MP4 Nation Forums
Back to MP4 Nation - The MP4 Nation Blog - The Raz Special - Themes

In terms of packaged earphones that actually come with MP3/MP4/MP2147483647 players, the Alphas are likely the best I've heard, and pretty good in general.

They look suspiciously like the Skullcandy Smokin' Buds, which are coincidentally also Made in China. This led me to thinking that Brainwavz were actually cheaper unbrandeds straight from the factory, but the two pairs have different dynamic ranges and drivers (but still, 99% same housing)

Anyways, back to the review. The Alphas are simply great. They have a huge dynamic range, besting that of my previous Skullcandies (which, by the way, are pretty awesome). Where the Skullcandies were affordable earphones for decent sound, the Alphas are even cheaper (or free, if you bought an S:Flo like me). The bass on these rattles you right to your brain, but manages to stay rich and deep. The high end is not outstanding but still sounds decent, crisp and well detailed. Still, the high end is not what you buy these for but it works well enough.

Back to the packaged earphones concept, these blow the stock iPod earbuds and Creative Zen earbuds that came with their respective players. (Well, it wasn't much of a fight considering 99% of people think the Zen earbuds were pure shite (they were))

Comfort-wise, well, you can only go so far with in-ear headphones, and you realize that with these. They're not comfortable. You don't "forget" that they're in your ears. Also, they only come with one size of bud (which luckily happened to fit my right ear. not so much my left)

Attractiveness, well, let's face it. These are fugly earphones. They look much nicer in the photos but feel and look cheap. Luckily, the sound makes up for it

In conclusion, if you're looking for a decent pair of 'phones for an even more decent price, look no further. Just be prepared to put up with a little.

Well, looks like my "tiny" review turned out a little long-winded. Haha, thanks for reading.

LOL I always laugh at people who use the Ipod headphones regularly and say " I love listening to all the rich details of my music". Ipod headphones may last a long time, but they sound pretty horrible. $40, for something that sound horrible and make your ears bleed ( mine actually physically bled due to the incompatibility of ears-headphones)

The stock earbuds are pretty bad, but the ADDIEMs seem to be getting quite a bit of praise.

I agree about them looking cheap and fugly, they also protrude further out of your ears than say the PL-30's.
Still a huge improvement over your run-of-the-mill earbuds.

Thanks valdesjon for your review, they are a good pair of earphones, worth much more than they cost and smack down the idea that stock earphones that come with players need to be crap

BTW i really do not know if the Alphas are made by the same people who make the smokin buds for skull candy, although most people think the Alphas do sound better

Long term viability report:

After burning them in they produced consistently good sound. However design flaws were unearthed... under normal usage conditions for about a month, one headphone popped apart. No big deal, i slid it back in, but that shouldn't be normal for a headphone.

couple months after, i was in a rush (don't ask) and I accidentally dropped the headphones about half a metre onto a tile floor. I thought they would be fine. Alas I was wrong, the same headphone popped apart and now it no longer works. It fits, but something went wrong internally.

Verdict? Well, good earphone and quality, but build quality is quite subpar. I would buy one again considering how damn cheap they are however. Now, I am in the mood for some cans. Stay tuned for a SoundMagic P10 review some weeks from now (a treat to myself for getting a better job!).

I tend to find all head phones are hit and miss for build quality.

Mine were constantly snapping in half ( Generic headphones, phillips headphones) my Alphas have lasted since I got them! ( nearly a year ago now) even though my friend chewed all the "spare" plastic of them ha ha.

Mine came with spare tips though ..

try our Betas, i think you will like them and they have a more solid build quality over the Alphas.

Are the betas more comfortable than the alphas?
just wondering
also how much better is the sound quality?

They are more comfortable than the alphas when you use the new foam tips.

thanks