Review: Sony MDR-X10 Headphones

The concept of "personal music" has become so embedded in modern culture that we no longer even entertain the idea of not pocketing our music and piping it directly into our brains.

For those of us minted prior to the iPod age, the Sony brand is synonymous with creating and laying that foundation with its Walkman line of portable players. Clearly, much has changed since the early '80s, and Sony has been leapfrogged by many competitors in portable music. But that doesn't mean the big "S" doesn't know a good thing when it hears it. That’s why the company has teamed up with British mega-producer and singing-show lightning rod Simon Cowell to develop the MDR-X10, a premium on-the-ear headphone.

The industrial design of these "X Factor" headphones, all matte and polished silver polycarbonate, is thoughtful and aesthetically pleasing. However, the ear pads on the X10 are rather deceiving – they're not hollowed out like most bigger cans on the market. Instead, they're flat, but when placed over your head, the cushy memory foam envelopes your ear without significantly altering the sound-channeling shape of the ear's cartilage. This design creates an excellent acoustic seal that markedly diminishes the incursion of outside ambient sound. Another pleasing design element is the removable, single-sided flat cable that comes in two flavors – one is a plain straight cable with a mini phone jack, and the other is an iGadget-friendly cable with an in-line mic/remote assembly.

The X10s are tuned to accentuate the predominant sounds in popular music. And straight out of the box, the proprietary 50-millimeter driver pumps the bass and treble just the way you'd expect. That initial listen demonstrated to me how headphones with boosted bass often overshadow the subtleties of the midrange elements.

However, to get the truest impression of a speaker's sound, whether it's inside a headphone or a big wooden enclosure, they need to be "burned in" for 100 hours or so. It's a simple process: Just connect them to your audio source, turn the music up to about six on the dial, and walk away for four days.

That's exactly what I did. When I returned to Cowell's cans, they were greatly improved. The midrange frequencies in the soundstage were much more defined. The bass and treble were still holding court, but the mids were definitely clearer and made space for themselves in my ears. The post-burn-in sound was deep, rich, full and well defined – much more balanced overall, and closer to what I'd expect from a set of headphones that costs $300.

Simon Cowell's personality on television is definitely polarizing, but his success at discovering and launching musical talent is well documented. Sony's development partnership with the notoriously nit-picky producer has actually served this product well.

Andrew Sivori, Sony's VP of personal audio, tells me Cowell was involved in the development of the headphone's sound signature throughout the entire process.

"He gave fantastic feedback," Sivori says. "He listens for a living, and he's been incredibly successful at it."

It looks like Sony and Cowell may have another hit on their hands. The X10s are comfortable, they kick out some great sound, and they look great doing it.

WIRED Ear pads are plush and comfy. Deep, rich, dynamic sound. Comes with two replaceable flat cords and a 1/4-inch plug for an audiophile sound system. They fold up for portability. High-quality protective case.

TIRED Price is steep. Headband could use a little more padding at the top of the head. Tough to simultaneously wear glasses.