Sony MDR-XD200 Review

Author's Rating:

Pros: Inexpensive, lightweight, extra long cord, circumaural design, comfortable to wear

Cons: Not for professional use or feel; Sound mode feature seems like a gimmick

The Bottom Line: 
I would not recommend these headphones for audiophiles or professional use. They serve their purpose. They would be more of a value priced at $20 a pair, not $30.

Author's Review
I just purchased two sets of these headphones last night for my home recording studio. I wanted two extra pairs of headphones for guests who come to be able to hear what's going on while someone else is recording. I purchased these headphones at Target for only $29.99 for each pair.

I purchased these headphones and I compared the specs of them with other headphones in the store at comparable prices. I liked that the frequency ranged from 10-22kHz and that they features 40 mm drivers. I also liked that they had nice long 11 foot cords so that listeners could lounge back in a chair comfortably away from my headphone amplifier. These headphones also came with a matching 1/4" plug adapter. These headphones also feature a switch on them that allows the listener to switch between "music" and "movie" sound mode. ON the box it said that the "movie" sound mode would produce greater bass response. As I compared the specs of these headphones with the other headphones in the store I decided to get these because the frequency rage was wider, they had 40mm drivers, they had a long cord, and they were circumaural (covers your whole ear).

When I got home I was able to check out these headphones. Once out of the packaging I noticed that they were very lightweight. The padding for the ears seemed nice and fluffy and comfortable to the touch. The plastic used on these headphones seemed kinda cheap though.

My next step was to plug them in and actually listen to some music through them (that's what they're for after all, right?). On my head they felt comfortable. The padding was gentle on my ears and the headphones were not heavy on my head. The "cheap" feel of the lightweight plastic played to its advantage here. After a few minutes you could not really feel that the headband was there, just the cups on the ears. I then listened to several different pieces of music through these cans. Some music sounded nice out of these headphones while other selections did not sound as great. I even played around with the sound mode switch testing the bass response between "music" mode and "movie" mode. I did not find a great difference between the two modes, hardly noticeable.

Overall I am not disappointed with my purchase but I had bought these with little time to spare. Normally I would have done research before I bought a set of headphones but I figured that I did not need to get top of the line cans for what they were going to be used for. If either (or both) of these headphones broke I would not replace them with the same model. I have owned a pair of Sony MDR-V700 headphones and I love them. I know some people complain about their design but I have never experienced any of the problems that I have read about them. Compared to these MDR-XD200 headphones they are a much greater value. The sound is a lot better and they have a heavyduty feel to them. I paid $99 for my MDR-V700 a few years ago although I often see them for around $129 these days.

I have included my Pros and Cons in this section since this site will not allow me to do them below because I use "too many words".

Pros:
-Inexpensive set of headphones for consumer use
-Lightweight design and nicely padded ear cups for comfort
-Circumaural design that covers your whole ear
-Extra long cord with 1/4" adapter

Cons:
-The plastic has a "cheap" feel to it
-The 1/4" adapter does not screw in place which allows for the connector and adapter to be easily separated even if this is unwanted
-The sound mode feature seems like a gimmick because there was no noticeable difference between "music" mode and "movie" mode