Ear buds Keep Dying

[rvb123]

I have been having problems with my ear buds. The left side always muffles and fades over time and just dies. This has happened to every pair of ear buds I've owned. It seems i cant go 5 months without having to buy new ones. Can anyone suggest good quality ear buds that are cheap and wont die in 5 months?

[CrowdAds]

[xnor]

Did you own different types of buds or always the same? If it's always the left side it could be a problem with your device, e.g. DC offset in the left channel.

edit: I have some sennheiser mx360's lying around that are a year old and still work fine. Sound quality is ok, just don't expect much (deep) bass.

[Big Sky]

Could it be the way you are storing them? If you are just throwing your buds anywhere, i.e. pocket, then yeah, they are going to go bad after several months. It doesn't matter what brand you are using if you are not storing them right.

[rvb123]

I have been refraining from stuffing them in my pocket and stuff like that. I have been laying them out on a shelf so they don't accidentally get washed, sat on, etc. As for the brand, i don't buy anything specific so it cant be the brand. Although i read that the left side has a higher risk of fading out and dying because it out puts higher frequencies. I don't want to keep buying new ear buds every few months but i don't want to buy something to expensive for fear those will break. (isn't paranoia wonderful)

[El C]

Originally Posted by rvb123

left side has a higher risk of fading out and dying because it out puts higher frequencies

Never heard of a headphone where this is the case.

As long as you don't wind them tightly around your player, things should be okay. Usually I wrap them loosely around my fingers and then store them in a tin box. But if you're just laying them out on the shelf and they still go bad, then I would check your source...

[Syndrome]

If your careful with straining the cables and don't jerk on the jack or the the buds then most headphones should last years. I've used IEM's for years in EXTREME conditions and never had any fail on me.

If your using them correctly and they're still failing then maybe something could be messed up with your source.

[Danneq]

How about getting something like this:



But if you treat your earbuds gently but they still stop working, there might be something else. Perhaps your source, as others have suggested.

[rvb123]

its probably because I'm buying cheap headphones.I dont like to go over 20$ for fear those may break, maybe I'm just being paranoid, anyway can anyone suggest a good pair? Preferably something that doesn't cost to much.

[IDvsEGO]

the consistency with it being the left side is odd. It isnt anything inherent with earbud designs. Usually something like that points to usage patterns. Like my exwife's cars always pulling to the right after a couple of months. it wasnt the cars, she just banged into curbs all the time. as for suggestions, do you want only earbuds or are IEMs OK too? If you want exclusively buds, I dont have much experience but there are only a few that make anything decent. Sennheiser is the leading candidate. I have heard people compliment the JVC sets as well.

[JK98]

The cheapest earbuds are usually the least sturdy. Perhaps you should try buying something a bit more expensive. The Sony MDR-E828 for around $7 seems sturdy enough, and the sound quality isn't bad for the price.

Try not to drop them. Dropping them too many times is how I usually destroyed my earbuds. It often took me a few years to damage one enough to mess up the sound. More recently I have been more careful, and I rarely drop them.

[rvb123]

Originally Posted by IDvsEGO

the consistency with it being the left side is odd. It isnt anything inherent with earbud designs. Usually something like that points to usage patterns. Like my exwife's cars always pulling to the right after a couple of months. it wasnt the cars, she just banged into curbs all the time. as for suggestions, do you want only earbuds or are IEMs OK too? If you want exclusively buds, I dont have much experience but there are only a few that make anything decent. Sennheiser is the leading candidate. I have heard people compliment the JVC sets as well.

I would prefer ear buds because i can store them easier but IEMs might work.