A little test showed how much wisely chosen earphones can attribute to listening experience. This time, I'm writing about Sennheiser CX400.
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As Sennheiser launched a new line of earphones, I decide to make a semi-professional comparison (ok, more amateur then semi-pro, I admit) of CX400 and default earphones connected to my low-cost MP3 player. I won't mention a name here, but is it a player in a price range of 50 dollars, the cheapest one at the time of buying.
I simple wanted to see (hear) what difference could "the name" bring to my experience of listening MP3s and radio at, most of the time, noisy environment. So, as I didn't test high-end equipment in comfort of my home and listening room, I kept all other factors at the same level. That means that MP3s were in 128 kbps, I listen my old MP3/FM player mostly on the street. I first concentrated on FM and then on a small selection of songs that represent my taste (more or less).
The comfort is the first thing that I noticed while using Sennheiser CX400. They fit nicely to my ear and they are "light" to ears (I listen 1 + 1 hour during the day). That first contact were true relief comparing CX400 to my old earphones that now feels like a stone in the ear.
The experience while listening FM radio vary according to the radio station. I listened two radio-station, one uses compressor to boost basses more that healthy person would like, and other is a national station that has very balanced and professionally delivered sound. CX400 delivered very clear sound; picture had a good spatial definition, while the bass wasn't so good. It was strong in the sound of the first station but it was somewhat tiresome and I felt little pain in my head but I attribute that to station's sound compression. When listening properly defined sound from a national station, bass was very good, not as loud as I would like it to be, but nicely defined.
Speaking of MP3 songs, I listened Ravel's Bolero and flamenco guitar from several guitarists, from Paco de Lucia to Sabicas. I'm a fan of bass and good definition and CX400 satisfied me in every way. Remind you, the MP3s weren’t coded perfectly, but even at the 128 kbps they showed their superior quality. Bass was very, very good, middle and treble clear and without any annoying effects. All notes were clearly distinguished which is, due to a frequency and harmonic range of a flamenco guitar, very demanding task. By my opinion, flamenco is very good material for earphones testing and CX400 sounded very balanced and very relaxing.
Considering Ravel's Bolero, it was easy to imagine all instruments in their position on the stage. The sound delivered was well balanced in all tonal (frequency) range, while harmonics clearly distinguished one instrument from the other. The bass at the end was firm, without any distortions, and interplay among the instruments was pure joy. Those 15 minutes of Bolero was pure joy finishing in the ecstasy and forgetting that I have CX400 in my ears. To remind you again, the test was done on the street, not in a listening room.
That little test shows two things: Wisely chosen earphones can lift your listening experience to another level, and second, Sennheiser did a very good job with CX400. I just hope I will have a chance to listen to other newcomers from them. ■
