JVC's HA-F130, or more popularly known as GUMY, is an ideal replacement earbud for those seeking to replace their broken bundled earphones such as those that came with their iPods. The cost (less than £5) makes them even better value especially when compared to replacement iBuds.
Frequency response: 16–20,000Hz
Sensitivity: 108 dB SPL/mW
Nominal impedance: 16 ohms
Transducer: 13.5mm dynamic driver
The build quality is surprisingly good. The body is covered in what appears to be hard rubber or silicone. The cord is of a decent length and terminates on a straight 3.5mm plug. Unfortunately they tangle too easily. More importantly, unlike most other earbuds I've tried, they are also comfortable to wear for more than an hour.
The sound quality isn't too bad. In fact they sound pretty damn good for the price. Clarity wise, they beat the Sennheiser MX 300 I reviewed a while ago. The mids are rich but the highs, while detailed, is weak. The soundstage is airy, thanks to the pin size vent, which also means better bass impact. No where near comparable to the Sennheiser IE 8, but then again the IE 8 costs 40 times more!
For the cost of a lunch, I think it is stupid not to consider getting a GUMY as a backup headphone or something to use for exercise during when sound quality isn't a critical part of a headphone. They can be found at Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.com or any good supermarket.
2 comments:
These are probably my favourite low-end earbuds. I 'eat' headphones and earbuds, JVC Gummy are the only ones that I use that last longer than a few months. There's another brand that does a very similar earbud that is really the pits though, beware immitators!
The Gumy does seem very tough. I am keeping mine and getting a couple more for jogging and cycling. Dirt cheap and the SQ isn't all that bad.
I am dying to hear some of JVC's top tier headphones now.
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