Sony XBA-NC85D

Sony recently released its first line of balanced armature earphones, and the models span from gym-focused pairs to wireless models, from the affordable to the luxury-priced. Falling into the latter category, the Sony XBA-NC85D has a high price of $499.99 (direct) because it's the first-ever in-ear noise-canceling earphone pair that doesn't house its circuitry in a clunky shirt-clip box. A rechargeable battery gets its juice in a novel manner?you plug the earphones into a 3.5-mm headphone jack on an included USB dongle and charge from your computer. Unfortunately, the XBA-NC85D cannot be used in passive mode to listen to audio and it suffers from some distortion at high volumes that should never occur in this price range.

Design
Because the noise-cancellation circuitry is housed in the earpieces themselves, the XBA-NC85D's earpieces are a bit bulkier than a typical in-ear pair's. That said, the XBA-NC85D is not heavy, nor does it feel like the earpieces are tugging at your ears. The overall black plastic design is fairly simple, visually, with a thin red band demarcating the right earphone. The left earphone's cable houses the On/Off switch which is situated, technically, in an inline box, but it's so tiny and virtually weightless that Sony can definitely hold on to its "boxless" claim?the switch does little, if anything, to affect the weight or drag of the earphones.

They are indeed one of the most secure-fitting, comfortable in-ear noise canceling pairs we've tested. The black cable terminates in a 3.5-mm connector, which plugs into mobile devices and computers for audio, but also into the aforementioned USB dongle for charging. Eliminating the need for a AAA battery was the primary hurdle in getting rid of the noise cancellation circuitry box, and Sony's solution is clever?just charge via your PC. This, obviously, makes the USB dongle an extremely important piece of the puzzle?lose it, and you can't charge your earphones.

Also included with the XBA-NC85D: a user manual, an airplane jack adapter, two different sized clothing clips, three eartip pairs in various sizes, and a sturdy zip-up protective case. The instruction manual is worth referring to, as the earphones beep and a tiny LED on the right earpiece blinks depending on what mode you're in and your remaining battery life. The manual explains what the different beeps or blinking patterns mean, but the short of it is: It beeps when it turns on or off, a certain number of times to tell you how much power you have left, and the blinking refers to noise-cancellation modes.

Performance
Like the Sony MDR-NC200D Digital Noise Canceling Headphones ($199, 3 stars), the XBA-NC85D suffers from distortion on tracks with deep bass when the volume is turned beyond, say, 75 percent and noise cancellation is engaged. Unlike the MDR-NC200D, however, the XBA-NC85D cannot be used in passive mode?meaning, you need to power up the earphones, and thus, the noise-cancellation circuitry, in order to hear any audio. The Sony MDR-NC200D actually sounded fine when noise cancellation was not engaged, but that is not an option here.

At moderate listening levels, the XBA-NC85D offers a clear, crisp response with subtle bass presence. On deep bass tracks at moderate levels, the low end sounds pleasant?accurate, not exaggerated. Classical music, like John Adams' "The Chairman Dances," is reproduced with an emphasis on the mids and highs. This track, as well as just about any orchestral fare, and many genres like folk that lack extremely deep bass parts, does not distort, even at high volumes. The response is nearly flat at moderate levels, similar to that of the Etymotic ER-4PT ($299, 4.5 stars), but with a touch more low-end response. It's safe to say that if you listen to hip hop, electronic music, or primarily modern pop, the XBA-NC85D is probably not ideal?at higher volumes, it will distort. This pair is better suited for music that does not push the bass frequencies quite so heavily.

The noise cancellation itself works very similarly to the "AI" circuitry that is also employed on the Sony MDR-NC200D. There are three modes?one ideal for eliminating ambient noise on airplanes (mode A), a mode intended for buses and trains (mode B), and one geared towards offices (mode C). These modes are picked by the earphones automatically, based on ambient noise analysis the earphones perform when powered up. You cannot switch the modes manually. Generally speaking, the noise cancellation is quite effective, but if you are sitting in a quiet room and merely want to listen to music on the XBA-NC85D, a hiss is audible when you power the device up. This hiss is not overpowering, and it's fairly common in noise-canceling earphones and headphones?the recent Able Planet Clear Harmony NC1050 ($349, 4 stars) has a similar hiss. In a quieter room, however, it has the unintended effect of making things seem noisier than they are?this is not the case with the Able Planet headphones. Why? Because the Able Planet option is a headphone pair, while the in-ear XBA NC85D, when securely placed inside the ears, actually acts as an effective pair of earplugs. Adding hiss to the near total quiet that the XBA-NC85D creates merely by sitting in your ears in a room that isn't loud results in a raising of perceived noise. Obviously, that's not what anyone wants out of noise-canceling earphones, and it wouldn?t be an issue except for the fact that you can't use the XBA-NC85D without engaging the noise cancellation.

If you're looking for the best noise cancellation on the market, stay away from in-ear pairs for now and look to the industry standard, the Bose QuietComfort 15 ($299.95, 4 stars), an Editors' Choice. If audio performance is more important, the aforementioned Able Planet Clear Harmony NC1050 offers excellent audio?actively and passively?and its noise cancellation is also very strong. Finally, if the $500 price of the XBA-NC85D is way out of your budget, check out a more affordable option, like the Phiaton PS 20 NC ($149, 4 stars). Its noise cancellation isn't on par with any other pair mentioned in this review, but it offers decent audio performance, and its price is a mere fraction of the XBA-NC85D's. Sony is to be commended for making the first "boxless" noise canceling earphones?a hurdle everyone is happy to see cleared. Now the design must be improved upon to eliminate the distortion issues and allow for passive playback. When that is accomplished, the $500 price tag will be well-earned.

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