V-Moda Xs On-Ear Metal Noise-Isolating Headphones - White Silver

Being a travelling Audio Visual Technician, the most important headphone attributes to me are durability, compactness, professional features & a reliably true representation of sound. I took months deciding which new headphones would best suit me & the V-Moda XS appears to balance all these needs in equal measure. I’d prefer writing a 6-month review but am so impressed after just 2 days that I couldn’t wait to shout about this great find. Subjectively, this review won’t be music to everyone’s ears but from my perspective it already feels like V-Moda have eliminated every single issue I’ve encountered over a 15-year career working with portable monitoring headphones & crafted the XS’s just for me, in one awesome looking package to boot: bonus. Delivered to my local collection point at the time promised & in a sturdy, attractive product box. The included zip-up travel case, which snugly holds folded headphones & cable, fits in the palm of my hand & seems solid enough for a kick-about at Twickenham. It’s hard, contoured design minimises wasted space & benefits from the natural structural integrity of the clam shell it resembles. I’ve removed the mini carabiner supplied but it could easily clip onto bag, belt-loop or bike if that’s how you roll. The headphones themselves are very compact, folded or unfolded. Their strikingly unique design is aggressively modern with a nod to retro-aviation, while the engineering & quality displayed by the all-metal framework, hinges & screws exceeds high-end equivalents at twice the price from long-established manufactures. The hinges make a reassuringly satisfying metallic click when opened or closed, which sounds pure class & lets you know they’re ready for business. There’s a good amount of padding on the headband which fits my small head well with arms fully retracted. Each arm extends about an inch so all but the most boffin-sized noggins should be off to the races. While the headband lies evenly across my head without gaps, it’s not particularly grippy so not suited to sports use but listening on the bus/at home/work/studio should pose no problems. The on-ear cups fit perfectly & snugly over my wee ears but the larger over-ear V-Moda headphones may be more comfortable for prolonged listening periods if overall size isn’t an issue for you. There’s enough flex & memory in the headband for DJ’s to use off-the-neck, though the cups themselves don’t swivel on left/right axis – only up/down ensuring a good seal with ears. I’m no DJ so personal preference is advised. Overall weight & bulk are surprisingly low considering all that lovely aluminium, giving comfort in use or at rest around the neck. Although bass-heads may prefer a louder headphone with bias towards a fuller low-end drive, this wasn’t important to me & I found the bass clean, punchy & well defined without interference to other frequencies or vice versa. My reference audio files have never sounded better & I’m able to pick out all the small nuances that give me a kick from song to song, though I’ve only had other on-ear headphones for comparison. Incoming & outgoing noise isolation through the closed-back cups is good enough for me but not 100% so use in extremely noisy or silent environments may be semi-problematic to some. A medium length & highly visible orange braided cable is included, which features in-line mic & call button for use with phones + natty 45degree angled jack at source end – bit of a gimmick but one of several USP’s which represent the attention to detail breathed over every inch of this product. Some have mentioned cable sends noise through mic when rubbed on clothing but personally untested nor relevant to how I’ll use these headphones so either way I couldn’t give a monkey’s myself. The cable is fully detachable/replaceable (essential for pro cans) but what makes this model stand out are the twin inputs on left & right cups, meaning you can choose which side to plumb into: sounds like another gimmick but in reality, I couldn’t tell you how many times I’ve been distracted in the past by a cable trailing across my ever-changing workspaces & sound desks. It’s also good having the back-up port if one fails outside warranty. Equally impressive is the option to use the second port as a pick-up for your BFF’s cans too if you feel like sharing, or at a push send a monitored feed from your desk if running short on outputs. The ports can be blanked-off with small plastic bungs, which are fiddly for large fingers but worth having & using all the same. I’m a huge fan of the standard jacks supplied, which firmly push-in/pull-out without needing a twist – I’ve found locking cables a weak point on other headphones & a frustration when cables can’t be interchanged nor quickly uncoupled for moving about the studio. I’m surprised no ¼ inch jack adapter supplied & would prefer inclusion of longer coiled cable option as standard but these are my only negatives, which I’m happy to accept if helps keep unit cost of such thoughtfully produced kit this low. The fixed cable linking left & right cups, although fully braided itself, is partly exposed either end between headband & cups so needs a certain amount of respect (i.e., zipped away during storage or in transit). Spare cables, ear pads & other accessories are available as options, as are personalised side plates which look seriously tempting but may not be easily available in the UK. The slightly cheaper silver & white XS option will look good to the Mrs or out on the street but my industry is black all the way & mine are proper, full-on stealth-bomber black. 2-year warranty + Immortal Life guarantee tells me this product is built to last & that V-Moda is a serious audio player I want to do business with. It’s no surprise design, style & engineering come from California, Italy & Japan respectively, though I note final assembly (whatever that stretches to) occurs in China. Pretty standard I guess but still disappointed my hard-earned is funding a kleptocracy. You can buy cheaper, smaller headphones that are basic, ugly, tinny & will fall apart or plush, all singing, all dancing studio cans at the expense of valuable space & cost. The V-Moda XS seems to take the best from all these worlds & is like nothing else I’ve seen. Great sound & features, ridiculously portable, beautiful design & build quality that genuinely raises the bar. In an ideal world, headphones would last me 5 years plus: This is the first set I’ve owned that look like they could actually deliver that small slice of utopia. I commend V-Moda for producing a set of headphones absolutely unique to the market at a price I’m happy to pay…I’d probably pay a little more if I knew production took place alongside design or engineering. Very much looking forward to using in anger at a sound desk or video camera near you all soon… UPDATE: Used for a few weeks now & these cans just keep making me happier! Absolutely no ear pain experienced even after 3+ hours constant use. The headband makes contact across the width of my cranium, which disperses weight well. Great sound quality across the board. Small solid case fits any nook & cranny in bag & kept headphones in perfect condition on working road trip across Europe. I can confirm the cable does send noise to cans/mic during calls when rubbed on clothing but I think this is a trait of all braided cables - I still prefer braided for durability & this doesn't bother; if it did I would just swap out the cable. I've tested these with other jack to jack cables & they all work fine. Phones are comfortable around neck & cable easy to plug-in whilst wearing. Even at full volume I've found little distortion to sound. I don't use for pleasure listening - If I did I'd definitely want louder drivers & would opt for larger over-ear model. UPDATE 2: A couple of months of professional use have exposed an issue. Cups started to wobble, on closer inspection 7 of the 8 hinge screws were very loose, the 8th was missing completely. Ordered replacement screws (M1.6 x 3mm) from auction site then tightened with allen key (1.5mm) using threadlock. 2 further weeks of use & threadlock is doing its job well - cups feel firm once more. Problem rectified & still in love with these cans, just sad & surprised to find a major fault so soon after purchase.

Durability: This is one sturdy pair of headphones. The headband and forks are solid steel, and the cups have steel plates on the outside. Everything clicks and snaps into place with a solid click. On top of everything, they come with a rigid protection case which looks very reliable. Comfort: First of all, they're light. Had a bit of trouble with them pressing on my tragus out of the box and becoming uncomfortable after a while (only on my left year, strangely, right was feeling ok). What I did is spread them over my PC tower overnight. Problem gone, I can wear them now for hours on end without a worry. My tower is about 18cm/7" wide, you can also use a stack of books instead. One night should do the trick, what you're doing is basically cold-setting the steel band. Careful not to go overboard and make the clamping too weak (although I imagine you can do the trick in reverse to tighten them). The pads are soft enough and they're made from memory foam so they should adjust to the angle of your ears after a while. The height can be adjusted with a series of clicks up and down. The band itself is not round, it's oval, V-Moda claims it makes for a more confortable fit on top of your head. I have no problem with that claim, they certainly fit nicely. The band has a nice padding underneath. Features: There's very little included in the box, but the cable that comes with them is truly excellent. It has an inline mic and controls, separated from each other which is a nice touch. This also means that the plug is 3-phase, so you can use them to answer and control your phone; on the downside, the plug on some appliances might have a problem with that, for instance the headphone plug on the front of my PC doesn't make a good contact and will sound very bad. The cable has a very nice covering in a nice orange color (for the black version). Best of all, it's a removable cable with standard 3.5mm jack at the cans, none of that proprietary plug nonsense. Even better, both cans have a plug, not just left, so you can switch the cable to where you want it. Both can plugs can be used at the same time, which means that your SO can chain her headphones into yours and you can both listen to the same thing! If you're looking to make them into a headset for Skype or gaming, V-Moda also sells the V-MODA BoomPro Gaming/VoIP Headphone with Microphone - Black cable, which has an excellent boom mic instead of inline. Portability: they are small and unobtrusive and I'd consider them to be good headphones to wear on the bus, train or plane. The cable length is just right, not too long and not too short, perfect for both the desk and on the move. The isolation is not perfect I'm afraid, which means that going past 50-70% loudness is where people next to you are going to start to hear it. It also works in reverse, and will allow you to hear platform announcements and street noises, which is a good or bad thing depending on how you take it. If you want more isolation look at the M-100 model. The XS also packs incredibly small, because the forks and cans can be flexed inside the band space. They get so small you can carry them in a jacket pocket, and would certainly be no trouble on travels. The only downside to their small size is that wearing them around the neck feels is a bit cramped, they fit too snugly. Then again I'm a big guy, they should be ok for a woman or teenager. Sound: Now to the most important part. I consider this a very nice pair for the budding audiophile, because it will emphasize music in a fun way. The bass is slightly boosted, which will make for some great dubstep or sludge/stoner, but it's not exaggerated. The mids have also been enhanced for warmth, which puts a positive oomph on pretty much every music genre out there. The highs are slightly recessed which means they won't be ideal for classical or jazz, but you can still enjoy those genres on them; you may even appreciate the fact that you're extremely unlikely to experience treble fatigue, I certainly do. So yeah, these are not neutral headphones, but the changes to the sound make them warm and a lot of fun for all kinds of music. They're closed, so the soundstage will not compare to open headphones in the same price range, but it certainly beats the pants off 30 quid headphones. Bottom line: durable, portable, comfortable headphones with a very fun sound and nice features. If you've been using 30£ headphones and are curious what the next level has to offer, look no further.

I have bought a pair of these and was blown away by the clarity. They're purchased mainly for DJing at home and possibly out in the future. Firstly the positives. Sound clarity is amazing. I am comparing these to the V moda M100 and the Sennheiser HD25 which i am also using and they sound much clearer than those. Perhaps the mids are slightly heightened but when i am listening to 2 tracks on top of each other it is incredibly clear in comparison to most that i've tried. Notably the over ear M100's which are very bassey to the point they drown out mids especially. They are comfortable and light and incredibly compact. Which makes them perfect for travel (when we can!) and general listening. The v-moda click system is great. Some slight negatives. Sound staging on these is not as good as some other headphones they lack some depth compared to others that i've tried. So some reference tracks that i listen to that on other cans i get the staging of the instruments is less on these. As some other reviewers have mentioned they are comfortable however they don't really sit on my head very well. I found them sliding off which could get really annoying. I may try some alternative ear pads to see if that helps. But obviously everyone's heads are different so this may just be me! In addition I think it's a frustration that the cable ports are smaller than on the m100. So I tried putting the coil cable into these but that didn't work. Ideally they'd be the same. Sure that'd be cheaper for vmoda as well! All in all a fantastic on ear headphone that for the money is second to none. With the V-moda guarantee and generally robust build quality these will be a keeper for me for a long time both in the home and out and about!

Well first let me start by saying the actual headphones are built very well and sound great! I love v-modas, Now this is just a word of warning! ive recently purchased 2 sets of different v moda headphones and both items appear to have been used! both the seals on the boxes were tampered with! on careful inspection the headphones still look like new and work with no problems so ill be keeping them. HOWEVER! I will never order any v-modas from amazon again as I'm not sure if they've been returned previously or people working at amazon have been tampering with the product! ill be ordering direct from vmoda in future. If you want a set of these they are great headphones,just try and get them elsewere!

They are quite simply amazing. They look great and are comfortable for extended use. They're built like a tank and the detachable cord has saved me a lot of bother when getting it caught on door handles. When I first listened to them I was underwhelmed, but like most good headphones that's because they require a 'burn in' period. After 30 hours of listening they're now the best sounding headphones I've ever owned. Better than a pair if Grados I had that cost considerably more. They're also very efficient; they can be driven to high volumes easily on an iPod or smartphone. The only device they couldn't be used at a decent volume on was the Pure Move 2500, but that's because their implementation of AVLS is excessive. I haven't had the same problem with the Roberts sportsDAB 2 I exchanged the Move for.

Returned them within the hour, sounded ok, But poor fit they wouldn't stay on my head, very little clamping pressure. Hard to believe they are from the same stable as the excellent M100 that i own.

Sound is very good. Doesn't noise cancel at all. And for me they weren't comfy for my head. Plus the wire on one side must have been broken as the sound only came from one ear. I sent them back for a refund, maybe they're ok for some people but not for me. Its a shame as the build is metal and sturdy, and they compact down into a very small case!

These are outstanding headphones. My biggest problem has always been finding durable, mobile headphones with good quality and nice design and these tick all the boxes. I listen to music close to everyday, easily for a few hours at a time and these have delivered a brilliant sound and incredibly comfortable fit. If in any doubt just check out the company's main website and their range and information presented their are just an example of the quality the company brings to the table. You will not regret buying these.