Sony MDR-1A Prestige Overhead Headphones - Black

Product Information

The tone of the mid-range is great too. They are pretty-sounding headphones that are able to make voices – both the spoken and sung king – sound natural.

For our large noggin the MDR-1A fit is fine, but those with smaller heads might struggle to get the same experience. That's something to keep in mind, as you might not get the same five-star experience, but from our week's worth of listening sessions, and given the sensible price point, we have to say the Sony MDR-1A is a top class choice. While we didn’t have the Sony MDR-1A for direct comparison, from memory it also seems that Sony may have toned down the bass a little this time. There is a bass emphasis here, but only a slight one. The impression they give off is of a balanced, and fairly natural-sounding headphone.Compared to my Momentum 1.0s, 2.0s, and my Adidas Monster Originals (a surprisingly competent headphone, BTW), these things are so much better. In a single word - they are balanced. No matter what you throw at them, they never stop being balanced and neutral. Which is a very hard thing for any headphone to do. Mids: Quite prominent sounding, despite the boosted bass, due to the slightly rolled-off lower and mid treble. Very smooth and creamy sounding. It makes for a very pleasant, fun, and easy longterm listening experience, but I myself prefer greater levels of detail in exchange for some of that smoothness, as long as a headphone still sounds engaging and fun. Some detail is certainly sacrificed in achieving that smoothed-out sound, especially a good bit of micro-detail. But, for those who want something with very sweat and creamy mids (and treble, see below) which will always be completely non-fatiguing and make for very easy listening, these headphones are great. More specifically, and to that point, they sound like entry-level audiophile headphones should. They didn’t have the same clarity that some of the higher-end headphones we listened to at CES had but, considering these were a quarter of the price, that’s to be expected.

We next moved on to Audio Technica's ATH-MSR7 headphones, which we like a lot and which seem to share some design traits with MDR-1R/1A (read: they look similar). With the ATH-MSR7 we heard even better bass-midrange-treble definition -- the Audio Technica sounds clearer than both Sony headphones.It's clear Sony put quite a bit of effort into the design of the circumaural (over-the-ear) MDR-1A—it is one of the more simple, beautifully executed headphone frames currently available. The first thing you notice when holding the good-looking MDR-1A ishow exceedingly cushioned the earpads and headband feel. You almost can't wait to put them on, and the fit doesn't disappoint: The MDR-1A is very comfortable, even over long listening sessions. The Sony MDR-1ABT get a partial pass for being wireless headphones, but it does tell you you’re paying a fair bit extra for the privilege of wireless. Ultimately, they don’t look or feel like a truly luxurious pair. Because the testing occurred on a crowded show floor, it was relatively hard to make out the subtle nuances of the headphones. The bass is aided by sculpted vents which maximize airflow and a liquid crystal polymer diaphragm with an aluminum coating and works well even at loud volumes. Audio is distortion free and you will be able to make out even tiny details even when the sound is turned up. Putting these on for the first time, it became immediately apparent that these are the most comfortable headphones I have ever worn. After having listened to them for a few weeks and putting these things through some long listening sessions (had these on for almost 12 hours in one day), I have to say that my claim stands. This thing is king. As a design choice, Sony chose an almost all plastic body and housing (aside from metal headband) and it feels incredible to wear.