Sony PFR-V1 review

Sony’s PFR-V1 headphones certainly can’t be labelled dull-looking. A bizarrely cantilevered sonic work of art, they look like no headphones we’ve ever seen before. But, do they provide the right amount of sonic pleasure for your measure? Hmm?

Pros
These are not just headphones. No, this is Sony’s “near-field speaker system”. It places woofer tubes into your ears while holding two spherical “speakers” just shy of your lugs, apparently because this is going to sound better than simply wearing a pair of headphones. They do sound mighty fine, to be fair, with excellent mid-range and, as you’d expect, a wider sound field than most headphones. They’re also far more comfortable than they look, although having speakers suspended an inch from your ear can present problems when shaking your head. They’re most certainly a conversation piece, let’s put it that way.

Cons
Well, they look like something you’d be given to wear after suffering severe head trauma, don’t they? The PFR-V1s also leak sound like a garden sprinkler – you can forget going out in public in these unless you’re incredibly brave or anti-social. Finally, they feel as if they may shatter into pieces if you so much as use harsh language toward them. The audio results are impressive, but you can get better for the amount of money Sony is asking.

In summary then…
It’s always good to see innovative approaches to audio, and full props to Sony for trying to break the headphone mould. However, buying these is a bit like replacing all the tyres on your car with super narrow gold hexagons on the basis that it’s “a revolutionary new way of doing things”.

Style

Sound

Value

Overall

Like the sound of these headphones? Get chatting about the Sony PFR-V1 on the PriceRunner forums.

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