Price Paid:  $20.00

Summary:
Picked this up as a budget headphone while in college, and decided on the 433 due to the Sennheiser brand and lighter
weight. They sound very tinny and fuzzy to me. Very skimpy on the low end as well. When listening at
higher volumes (which I generally do), they sound almost grating to me. Very displeased with the product overall.
The only upshot is the workmanship (held up admirably for the 2 years that I've had them) and the
longer cord. But even at the price I paid, this is a non-deal.

Strengths:
Long cord
It has lasted me 2+ years

Weaknesses:
Sound quality is poor on all accounts

Similar Products Used:
Yamaha RH5MA
Sennheiser HD202
Sennheiser HD433
Koss UR20

Price Paid:  $15.00 from ebay.com

Summary:
After my Sony MDR-50's started crumbling down (the earpads mostly) I started looking for a pair of headphones. I usually come here and read reviews before buying so I did. I thought that for the most part people were satisfied with these headphones so I went ahead and got them. All I can say is that they are a total waste of money. I wouldn't have paid one dollar for them if I had heard them before. Bass is unexistent, highs are so bad they'll make you cringe. And unless you want EVERYBODY in your office to listen your music you can't turn them UP! they are so noisy it's not even funny. Most people here in my office would ask me to turn them down and by the time I was done lowering the volume I could barely hear any music! Anyway, don't say I didn't warn you...

Strengths:
NONE!

Weaknesses:
HUGE earpads, SUPER Noisy, ZERO bass, SUPER long cable...

Similar Products Used:
Sony (you would think Sennheiser is better)

Price Paid:  $40.00 from Good Guys

Summary:
I bought the older HD435 Manhattan model in 1997 and still use it. It definitely outlasted all the other phones that ive had in the past like Panasonic and Kenwood. The sound quality is acceptable; mids and highs are clear and pretty detailed. The bass is clean. Dont expect deep, boomy bass. My two biggest complaints are wearing them can be very discomforting and the phones can distort when you raise the volume high. If you want good sounding, long lasting phones for under 41 bucks, buy these Sennheisers.

Strengths:
good mids and highs, very durable for these inexpensive phones.

Weaknesses:
it can improve on bass response and reduce distortion at high volumes. the phones are uncomfortable to wear for long periods of time

Similar Products Used:
Kenwood and Panasonic

Price Paid:  $25.00 from Circuit City

Summary:
Don't get suckered in by the Sennheiser name...

I was looking for a pair of headphones for the office and saw these at Circuit City. A friend that was in the radio business recognized the brand as reputable, and they were pretty cheap, so I went ahead and bought them. Big mistake...

First - the strengths. They do have a pretty clear and nice sounding mid to high range. They're light. The cord is nice and long, and it looks like everything is put together pretty well. But using these headphones is really disappointing. The low range is really, really weak. I'm by no means an expert, so I won't try to wow you with technical BS. The mid-low to bass in these headphones is just nowhere to be found. I tried plugging them into the headphone jack on my PC speakers, directly into the audio-out jack on the PC, and even into my receiver at home, all with the same result. I even left them playing overnight to see if a little break-in would help...No dice. Unless the break-in is more than 10 hours...

What was even more disappointing to me was the comfort. The design is symmetrical, the band is pretty rigid, and the earpads are HUGE. They start to hurt my ears after about 45 minutes to the point where I have to take them off... I do wear glasses, but I don't know if that has anything to do with it...

I am now looking for another pair of headphones. I'll probably stick with Sennheiser, but I'll be looking a little further up the product line.

Strengths:
Clear mids and highs

Weaknesses:
Non-existant bass, uncomfortable after 30 minutes

Price Paid:  $20.00 from Circuit City

Summary:
i have these hooked up to an onkyo A/V reciever connected via optical toslink to an aiwa dvd player.
playback for cds on this setup sounds pretty good for a cheap pair of headphones, best headphones i have ever used.

Strengths:
cheap, not a lot of gimmicks like sony or panasonic.

Weaknesses:
"<1%thd" not the best, but that is what home theater is for

Similar Products Used:
cheap-a$$ headphones