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  • Introduction

  • Comfort Design & Features

  • Audio Quality

  • Conclusion

  • Science Introduction

  • Frequency Response

  • Isolation

  • Other Tests

  • Introduction
  • Comfort Design & Features
  • Audio Quality
  • Conclusion
  • Science Introduction
  • Frequency Response
  • Isolation
  • Other Tests

Introduction

Comfort Design & Features

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The Vibrato Remix buds are highly portable and surprisingly comfortable.

As their name would suggest, the V-Moda Remix Remotes have an in-line remote accessory, with an omnidirectional microphone and buttons for volume control and to answer/end calls. For all those out there that want to use their headphones with their smartphones, this is an important feature.

They get high marks for portability.

When you consider that in-ear headphones are designed to go places where nothing was ever meant to go, the Remix Remotes are actually quite comfortable. Not only do they form a good seal on your ear canal with a limited amount of pressure, their additional ear loops allow you to spread the weight out over your pinna (upper ears), reducing the force exerted on your soft ear canals.

With their included carrying bag, the V-Moda Remix Remotes go wherever you go: they are easily compacted into the carrying case, and can easily be fit in a pocket or bag. Because they are so small and light, they get high marks for portability.

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Audio Quality

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The Remix Remotes showcased decent audio quality and minimal distortion, and are naturally decent isolators.

While they tend to favor bass and cymbal splashes, the Remix Remotes do a solid job at representing the full frequency spectrum without any notable, distracting boosting or dampening of sound. Not everyone wants boosted bass and strengthened sibilance, but those who are professional DJs (or just hobbyists) should definitely consider the Remix Remotes.

Not everyone wants boosted bass and strengthened sibilance.

Where isolation is concerned, the Remix Remotes have a natural advantage due to being in-ear phones. They fill your ear canal, naturally blocking and dampening outside ambient noise. Simply speaking, you won't have to turn them up much to avoid hearing the unwanted noise around you—whatever it might be. They handle higher pitches better than lower ones, but overall do a good job at isolating unwanted noise.

Conclusion

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Great value overall, with good sound quality and comfort for the price you're paying.

V-Moda has produced quite a few impressive headphones at the entry level for consumers, and the Remix Remotes continue this trend. Given that there is a growing market for headphones that double as smartphone headsets, it’s logical to sink a lot of money into getting this type of in-ear out on the market.

As far as entry-level in-ear headphones go, the $79.99 pricetag is about par for the course, but you do get good value for it. That being said, fans of more analytical headphones with flat bass response and a less dynamic response will probably recoil in horror at the heavily-emphasized low frequencies, but it’s a matter of taste, really. There’s a large segment of the consumer population that likes this sort of thing, so don’t read into the audiophile crowd’s lamentations when considering these headphones if you’re into that sort of thing.

Science Introduction

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The science page is here to hold all of the data we so painstakingly compiled during testing. We've told you what we like and dislike about the V-MODA Remix Remotes on the performance side of things. If you want to know the details of our testing methods—and what we test for—the science page has got your back.

Overall, the Remix Remotes are solid performers with little drawback. They favor bass and cymbal tones, so if you're a frequency purist, they may not be for you.

Frequency Response

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The Remix Remotes favor bass and sibilance, but don't underplay any part of the sound spectrum to do so.

Frequency response is a measure of how a pair of headphones "treats" the sound information it receives. Ideally, we want to see a flat response curve, neither boosting nor dampening any one part of the Hertz spectrum. Bass, middle, and high (treble) tones should be given equal representation.

It's been a habit in the music industry for a few years now to artificially give extra emphasis to bass tones, and the Remix Remotes do that. We don't think it's a bad thing though—as smartphone buds, they appeal to a particular demographic and offer iterations of music or audio that are pleasing to the ear, even if they're not technically perfect.

The Remix Remotes favor bass and cymbal tones (100-900Hz and 6-7.5KHz, respectively). They also give good representation to all but the highest (harmonic) pitches—and let's be honest, auto-tuning doesn't exactly require a vibrant series of overtones.

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Isolation

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The Remix Remotes are ear buds, and naturally isolate ambient noise.

The typical in-ear headphone user goes out into the noisy world quite often. In many ways, the in-ear design is the ideal choice when you are listening to music outside the home or office as it provides superior noise attenuation and is a little more resilient to weather.

The V-Moda Remix Remotes—at worst—offer 10dB of noise attenuation in the low end (reducing the loudness of outside noise by half), then gradually block out more sound as it grows closer to 5kHz, much higher-pitched stuff. All-around, this is a pretty decent result, and will block out a good amount of noise.

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Other Tests

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Meet the tester

Chris Thomas

Chris Thomas

Staff Writer, Imaging

@cthomas8888

A seasoned writer and professional photographer, Chris reviews cameras, headphones, smartphones, laptops, and lenses. Educated in Political Science and Linguistics, Chris can often be found building a robot army, snowboarding, or getting ink.

See all of Chris Thomas's reviews

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Our team is here for one purpose: to help you buy the best stuff and love what you own. Our writers, editors, and lab technicians obsess over the products we cover to make sure you're confident and satisfied. Have a different opinion about something we recommend? Email us and we'll compare notes.

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