V-Moda Vibe Consumer Headphones

It seems like all of my reviews lately have been raves. Well that isn't my fault. I have either become an amazingly savvy shopper or have been incredibly lucky lately. Not to spoil the ending but this is going to be another rave review. I have been literally and totally bowled over by the V-Moda Vibe Earphones. Don't worry, I have managed to come up with a minor drawback or two so you won't think I am shilling for the company.

Design
Right on first sight the looks kind of slapped me in the face. The V-Moda Vibe Earphones have a very sleek, new age look to them, not that it will matter much since they about disappear when in your ears. These are ear-bud style phones. The buds are gun-metal colored with a black band. I was very skeptical at first. I figured the buds would fall out of my ears like every other pair of ear-buds I had ever tried. The thing is, they don't. The V-Moda Vibe Earphones come with multiple sizes of silicone fittings that attach to the bud. These make sure the buds fit snugly and comfortably in your ear. In addition to fitting in your ear, they actually seem to kind of block it off.

Sound
The real meat and potatoes of this product is the sound. Of course it is all well and good for them to look sleek and fit well, but ultimately you want them for listening to music. These may be the best sounding headphones I have ever listened to. I have tried Senheisers and Boses and the whole gambit. These are what I walked away with. I even had a pair of the big, over the ear, princess Leia style headphones made by Denon that I bought back in like 1991. I swore by these for years, but they looked dorky and weren't sized for portability. The V-Moda Vibe Earphones have put those into retirement. For your reference, I use my V-Moda Vibe Earphones with my 60 GB iPod Video. I listen to a very wide range of music including rock, classical, jazz, and even just a touch of country and blue grass. I also listen to a ton of spoken word in the form of audio books and radio podcasts.

I think the secret to the great sound is in the way they seem to seal your ear off. I hear a lot about noise cancelling headphones these days. Well I think these are noise cancelling, not because of any noise cancelling technology, but because they simply block it out. I think too that the V-Moda Vibe Earphones are able to perform better because they don't have to compete with outside noises. My brother also has a pair of these and we were marveling at the way these tiny things hit the base. I had never heard or expected to hear anything like it from something this small. My brother suggested that because they block out the ambient noise they don't have to work as hard to produce base. I think that is a sound theory. I have listened to a lot of speakers and docking stations that sound great for one type of music and fall flat for others. I hope you believe me when I tell you that these are superlative for all kinds if music. Beyond the base, the mid range is vibrant and the highs are crisp and clear.

Use
The short, short story on use is, you plug them in to a headphone jack and put them in yours and you are done. Unfortunately the one drawback I have found with the V-Moda Vibe Earphones is in their use. Because they seal sound out so well, I actually can't use them as often as I would like. Can you image walking around downtown and not hearing the horn blaring at you before a vehicle runs you down? That is a pretty dramatic example but ultimately I think it is a real fear. I can't use them in the office. I have to be able to hear my phone ring, or people call to me, or even just know if someone has walked up behind me and is trying to talk to me. I have tried to keep the volume low, but it doesn't help. I have tried just putting one ear-bud in, but that REALLY defeats the whole purpose of this amazing sound. Ironically, their biggest strength also seems to be their biggest drawback.

Tech Specs
I don't usually understand a lot of the more technical specifications they include with speakers but in the interest of providing you with a thorough review I will present them for you. The frequency response is 12Hz to 22kHz. The speaker drivers use something called V-Masque technology and of 9mm neodymium rare earth magnet (as if they would use common earth magnets. Perish the thought). The plug is 24k gold plated. The cable length from plug to ear is about 45.5 inches.

Conclusion
Ultimately I think you just need to go and have a listen to a pair of these. The going rate for the V-Moda Vibe Earphones is $100. That is nothing to sneeze at and I had a hard time coughing it up for these tiny little things, but once you listen to these and then some others in the same price range I think you may be swayed. I always like to feel like I got good value, especially when I spend a lot. If you aren't an enthusiast then maybe go with something cheaper. If you care about your music sounding good and you have a lot of opportunity to use them then I highly recommend them.

Update
Despite babying them my Vibes lasted not even a year. They sounded awesome but did not last. V-moda would not replace them saying I did not buy from an authorized dealer. Bear in mind that they were just saying that since they don't know where I bought them from and chose not to believe me. I could not find my reciept and could not prove them wrong. 5 stars down to 3 stars for shortgevity.