Sony MDREX81 In-Ear Headphones - Black

I have previously had some very similar in-ear style sony headphones and they were superb, hence the reason for choosing these earphones! However, as soon as I start running (even walking fast) they fall out immediately! You can push them in again, but guess what...they fall out again!

Anyways, sound quality is as always good, but the plastic 'support' is a complete waste of time!!


Brilliant earphone, but might not fit!   May 1, 2005
8 out of 10 found this review helpful

Upon recieving these earphones, I have found that the curved clip that is supposed to fit behind my ear is slightly too large. I wouldn't say my ears are particularly small, so it's something to bear in mind if you're going to order them! I find they are still usable, but I think that the standard fontopia earphones without this clip may actually stay more securely in my ears.

With that out of the way, I can say that these earphones give brilliant sound quality (with loads of bass.) They come with a little case to protect the delicate buds at the end, a bag to keep them in, and an extension so the earphones can be used with or without a remote. The wire is longer to one of the earphones so that you can wear the wire easily around the back of your neck (as with most sony earphones!) The plugs and wires themselves are very light, but seem to be well made.

As long as they'll fit, they seem like a brilliant earphone! Most grown adults probably won't have a problem.


Sony MDR-EX81SL review   September 18, 2005
M. D. Goodman
7 out of 7 found this review helpful

I got this pair of the latest Fontopia earphones as a replacement set to a pair of very good Panasonic earphones that finally fell apart after years of use. The Panasonic's had a great sound, so I wanted a really good pair to match the fidelity I was used to.

These are a great set of in the ear-canal earphones for the money. There are pairs online that start at 60.00 and go up to professional sets around 400!

Having read the other reviews I was concerned about the bass being too prominent. However when I tried these with many different types of music I found that the sound was well balanced, with a bias toward the bass, and that means a certain lack of treble. This you may well find with many pairs of in-the-ear-canal earphones.

They are comfortable to wear. They come with 3 sizes of silicone ear-buds (S, M & L) which are replaceable from the Seme spare parts company (not Sony themselves). In the instructions it states that with long use or storage that silicone may deteriorate. Once you find the ear bud you like you may want to get a second pair of that size ear bud for durability.

At first, I felt the small lack of treble, but now I really enjoy listening to music with these earphones. They are powerful and clear with great definition and balance. I suggest you turn the Bass EQ switch off on your CD player to balance the extra bass problem if you have one.

They are aesthetic and well packaged with a little plastic-pod case to put the earphones in and a soft material pouch to put the whole kit in (phones, pod-case, extension cord, etc.). The jack plugs are gold plated and of the highest quality.

If you want to upgrade your earphones to a new pair of powerful and thick sounding earphones, these are the ticket. I'd give 4.5 stars (but the option doesn't allow that) only because some may find the bass too much. Otherwise, they are top class earphones. Enjoy!


Save your money..   October 23, 2006
Mr. Bd Dorling (Essex, UK)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful

I love the hook headphones as I like to listen to my music whilsh remaining active. Obviously the sony hype drawn me into these, with the benefit of also being in-ear..

These things have never been so irritating. Both cables link to the left piece so you constantly feel this pulling on the left. There's an abundance of wire, then when you take off the extender, it's too short..

How do the rest come into play? They don't maintain their shape long enough to have any long-term fix on your ears and you have to kep having to take them out, adjust it, shove it in your ear etc. Ideally you should just be able to place thm in your ear and off you go, but these headphones are a chore in their own right. Look elsewhere..


FAO flownswift   February 3, 2006
Wesley Hill (Belfast)
5 out of 7 found this review helpful

Just to let you know after much looking about i went for the Shure Ec2's (cheapest from amazon), they fit exactly like the Sony's, but they do go alot further down the ear canal, it actually feels like it goes down to far.

They blocked out 50% more sound than the sonys, and sound is exceptional!, although you dont get as much Bass with them, its sooooo clear and crisp, and i mostly listein to club music and more than happy!

They are more expenscive but better than throughing bad money on the Sonys.