This was a bit of a risky purchase for me. I had read loads of reviews of the PX200 – mostly good, but some bad ones relating to sound quality.

Many of the reviews stated that the PX200s needed to go through the process of ‘burning-in’. I had never done this to any headphones, so thought I would give it a try.

When I received the PX200s I listened to one track on my mp3 player, then attached the phones to my radio on some station playing a lot of chart music. I turned the volume up higher than I would listen to music and left them attached for about 16 hours. Then I played the same track on the same mp3 player, and there was some marked difference to the reproduced range. Highs were sharp and clear, and lows were deep and not muffled.

As to people who have not found the PX200s better than the phones supplied with their mp3 players – all I can say is either get a decent mp3 player, make sure your mp3s are up to standard and experiment with the equaliser settings.

I have now found a really good balance of sound through my iRiver T30 with all frequencies being reproduced faithfully from the original mp3 file. It does take some experimenting though.

The PX200s are an excellent set of headphones, and I have compared them to the original phones supplied with the T30, friend’s headphones (which they have paid loads of cash for) and other Sennheiser products. THE PX200s ARE WELL WORTH THE PRICE. I have started to use then with my high-end surround sound system and they are awesome.

When I first got these PX200, I was a bit apprehensive of what I was going to get for the high price. The specs for these are excellent with an impressive frequency range (10-21,000 Hz), only 0.1% THD and 32 Ohms so they don't suck all your battery. What does all this mean though? It means you get a very good, crisp range of sounds, from low rumbling, but not over powerful bass, excellent midtones, and bright, crisp higher ranges. I found the bass to be good right from the start, but have read several reviews that suggest leaving them playing for a day or so to "break them in", in order to get the bass sounding its best.

Construction is good. If you're use to cup style headphones with wide headbands they may feel a bit flimsy, however the band is steel, so it will take a bit more than the accidental bash to bend them out of shape.

I was very impressed how well they block out ambient noise. I expected them to not be as effective considering they don't cover the entire ear but noticed a big difference compared to my in-ear headphones.

The foldable design is simple, and the case does offer good protection, although you have to be careful putting them back in the case as the clip latch could easily catch, and rip the soft ear padding. The left and right ear labels could be clearer.

They're not the most stylish looking headphones, of course thats not true for everyone, as different styles suit different people, but they're relatively flat, so don't stick out too far on the sides. Once you have them on for a while you forget they're there until someone tries to speak to you and you realise just how well they cut out ambient noise.

The cable is of a good length, allowing you to have the mp3 player in your trouser pocket or backpack, leaving some loose cable, without hanging down too much.

Finally, and this is the reason I gave them a 9 instead of 10, is that if you wear them walking in the outdoors, they do catch the wind, which causes an audible hiss due to the closed back insulation.

With the sound quality that lets you hear every single note on every instrument, the insulation that essentially creates a sound wall between you and the rest of the world, for yours and their sake, and comfort that means you can wear them for hours at a time, they're perfect for commuters and travellers.