Home > Consumer Reviews > Philips SHE9850 In-Ear Headphones with Advanced Acoustics

Let me state up front that I prefer over-the-ear headphones, such as the Sennheiser 595s, as compared to any in-ear headphones in the two important categories of sound quality and comfort. (I will not even discuss earbuds, such as those that come with portable devices, since they are so poor at reproducing sound, that they remind me of listening to old transitor radios.) However, for travelling or other portable purposes, in-ear headphones are your best bet for good sound from portable devices.

I compared the Philips headphones to my Ultimate Ears Super.fi Pro 5 headphones, which like the Philips headphones, are the in-ear type and come with plastic and foam covers. I must have uncommon or misshapen inner ears, because neither the Philips nor the Ultimate Ears headphones work in my ears with any of the plastic covers. The headphones immediately fall out or do not provide a tight seal, which is the most important determinant of good sound with in-ear headphones. Only the foam covers (which are similar to the ones used by sleepers seeking to reduce ambient noise) seem to provide me with a tight lasting seal. However, I should mention that even when I use the foam covers with either brand, I cannot listen to music for more than an hour at a time, because I feel a distinct, unfomfortable inner ear pressure that is at times painful.

The UE headphones have two drivers as compared to the Philips's one. As a result, the sound quality of the UEs excels in all aspects: bass, midrange and highs, soundstage and detail, but the Philips were certainly acceptable in these categories. I was able to purchase my UEs from Amazon last year for $150.00. Now they are closer to $200, which makes the Philips headphones a good value.

I stronly recommend that those persons considering the Philips in-ear headphones attempt to use those of a very understanding friend who doesn't care about one's ear wax, since the inherent difficulty of in-ear headphones in achieving a tight seal for accurate sound reproduction and not creating inner ear pressure over an extending listening period are essential issues that one must consider before purchasing these headphones.

...I'm no psychotic gear-driven audiophile, I'll admit. But I'm a bonafide music lover who really appreciates clear, evenly-balanced sound reproduction. That said, it seems like the iPod has really gotten us used to crappy, low-resolution audio, blasted through those tinny, uncomfortable headphones.

While the compression rate of the MP3 format is partially to blame, I do think a good set of headphones (or "cans" as they are sometimes known!), improve the listening experience immensely. And these are particularly fine: clear, spacious sound, and a design that blocks out unwanted noise quite well.

They come with an array of sleeves (the part that actually goes into your ear), mostly rubber-like ones that are quite comfortable. But a special mention must be made of the memory-foam sleeves...they are made of the same material as earplugs, and they are absolutely brilliant at blocking ambient noise while being extremely comfortable.

So, for iPod listening, or other portable devices, these are a huge improvement over standard headphones, and well worth the investment!

Philips is not a name I typically associate with high end headphones. I have owned very inexpensive Philips headphones in the past and was happy with them. These high end headphones exceeded my expectations.

These headphones are extremely light weight. My other pair of high end headphones, the Shure E2c-n, are heavier and bulkier than the Philips.

To test the quality of the Philips, I listened to the same songs using both the Philips and the Shure headphones. Both headphones seemed to produce similar sounds. Since I'm not an audiophile, I also had my friends test both pairs of headphones and one liked the Shure headphones better while the other preferred the Philips. Both said the sound quality was similar between the two pairs.

I noticed a slight hiss while listening to classical music using both headphones, but the hiss was not intolerable(for the casual listener) in either pair.

I found the Philips headphones to be extremely comfortable in my ear. They expand in the ear canal in a similar manner to ear plugs. The headphones did not fall out of my ear, but they also did not feel overly tight.

The Philips SHE9850 are a very nice pair of headphones. I recommend them for anyone looking for an extremely light weight pair of headphones that produce a nice quality sound.

I own a lot of earbuds, a couple of over-the-ear headphones, and in-ear earphones, and these are now my favorite.

They are very good-looking, sleek, with a sturdy feel. Included is an attractive metal carrying case, about the size of a deck of cards. The sound is crisp, and as they call it in the description, "transparent." I don't exactly know what transparent sound means in a technical sense; all I can say is that I understand when I listen with these. When properly inserted in the ears, the effect is of having no earphones at all. You don't "hear" the earphones, you only hear the music.

I have not ever found a really comfortable earbud or in-ear set until these. They come with three sets of silicone rubber caps and one set of memory foam caps. I was happy with the fit of the first silicone caps I tried. Very comfortable and easy to get a good seal, effectively shutting out most ambient noise. I was able to enjoy the music from my iPod Touch in the midst of background household noise.

I listened to a lot of different kinds of music, from quiet to loud and everything in between, and enjoyed the crisp, clean sound delivered by this set. They sound every bit as good as my more expensive Bang & Olufsens, and they even look every bit as sleek.

Although there are a lot of earbuds you can buy for less money, these seem very reasonably priced for the value they deliver.

These are good earphones for the price, but I had a major problem with the sound leaking out the back of the earphones. I think for the price, the sound quality is good. The problem I have with these earphones is when I listen to the earphones at my normal volume everyone can hear what I am listening to. I bought in ear headphones so I wouldn't disturb other people with my music. People commented that they could hear my music when I was walking down the street. They could hear everything from a five foot radius. This is a problem that I think Philips needs to fix before I consider another pair of their earphones.