Today we’ll be taking a look at a kind of earphones I’ve never used before: ones with a fabric cable *gasp*.

I know, it doesn’t sound like a big deal at all, but after having used the thick rubber cables of the Shure SE210’s for over a year this simple change is a very welcome one. The evils of rubber have taken their toll on my life and I’ve had to deal with the horrors of untangling curled wires, and … well, ok that was about it. The Vibe Duo from V-Moda promised to solve this problem and sound awesome at the same time – and all I had to do was open this brown box! How could I refuse?!

Design

I’m in love with what V-Moda did with this set of earphones. It’s a great blend of plastic and metal for the basic design, and they didn’t go overboard with the bling factor here. The earpieces themselves are very small and I could wear them comfortably while lying down, so it’s a breeze to fall asleep to music nowadays.

I admit I was a little let down at first with the plastic design of the in-line controls to play/pause music, but they’re actually very sturdy. When you tap or hold the plastic it doesn’t "feel" cheap or too thin, and that’s what counts most in my book.

The mic is on the other side of the in-line controls along the right earpiece, so it’s pretty much always in place and ready for incoming calls. There’s also a small plastic clip along the cable so that you can fasten the earphones to your lapel or shirt, but I haven’t really found a need for it.

I’ve been using Vibe Duo for the past three or four weeks alongside a couple of other earphones and they’re my favourite in pretty much every category except isolation. The black fabric cable is a fantastic "feature" that I think more headsets should adapt: it’s lighter and also far more compact than the rubber-enclosed variety. A friend of mine warned me about the cables freezing over in cold weather, but I haven’t experienced any problems so far in the dead of Canuck winter. I hope his experience was just a fluke :X

When I need to protect the headset from the cold I can easily wrap it up and put it right into the Waterfield Smart Case for my iPhone. The pocket on my smart case is pretty small, but I can fit a micro pen and this headset in there without a problem.

What’s more, the length of the cable is pretty much perfect. It’s about as long as your standard iPhone headset cable, which means it reaches from your head to your hip with just enough slack to allow you to move freely, but not so much that you’re getting snagged on every jutting object you encounter while walking around. The wires are also short enough that wrapping them up and unravelling them is ridiculously easy. When I want to use them I just take them out of my smart case and hold both of the earpieces and let the rest of the cord just drop. I can’t do that with my Shures (they’re too thick and long).

The last design element I’d like to cover is the 3.5mm jack. It sounds like a small thing, but this can be a big deal if you’ve ever used a case with any kind of flip cover. If you’ve got a jack with the wire going straight up then it can interfere with the functionality of a flip case. Some can also be too hard to pull out or push in. The Vibe Duo has a pretty cool design here, going halfway between the standard vertical and horizontal jack designs and situating the cable at an angle. Yeah, that sounds confusing so here’s a picture of what I’m talking about.

Having that flat top means it’s easy enough to push the earphones into the iPhone (it fits into the recessed iPhone 2G just fine, by the way), although it’s still a little tall. I’d have preferred it if V-Moda had shaved a few mm off the height of the jack so that it was more compact (like the rest of this headset design). I know there’s a Vibe Duo 2 out now, so maybe it’s different in that model .

[Edit – I got this set of headphones from our JAMM Store and these apparently have a better 3.5mm jack than older sets of Vibe Duos. Phew! – referencing Gizmodo post on “suicidal headphone jack”]

Carrying Case

I prefer to carry the headphones in my smart case as I mentioned earlier, but the default Vibe Duo case is no slouch. It’s a small, black leather case with the brand name on the front. I initially found it very difficult to open until I realized the clever little design element: squeeze the two ends at the top and the thing pops open and forms a little circle. This is probably the best pouch I’ve ever used and these little things really go a long way towards a great user experience.

The microphone

The voice quality isn’t going to shock anybody, but the headset mic sounds almost as good (or as bad?) as the iPhone’s own mic. It’s also very light so it’s comfortable to talk with the headset on. It works as advertised, ’nuff said.

Sound

I love the music on my iPhone, but I love it even more when I’m using the Vibe Duo to play all of it. The headset has a very rich sound with a bass level that’s just perfect for my ears. I don’t want an earthquake in my ear lobe, but I do like to have that "oomph" that regular earbuds just can’t provide. The in-ear design of the Vibe Duo allows for that air-tight seal to form so that you can actually hear bass when there’s noise around you (i.e. the subway) without turning the volume to max and ravaging your ears. It’s not the best or deepest isolation I’ve had in a headset, but the balance of bass vs. clarity of sound is fantastic — especially considering the price tag.

Tip selection

I also like in-ear headphones because they usually give you a choice about how the fit will feel. The Vibe Duo comes with two different tips in various sizes. I prefer the thicker, frosted silver tips over the soft, black ones because their isolation is better.

Conclusion

If any of my friends asked me about what headset to buy for their iPhone or iPod I’d point them straight to our JAMM store to pick up a set. The fabric cable is a real boon to the overall design, and I can’t think of any other headset or headphones I’ve used that have been so simple to use while sounding so good.

What I liked:

• fabric cable is awesome, ridiculously compact, doesn’t tangle as much
• great, balanced sound with a bass that doesn’t send ripples down my face as music plays
• perfect cable length

What could use improvement:

• 3.5mm jack could be a bit smaller

You can pick up your own V-Moda Vibe Duo for $99.95 at our very own JAMM Store!

Be Sociable, Share!

• 

Related posts:

1. Review: V-Moda Vibe II headset for iPhone/iPod
2. Huzzah, my updated V-Moda Vibe II iPhone headset arrived!
3. Review: V-Moda Vibe Earphones. Hear Your Music The Way It Was Intended.
4. Recommended – Gizmodo Roast – Mvox Duo
5. V-Moda headphones aren’t playing nice with my 3GS