Make and model
Sound
Feel
Design & look
Features
Uses
Overall
Sound: 10
The best sounding headphones I have ever used as far as I am concerned.
A hidden
gem--produced by a not-exactly 100% reputable manufacturer. Bass is
the advan-
tage of the HP-A350, with tremendous response from huge oversize driver
units.
Treble is excellent, with high-response to even incredible high tones.
Midrange
is a great, with the overall tone perfectly suited to a graphic equalizer--its
output is perfectly uniform across all channels, not to mention superbly
powerful
overall tone. A perfect mix of low-frequency charge and high-frequency
preciseness,
the HP-A350 well deserves this 10!
Feel: 7
The accompanying earpads proved too thin and wore away rather quickly,
leaving
the unfortunately coarse underdesign to be exposed to the ears. However
the rack
had a flummoxing tendecy to formfit superbly, so the initial discomfort
gave way
to complete immersion. Well-suited for home listening due to its heft.
Design and look: 7
Surprisingly well-made, it was still sitting perfectly until the metal
grating
covering the diaphragm finally fell off and I was forced to discontinue
use.
Whereas the speakers and drivers seemed to sit rather precariously
upon the too-
thin unicord rack unit, it all held together despite significant heft
on the
driver's side. Not particularly attractive on the outside, however,
but this is
not a neccessity in a unit designed for home use (its lengthy cord
telegraphs
this point). The glues which held the speaker unit together unfortunately
had
a tendecy to harden and crumble, which resulted in its ultimate downfall.
Ten
years of great service, though.
Features: 10
Stunning bass response from the oversize 40mm drivers provided for
great sound.
Also boasts the best application of a uniside cord I've ever seen--it
is totally
unobtrusive. Handy cord length allows for use without an extension
cord in odd
situations.
Uses: 8
Lends itself to the home, but can be used portably despite the apparent
waste--
the precise output will be lost in noisy situations. The cord length
prohibits
most portable use anyway. The computer output was superb.
Price: 10
I can't overstress the importance of this. The whole unit cost less
than $30,
which makes it possibly the ultimate in audio hidden gems. The fact
that Aiwa
is not a particularly important manufacturer of audio is probably the
explanation,
although their current line of headphones are terribly inexpensive
and ludicrously
poor in quality, at least in North America.