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General discussion

Build quality and noise cancelling of Sennheiser CX 300s

May 21, 2009 10:01AM PDT

Im wondering if they are worth the $30 on Amazon or is it better to shell out the $20 extra for either the Shure SE110s or V-Moda vibes. My primary concern is noise cancellation effectiveness (im using these as travel earbuds) and build quality as im going to be using them pretty often and i don't want them to die out as i've had a few other pairs.

Discussion is locked

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What noise cancelling?
May 21, 2009 10:29AM PDT

I looked a few times and can't see where they have such a feature.

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I mean noise-isolationg......
May 21, 2009 12:05PM PDT

Sorry, i meant noise isolating, its really easy to get the two mixed up

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isolating effectiveness...
May 21, 2009 12:56PM PDT

...is really going to depend on fit. Everyone's ears are different, so what works really well for one may not work so well for another. The only way you'll know for sure is if you try them for yourself.

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"Dying" buds depends on you
Jun 3, 2009 3:42PM PDT

And how you treat them. The CX300 isn't the most stout design out there but at $30 you really can't expect everything. But even $500 units have their own durability issues.

As for fitment, well like ktreb says, it'll all come down to your own ears. When the CX300 originally sold for $50 a few years ago I thought that they weren't bad; they fit me pretty well and for buds they sounded okay, certainly better than most toss-in earbuds that came with the MP3 players of the day. Isolation, even with my good fit, was marginal; these aren't true IEMs. They are susceptible to microphonics issues (cable noises transferring up and into your ears) and again, they aren't built like the proverbial rock.