V-Moda Crossfade LP headphones review

So a while back I wrote an article about the announcement of the V-Moda Crossfade LP’s (which you can read here) where I made a wild stab in the dark about the sound quality of those headphones. As it turns out a lovely PR lady on behalf of V-Moda read it and kindly offered to ship me over a pair for review, this is that review and you should read on to find out what I thought about the Crossfade’s looks, sound quality and pricing.

Review: Style, build quality & comfort

Let me begin by stressing that personal taste is exactly that, and my opinions are entirely my own. With that said, the headphones I was shipped arrived trimmed in white leather, white plastic and chrome accents. Now, I’m still of the belief that these are not the best looking headphones in the world, not by a long shot, although I do prefer my headphones to not stand up and scream that I own expensive equipment but they’ve certainly found a few fans in those that have seen me testing so naturally your own milage will vary.

One thing I can not get my head around is that on the side of these headphones are three small slits which seem to do nothing but let out large amounts of noise, as well as revealing to the world what you are listening to. You’d better just hope people enjoy listening to the same music as you (don’t worry, you’ve got great taste).

Personal taste aside however I’m happy to report that build quality is absolutely top notch, the headphones feel spectacularly built and the chrome is rock solid if not a gigantic fingerprint magnet, the headphones ship with several pairs of cables, each wrapped in a delicious Kevlar coating which makes them super tough and hard to tangle (I’m a very big fan) so whether you’re at the mixing desk or listening to music on the go the supplied headphone attachments should sort you out (there’s also a cable with an in-line mic and remote for iPhones and their ilk, it works as advertised). Comfort levels are also great, they fit well over the head and weigh just about the perfect amount for long periods of listening and I had no strain at all after a full days use.

Sound quality:

Moving on from build quality I have less warm news about the sound quality of these here headphones. The press release is quick to stress that these ‘phones were developed alongside DJ’s for three years before they hit the market to get the sound just so and on that front you can really tell, the bass on the Crossfade’s is spectacular. It booms and woops away in the background and listening to N.W.A, Dr Dre’s The Chronic, Lil Wayne’s A Milli or really any sort of rap, dance or dubstep sounds brilliant came. Of course, that bass is also the main problem.

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I enjoy my headphones extremely neutral, I want my music to sound as it did as it came out of the mixing desk and how the artist wished me to hear it, and with the Crossfade’s I never got that. Sure, the sound stage is nice and wide and instruments can usually be picked out very clearly (at the high and low ends) but the midrange is squashed and uncomfortable. Listening to many records the bass simply overpowered everything in the midrange, I’m talking drums and guitar here, they became compressed and ugly while the highs soared loudly over the top. These were clearly made for dance music and I’d advise stearing clear of them if you’re looking for something that can handle a wide range of musical tastes.

Pricing:

The Crossfade’s come in at $200, around the same as say… the Audio Technica ATH-CK10, which pound for pound are absolutely flawless, there are also many over ear competitors in this range that audiophilles would murder you for if you didn’t purchase them. It all comes down to what you really need, if you spend most of your time in clubs mixing, then these are probably going to be great for you.

Wrap up:

To say I didn’t enjoy these headphones would be a lie, because for certain types of music they were a real blast and the build quality, accessories and comfort level are great but spending a week using them none stop I couldn’t deal with the fact that the midrange was so small. What started out as a nicely packaged well built pair of headphones fell to an artificial feel in comparison to my Denon’s and that irked me so much that I found myself staring at them longingly on the desk, just willing them into my ears. Just like the looks of the Crossfade’s, the sound quality seems equally as divisive.

Rating: (6.5/10)