Sennheiser PMX80 In-Ear Sport Series II Behind the Head Earphones
by Sennheiser
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List Price: Our Price: $49.99 You Save: $9.96 (17%) Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Category: CE See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Sennheiser PMX80 In-Ear Sport Series II Behind the Head Earphones
Customer Review: A fantastic headset, for any use
Summary: 5 Stars
The Sennheiser "In Ear Sports Series II Behind the Head Earphones" are hands down the best head set that I've purchased for any application. They're ultra light, very sturdily built, with sound quality and volume that are unbelievably good for being so small and light. And best of all, the price is very reasonable for such a great product!
I've worn these while biking and had it plugged into the my Droid so I could listen to my tunes while riding and get feedback from my weight training app which used my Zephyr XHM (see my other review on the Zephyr XHM heart rate monitor for Droid and Iphones.) I've worn them while running on the beach, at the gym, while walking my dog, or even just sitting around the house and working on my computer so I wouldn't bother my wife's tv show. I've worn them outside while it was misting, raining, ice cold, blustering windy and when it was so hot and muggy that you would break out in a sweat just stepping foot outside. Through it all, this earphone set has worked incredibly well and has provided superior sound quality in all conditions. Even while pedaling furiously through opposing wind, the design of these ear pieces are such that I couldn't even hear the howl of the wind blowing past my ears.
While they are water resistant, they are not water proof, or at least, I wouldn't want to test just have resistant they are. I've worn them when a light foggy mist turned into a down pour, and they were ok, but I took them off just as soon as I could get to some cover, so they weren't in the rain for very long. Sweat did not bother them nor did it alter the quality or volume of the music either.
Cleaning these ear pieces was a breeze too! I just dip a q-tip in rubbing alcohol and then wiped the actual ear pieces down, and let air dry after every use. Once a month I wipe the whole head piece down with a damb cloth in addition to the alcohol cleaning on the ear pieces.
The cable is just long enough that I can feed it through an opening on the top of my "camel bag" water pack, which has pockets and pouches for keys, cell phones, ID, etc., then snake it up through the back of my shirt and up my neck. There's even plenty of length after this that I can turn and look over my shoulders, or turn my entire torso 90 degrees, and still have enough slack to more my head up and down! If you're using these at a gym or are using an arm holster, you're going to want to twist-tie up the extra length on the wire though, otherwise you'll end up catching the wire on some equipment or tree branches, and end up ripping them off your head (Which I've done twice already, much to my embarassment.)
The only draw back to these ear pieces is that since design of the ear pieces blocks out the majority of the outside world, and that the sound quality is so good and so loud, I had to turn down the volume of my music so much, just so that I could actually hear the traffic coming up behind me while biking. While it was a bit a nuisance to have to turn down the volume so much, failing to do so would have been extremely dangerous. If you're not used to your streets and neighborhood, and don't have a feel for the traffic patterns, or if you don't have a fair amount of shoulder to ride on, I don't recommend wearing these ear pieces while biking.
That being said, I cannot reommend these ear pieces enough, particularly if you a sports(wo)man or looking for a pair of comfortable, high quality ear pieces that will last you a very, very long time.
Customer Review: Wow, this is perfect for someone demanding good sound and good value.
Summary: 5 Stars
I recently purchased these headphones because I wanted something that:
1. Has good sound quality
2. Can handle lots of vigorous workouts with sweat!
3. Was not outrageously expensive.
4. Had a set-up so that cords and earplugs were not in the way.
I must confess to two things here. One, I am not a sound maniac, and two, I believe that the headphones supplied with the Apple Ipods are pretty good in sound quality.
Now, as to these headphones I am VERY happy.
Pros:
1. Appearance: Overall, this item is very cool looking. Orange is the dominant color. The headband is gray, with a reflective strip in the back. This is a thoughtful quality for those of us that workout at night - it might just save your life.
2. Sound quality: This, of course, is quite subjective, but if you read my qualifier above, then from that perspective, I think a buyer would be quite happy with this item. Sound is not incredible - and this should not be expected in this model. However, I have listened to these headphones just as a regular user (not outside or in a workout) and I think they are quite good. Sound exclusion (i.e. isolation of external white noise from outside) is pretty good overall as well even though these are not noise reduction headphones.
Overall quality in terms of different music is very good. I have listened to everything from opera, metal, rap, and classical music (Beethoven's 5th Symphony) and been quite impressed overall.
3. The headband is very light and barely noticeable at all. After some hours of use, I can barely notice it is wrapped behind my head. Of course, there is a slight pull from the headband, but this is not intolerable at all.
Neutral
1. Price: this was a decision I wrestled with for a while. The price is certainly significant considering you can get a decent pair of headphones for probably 1/4 of the price of this item. But after some weeks of hedging my decision, I am happy with the choice of these headphones.
Cons:
1. Truly, I have not found anything making me unhappy with this item. Hopefully, in the long term these will hold up and be able to withstand my special brand of man water (aka perspiration). But so far, so good.
I have not tried the dunking and rinsing that these can tolerate, but they have survived a workout or two without a problem.
Overall, I am very happy with this purchase and I find this item well worth the price you will pay for the item. I guess the adage you get what you pay for is true because here the quality is very good.
A good item for the musical athlete!
Customer Review: PMX 70 PMX 80 and PMX 680 I have them all.
Summary: 5 Stars
1.5 years ago, I bought the Green PMX 70. I run about 25 miles a week and was tired of headphones falling out of my ear. I thought they sounded good. My wife also started running and liked to use my headphones too. So, I bought the Orange PMX 80 and gave her the Green PMX 70's. She says they are hard and sometimes hurts her ears on long runs. I have never had a problem. To me, there is a sound difference between the PMX 70 & PMX 80's. There is more bass with the PMX 80's. In the 1.5 years I have been running with Sennheiser, they have never fallen out of my ear. I can also speak very highly about Sennheiser's warranty department. I had the PMX 80's for 1 year and 1 month when during a run, the left speaker stopped working. I went into my purchase history on Amazon.com and saw that Sennheiser headphones were covered under a 2yr warranty. I filled out the paper. Sent them my headphones and was thinking that I would get back a refurbished device. Sennheiser sent me the brand new PMX 680's as a replacement at no charge. I love the Sennheiser warranty department!! All three compared: The PMX70 & PMX80's both have the same design. They are made from a harder flexible plastic than the PMX 680. The PMX 70 & 80 have rubber tips on the ear speakers that WILL come off if you put them in your pocket. Don't lose them. I have noticed that the metal ear speaker on the PMX 70 & 80 has begun to rust under the rubber cover. I rarely washed them off after a run and they probably rust due to moisture. The PMX70 & PMX80 are exactly the same in design except for the color. The only difference I have found is the sound. The PMX80 sounds slightly better (in my opinion) although without comparing them, they both sound very good. The PMX 680 is lighter than both the PMX70 and PMX 80. The PMX 680 is much better on my ears. It has a shorter cord to plug in your ipod if you have a pocket your upper sleeve, or it has a longer cord if you carry your ipod or music device in your pocket. Also, the PMX 680 has Volume control, which allows you to turn it down or mute it when people are talking. The PMX 680 also does not have rubber tips or metal on the ear phones that will rust. The earphones on the PMX 680 are like a waterproof soft plastic. When comparing all three, I chose the PMX 680 hands down. I am so thankful that the Sennheiser warranty dept sent me this to replace my broken PMX 80. My original Green PMX 70 is still going strong. My wife now wants me to buy her the PMX 680.Customer Review: Awesome!
Summary: 5 Stars
I don't know what the deal is with the one star reviews, these are THE perfect runner's headphones (with one caveat related to cold-weather running, ***see below).
DURABILITY: I have had these for nine months, run over 800 miles in them, poured copious amounts of sweat all over them with 10-15 mile long runs in summer, and used them for countless hours in the gym without a single problem. If these died tomorrow, I'd have more than gotten my money's worth out of them and would happily buy another pair. I don't deny that a few folks have gotten a bad set, but no manufacturing process is perfect, that's what warranties are for. And if you're beating the snot out of them for 6 months to year of daily fitness wear, do you think any set of headphones is going to withstand that kind of abuse for much longer than that?
SOUND QUALITY: Awesome! What more is there to say.
FIT: fit perfectly for runners (make sure to watch the video about how they should sit over your ears). They are absolutely not too tight. The folks complaining about that probably aren't wearing them properly. They stay in place and NEVER have to be adjusted. A runners dream!
OTHER: Easy to clean. I run these headphones under running water(!) after every single use to clean off the sweat and salt deposits. The running water doesn't bother them in the least and they've remained in pretty good shape.
*** ONE CAVEAT: because of the design of these things with the wrap-around band around the head, you cannot wear these under a beanie or ear covering of any kind. For cold-weather outdoor running, you'll need a backup pair of earphones without the wrap-around feature (e.g. the PMX 85's).
Customer Review: Simply the Best
Summary: 5 Stars
Finding a good set of earphones for exercise has, until now, been a challenge for most people. Ear buds tend to jar loose when you're running or doing aerobics, and with over-the-head tension earphones, it's too easy to hook the cable on a weight machine and pull them off. Moreover, the sound quality of both typically leaves many dissatisfied.
I have a set of Sennheiser headphones that I've used for years, but, of course, they aren't designed for use during exercise. I bought them because of the Sennheiser reputation for sound quality, and I wasn't disappointed. So when the Sennheiser PMX80 came out, I didn't hesitate to purchase a pair.
I've been using the PMX80s for more than a month now, and I can say without reservation that they are simply the best. The behind-the-head design provides superior stability. Also, unlike many other brands, Sennheiser provides a cable that is long enough to allow placing my iPod wherever I want. The tension is good, ensuring that nothing short of a major collision will pull the earphones loose. Even so, they are comfortable. My workouts run about two hours, and I never experience any discomfort. As for sound quality, fantastic. The size of earbuds and earphones makes it hard for most sets to produce satisfying bass, and the result is often tinny output. Not so with the PMX80s. The bass is full and rich without diminishing the mid-range and treble frequencies.
I'm not easy to please, but I give the PMX80s my highest recommendation.