX110AP/BHitems/1080939-REG_1080941-REG

 

[pavuol]

But EQ this headphone and it produces reference quality sound! Yes, I know there will be riots in streets over this statement.

 

[Labjr]

I wondering if I should get these for my digital piano? My Grado's are getting ruined from use. Earpads are disintegrating and cord is intermittently cutting out. I was considering the AKG 240 Studio as an inexpensive option since they have a replaceable cord.

 

[thewas]

I ordert too. Iam very curious whats @amirs taste. So it gives me a much better impression of other listening tests. Some kind of a orientation line. And btw i have a new headphone.

For that small money I also couldn't say no, as I am curious how much they can reach my HD600 as my previous low budget headphones like Superlux weren't really close even with EQ to the same target. Will be an interesting weekend when they arrive.

 

[Feelas]

Given the distortion increase below 300hz, can I ask what makes you rate this headphone so highly? Is it because the low frequency performance doesn't matter much in the music you listen to? Or is it because lower frequency distortion is less noticeable? I'm not too familiar with the speaker world so I don't quite understand your comparison.

Well, THD in bass is not that easily audible in most cases, since we have diminished hearing in bass range.

 

[BostonJack]

This headphone plus Qudelix might be a great combination for travelling. PEQ on the Qudelix plus very efficient headphone seems like a natural combination.

Plus if they get crushed, torn, lost, etc. I only have to shed $10 worth of tears!

 

[Labjr]

I just bought a pair at Target. Not real impressed. I guess they're okay for utility purpose. Low sensitivity compared to the Grados. I have use my digital piano at max volume.

 

[Sukie]

I just bought a pair at Target. Not real impressed.

Neither was amirm until he equalised them!

 

[PeteL]

I wondering if I should get these for my digital piano? My Grado's are getting ruined from use. Earpads are disintegrating and cord is intermittently cutting out. I was considering the AKG 240 Studio as an inexpensive option since they have a replaceable cord.

Grado offer great service, and pads are cheap.

 

[Feelas]

Grado offer great service, and pads are cheap.

I guess Grado production is cheap too

 

[starfly]

@amirm Thanks for providing those earpad measurements! Is the pad depth the depth from the driver to where the earpad ends? I assume so, but just want to be sure.

 

[julian_hughes]

......how much they can reach my HD600 as my previous low budget headphones like Superlux weren't really close even with EQ to the same target. .....

Exactly. You hit the nail on the head. EQ is not magic. It cannot turn one headphone into a clone of another. It can't turn a mediocre or poor headphone into a high quality headphone. What it can do is correct *some* of the faults *some* of the time. It can't help with distortion, poor fit, wrong polarity, poor quality components or assembly, variations in FR response according to impedance and so on. Do people advocating this EQ and that EQ solution never even consider that their magic figures may become complete nonsense as soon as the listener connects their headphone to different amp or device with different output characteristics? If a headphone measures and sounds poor out of the box it doesn't deserve glowing reviews. And how brilliant is EQ that introduces distortion?

These EQ centred reviews have become ridiculous and imo the fact that audibly and measurably mediocre headphones are getting recommendations undermines and discredits all the assessments.

 

[ishouldbeking]

Neither was amirm until he equalised them!

I think the key to this review is understanding:

• yes, they're absolute trash in stock form, albeit worth $9, because they produce sound and are built passably fine
• BUT they're capable of sounding reasonably good with EQ.

If you're not going to EQ them, I don't see any reason to buy these when you can get a range of much better Koss 60 ohm cans for $15-30, all of which sound quite good out of the box (and are capable of sounding much, much better with EQ).

 

[mrmoizy]

Picked some up from Amazon, wanted to get ahead of the mini-run that this review post will spur, no harm in trying?

 

[JohnBooty]

It's funny to see Amir trying to get "speaker guys" interested in headphones.

Usually it's the other way around. You have young dudes with $3000 worth of headphones and headphone amps wondering why anybody would ever bother with the inconvenience and expense of speakers.

 

[ROOSKIE]

Exactly. You hit the nail on the head. EQ is not magic. It cannot turn one headphone into a clone of another. It can't turn a mediocre or poor headphone into a high quality headphone. What it can do is correct *some* of the faults *some* of the time. It can't help with distortion, poor fit, wrong polarity, poor quality components or assembly, variations in FR response according to impedance and so on. Do people advocating this EQ and that EQ solution never even consider that their magic figures may become complete nonsense as soon as the listener connects their headphone to different amp or device with different output characteristics? If a headphone measures and sounds poor out of the box it doesn't deserve glowing reviews. And how brilliant is EQ that introduces distortion?

These EQ centred reviews have become ridiculous and imo the fact that audibly and measurably mediocre headphones are getting recommendations undermines and discredits all the assessments.

You make some good points about the unkowns with headphone measurements.
They are unlike speakers where in-room, listening windows measurmeents are easy peasy to take and validate.
That said using PEQ on speakers for quite awhile now I have come to the conclusion it is the single most powerful audio "component" in the chain once everything else is at least at a basic "okay" level of performance. There are still many variables but it is that powerful.
I am grateful to have him measure headphones so I can try to PEQ them with some basic starting place.
This is far better than the completely subjective reviews that have no measurements at all which sans any measurements are utter and total nonsense when it comes to hifi. (I like my reviews to have both objective data and subjective experiences)

 

[Labjr]

Grado offer great service, and pads are cheap.

I'll have to inquire about having them repaired.

 

[Labjr]

I guess Grado production is cheap too

I practiced piano three hours a day for 2.5 years with my Grados, so they started to wear. They sound great, but I don't really need great sound for practice. Thus, I'm looking for inexpensive alternatives. Anyone know how the sensitivity of the AKG 240 Studio compares to Grado SR60 & SR80? Seems like they may be more rugged than Grados.

 

[Labjr]

Picked some up from Amazon, wanted to get ahead of the mini-run that this review post will spur, no harm in trying?

BTW Target store has them on sale for $10 right now.

 

[ishouldbeking]

I practiced piano three hours a day for 2.5 years with my Grados, so they started to wear. They sound great, but I don't really need great sound for practice. Thus, I'm looking for inexpensive alternatives.

Hard to beat KSC75, PortaPro, or KPH30i for good sound at a great price. I ultimately prefer the sound of the PortaPro, but the overall form factor and ease of use of the KPH30i means I use them constantly--at my desk, washing dishes, playing guitar (through an older Line6 pod), playing PS4 (through the Dualshock jack), and for zoom calls (they have a mic and one button remote and sound perfectly adequate). Can't go wrong for the price, and they're often discounted to $20.

EDIT: sorry to derail. These sony's also seem fine if you have the ability to EQ, but I suspect you'd need something external like a Qudelix 5k... and then what's the point of having a $9 headphone?