When I’m listening to music, sound quality is vital. I want to hear songs the way they were meant to be heard, clear, deep and vibrant. When you’re listening to music on your laptop or your phone, the built in speakers just aren’t going to cut it. I spent a long time looking for the perfect pair of headphones for my needs, and I found them in the Sennheiser HD 380 Pro. They were great for quite a few years, but now it’s time to upgrade. What’s better than my $299 studio headphones? I’m on the hunt to figure that out, and you’re coming along with me. I had the opportunity to kick off the search by trying out the V-Moda Crossfade M-100.
If the design of your headphones is important, you’d be hard-pressed to find a pair that look better than the M-100. They look as solidly constructed as they feel, with a brushed metal exterior, a well-padded (but still fairly light) headband, and a kevlar-reinforced cable. Holding a pair of V-Moda Crossfade M-100s in your hands, you’ll notice that they feel as sturdy as they look, which isn’t always the case, even with more expensive headphones.
I mentioned the cable and the comfortable headband, but V-Moda really spared no expense when it came to adding features and details to these audiophile level headphones. The hinges on both sides allow you to fold the M-100s up and put them into their sick looking clamshell exoskeleton case. The exterior of the case is made with material that looks and feels like something Batman’s suit would be made from. You can tell this case is made to stand up to whatever you throw at it. The headphones themselves sport dual inputs that allow you to connect headphones with your friends so they can hear what you’re listening to. The included shareplay cable makes it easy for someone else to plug in and share your music. The other cord sports a microphone that, in my tests, sounded clear and worked well for phone calls.
Another interesting feature of the V-Moda M-100 is the ability to customize the metal shields on the outside of the headphones. For an additional fee of $25, you can get your logo or artwork laser engraved on the shields. It’s a cool touch that just makes your headphones that much more unique. If that’s not your thing, you can keep it simple and stick with a logo-less look.
The important question – how do they sound? The M-100 packs a wallop with its lows – the bass is full and thunderous when it needs to be, without being as overwhelming as other similar headphones. With the songs I listened to, I felt like the mids were solid, but seemed a bit farther away than I was used to. Highs are right where they need to be. Everything seemed to work well together – nothing dominated so much that it detracted from the listening experience.
I tested the M-100s at a high volume using an Apogee Duet 2 as an amp (though you don’t have to use an amp with these) on songs from Run the Jewels 2, Nine Inch Nails’ Hesitation Marks, and the new Father John Misty album, and I greatly appreciated the sound quality of the first two albums with these headphones compared to the last one. I’m pretty sure they were made for that kind of music, anyway.
If you’re looking for a pair of headphones that offer deep, rich sound without going overboard, you’ll dig the V-Moda Crossfade M-100. I was really impressed with their look and construction, the ability to customize them, and of course, the way they enhance more complex or bass-heavy music. If you’re looking to take a step into higher quality audio, and you don’t want to go the Beats route, you’ll like what you get out of the M-100. Pick up a pair for right around $300 at V-Moda.com.
