Sony MDR-V6: Adding a new set to the collection.

[boza]

Glad you finally got them ok they look great.
Sounds like you made a good choice

 

[reydelaplaya]

funny I never noticed the band adjustment does indeed go to 11... ha.. glad they arrived and all finally..

At some point I may have to break down and get the V6/7506's sort of cousin that is still made in Japan (and not actually technically for sale elsewhere ) the CD900ST

https://www.amazon.com/Sony-Mdr-cd9...e=UTF8&qid=1489211633&sr=8-1&keywords=cd900st

View attachment 885255


but $180~ish and I hear that the earpads are shallower vs the V6's which might not really work for me.. I'm a big guy and my ears are kinda pressing on the earpad inner foam as it is w/ the V6's

Wow! Those are nice looking! As for the earpads, there are ones on Amazon that look thicker that might do the trick of lifting the drivers off your ears. I didn't save the link, but I'm sure they were memory foam and sheepskin leather that I think @dr*audio was referring to in his post below:

The MDR-V6 are really good sounding headphones. I still have the pair I bought new in 1988. I use them for on location recording when I need good isolation. I replaced the ear pads with leather ones I bought on Amazon. They are really nice and comfortable. I also use these for travel.

I might have to get a set of those to try, too. Not that these are bad, but I know they'll end up disintegrating eventually. LOL

Glad you finally got them ok they look great.
Sounds like you made a good choice

Thanks! Yeah, they finally arrived. After mulling over stuff for months doing research and stuff to make sure I'm spending money wisely, when I finally decide to buy, I tend to get a little impatient since, to me it feels like I've waited f o r e v e r rrrr... LOL

I want my toys nowww!!

So I've now had a few days to break in this set of cans.

I love them! They sound great - really great, in fact. So far I've got no complaints or issues about any aspect of them. They're clear, and punchy, and comfortable. They sound nice with all of my equipment, and they're easy to drive right off my phone, too when I don't feel like fooling with it all.

I think I've found my 'away from home, to-go sound'. Might just end up paring down the collection a little over in BT now.

 

[xero-D-hero]

Oh wow!

What a great presentation. The packaging exactly matches the video above. No doubt these are the real thing. Everything about the packaging and presentation is top-notch. The carry pouch isn't vinyl like I thought it would be. It's a very nicely finished nylon outside/felt inside, drawstring bag with Sony embossed into it on the front. The quality and squareness of the stitching suggests, once again, this is not a counterfeit.

The headband has a nice secure clamp and the cable is nicely coiled.

And they fit great in my headphone hard case.

But now for the real test...

Connected to the headphone output on my Teac CD-P650, and for the first song, Jerry Rivera's No Hieras Mi Vida - a song I've mentioned before that I know every last detail of.

Oh man!

These sound amazing!

Straight out of the box, they sound fantastic. I'm really impressed. A different sound signature than my Grados and my Orthos - a very unique sound, really full and lively - more bass than I'm used to with those, but not to the point of being annoying.

Now to stream some Electrónica from a playlist I have on Prime Music. First up, one of my faves, and a real sonic test, DMT by Tectum.

(Be very careful with that song, it builds up as a normal EDM to about 5:53, but at about 5:55 it drops, and the next 30 seconds or so will destroy subs if cranked! LOL Great EDM though.)

Dude, these headphones do an excellent job of pretending they're big speakers! This is exactly what I wanted and was hoping for. I feel like I'm in a club!

Hell yeah!!!! F'n awesome!!!!!!!

I REALLY like the Nylon embossed bag those V6's came with,WAAAYYY nicer than the bag/pouch my older MDR-7506 came with.
Those pouches were made of that cheap black vinyl kinda like the earpads Sony uses,so as they aged they dry out and get all cracked and such.
Hmmm,,,wonder if Sony sells just those nylon embossed bags,,,LOL???

Oh yeah BTW I still dig my old 7506's so yeah I'm sure I'd like the V6's as well.
Those were my only cans for years & years so no doubt I could've lived with the Sony's as long as I needed to.
Still use 'em for gaming whenever I play,and keep them connected to the SB Zx ACM on the desktop 'puter for general day2day useage.

Anyhow yeah a fella could definitely do a lot worse than a pair of these Sony headphones.

Enjoy

Bret P.

 

[reydelaplaya]

Turns out, they're fake.

I just received a response from the Sony (manufacturer) on Amazon in regards to whether or not these had a nylon storage bag.

The Sony rep replied that a vinyl bag is the only type included.

I've got an email out to Amazon hoping to rectify this since my return window closed last week.

Let's see what happens.

 

[reydelaplaya]

Turns out, they're fake.

I just received a response from the Sony (manufacturer) on Amazon in regards to whether or not these had a nylon storage bag.

The Sony rep replied that a vinyl bag is the only type included.

I've got an email out to Amazon hoping to rectify this since my return window closed last week.

Let's see what happens.

Just received a response from Amazon authorizing the return.

I'd like to exchange them, but since its past the return allowance (though they're making an exception), they can only refund.

Good enough.

I guess I'll have go to the Sony store on the south side of the island if I want to get a replacement that I know is genuine.

Damn! They actually sound pretty good, it's a shame they're fake.

 

[reydelaplaya]

Well, I waited most of the week for a response back from Sony to verify that even though they told me that they come with a vinyl bag, if there was any possibility that these could now be shipping with a nylon bag (doesn't seem anybody actually liked that vinyl one anyway) - they never responded.

They got mailed back to Amazon on Thursday.



I've since been rekindling my relationship with my Grado RS-1e.

I just wish I wasn't so paranoid about taking these out of the house - I'd really hate to mess them up.

So yeah, any of you reading this thread - if you get a set of Sony MDR-V6 that come with a very nice looking Sony embossed nylon drawstring bag, they're fake - sorry to break it it you.

 

[xero-D-hero]

Figures,,,LOL...

Seems silly to me.

I mean they could make a ton of legit money just selling some nice headphone bags under their own brand & instead they go ahead and knock these off.

It's all bassackwards.



Bret P.

 

[LVB]

I do not believe that the headphones are fake. I purchased a pair of MDR 7506's less than a month ago from the local Guitar Center and they indeed came with the nylon bag. I believe Sony is providing the most recent production with the new bag, I have a 15 year old pair with the vinyl bag and the new is much nicer.

 

[reydelaplaya]

I do not believe that the headphones are fake. I purchased a pair of MDR 7506's less than a month ago from the local Guitar Center and they indeed came with the nylon bag. I believe Sony is providing the most recent production with the new bag, I have a 15 year old pair with the vinyl bag and the new is much nicer.

I figured I might end up finding this out. They really looked and sounded great, otherwise.

All I can say is that I got confirmation by the Sony rep through Amazon that they were only shipping with a vinyl bag, so that's the only thing I had to go on. I even sent an email back to them to see if it was just how you described about being a newer version with a nicer nylon bag, but they never responded. They've been in transit back to Amazon since the 20th of April.

Oh well, but much I can do about it now. That was a nice nylon bag, too.

Damn! LOL

I guess I'll order another once Amazon refunds this set.

Thanks for the heads up!

 

[atarione]

oh man... I see this got complicated, my guess was going to be that some Sony CS rep just can't be informed of every running production change as seems to be the case...

usually the evidence of fakes is that they sound terrible.... if yours sound good they probably are not fakes..

It is a bummer that buying these headphones causes so much stress sometimes due to them being faked so frequently

 

[reydelaplaya]

oh man... I see this got complicated, my guess was going to be that some Sony CS rep just can't be informed of every running production change as seems to be the case...

usually the evidence of fakes is that they sound terrible.... if yours sound good they probably are not fakes..

It is a bummer that buying these headphones causes so much stress sometimes due to them being faked so frequently

Yeah, this sucks. I really considered keeping them for how nice they sounded, but I couldn't keep from thinking that they might've been fakes. Especially after hearing back from the rep on Amazon about the vinyl vs. nylon bag.

I'll probably pick up another from Amazon here in a few days. If they look and sound legit but come with a nylon bag, I guess they'll stay.

Not that it really matters, but I've just noticed that the Sony rep on Amazon who responded to me is also the moderator over at community.sony.com. I still haven't received an answer over there though, and that post has been sitting there for almost a month.

 

[reydelaplaya]

Well, since Amazon is refunding me for the one I sent back, I went ahead and ordered a new one while the price is a little lower than the first before it goes back up. Again, it's sold and shipped by Amazon, so hopefully no issues.

Fingers crossed!

 

[reydelaplaya]

Take 2: Schroedinger's Cans

The replacement V6s arrived today. They're still sealed in the Amazon box.

They could be real, or they could be counterfeit.

As long as the box is still sealed, I'll never know. Right?



Well, please join me in opening the box. Let's see what we've got...(besides, my resistors to fix my TT are in there too (oh, and a USB to N64 controller adapter for some classic games)).



Ok, looking good so far.

Let's have a closer look...



Box looks nice, just like the first one. You can just feel it.

Still factory sealed...



Moment of truth. Let's get them out of there and see about that storage bag...



Yep! Sony printed vinyl storage bag. All stuff inside looks legit!

As for their sound, they sound exactly like how I described at the beginning of this thread. Just fantastic!

I'll concede that the first set might have actually been the real deal, just with an updated bag. But that doubt, especially with the confirmation from Sony, was ruining my experience with them. So I'm glad I decided to make this exchange.

Awesome!!

Sorry about the crappy pix. The power has been out since 10 AM and I haven't switched over to the solar backup since it's still daytime and I don't need lights at the moment.

 

[reydelaplaya]

Well, I've spent about a week with this replacement set of MDR-V6 and put them through the paces. These are really great sounding headphones. I really can't find any fault with them.

From what I can tell, the sound from them is pretty much identical to that first set, and I'm now convinced, like it was mentioned before, that the first just included an updated bag that nobody at Sony was aware of.

Kinda sucks to have gone through all that drama for what may have ultimately been nothing. I do give Amazon Customer Service all the stars for how cooperative they were in the refund/replacement given the questionable authenticity.

 

[kmp14]

Just had time chime in. Sorry you had to go thru all that nonsense. I have had my V6's since 1987! My girlfriend at the time gave them to me for Christmas. She is long gone, but the V6's are still going strong! Sony should give me some commission, as I have demoed them for many people over the years, and they subsequently bought themselves a pair.

 

[reydelaplaya]

Just had time chime in. Sorry you had to go thru all that nonsense. I have had my V6's since 1987! My girlfriend at the time gave them to me for Christmas. She is long gone, but the V6's are still going strong! Sony should give me some commission, as I have demoed them for many people over the years, and they subsequently bought themselves a pair.

*The important things in life* LOL

I hope mine last as long as yours have, but I suspect if they do, they'll be mixed in with the score of vintage cans at my estate sale! LOL, 30 years from now... I'll be like 100 or dead or something around there - ok, maybe closer to 75, but still.

But for now, they sound so great for how inexpensive they are. I'm floored. Am I going to lose my AK Card if I say I think they might even outshine my Grado RS-1e? They definitely have something that the Grado doesn't - a little fuller bass, maybe? They do nicely with vocals as well. Crisp and clear just like my orthodynamics.

Currently I'm streaming some Earth, Wind, & Fire from Prime Music through my phone, plugged into my Teac CD-P650 with its internal DAC and built in headphone jack. They're fun!

 

[SoundOfSound]

I bartered for a set of these back in 1987. I was trying to get a price break on a Sony TV and was talking with the sales man. He said wait hear for a moment. He came back with a set of "Gold Box" v6s and told me that he could not lower the price of the Sony TV but if I bought it today he could throw them in the deal for free. I saw the gold box and the padding, thinking this was some classy stuff, and said "DEAL"

I can't remember what I did with them but would not mind getting another set as they do sound pretty good.

Are these guys made in China now like everything else these days?

 

[reydelaplaya]

I bartered for a set of these back in 1987. I was trying to get a price break on a Sony TV and was talking with the sales man. He said wait hear for a moment. He came back with a set of "Gold Box" v6s and told me that he could not lower the price of the Sony TV but if I bought it today he could throw them in the deal for free. I saw the gold box and the padding, thinking this was some classy stuff, and said "DEAL"

I can't remember what I did with them but would not mind getting another set as they do sound pretty good.

Are these guys made in China now like everything else these days?

Free Sony headphones... that's a good deal!

They are now made in Thailand, but don't let that discourage you. I'm holding (wearing) my set at the moment, and they feel very sturdy and well made.

I would strongly recommend either buying directly from a Sony store or through Amazon with Amazon LLC listed as the seller/shipper. Avoid the possibility of getting some knock-off.

 

[Joel_l]

I've had a pair of these since they first came out. I got them to go along with my new Sharp DX100 CD player. They have gone through periods of use, then non use, sometimes lasting many years. I always held on to them, sometimes surprised I didn't lose them. Over the years I have replaced the ear pads twice and recently replaced the jack, Litz wire is a pain to work with. I have several "higher" end phones and these give all of them a run for their money. Anyone thinking of these should grab them, probably the best bang for the buck out there.

 

[kmp14]

So I just received a new pair of V-6s today from BuyDig, and they have the embossed nylon bag. Argh. How do I know for sure if they are real....aggravating. I contacted BuyDig with my concern, asking for a refund, but now I wonder if they are real. They otherwise seem legit with the only thing I am wondering about being the headband, as the vinyl has a couple wrinkles in it, not really even wrinkles, just a couple waves.

I have looked at the thread on Head-Fi with the pics, but that thread is 7 years old, so who knows if the counterfeiters have gotten better.

The headband mechanisms are firm and click nicely with each stop, the cable is a matte rubber, and the ear cup centers are made of metal. Seems legit.

Argh.