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V-MODA Vibe Duo Headphones Review - In Use

By Mark Brezinski
Published on June 13, 2008
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Intro	Tour & Design
Performance	In Use
Value & Comparisons	Conclusion
Ratings & Specs


Like most in-ear headphones, the Vibe Duos are meant for use with a portable media player. As such, their cable is short, meant only to run from your ears to your pants pocket. Home theater users need not apply. As in-ear headphones, the Vibe Duos have replaceable sleeves, though the options are limited to two colors, each in three sizes. The Vibe Duos are also a headset, meaning some older media players might not be compatible with the 3-channel plug. Of course, as a headset, you can also take calls if you're hooked up to a cell phone. The only gripe we had was with the back of the ear buds. There are two parts to the back, and between them is a very thin crevasse. This slit's size makes it hard to clean out, but since nothing guards grime from entering, it'll also accrue grime buildup the fastest.

Comfort    (7.00)
Standard comfort warning: our ears, head, and opinion on comfort are probably not identical to yours. We highly recommend trying out any headphones before you buy them, if you have such an option. In the case of in-ear headphones, however, most of the time you aren't allowed to crack open the box and shove merchandise into your ears. Such is the world we live in.

We test this section by customizing the headphones until we find the apex of comfort, then wear them for an hour. We found the V-MODA Vibe Duo headphones were as comfortable as the Denon AH-C351 headphones; both were comfortable, but we were always aware we had headphones in our ears. The Vibe Duo's ear buds squeeze right inside your ear canal. Typical in-ear headphones don't protrude all the way into the ear canal, so if you're not used to the sensation it might feel a bit uncomfortable. Also, this quality might makes the Vibe Duo a bad choice for children, or adults that don't know when to stop pushing foreign objects into their ear drums.

Overall, the Vibe Duo headphones are very comfortable for a set of in-ear headphones. The sleeves shouldn't put too much pressure on your ears, both because they're very soft and malleable to begin with, but also because there's three different sizes to choose from.

Extended Use    (7.00)
Over the course of six hours, we found the headphones held up really well. Somewhere around the three hour mark you might begin to feel some slight discomfort if the sleeves were too big, so downshift to a smaller size if that's an option. Again, the Vibe Duo headphones provide a comfortable wear experience.

Cable Connectivity    (4.03)
The Vibe Duo's cord is about 46 and 1/8 inch from plug to ear bud. For those without calculators, this is just a bit over 3 feet, 10 inches. From neck split on down, the cord is just 13.5 inches. This is a typical length for a portable set of in-ear headphones, meaning they'll stretch from your ears to front pocket, but not much further.

See the three black bands? This could spell T-R-O-U-B-L-E for older media players.

A word to the savvy consumer: the plug on the Vibe Duo is not your standard 1/8-inch affair. Since this is a headset, the plug actually has three connectors on it: left channel, right channel, and microphone. While you won't notice a thing on iPods, iPhones, and many newer media players, there are a few that might not support this connection entirely -- especially older media players. This means your moldy old 8GB Creative Zen Microphoto will have weird-sounding playback: we noticed that some bass, ambient sounds, and the main vocals (not the harmony). The plug is a standard 1/8 inch affair, albeit a bit more stylized than the average plug. In any case, it's slender enough to fit into anything with a recessed headphone port, such as your old, dusty, original iPhones.

Portability (8.50)

This pouch has magnets keeping it shut.

Portability is typically the name of the game when it comes to in-ear headphones, and the Vibe Duo headphones are no different. With a short, slender cord and barely visible ear buds, the Vibe Duo isn't a lot to lug around.

Further, you'll find a decent pouch included in your Vibe Duo box. The mouth of the pouch has two magnets in it, so it'll keep your sleeves and headphones secure. There weren't any devices for cord management, however, so you'll be responsible for keeping your cord neat and contained.

Customizability (3.50)
In-ear headphones have it easy when it comes to customization, since they can just include a plethora of unique sleeves (the rubbery/foam parts that protect the ear buds from your gross ear canal). In this case, you get three different sizes (small, medium, large) in two different colors (black, translucent white). Though we would've liked to see more options, six different pairs of sleeves isn't bad. The Denon AH-C351 headphones only have one set, in three sizes, but cost $50 less. The Etymotic Research 6isolators come with three different sleeve options, two of which have multiple sizes, and are $40 pricier.

Pictured above are the translucent white sleeves against a black background. They kind of look like jellyfish.

As a minor epilogue to the Vibe Duo's customizability, there is also a shirt clip included. It isn't the most crazy invention in customization, but, should you choose to implement it, your microphone dongle will always be on a short leash.

This is the shirt clip.

Maintenance (2.25)

Grime can easily hide in the circular trench on the back of the ear bud.

Unfortunately, the Vibe Duos and their slick aesthetics are difficult to maintain. The backs of the ear buds have a very thin, circular trough in them. Once something gets inside there, it'll be very visible, but also very difficult to get out.

Further, like most in-ear headphones, the Vibe Duos don't have a lot you can disassemble. In fact, the only parts you can swap out are the sleeves. To facilitate that end, V-MODA provides a spare for each sleeve size. Granted, if you prefer the black sleeves, and lose them, most would probably just opt for a different size of black rather than the translucent equivalent.

Other Features (6.00)
Battery Dependency
These headphones require no sort of auxiliary battery power, which is a nice feature these days.

Microphone
The microphone dongle is on the right ear bud's cord, before the neck split. The microphone itself consists of three slits in the top half of the dongle, while the button is on the opposite side of the lower half. The button is a bit small, but it's easy enough to find without looking down. The button does provide good tactile feedback, meaning you'll definitely feel when you've pressed the button.

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