These days, it seems that every body has an ipod or Zune , or some other form of personal mp3 player. That being the case, there’s a huge market for replacement and upgrade headphones. Manufacturers know this, and as a result, a veritable plethora of options exist today when it comes to the latter. Pricing has gotten equally ridiculous, with some sets costing $300 and more, more even that you probably paid for your player.

But are they always worth the money charged? Not entirely, as I found out when I purchased a pair of Sennheiser MX 75 Twist-to-Fit Sports Headphones. And while they were nowhere near the $300 price range ( I picked them up for $49.95), they don’t sound nearly as good as other headphones I’ve purchased for a quarter the price.

Since I spend a lot of time walking for exercise, I have a pet peeve about headphones that fall out of your ears while engaged in rigorous activity. In this area, the Sennheiser MX75’s do get an “A” grade-they’re designed for sport and exercise. The unique “Twist-to-Fit” design uses a small wheel above the speaker to lock the phones in place. You actually need to twist the phones into the groove of your ear to lock them just right, but it’s not hard to do and they do fit snugly. The rubber and and plastic fittings are water resistant too, so they won’t slip out when you sweat.

Sennheiser includes several sets of fittings which you can interchange based on your ear size. There’s also a set of foam “muffies” that fit over the speakers if you choose to use them, a clip for the cord to attach to a pocket or belt, and a rubber carrying case.

When locked properly in place, the MX75’s speakers will rest snugly against the “post” of your ear, but these are not in-ear plugs. Consequently, they offer no noise cancellation. When I considered them for purchase, I first looked at the specs and details, which were fairly respectable:

Powerful neodymium magnets for detailed sound reproduction

18-21,000 Hz frequency response

64 ohms impedance

117 db sound pressure level

And truth be told, these headphones due seem to do a good job delivering crisp, clear highs. The treble level is good, maybe too good, because the MX75s definitely lack balance. Immediately upon trying them, and after twisting and turning them around in my ears to test them in different positions, there was a very noticeable lack of bass. Indeed, the headphones even sound tinny at times.

Sadly, they lack the full, rich sound I’m accustomed to, and that really you don’t have to pay $300 for. I played several songs on the MX75s and then played the identical tracks on the stock headphones that came with my Zune. Amazingly, the Zune phones sounded fuller, richer, and had more depth and bass on every song, be it a pop, rock, or classical track.

I’ve enjoyed excellent value and much better results from the Philips HE-592s ($13-$15) or the SHE-9500s ($35-$40). The Sennheiser MX75s are definitely not worth the $50 I paid, and I ended up taking them back to the store, where I replaced them with a pair of Skull Candy Smokin' Buds much more to my liking.



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