The simple fact is these Sony headphones are terrible, far, far worse in terms of sound quality than the white ones that come with an ipod. I couldn't actually believe how bad they are. Do not buy these headphones. I'm shocked that Sony can charge the price they do for them. I've never written an Amazon review and didn't really imagine I ever would until I bought these. I even asked friends to test the sound quality for me against my old ipod phones- they all agreed these Sony ones are worse. A respectable company like Amazon shouldn't be selling these.