All good things must come to an end, and that definitely includes the Apple headphones that originally shipped with my iPod. Those minimalist white buds did the job. Although they never matched very well with my 30G black iPod, I was really sorry to see them go. When they bit the dust after I spent a long summer walking, running, and doing outdoor work, I think I really cried, although it could have been sweat.
However, it was clear that it was time to recharge. And I decided that this time I would not only find headphones for my iPod that fit visually, but I would also try to improve the sound quality. One problem: he had no money. Well, not literally, but in the ruined college student sense of the phrase. If you spent $ 100 on headphones, you’d be eating noodles from a cup for the next month.
There were some other tricky elements too, like the fact that I wanted the new ‘buds to do a better job of blocking external sound, and I didn’t want them to fall out of my ears when I tilted my head to the side to take a sip of coffee. without spilling it on my textbooks.
Where did that leave me? It left me with very high design and style demands and a budget that I could barely tie a pair of Chuck Taylors. To be honest, I wasn’t sure I could do better than a couple of other factory models. But I started looking online and came across the V-MODA “Bass Freq” headphones. They caught my eye because they came in designer colors. When I clicked through to read user reviews and comments, I experienced a buzzing sensation in my eardrums – was the return of iPod quality music about to happen?
This is what I found out.
1. The V-MODA “Bass Freq” model had won some interesting awards (CNET and MacWorld).
2. Apparently they did a good job with noise cancellation, no batteries required.
3. They come with those little rubber cones in various sizes for an adjustable fit.
4. The ‘buds were praised for their low kick and crisp high notes.
5. They were shipped in designer colors (red, orange, green, blue, black, silver, pink).
6. The best? They fell within my humble price range.
Feeling pretty excited by now, I opened my 17th credit card account (just kidding) and ordered a pair of V-MODA headphones. I opted for the “orange tambourine”, not because I’m hippy, but because my black iPod has always wanted tiger stripes. About a week later, my package arrived from Amazon. After it was sitting on the couch for a week, I started to open it. In fact, I opened it in the elevator and was listening to Iron & Wine and Radiohead about two minutes later.
The catch is that this little Christmas morning scene took place about 9 months ago. My original pair of “Bass Freq” buttons are still in use, and I’ve actually ordered four more, three of them as gifts. Why? Because, as promised, the low notes are rock and the middle and high notes are heard splendidly. These headphones perform better than the originals, and they are definitely a higher level in the style department.
Add in the fact that they fit my little ears well and don’t constantly droop, and you have a very happy penniless student. I feel very comfortable giving these ‘buds the title of The best iPod headphones of all time.
You know, Best Ever for under $ 30. When I graduate, I’ll see what else V-MODA has on the market.