Coming home after work today, a package was waiting right at the door! Eagerly opening the box to wash away the fatigue of the day, I pulled out the Sony IER-M500. It features black units paired with a 1.6-meter cable. Sitting down at my desk, I untangled the cord and popped them into my ears.
Sony’s signature foam tips filled my ear canals, and the sound of the PC fan on the desk instantly vanished. Playing my usual songs through a desktop setup, I noticed it requires quite a bit of volume. Using a desktop amp ranging from 0dB max to -100dB min, I had to crank it up to around -32dB to get an adequate listening level. Despite its small and unassuming exterior, it is surprisingly demanding to drive.
To be honest, the initial impression of the sound is a bit plain. There are no flashy colorations wrapping around your ears, nor is there a heavy, pounding bass. It simply and honestly pinpoints the locations of the vocals and instruments. It clearly follows a different path from the popular audiophile-oriented Sennheiser IE200. Because it doesn’t artificially embellish the sound, the fact that my ears don’t get fatigued even during long listening sessions is quite appealing.
The 1.6-meter cable, originally designed for stage use, feels burdensome outdoors, but it turns into a surprising advantage in a desktop environment. Plugged into a desktop device, the cord doesn’t pull even when I roll my chair around or change my posture, making it extremely comfortable.
With its unexaggerated sound and generous cable length, this earphone will undoubtedly claim the spot as my casual, daily-driver desktop companion for a while. I pull the units out of my ears and carelessly drop them onto a corner of the black desk mat along with the long cable.
📸 Behind the scenes
Check out more behind-the-scenes shots on my Naver blog (Korean):
소니 IER-M500, 10만 원대 이어폰 시장을 흔들 근본 브랜드의 대답
👉 https://blog.naver.com/PostView.naver?blogId=k5kun&logNo=224376741026