More than three weeks ago I purchased a what seemed to be a reasonably priced pair of earphones (Sony MDREX310SL) on Lazada. They priced it at around RM230, which I could accept. Further, it would come included with a carrying pouch, a few different sized earbuds, as well as noise-isolation earbuds. I've never had earphones with changeable earbuds or noise-isolation ones, so I was quite happy.

Three weeks went past, not a single update from Lazada. I contacted them, only to be notified via email that they have cancelled the order due to dubious processing time promised by the seller.

Now I'm left with my clunky Sony XB-400 Super Bass headphones. It definitely serves its purpose, but I feel that carrying it around is a hassle, I prefer earphones which are much more portable. I also want to make my purchase online, but I can't seem to find a reliable shop which sells Sony products.

I need your help, and welcome your suggestions, if you think there are better earphones in the price range which are not necessarily branded Sony.

Thanks.

I checked out Jaben Audio, but they stock expensive ones, which are clearly out of my meager budget. But I think I can push beyond RM250, less than RM300, to be precise.

Now that you've mentioned Audio Technica IM50, I'm torn between the two ( but still considering XBA-1, unsure of the price ), but the problem is, while I've found sellers for AT IM50, I haven't found any for a discontinued Sony product. Any thoughts?

Thanks for your recommendation by the way, I learned a lot. Bear in mind I know next to nothing about earphones, in fact, I only learned what IEM was a day ago when you guys mentioned it...


Why do you say so? I learn towards Sony simply because I've bought Sony products and they've lasted for a long time. I haven't heard of XiaoMi, it seems like it's pretty easy to buy a fake XiaoMi Piston if you're not careful. Thoughts?

They are out of my budget...

I was referring to the EX310.

XBA-10 seems very reasonable, but I think a step-up to AT-IM50 would be better, no? What do you think? The only concern I have with AT-IM50 would be comfort, as reviews mostly point out the large earbud sizes.

I read a thread about Beyerdynamic XP, and almost made the purchase on XP 2 until I read the very last few pages about the earphones dying out after a year or two, sometimes even less.

I know it's subjective, but do you think it'd be more worth the buy if I purchase AT IM50 instead, considering that it's slightly pricier?

Thanks for the recommendation! Just got it but there's a mini-concern which hasn't been sorted out. Was wondering if you could help.

https://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopi...post&p=71680114

Problem solved! It is indeed about the impedance. Apparently AT IM50's impedance is higher than anything I've used ( XB-400, ATH M20x ). I tweaked the audio settings on my Mac ( changing it from 16-bit to 24-bit ) and the hissing is gone! I'm so happy now. From a Physics nerd, to someone who knows a little bit about impedance, in-ears, bass, burn-in...

I'm very happy with my purchase. Thank you for your recommendation. When I first got it, I was underwhelmed because I'd been using it in places with a lot of ambient noise, and probably because I've been used to the XB-400 which produces very big booms ( I listen to a lot of EDM music ).

But after using it for quite some time today, and switching back to XB-400, I realised that I haven't been hearing a lot of things in a music with full clarity with my XB-400. And the more I listen to my AT IM50's, the more awesome they sound.