OVERVIEW
What
Nokia is to phones, Sony is to music devices. More or less. And unlike
Nokia, which got complacent, Sony is trying to ensure that its name
continues to shine into the headphone and speaker market by fast
adapting itself to the changing demands of consumers.
Over
the last one year, Sony has launched several new headphones in India,
most of them part of its Extra Bass line. This line deals with the
high-definition audio, something that more consumers have started
noticing. The MDR-100ABN is
the second headphone in the series. Priced at Rs 21,990 the 100ABN is
definitely not cheap. But it is feature-rich and offers technologies
like the digital noise cancellation and wireless. It sure looks fairly
compelling .
DESIGN AND BUILT QUALITY
For long, Sony has relied on the same headphone design. All its headphones, Extra Bass or otherwise, look similar more or less. The "h.ear on" headphones hence come across as something fresh, something new compared to what the company has offered until now. The design of 100ABN is simple but beautiful in its own understated way. The smooth curves, body with faux metal finish, and soft cushions make it a sight to look at. It is elegant and minimalist and if you are into this sort of design, you will love the 100ABN.
The body is made of plastic although Sony has given a faux metal finish to it. Also, the headband, under its plastic layer, has a piece of metal which gives it durability and required rigidity. The bottom of headband is covered with a soft leather-like cushion. The whole design of the headphone is very good. It sits lightly on the head and even after wearing it for hours we didn't feel any fatigue. Although, we also feel that it could have been due to the somewhat loose fit. We think that clamp force could have been higher to make the headphone fit more snugly. If you have small head, you may find these headphones a bit loose.
PERFORMANCE
I picked the MDR-100ABN with a lot of anticipation after the recent experience with Sony headphones. This one reminded me of the experience I had with the 950BT to some extent. Compared to the 950BT, in the MDR-100ABN you get digital noise cancellation, which is a technique used to generate reverse sound waves to cancel the ambient noise .
The 100ABN is capable of handling a varied range of genres efficiently. I tried the usual genres like Rock and Metal. The sound output was good, with balanced bass and treble. I didn't notice the distortion in sound that usually happens with Metal at higher volume.Same goes for Rock. The 100ABN gives a balanced output, which means no flat notes, no excessive bass, and no added noise.
The headphone does exceptionally well with mellow tune, especially if you keep volume level low. For example, with Indian classical music the 100ABN does a good job of maintaining the required sweetness of a Sitar while adding the chirpy higher notes of a Flute.
VERDICT
The MDR-100ABN is priced at Rs 21,990, Which is a lot considering there are rivals with bigger names in the category in the same price range. But when it comes to headphones, there is often a lot of personal preferences involved. Overall, we feel that the these are better pair of cans than the Bose Sound link 2 , which has a similar price. The MDR-100ABN offers a more balanced sound, along with a bit of extra bass and digital noise cancellation. The Bose one meanwhile will appeal to those who like a bit more sound stage and color in their music.
The bigger problem for the MDR-100ABN could be Sony's own MDR-XB950BT, which is fabulous for its price. If you are looking for a fresh and good design along with great music experience, get the 100ABN without thinking twice. But if you are in mood to save some money and are okay with a stale design, XB950BT will do fine unless you don't like bass.
GOOD DAY !
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