Sony MDR-SA1000 DJ Stereo Headphones Reviews

• Shame on Amazon: these are not "DJ" Headphones

  
  By A2WBK3Y2WLJR41 on 2007-01-03
  As a club and mobile DJ for 20 years I have used several brands of pro-DJ headphones. After trying some other names I decided to go back to Sony. Typically Sony headphones made for pro DJs have the letters "DJ" in the name, so when I found these on Amazon I assumed the name of the headphones were "Sony MDR-SA1000 DJ." WRONG! Nowhere on the packaging, headphones, or the literature does Sony call these "DJ" headphones.... and that is because they are NOT DJ headphones! Contrary to the Amazon review, these were NOT made with DJs in mind. Sony engineers know that thin plastic connections and delicate exposed wires like the ones on these would not last a month in the typical jock's gear bag. Sony knows that DJ headphone cups should rotate to allow for resting on the shoulder during a live mix. Sony knows DJs don't need a "lightweight frame structure" and they also know that a straight cord means a DJ in a tight booth is probably more likely to trip on it then worry about it damaging records or "fine equipment!" (What DJ gets his/her headphone cords near their vinyl in the first place??)
  
  I strongly feel that Amazon should remove the misleading and misinformed DJ references from this review. At the very least they should remove the "DJ" from the product name because it is NOT part of the product name.
  
  I am sending these back without listening to them. Non-DJs should read other reviews for information on performance and sound quality. DJs should move on and look at other headphones... and make sure you double check that those headphones truly are for DJs!
  
  

• Quality sound with the SA1000...but a few concerns

  
  By AUX9KZUUB3YCE on 2005-06-16
  A good set of headphones from Sony.
  
  The Pros
  
  This product has a full sound spectrum with realistic reproduction of classical music.
  
  The headphones cushions rest on the head instead of the ears, making the unit reasonably comfortable to wear for extended periods of time.
  
  The Cons
  
  The price; In Canada $299.00 from the Sony store
  
  The unit, although not heavy, is big and clunky and because of its size tends to be moved around a bit by pillows or cushions when used while lying down on a sofa.
  
  All in all a quality sound product but pricey and somewhat cumbersome. 3 1/2 stars.
  
  
  
  

• Good Sound (from the speakers)

  
  By A3J236ZN5IOWJA on 2005-10-12
  I've only used these headphones for a few hours and so far I'm happy with the sound quality and they are very comfortable. The cloth-covered cord is also a nice touch.
  
  The main drawback so far is the hinged portions of the frame are made of plastic and every time I move my head, a clicking sound is generated where plastic rubs against plastic. This occurs with even slight head movements. Even swallowing causes the clicking sounds. Hopefully this will eventually go away after some use.
  
  These headphones are replacing some older Sony headphones that had vinyl ear pads, which deteriorated over time. One reason I chose the MDR-SA1000s was because the description stated the ear pads were leather. Unfortunately, this is incorrect. The ear pads are actually made of fabric. The fabric ear pads may turn out to be durable, but vinyl is still used to attach the fabric headband to the frame and I fear that will be the first thing to go.
  
  If you can afford it, the MDR-SA5000s might be a better choice due the higher quality materials used and of course, better specs.
  
  

• Decent, but...

  
  By A2425R4QLZT5IW on 2006-02-01
  I agree with everyone else with the comfort of the headphones and the sound quality...but only one problem. If you plan to use these for gaming or casual music listening, I recommend you get something else, perhaps some a bit more sturdy like the VJ700s. The only thing that connects the headphones to the earpieces is a plastic piece which covers just a bit under half a centimeter of surface area. In other words, the only thing that that connects the ear pieces together is a piece of plastic that is about the cross-sectional area of a pencil. Unfortunately, I had these since July and they broke in the beginning of December of the same year.
  
  I contacted Sony and because I did not shell out a lot of $$, I was not able to get it repaired unless I paid 60 some dollars...
  
  Overall, stay away. These babies won't last you very long.
  
  

• GREAT HEADPHONES

  
  By A2ODJKJHEXYX1J on 2005-06-05
  Edited my Review with Extra Details
  
  Pros- Cheap, light, comfortable, great bright sound, great soundstage, great for gaming, great for music, 100% recommendation
  
  Cons- feels like it could break, cloth ear pads not leather...
  
  Details- Basically, I have the Grado Sr-60, they beat them in every part including comfort, sound, and soundstage for gaming. I use these for music as well as gaming, and enables me to easily identify direction. Not only that, but they are the most comfortable headphones I have tried. I have used them for 6 hours straight, without problems due to their large ear space, NON clamp design (unlike the Senns, which I had, 555, which hurt, had terrible soundstage for gaming, and were very dark), and relatively light weight materials. I have tried several headphones for gaming including the Senn 555, 595, 201, Eggo 66, xd-200, and none compare to the comfort, bright sound, and soundstage. I have not found a headphone other than the SA1000 that dont hurt.
  
  I cannot recommend them enough, I have had them for awhile now, have fallen from my table several times. I have also stepped on the cable, and pulled the headphone off my head without damage to the headphone several times as well. Might feel cheap, but has been very durable for me.
  
  
• Great Headphones
  By A2T45X1KPN2IW0 on 2005-08-11
  Sony's new line of high quality headphones are geat. These are replacing my pair of sennheiser's more expensive HD590s. I find the sony's more comfortable (although, when you get to the same comfort level as the Sennheisers, it does not really matter any more), and I prefer the sound. They are not *better* than the 590s, for the sound is a bit brighter, which some people do not like much at all. Anyway, just saying these are worth it. Great headphones.
  
  
• An Excellent Choice
  By A2383IHTX88VV2 on 2005-12-01
  I really wanted a good pair of headphones. I shopped everywhere & did a lot of research. I ended up buying these headphones through Amazon. I am very happy with them. A couple of points: 1) As another reviewer mentioned, the headphones do make a clicking noise when you move. I looked at them for a while and figured out that the noise comes from the joints connecting the yoke from the headband to the earphones. They are simple hinges, so I decided to lubricate them the same way you would lubricate a door hinge. You can take a paper clip or toothpick and apply a small amount of Vaseline to each hinge (there are 3 on each side). Just use a little with each application (making sure you remove the excess). After about 3 applications over a couple of days the clicking noise is gone (you may have to reapply occasionally); & 2) You are probably more interested in is the sound quality. The sound is easily comparable to the Klipsch Cornwalls I normally listen to, without the complaints from the neighbors
  
  
• Get Real
  By A2YSUI8KUC2ZXK on 2007-05-27
  Yes I agree these should not be labeled "DJ" headphones. I think that that is misleading. At the same time I do not believe that giving these 1* just because of durability in a "DJ" environment helps others. Those of you who have bought these primarily on that basis are poor consumers. Do your research FIRST. Also evaluations by those with tinker toy audio setups does not help. These are very fine headphones for the price / performance and when driven by a decent source produce very accurate sound reproduction. As for the lack in the low end range this is somewhat true, but it is very tight and accurate (I think allot of people do not know what a real low end should sound like, they are accustomed the boomy / sloppy low end produced by cheap equipment). So here is my recommendation:
  1) If you have decent audio equipment (a quality dedicated headphone amplifier and good source) these perform very well.
  2) These are an "Open Air" design. This design is used to increse the quality of the sound, but also allows exerior sounds in and some sound produced by the unit out. If this is important to you do not buy these, get a "closed / sealed" design.
  3) These are for home use. Do not buy them for travel or DJ use.
  4) Replace the original cable with a high end cable (makes these sound much better)
  5) The price / performance ratio these are hard to beat.
  6) Everyone has there own tastes preview / research before you buy!
  7) If you have low end equipment buy to match what you have. These are fairly efficient at 70ohms, but if you are using an IPOD get 32 Ohm headphones or buy a headphone amplifier.
  Hope this was helpful....
  
  
  
• Great cans
  By A3P4MJXKXR5CD3 on 2005-05-09
  Sony MDR-SA1k is the second audiophile class cans I bought after ER-6 from Etymotic. These cans are open as opposed to ER-6 which are closedin-ear monitors giving good isolation.I use these cans with a portable amplifier(DB Pro) along with Creative Nomad Zen xtra or with my laptop using Echo indigo IO external soundcard. They sound great after 150hrs of burn'in.
  
  These represent best value for the money.
  
  
• Super value. Sound stage, clear seperation, and bright
  By AVDTBVJP7LFDG on 2006-01-30
  My goal is to lower the volume and preserve my hearing. See http://www.dangerousdecibels.org/hearingloss.cfm. The Sony A1000s are much brighter and clearer the Sennheiser V500s I auditioned. First, I found that I had to break in the Sony A1000 for about 10 hours. I left my iPod on repeat at full volume. Now the bass is tighter and the over-bright highs have mellowed out. Very pleased with performance on my iPod (all MP3s ripped at 320 Kbs VBR using EAC and LAME). The forward positioning of the diaphram improves the 3-D soundstage - very clever Sony! Nice seperation on the soundstage. I am planning to buy a tube based headphone amplifier to see what these beauties can really deliver. I bought at the Sony Store in Canada for $299 CDN + 14% tax. I will return these and buy them in the US for $110 USD
  
  
• Not perfect for anybody
  By A3LWII71ZQZQ5G on 2006-11-21
  I don't know exactly who these were designed for. I'm a DJ, and tried using them for both spinning & home use. I found:
  
  Positives:
  * Great sound quality
  * Can take a lot of amplification and bass without distortion
  * Block outside noise well
  
  Negatives:
  * They're really comfortable with both earphones on, but hard to wear on only one ear! They're just not built for it!
  * They are HUGE and feel like they are going to break. They earcups are connected by a very small joint. I was too nevous to actually take them to a gig.
  * So, I thought, fine, maybe I'll just use them at home & work and get another set for gigs - but no. These headphones project sound outwards. To people in the room, it sounds like you are listening to laptop speakers.
  
  So, unless you're a studio dj who works alone, I'd go with the 700's
  
  
• Poor sound or bad luck?
  By A2TQCTVQF027NI on 2006-11-11
  I just received the Sony MDr-SA1000 and bought it directly from Amazon. I don't know if I received a fake or what but my headphones' box appeared scratched on the outside which made me question whether it was new, like the vendor claimed. Despite this, the headphone itself seemed new/mint condition.
  
  Comparing my previous experience with the Sony MDR-V700DJ, the MDR-SA1000 seems utterly lacking in the bass department. Even when I adjust my equalizer for my songs this headphone reaches nowhere near the volume and fullness of the Sony MDR-V700DJ. The bass gets completely distorted when I try to adjust the sound. The volume level it is able to reach is worse than some $30 headphones I've had. There is way too much treble in this model but what's annoying is that even with sound adjustments, this problem can't be overcome. Considering how much this headphone cost, I am totally disappointed and will buy the Sony MDR-V700DJ from a trusted vendor.
  
  Beware buyers!!!!
  
  
• The Best I've Found
  By A3RADQG5EQHLPW on 2008-02-13
  Sony MDR-SA1000 DJ Stereo Headphones
  As a musician, writer, producer and engineer for 20 years, I've used many different headphones, these are simply the best for my purposes-light and comfortable, sturdy, precise with un-colored sound, straight cord. Most importantly is the sound-very, very accurate, and secondly the comfort - circumaural(around the ear, not on the ear). I have compared them to the Sony MDR 7506, AKG K240, Senns and ATH - The most surprising difference was in the high frequency coverage-crisp and cool. I've never written a product review before so understand that I was truly impressed by these phones. They met and exceeded my expectations. Note that these phones are on the 'large' physical size, but extremely light in weight.
  
  
• I do love Sony headphones.
  By A2L51EL3WOVYWN on 2006-09-24
  Having had a pair of Sony headphones for some 16 years (until the padding finally started to fall off) I decided to keep with the Sony brand. It was a safe and very good decision as it led me to these headphones.
  
  I will keep this short. These headphones sound great, look great and feel great. You can wear these and forget you even have them on. The cord is nylon which lasts much longer then the old fashioned cords and are easy to unknot. The cord is also very long.
  
  I have no complaints with these headphones and recommend them to anyone.
  
  
• Very good headphones for home use
  By A2NJQF2UI60VGT on 2007-10-31
  These are not designed for one-ear use. They do not have the letters DJ in the name, however Sony does list them in their web-site as DJ headphones. There is no leather in these headphones anywhere.
  
  I am replacing my 20 year old Sony MDR CD1000 headphones.
  
  The SA1000's required about 10 decibles louder amplification to do a side by side comparison, so as has been stated elsewhere, you may not be happy if you are using a portable player with low volume output. However as these are more designed for home use, I suspect that will seldom be a problem.
  
  I loved wearing my CD1000s as they were very comfortable wearing for extended periods. These SA1000s seemed to be more comfortable than the current competition for the price, but not as comfortable as my CD1000s as the SA1000s tend to irritate the top of my head after a couple of hours. The CD1000s had a spring loaded leather strap holding them in place, but none of the current offerings seem to offer this setup.
  
  I do like the sound. Their lighter weight allows them to rest completely off the ears without discomfort allowing a more spacious soundstage than my CD1000s offered.
  
  The fabric cord does tend to twist up more easily than other headphone cords, however they also wind up and un-twist easier and has not been a source of irritation.
  
  If you are looking for headphones to help you imagine that you are listening to the CSO in Orchestra Hall while resting on your couch at home without spending a ton of money, then these will work very well.
  
  Followup 3 month later, my review does not change, but I wanted to point out that they sound much better and much cleaner now than then did when I first wrote this review in comparison to my CD1000s. I have read in the past that some headphones require a break-in period and this seems to be true here as well.
  
  
  
  

• Xtreme TB264DKO 264-Disc CD/DVD Case

• Sony MDR-V700DJ DJ Style Monitor Series Headphones
• Sennheiser HD-280 Professional Headphones
• Sony MDR7506 Professional Large Diaphragm Headphone
• Targus PA248U Notebook Chill Pad
• Sennheiser RS 130 Wireless Surround Sound Headphones