Sony MDR-NC500D Review

I must start by urging people to ignore the other review, as I have a strong feeling that it was posted by a Bose employee (considering it is on every review site)

I chose these headphones over the Bose ones for the simple reason that it is old technology, for a very high price. Instead I chose these headphones by Sony as they are new, and encorporate the Digital Noise Cancelling technology, and also are cheaper than the Bose QC3′s.

The marketing for these headphones claim that they cancel 99% of noise. This unfortunately is not true, however, I have tested these headphones straight after a pair of QC3′s, and I found that the noise cancelling was far superior on the Sony’s. As far as the comfort levels go, I slept with these headphones on, on several occasions, and I have felt no discomfort. However, it is probably best to try these headphones before purchase, as some people complain of a high pressure exerted their ears.

The sound quality on these headphones is also decent. The only noise cancelling headphones I have found to be superior are the Sennheiser PXC450, however they are far too large, and look rather ridiculous. The bass is clean, powerful and defined, without being muddy (unlike the Bose) and the mids are silky smooth.

Overall, if you are in the same situtation that I was, deciding between the Sony’s and the Bose, then this review has been specially written for you, to tell you that these headphones are far better, (and cheaper), and also have features that the Bose do not, for example the battery pack which allows the use of AA batteries if the rechargeable one runs out.

Rating: 10 :: 2 out of 2 people found this user review helpful.

Sony MCD-NC500D

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For $400.00 you would expect something really great but I was very disappointed.

First the Carrying case it comes with is far too large. When you try to put all the components which I have to do each day, it is very annoying to find ways to organize the components so that they do not damage the headphones. The carrying case has fixtures that the ear pieces fit onto so as to protect the drivers and electronics. This fixture actually ripped the clothe covering over the driver elements. Extremely poor design! I do engineering product design work and it is clear no one thought this product through.

Now to the head phones themselves. The prior comments by other reviewers about the rechargeable internal battery is right on the mark. Donââ€Ã¢â€žÂ¢t go anywhere without the supplemental dual AA battery pack, you will need it. They wonââ€Ã¢â€žÂ¢t last long so make sure you cary around some extra AAs. That means you will also have to carry around the charger as well. All this with all its wires have to go into the carrying case ( good luck ). Then fid this very large carrying case in your briefcase or carry-on luggage.

The noise cancellation was about the same as the Bose Quiet Comfort when it works and it does not always work. I bought the Bose Quiet Comfort in the past and compared its performance against the Sonyââ€Ã¢â€žÂ¢s Digital NC500 product. Comparable music quality I would say. I listen to just about everything and I think that the quality and balance is well suited for ââ€Ã…“Classical Musicââ€Ã‚. There is clearly an AC humming noise when the phones are attached to the charger. That is inexcusable from a design standpoint; somebody forgot to put an adequate grounding plane on the devise.

When you put the device on you head you can turn on the headphones with a slider switch on the outside rim of the headphones. It is supposed to sample ambient noise and find the best of three noise cancellation to use. This  slider switch is frail and prone to not working! While you are listening ( hopefully with reduced ambient noise ) the head phone will cutout. Pressing the slider switch, sometimes several times, will restart the head phone initialization and you can continue to listen until it does it again.

Do not buy these the Sony MDR-NC500D. IT IS NOT WORTH IT.

I ended buying Shure’s SE530 noise suppression in the ear buds. WOW, Unbelievable performance!! Great design also. Shure has been in this business for a long time and it sounds like it. It’s about the same price but provides great sound isolation. I got the Push to Hear model to support the many interruptions I get.

When I went back to the Sony store to get a replacement Sony MDR-NC500D they said they could not help me. I had my receipts with me at the time. They said they do not support the product, they only sell it. I tried to contact support 2 months ago and I have yet to receive a response.

Rating: 2 :: 0 out of 0 people found this user review helpful.

I have a pair of Sennheiser PXC300 I used for years. It is quite compact and easy to carry but the noise cancellation job is just fair.

I have others but I won’t discuss them here. I just bought the NC500D. I wouldn’t rate it 10 because it is very bulky. I don’t rate it 3 either because it is comfortable and sounds good to me. I bought it with a 20% discount, that was the selling point that pushed me over. I love new technology and like to support products in that direction. I hate Sony as a company because their product reliability is just so-so, but they hook people with fancy fashionable designs. Anyway, I have tips for people who felt pressure or discomfort in their ear drums. It has 3 modes of operation. I noticed discomfort in the auto mode, I had to open the cups once in a while because I did feel some pressure discomfort to the ears. I switched it to another mode, like the salesman taught me. Not earth shattering difference in noise cancellation characteristics, that I could distinguish. But the pressure discomfort was gone and I was wearing it over 12 hours from San Francisco to Shanghai. I did not do any more research on why I had felt the pressure discomfort but I did find a work around it. As I said, Sony’s quality is more on cosmetics than in the guts. I could have a less than perfect production headphones.

Bottom line, I am pleased with it but it is really bulky just like the Bose and a pain to carry around.

Rating: 8 :: 0 out of 1 people found this user review helpful.