Koss SportaPro Stereo Headphones
See it at Amazon.com for $18.00Average Customer Rating
(4.5 out of 5)
Amazon Customer Reviews
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(4 out of 5)Good For The Price
Strait out of the packaging I hooked them up to my HDCD Denon player. Overall, they've got good highs and mids. The 6khz treble region could be a little more pleasantly recessed than it is, but the high-end never gets fatiguing at normal volumes - only when loud. I must say that the bass is a little exaggerated. It is noticeably overdone in the 30-80HZ region -- the lowest you can pretty much hear with headphones. This never *seems* to muddle the mids, which is often a problem with bass-heavy phones. It doesn't seem excessively boomy and there are oodles of low-end dynamics, which I did not expect. They remind me a lot of the Denon 950's, but without the Denon's tissy-fit highs. When I hooked them up to my Panasonic 361C portable, I was surprised even further. With Curve: Doppelganger, the bass didn't seem even the slightest bit exaggerated. Unfortunately, when I moved over to extreme low-end intensive music like Massive Attack: Mezzanine, there was still a little too much bass, but slightly less than on the Denon. Econoline Crush: The Devil You Know kind of had too much bass, but most people would probably prefer it that way. Yet, on many CD's bass is noticeably overdone. Spatially, the SportaPros have a nice open sound.
The SportaPros fold up and this is where the other caveat comes out. When using the headband behind your head, the little fold-up hook can start rubbing against my head, behind my right ear. This only happens when the band slides too far down, though. All Koss had to do was have the hook facing the opposite direction to avoid this. They're still the most comfortable headphones-that-press-on-the-ear that I've ever tried, and I do love how they fold up; it returns them to a nice, taught shape. The Koss has a good, short length of cord for portable use that also has a mute button on it.
I'll keep the SportaPros as a portable and bass-y alternative. If used with bass turned down a tad, they would be even better.
P.S. Single-entry wires are not superior. They allow out of phase cross-talk to enter the opposite ear through the shared ground wire, which is why audiophile headphones are almost always dual-entry. The classic Sony V6, for instance, has a cross-talk problem and is unsuitable for binaural applications because of this.
(4 out of 5)Really nice headphones for the price
I have to admit, I wasn't expecting much for [the price] but Ihave been thoroughly pleased with these little babies ever since I received them. Since aural satisfaction varies widely by person, I will try and give you and idea of what I look for in the phones I buy. While not a fan of super exaggerated bass, I do err on the side of slightly emphasized low down sounds, especially for phones on the go for working out, etc.. Also, I'm not looking for super high fidelity when I'm doing sit ups and biking through downtown. These headphones are light and they sound really good at high or low volumes, even with a good amount of bass. I tested them out on my current headphone killer "Fight Club". It has a lot of techno-low throb bass tracks that my Grado's, my Sharp phones that came with my Minidisc player and my Sony CD250's, start to cry about at high volumes. Try the end of track 3("What Is Fight Club?"). Although no headphone(or speaker) has ever been able to handle that track without distortion, including these, at high volumes, these were the highest I've ever been able to crank that track. These phones also sounded good with classical(Vivaldi), vocals(Otis Redding) and pop(The Police)
Now for some not so good's. These things are UGLY. I mean U-G-L-Y you ain't got no alibi, ugly(i just had to sneak in a 2nd grade insult in there.) I like old school looks(just like my jokes), my Grado's are pretty funky and I like em, but these things are a joke. The "sport" mode that wraps around the back of your heads looks pretty foolish too. My only hope is that folks won't look to closely at the gym or when I'm zipping by on my bike. Also, while comfortable on your head(they have little foam rests that help cushion the force against your ears) they have a disturbing tendency to close really tightly around your neck(either pressing on the side or on your adam's apple) if you are letting them rest there. Not a huge deal, since they fold up to fit in your pocket, but still..
All in all, I heartily recommend these. They give my Grado's a run for the money(they cost 60) and kick out a good amount of bass without sounding murky. I was also surprised at how long I could listen to them without getting "tired" of the sound. Even with my Grado's, possibly because they can be a bit bright, I get fatigued and need to rest my ears and brain for a bit. But these little guys keep on kicking out the sound. Buy them. You won't regret it. Plus they have a life time warranty, so if you get beat up for looking so incredibly dorky, you can replace them(i'm not sure if Koss covers getting your butt kicked, but it would be worth a try)
(5 out of 5)Great headphones!
I love these headphones; they've got superb sound (particularly the bass region--I didn't know headphones were capable of this kind of bass!), they're very portable, inexpensive, and the accessories & features it comes with are great. They're also very comfortable (particularly because of the foam pads that secure the phones behind/above your ears), although I have a small head and I've heard that these phones don't fit so well on bigger heads. I also like the way they look, and the lifetime warranty is a nice bonus.
(5 out of 5)Buy for the sound, NOT the look.
OK people, yes these are not the best looking headphones, but come on, get over it! Buy your headphones for the S-O-U-N-D. Let's get past the whole fashion statement thing-it's about music. Koss Sportapro's deliver in SPADES. These suckers have great bass response-very clear, crisp, and pounding in the low range. The mid's and high's sound really good as well. YOU CAN'T BEAT THESE HEADPHONES FOR THE PRICE. If you want better sound you have to go to at least [the more expensive] models, I know, I've owned many different headphones (including the predecessor of the Sportapro, the 'Portapro'). So yeah, you can pay thru the nose and get some Sony's (over-rated) or Sennheiser's, but hey; it's your money. For the most bang for the buck, get these.
I listen to everything from extreme metal to jazz and classical on these and it all sounds great. The extended cord length and mute button are also nice extras. Also, if you really don't want to talk to someone, just put on some outlandish music loudly-the design allows a good deal of sound to emmanate from the speakers. These phones 'breathe' if you know what I mean. Yet they deliver high quality sound into your ears. They sound great at all volumes. They are light, and the adjustable (over the head or behind the head) headband is really nice. Who says Koss doesn't care about fashion!? All of you who worry about your hair can simply flip the headband back and avoid disturbing your follicles.
Highly recommended.
(4 out of 5)no more bad hair days
IF YOU WORK IN RADIO OR ARE A DJ AT YOUR LOCAL CLUB,YOU WILL ENJOY THE BASS RESPONCE IN THESE LITTLE WONDERS.THE FIT IS GOOD AND TIGHT,THE ONLY THING,IF YOU NEED IT,THE CORD COULD BE A LITTLE LONGER,BUT IF YOU ARE ON THE GO ,GO GET THESE LITTLE WONDERS.