Looking for headphone recommendations.

And crazy as it sounds, sound quality is secondary.
I'm looking for a set of earbud type that I can use for EDC.
'Carry' being the operative word.
Something I can keep protected in my back pocket at all times.

I've tried the Sony and the Phillips with the wind-up reels and even those are a little too bulky.
I've tried one with a retracting reel but it was too delicate and broke in about a week.

Does anyone make a small but rugged set of headphones with a convenient carry option?

How about a set of Sennheiser MX400's. Sound great and very cheap.

http://www.newegg.com/app/viewproductdesc.asp?submit=Go&DEPA=0&CMP=4r00gle&description=N82E16826106311

I asked a similar question a while back - I ended up with a pair of Shure E3Cs, which are small in ear phones that are among the best sounding phones I've ever hear, PLUS I use them for Ham radio all the time

radioshack pro 25 ( pro 35 now )

http://www.radioshack.com/product.asp?catalog%5Fname=CTLG&category%5Fname=CTLG%5F007%5F003%5F004%5F000&product%5Fid=33%2D1222

they get put on sale for 20 bucks about 5 times a year

they sound really good better than some high dollar phones.

I've been a headphone junky for years, at one time the value of my headphone collection was significantly higher than my flashlight collection.....but no more.

For good quality compact earbud recommendations I'd suggest Sennheiser MX400 or MX500 (has inline volume control) for open air buds, and Etymotic ER6 for sealed buds that will block out a lot of outside sound. I've bought the Sennheiser MX buds for $10-15 a set, and have been very happy with them. I've had to spend much more to get the same build quality and sound quality out of Sony earbuds.

For more info on any kind of headhones, visit www.headfi.com

-Keith

or here

http://www.headphone.com/layout.php?topicID=1

or here

http://www.goodcans.com/

The Sony MDR-V6 is widely considered the Honda Civic of premium headphones. I'm quite fond of mine.

Sony has a set of earbuds that have an eyeglasses-style ear loop that fit well, sound decent, and are inexpensive. I'm not sure if you'd want to stuff them into a back pants pocket.

Sennheiser. I'm not sure what model number you'd be looking for, but I can't recommend Senn's enough. I have a pair of HD280 Pros that I love...

Mark

Earbud style is a must.
Just like an EDC flashlight, if you're not carrying them when you need them then what good are they?

Sony MDR-EX71s looks interesting.
Sound is supposed to rival the E2C and the comfort is supposedly the best.
Twice the price of the Senns but only half the price of the Shures.
Anybody have any experience with them?

Ok,I think I have tried every earbud on the market.Now you said sound is secondary,so not sure if this is what you want.These are GREAT because they "seal" the sound in your ears.I could never find a pair of earbuds that fit my ears good,sealed in and out sounds,and had a very good range of treble to bass.Here's a link form Walmart,although the Walmarts here don't have them.I got mine at Target.
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.gsp?product_id=2612129&cat=4480&type=19&dept=3944&path=0%3A3944%3A3983%3A4480

One thing you could do to protect your earbuds is put them in some kind of improvised case. I have one or two sets in APS film containers (slightly bigger than a 35mm container), but an Altoids or mini-Altoids mint tin would protect them even better.

-Keith

ear buds do not sound as nice as the radio shack pro 35's
they have neonydium magnets oxygen free copper wire titanium
drivers (made by koss) 20 bucks on sale.

According to the various audio forums, the EX71s are considered to be the budget (or sub-budget) "canalphone". They're priced at half the E2Cs and sound okay. However, comparing the EX71 and E2C sound quality is complete BS. Some headphiles claim that the MX400 sound is noticeably better than the EX71s.

I have a friend who uses the E2Cs and an iPod Mini EDC and while exercising, and he's happy with them. He uses MX400s as cheap in-bed earbuds. His at-home headphone-only system cost around $2000, so he has some taste. Isolation is very good, and comfort is okay, depending on how much you like things stuffed in your ear canal. There is a popular mod to put the softer, more comfortable EX71 tips on the E2C, which has the drawback of reducing isolation.

On the other hand, I had the EX71s for a while, before my girlfriend took them, and I was satisfied with comfort and sound quality, and less so with isolation. My hearing is fine, but my aural attention to detail is so-so. I did need to "burn-in" them, as they sounded absolutely terrible out of the box. The EX71 carry-case is hard plastic with no winder, so it's a little slimmer than winder-cases, but has the possibility of tangling. I don't think I'd like to sit on it often.

For sub-$50 earbuds, I would go with the MX400s (or MX500s, I think they have a volume-adjuster). The EX71s are fine, but they don't offer enough isolation or comfort for the price premium paid for canalphones.

[ QUOTE ]
markdi said:
ear buds do not sound as nice as the radio shack pro 35's
they have neonydium magnets oxygen free copper wire titanium
drivers (made by koss) 20 bucks on sale.

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't care if they are made out of solid gold and sound better than Sennheiser HD-600 headphones, the first time he sits down with them in his back pocket (read the first post), they will break into pieces.

Those RS cans appear to be rebadged Koss headphones, and Koss makes some great budget portable headphones (I have several and love them), but many times earbuds are much more convenient, and Koss isn't well known for making good earbuds.

-Keith

Still backin' my MX 400's.... sound great for $15 a pair. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I have a pair of the Sony MDR-EX71s. Sound quality is nothing to write home about, but are at least listenable. I like the fit and the amount of background noise they block out.
Still no easy-carry option, i just leave them slung around the back of my neck when theyre not in use. Far easier than carrying them in my pockets to get tangled up in knots.

Im hankering after a pair of Shures, once i have some spare cash.

Thanks everyone.
Here's the cheapest place I found for the Shures.
E-mail them for their discounted prices.

VERY happy with the Sony MDR-EX71SLs.
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/clap.gif
Sound is more than adequate for my concert-ruined ears and the design is very smart.
The main cord is very short but comes with an extension.
The short cord reaches to the PPC in my shirt pocket and still has adequate length for free head movement.
An included mini case (slighlty larger than a CR123 battery) protects only the earbuds and makes a very tidy package for easy and safe pocket carry.
A larger case (3 x 2 x .75) holds everything including the extension.
Three sizes of earbuds are included and they are comfy.
With the smallest I can comfortably answer the phone without removing them yet they still stay in place snugly.
I could do without the chrome accents and in-line volume control would be nice but all-in-all these are exactly what I was looking for.
Maybe I'll try the Senns next as a cheap beater pair for home use.

I just bought a pr of Shure e2's today. (same as E2c only packaged for musician monitors)
Anyway, I had the same thoughts for a new portable earphone and went through the same choices as you Gjw.
The shure e2's, ety er6's or sony ex71's. long story short, I wanted the ety's but it's $98 and shure's can be found for less with haggling. I found a pr. for sale from a musician brand new for $50. (that's the same price as the ex71's)
I'm very happy with them, I don't know where the bashing came from where people say it has too much or muddy bass.
My prev. portable set was Senn PX100's and these sound so much better. The other thing people say is the mid range treble over powers the highs. Guess my music is more tilted towards the mids. (female vocals)
How much was that place selling the shure's for, I was going to get the ety's from them.

I never checked the E2y but here were their other prices.

E2/E2c $ 63.00
E3/E3c $123.00
E5/E5c $363.00

And my EX71s were only $35.
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/nana.gif