Sennheiser HD 4.30
ELEGANT AND ALRIGHT.
THE SENNHEISER HD 4.30 headphones are a tidy-looking pair of cans with a flattering black or white finish sporting a minimalist trim and little branding. Sennheiser has a reputation for producing deceptively durable workhorses, and the lightweight build lends heavily to their incredible comfort, especially for extended use. They also fold up into a neat portable bundle and sport a detachable cable (with in-line remote), although the lack of indicators and a stiff connection make it difficult to align and insert the cable, which essentially negates the boon entirely. While the bass response is tight, punchy and doesn’t overwhelm, a good amount of the mids and highs seem to have a tinny quality which leaves them feeling squashed. On the flipside, this makes for some good bass separation and, for genres like rap and hip-hop where there is almost an exclusive focus on the bass and mids, this clarity works well. They fare all right for this price range but feel rather plasticky, so it’s definitely worth forking out the extra few dollars for AudioTechnica’s M50x.