SoundMAGIC PL30 Earphones in Black
Posted by Notcot on Sep 13, 2010 in Portable Sound & Vision |
Product Description
SoundMAGIC PL30 In-Ear Sound Isolating Earphones. Highly accurate in-ear monitor (IEM) earphones offering superb clarity and detail. The SoundMAGIC PL30 is a superb earphone with excellent sound quality and comfortable in-ear fit. The PL30 from SoundMAGIC delivers well balanced sound quality at a price point that is hard beat. Designed to fit snug in the ear, the PL30 provides a professional fit with the cable running over the ear to keep the earphones well attached on the ears and reduce cable microphonic noise to an absolute minimum. Robustly built and with cable strain relief designed to deal with the daily commute or sports use, the SoundMAGIC PL30 is a well made earphone designed for every day use.
- SoundMAGIC PL30 In-Ear Sound Isolating Earphones
- Excellent Accuracy and Clarity.
- Comfortable Design with Over Ear Cable Fit System.
- Includes Silicone Ear Tips in Single and Double Flange Design, Carry Case and Cable Wrap
I was searching for some good value earphones to replace these Shure Se210 Sound Isolating Earphones- Black (my review of which explains why I wanted something different) and found the PL30s. I did some further research and found that the SoundMAGIC earphones have been raved about on Asian and American forums for their incredible sound for the money. I was still a little dubious as they are a little known Chinese brand, but for the money I thought they were worth a try.
Ordered them from HiFi Headphones (based on Seller Ratings) on Friday afternoon and received them Tuesday morning. The packaging is good, looks a bit dated and the manual is just a sheet of A4, but you get plenty of accessories and the earphones themselves look good. The cable is thinner than the Shures, the same as most other earphones, but I’ve found that this does not necessarily mean it is inferior (again see SE210 review). The earphones themselves are well built; the strain relief and bass knobs both feel good quality. The over the ear guides are softer than I thought they would be and are comfortable, even worn with glasses, they also do an excellent job of stopping microphonic noises, which (like any In-Ears) are loud otherwise. The tips are decent quality; there are small, medium, and large in black and grey (subtlly different) and one size foam and double flange. It didn’t take long to find the tips that fit the best (double flange in my case). The PL30s are light and very comfortable and provide decent isolation, although definitely not as much as the Shures (which are very good for this).
The PL30s are quite easy to drive and straight from the box they sound good; the soundstage is much wider than any other In-Ears I’ve heard and the separation is excellent. Initially the highs are a bit harsh and the bass is a bit weak, however after about 20 hours burn in (I left mine running some pink noise one night and then a selection of music for another) they really start to sound good. The Shure SE210s are available for £70 and have a RRP of £125, but the PL30s sound much, much better. On the Clear Bass setting, that they come supplied in, bass is just right (not too heavy or bleading into the mids) and is lovely and crisp. The Extended Bass setting makes a noticeable difference, although it is less clear (unsuprisingly), and if you can crank up the bass on your equalizer the PL30s can certainly deliver. The mids are probably the best part of the sound; very clear with brilliant separation (acoustic guitar sounds fantastic) and the highs are nice and clear too. Overall the sound quality of the PL30s is way above the price point, I’ve read that other reviewers have found them as good as Shure SE310s which have a RRP of £210 and I can easily believe it.
I did not expect to be this impressed with the PL30s, I also didn’t expect to have to transfer all my MP3s to my player again; the PL30s highlight the short comings of my previously excessive compression (I’m even picking up some clipping on a couple of albums, which I hadn’t heard with the SE210s at all).
In conclusion, the PL30s are amazing value for money; although they don’t just sound great for the money, they sound great fullstop.
Rating: 5 / 5
I took a punt on the SoundMAGIC PL30 and to be honest I wasn’t expecting much. How wrong I was! The PL30 is very well made and sounds like an earphone that costs a lot more (I also have some higher end IEM earphones, e.g. UE Super.fi 5 Pro and Sennheiser IE8).
With the earphones in your hand you would be mistaken for thinking the PL30 is manufactured by one of the big name earphone brands, e.g. Sennheiser, Shure, etc. SoundMAGIC have also just released the PL50, which looks very interesting.
The SoundMAGIC PL30 is a really nicely made earphone with good strain relief on the cables. The over ear cabling system works very well and keeps the earphones securely attached even while running.
The PL30 is a great earphone for the money. Highly recommended!
Rating: 5 / 5
These earphones are terrific, absolutely to be recommended. Nothing I have heard at anywhere near the price can look at them
Rating: 5 / 5
I’ve had these for a few weeks now and thought they were pretty good to start with- they only slipped out of my ears occaisionally when I was really going for it at the gym and with my last headphones I would spend almost my entire gym session trying to ram the buds back into my ears- it was a nightmare.
These have gone up in my estimations since I took the time to expermeint with the numerous earbuds it comes with and also the detachable ear grip loops. I’m now using the “double buds” that resemble the ones that come with Klipsch headphones (which were actually the last set of earphones I owned till one ear packed up) and I’ve put on the removable ear grips and now understand why these earphones are called SoundMAGIC. The sound is up there with makes like Klipsch and Shure- in fact I would say I can hear more subtle elements in songs that I’ve never heard before and they are a FRACTION of the cost. Admittedly I did purchase them from somewhere else which had them much cheaper than here. And these in ear headphones actually stay in your ear- like magic. I’ve NEVER had earphones feel so secure and so comfortable.
I’m converted- I don’t think I’m ever going to buy any other earphones. It puts all those expensive brands to shame and are WELL worth the small investment.
Rating: 5 / 5
Great for: Ergonomics & comfort; clarity; detail; Mechanical noise…conducts virtually no cable scraping or knocking noises to the ear (when cable looped over/behind ear).
Average for: External noise insulation; base versus mid-frequency balance.
Poor for: Nothing!
Summary: Beautifully clear, sound is awesome on base-heavy songs, but on your average pop track the mid-range and treble is a bit bright and can be uncomfortable. Even with the base turned up (I am sceptical as to whether anything is conected to the base controls)! Eminem was even painful.
Rating: 3 / 5