In-ear, in store

If you are looking forward to the Fender in-ear monitors, these are now available at Swee Lee, less the DXA1 model. Price range: $320 - $790.

Fender listenables

I'm usually not a fan of headphones/ earphones/ in-ear monitors manufactured by non-specialist brand names; I have largely ignored Marshall's manufacturing in this sector.

However, the Fender camp had opted for some elegance in this aspect & things might take a turn...

O'Neill oh yeah...

Can you get reputable ear phones for under $30? Rather tough but the O'Neill here is a fantastic pair for $20 (OK so it's on clearance). No extras in terms of bass/ remote features but fantastic clarity, impressive to say the least. Absolutely thumbs up when it comes to sound isolation- kept the noise out, hear it in action while you are in a moving bus.

The anatomy of futility

This is a pair of JVC Xtreme Xplosives earphones. As depicted above, the main driver enclosure is larger than the average earphone's because- you guessed it- it houses a larger driver for some incredible audio experience. The manufacturer also claims the XX has some of the best bass on board. Not quite.

The bigger enclosure there means if you don't have them sitting in your ears snugly, they'll fall out due to the lash of gravity (yes, it's that dramatic). The bigger drivers are laid to waste simply because they aren't enclosed. Behind the XX brace there, the drivers are actually exposed so this means your earphones are leaking music while in use. It cuts both ways too- extraneous noise would leak into your music so you could still hear the outside world when you are supposed to be shut out entirely in your music haven. This also affects the bass response severely. In fact, there's hardly any extra bass to be heard. Come to think of it, it's akin to an open back amp with a small driver- lots of clarity but lacking in depth, everything sounds too treble-inclined.

Yamaha earphones

Yamaha makes motorcycles, engines for boats, pianos, wind instruments, guitars, basses &... earphones.

My earphones gave way recently so I decided to give the above Yamaha earphones a try. Firtsly, the above product was misrepresented by the packaging & details. The sleeve said the earphones are the asymmetrical type but they are not- they are the stethoscope type which I detest. The manufacturer also promises some of the best concert-grade (whatever this means) audios in your ears with enhanced bass responses but what I hear is the expansion of the background audio leaving the guitar be a thin participant of the music. Thumbs down.