MartinLogan Mikros 70: Affordable earphones from high-end brand
Following in the footsteps of Bowers & Wilkins, high-end speaker manufacturer MartinLogan enters the consumer headphone market.
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MartinLogan is known for making high-end speakers, so it came as a little bit of a surprise when I saw that the company's just-announced Mikros 70 reference in-ear headphones were priced at a fairly modest $149.95.
I haven't tried the earphones out but MartinLogan describes them as, "Inspired by the sonic clarity and detail of our legendary electrostatic speakers and designed by MartinLogan's in-house team...[These] headphones deliver [the] realism, richness, and purity of sound that MartinLogan's discerning customers have come to expect."
According to the specs, the Mikros 70 body is constructed from black anodized solid aluminum and sealed with metallic hyperblack end caps to isolate ambient noise. The headphones come with five different eartips (three sizes of bulb tips and two sizes of flange tips) and also feature an Apple-friendly in-line remote/microphone that controls volume, play/pause, and track selection.
The company notes that the remote and microphone also function with a variety of smartphones, digital media players, and similar devices with a standard 3.5mm four-conductor socket. However, in our experience that functionality is more miss than hit.
Martin Logan isn't the first high-end speaker manufacturer to enter the consumer headphones market. Bowers & Wilkins, which was also known for its high-end speakers until recent years, now has a line of three models of headphones along with a line of iPhone/iPod speaker docks.
The Mikros 70 headphones are shipping at the end of July with the aforementioned MSRP of $149.95. Will let you know just how good they are when we get our hands on a review sample.