“Clearly the M-10 is not tuned for this type of music”: V-Moda M-10 review

What is it?

V-Moda is a premium headphone brand owned by Roland and is best known for its stylish and customisable designs. Aimed primarily at DJs and producers, there are a number of focused models available at different price points.

The latest additions to the range are the M-100 Pro, which is an upgraded version of the M-100, and our review model, the M-10. Both have Hi-Res Audio certification from the Japan Audio Society, and the M-10 is one of V-Moda’s more affordable designs, replacing its popular Crossfade LP2.

M-10 is a closed-back over-ear design with V-Moda’s distinctive ear cup shape. The drivers are 50mm dual diaphragm units that incorporate Japanese-made hi-res CCAW coils. Meanwhile, the ear pads use memory foam for excellent comfort and good passive isolation.

The ear cups feature black metal shields on the outer face and like other V-Moda headphones, these can be swapped out for a number of other designs and colours. Alas, this visually appealing aspect is being gradually phased out by Roland and moving forward, it will not be replenishing stock. Whether third-party vendors step in, as is the case with replacement ear cups, remains to be seen.

Finally, M-10 comes with 2 cables – a 1.5m braided straight cable (⅛” to ⅛” with ¼” converter) and a 3m coiled cable (¼” to ⅛”). In the box, you also get a drawstring storage pouch.

Performance

M-10 is a solidly built headphone and the combination of metal and plastic is robust without feeling bulky. The slimline metal arm and flexible branded headband are common features with V-Moda headphones and help keep the headphones pretty compact. Unlike the more DJ-friendly M-100 and reference style M-200, the M-10 arms do not include their CliqFold hinge, so you can’t fold them away.

In terms of comfort, at 275g these are a very reasonable weight for a closed-back design. Meanwhile, with them on, the passive isolation is also very good. You’ll find left/right labelling hidden on the inside of the headband, although a more obvious indicator is the red flashing on the right ear cup cable. The cable only connects to the left ear cup, which, although not as flexible as some of their models, does assist with orientation.

Roland describes the M-10 as a beat-tuned headphone with deep bass and high-end clarity. Unsurprisingly, we found it sounded great with beat-heavy genres such as trap and hip hop, where low-end sounds are clearly separated. It also sounded good with techno and house sounds.

What’s more, the aforementioned high-end clarity is also a key aspect, and even though the headphones are not obviously enhanced in the high frequencies, the separation is clean and smooth. For these genres the tonal balance is pretty satisfying even if it’s not particularly neutral, plus you can turn the headphones up pretty loud, which will please some users.

With genres such as rock, where the low and low mid frequency instrumentation is often more blended, the M-10 is less forgiving and we found this quite fatiguing. This is no surprise and clearly the M-10 is not tuned for this type of music.

Verdict

All told, the M-10s are well-made headphones with a specific target user in mind, and from a sonic perspective, they deliver precisely what they aim to. That said, they are clearly less flexible than the M-100 and M-200 models.

Alternatives

Sennheiser HD 25: £117 at sennheiser.com

These classic over-ear headphones are compact, robust and popular for location recording and DJ use.

Read the full Sennheiser HD 25 review

Adam Audio H200: £139 at adam-audio.com

If you’re after a more general purpose closed-back design, this model offers great value.

Read the full Adam Audio H200 review

Specifications