Overview:
Why is it that when you buy a MP3 player, they give you headphones that look as if they came from a Christmas cracker? Even the mighty iPods headphones are a bit basic, and the availability of even nattier headphones would indicate that Apple feel there is room for improvement.
Of course, for your average teenager, who intravenously stream their music through these less capable instruments at 100db straight into the brain there is no issue. For your more discerning listener, there are a whole range of better quality headphones for you to choose from. Today I’m looking at Cygnetts GroovePlatinum earphones, and seeing how they measure up.
Review:
Cygnett have recently released a few different earphones, the GrooveRazor, GrooveAtomic, GroovePlatinum, GrooveFusion, and the GroovePlatinum with mic. They range from £9.99 for the Razor to £19.99 for the Platinum with mic. The ones we are looking at today, the GroovePlatinum come in at a very reasonable £14.99.
The box is very much like that you would get an iPod Nano or Shuffle in, with the curved edges. So no confusion over the market that they are aming at then. Inside, you get the earphones, and some different size rubber tips. These headphones are the noise cancellation type, which sounds like they do some pretty clever technical anti-noise processing. In reality, it means the rubber tip stops extraneous sound from getting in.
With this type of headphone, it is essential that the tips make a good seal, otherwise you don’t get the full effect. And there was no issue for me to get a tip size that fitted well. As you get three sizes to choose from, everyone should be able to get a reasonable fit. The headphones are made from metal and plastic, and feel solid. They have a lttle bit of weight to them, but not too much.
The design of these headphones is slightly unusual, and has the tips angled at roughly 130 degrees from the body of the bud. For me, this makes a very comfortable fit, and I could almost forget that I am wearing them. In this, they stand out from a lot of earphones that are double the price, and it is to Cygnetts credit that they have put so much thought into the design.
Once you have them squished into your lug-holes, there is very little sound from the cable rubbing against your clothing. Something that happens on some of the more expensive headphones. The noise cancellation is OK, although you can deffinately do better. Perhaps they would suit the type that goes jogging, and could do with hearing the traffic, and the occational mugger, but for your ardent audiofile, or those who would rather not hear the Wife nagging, they might not cut the mustard.
I compared these against the Sennheiser CX300 for sound quality as they were twice the price when they were released, but have been seen arround the £15.00 mark if you look about. The box blurb says,
“High-performance earphones that support every element of your music with dynamic sound and superior bass”
And for once, it’s a bit of blurb that does actually ring true. The first thing you notice when you listen to music through the GroovePlatinum is the bass. These headphones can really do justice to any bassline. I pumped the best bassline ever through these, Michael Jacksons Billie Jean, and was very impressed with how they handled it. They provided a decent midrange, and very good bass, although at the expense of the high end.
Compared to the Sennhiser, they did suffer a bit for their dedication to bass, as they sounded a bit muddy, not quite as clear, and not quite as well rounded. As a result they loose a bit of “punch”. On their side, they needed a lot less fidling to get the air-tight seal needed for perfect playback. However, comparing them to the headphones that came with my iPod touch, and the Wifes Samsung YP-Q1, they provide so much more range and quality of sound.
Verdict:
Design: 9/10
Usability: 7/10
Features: 5/10
Value: 8/10
We Say:
A capable pair of earphones, let down a little by their over delivery on the bass. At just under £15.00 though they are a huge improvement on the stock headphones you get with most MP3 players, add to that their comfotable design, and you have something worth considering.