This is my second pair of these headphones; both suffered exactly the same fate. WIthin a few months of ownership, the left channel just stopped working. No, I didn't drop them or sit on them or wash them in the washing machine by mistake -- they were either in my ears or in a drawer in my desk. If, like me, you're looking for an inexpensive pair of headphones (I use them to listen to audiobooks, so high quality audio isn't necessary) with loops to hook onto your ears ... keep looking.