SoundMAGIC PL30+C Active Sport in-Ear Headphones with Microphone and Volume Control (Black/Gold)

I have owned a large collection of budget earphones. These were very cheap when I bought them. Price and brand recognition are the only reasons I gave these a try.These sound pretty good. I'm not going to get super tech-talk about it like audiophiles do.Bass is pretty good to good enough. It is not super deep but it's by no means anemic.Highs are pretty good to me. They are not overpowering. I will admit that I am at that age where I've lost somehearing of the highest frequencies but I've always hated very strong treble. I like everything to be pretty balanced.Mids are good and that's where the bulk of your music is. They seem to be balanced pretty well with the other frequencies.One thing I really love about earphones is that you can play them at such a low volume and still hear everything well.These have a feature that I really dislike but decided to ignore because of the price. I don't really care for having a phone control attachment on my earphones. What's worse is that it sits high on the left cable instead of being in the middle of the main cable before the Y split. I can't state enough how much I dislike that. First of all the controls are nearly near my ears so I can't even see it when glance down. Everything has to be done by feel. I would like to be able to see the control as I am grabbing it.There is one more thing that I have a like/dislike relationship with. That's the included ear hooks. I used to detest ear hook/cable-over-ear style headphones but now I love them; usually. The kind I like best have a flexible coating over the cable and it is shaped in a curve. These however have a much thicker rubber or silicone ear hook that you must thread your cable into. They flop around while you are trying to put them on and it's hard to keep the cable in there perfectly sometimes. They don't feel bad, but it just adds a bit more effort than the coated cable type of ear hooks. They also take up more room behind your ears.Given my lack of love for inline controls and said controls being positioned in a ridiculous place, I would not buy these again and will probably be adding them to my long list of Goodwill donations. I've been slowly downsizing my earphone collection. I think if you don't mind that type of control and where it's placed, you'd be fairly happy with these.

This is my 3rd pair of SoundMAGIC monitors. (They're accurate enough that I've used them as IEM earpieces onstage.) My original 2009 PL30s are still functioning but about to give it up. My dog ate the 2nd pair (E10s - they were good, but I didn't like them as much as the PL30s.)We're not broken in yet, but out-of-the-box, so far, so good. Soundstage is wide and deep, and clarity is right there. I'm not a bass-head, but I feel these put out plenty. (Last minute of "Don't Give Up" by Peter Gabriel is one of my tests.)Vocals are important to me; this does a good job on really wide dynamic range stuff like Alison Krauss and King's Singers. No detectable distortion.Let's see how break-in goes and I'll update, but so far, not a better bargain to be had.One thing: the original PL30s had a bass adjustment knob on the earpieces. The promo material indicates these do also, but they don't. Unless it's hidden.2nd thing: I appreciate these now ship with foam inserts - far superior to silicone pieces, IMO. These aren't Comply foam pieces, but they're close. (I own Comply and was able to compare them: the Comply have an integrated retainer ring at the base of the sound canal.)

These headphones are great when they’re working and they look great too. They however have durability issues. The Mic and volume/pause unit stop working after a while. My first pair stopped working at 3 months. The second pair stopped at 1 month. I only use these headphones on my commute to work, so I’m not demanding much physically from then.

I usually buy $10 Panasonic ergofit ear buds. The audio quality is comparable, by no means are these any better (or worse). But I was expecting something better for the price.1. These aren't comfortable. The earbud part that connects to the rubber is shaped in a way you can't get it backwards. Which is nice for getting them the right way, but means you can't wear them in a traditional position.2. They are designed to go up and around your ears but tug on the corner of your ear any time you move.3. If you put these behind your ears (the only comfortable way to wear them), the mic is literally behind your head.4. They come with rubber hook shaped molds for the wire to stay around your ears. It's more comfortable than just the wire, but so much extra bulk. And the wire does not tend to stay in.I would never recommend these headphones. Get anything else.

Tight end and good isolation so far so good......

I love sound magic. This is my 3rd pair. I lost the other 2 pairs.

Perfect!!! Wife loves them...

Had a pair of these for years, finally got a bit grubby from many miles of jogging. Decided to get normal in ear pair, big mistake. Then Bought cheap over ear headphones, couldn't even wear they were so n uncomfortable.Finally bought a new pair of these and am so happy. Wish I'd just bought a new one straight away. Really comfortable, really sturdy for jogging, great sound quality. Sightly better quality materials than my old pair, no complaints at all.

Decent quality. Sound is excellent, these easily beat my £80 RHA earphones - much better bass response, clearer highs and pleasing mids. The ear hooks are comfortable. I bought these for work and normal earbuds always fall out, so these are perfect.Reason I didn't give the full 5 stars is because I'm a little bit wary of the build quality. They don't feel very robust but for £25 if they last a year wish, I'll be pleased enough.Recommended. Now intrigued to look into other SoundMAGIC products as well based on how good these are.

These are good value for the money. Sound quality is good. I find them a bit fiddly to get in my ears though, and they don't always stay in place, so that's why I've knocked them down a star.

Works! Have bought so many other earphones where the remote doesn't work, so very happy. Sound magic is a great brand.

Amazing sound quality, honestly worth the money and sounded way better than my beats earphones (and have lasted longer too)