[mii]

I have gone through a number of Earphones over the last couple of years, it seems the Left ear piece always cuts out first, are there any durable long lasting earphones on the market as I'm tired of having to buy new ones all the time. Thanks.

[Steven]

May I ask what model they were? I used to own cheap Sony EX71 canal earphones years ago. One of the drivers always went. I then found out that this was a common problem.
No such issues with Senn MX500 earbuds, Panasonic HJE50+Senn CX300 canal earphones, Senn PX100 (I am talking ownership in the years here) or my new-ish AT ESW9 as of yet

Not that I am saying this happens across Sony's range - it would appear to have been a particular issue with this particular model then

[mii]

In the last few months i have went through.

Some crap set what came with my MP3 and lasted 1 day i did not really care though.
2 pairs of the Headphones the come with the Sony ericcson W580i 1 pair lasted 3 months while the other lasted about 3 weeks.

Philips HE591 These stopped working completely and lasted about 2-3 months.

Philips SHE8500 This is most recent pair they lasted about a month and broke several days ago.

Its getting kind of ridiculous now.

[TameRacingDriver]

My CX300 have had a rough life and are still alive. They even had a sliding wardrobe door over the cable, easily fixed with electrical tape and no intermittent sound problems. I've had them for probably a couple of years now.

On the other hand, everyone I know who has used the Sony EX series have had them expire, even with fairly gentle treatment.

[Reano]

You've heard it here, now I will say it again and I mean no one any harm. The Sony ex71 are poor ear phones all imho. They break easy, sound poor (bloated bass, treble hidden because of it). Shures and Westones have never let me down and never shown any signs of breaking.

Motto always buy the best you can afford. If they are quality you can always sell em on easily enough....

I must say I agree with LFC I even support Liverpool and Pbirkett on most

[lawsm]

im also looking for a some nice earphones..
been looking at on ear headphones.. are they better than in ear ones??

[Steven]

Yes and no

From a fit point of view, it is personal. If you get into IEMs not everybody can adjust to tips inside their ear canal

From a style point of view it is obviously subjective. I freely admit it is one of the reasons I picked up the AT ESW9s

From an SQ point of view it depends entirely on a particular model depending on your budget, music tastes and source. IEMs can get very good if you lay down the money and my UM2s were certainly the best thing I had listened to for the best part of 2 years. Then I picked up ESW9s and I am back in the full sized headphone camp and looking to pick up a second one

[JonnyMatthews]

Hey , i have have had many different types of earphones but they never seem to last more than a month or so, i need some that are very tough and durable, i tend to use them when doing bmx-ing and stuff like that so they do get treated quite rough can anyone offer any advice or opinions please? thanks

[r@mside]

Originally Posted by JonnyMatthews

Hey , i have have had many different types of earphones but they never seem to last more than a month or so, i need some that are very tough and durable, i tend to use them when doing bmx-ing and stuff like that so they do get treated quite rough can anyone offer any advice or opinions please? thanks

It's going to depend on what you mean by rough.

If you are causing impact damage to the housing, then something made from a pliable plastic or aluminium would be the answer.

If the problem is like the original post, this can be caused by tugging/snagging the cable beyond the protection given by the strain relief. An earphone with changeable cables would be a solution.

[Drubbing]

THese things are not durable by design. THere are no tough ones out there.

Really cheap ones sound crap and have quality issues. When they're free with a phone or a Ipod, that's essentially what they're worth: nothing.

Good ones sound better and are less likely to fail but the time they last is usually directly related to how they're treated.

Don't throw them around or in the bottom of a bag, don't wrap them around your player, or pull on the wires. Let alone thrashing around on a bmx with them, where the wires will get pulled every which way.

I know that sounds patronising, but plenty of people treat their earphones like **** and expect them to take it without breaking.