Logitech MetroFi 170 Earphones - All-Round Music Performance

Logitech had taken over Ultimate Ears a few years back and their MetroFi 170 In-Ear headset has arrived for a review. The price tag inclines a little towards the high-end segment, but we shall see whether the MetroFi 170 are worth their salt.

Gives an all rounded performance

Form Factor
The MetroFi 170 has a youthful flair to its design with polished black earphones which have soft rubber padding on top of each bud. The cable is made of good quality plastic which is soft and also has a firm feel to it. These earphones can also be used as an hands-free solution for mobile phones, as can be seen from the small microphone attachment on the cable for the right ear. Just below the convergence of the cables, you’ll also find a button that can be used to play/pause music, attend and ignore calls as well. There are two extra pairs of ear pads bundled, to suit your ear size.

Performance
Kicking off the performance, we ran the MetroFi 170 In-Ear phones with a series of different tracks. Right from Hard Rock and Metal to Hip-Hop and Indian music, we also tried some regional (Tamil, to be precise) music. This is what we could make out of these earphones.

Initially, we found the highs to be a little too sharp, but we tried them with other bass heavy songs as well. It’s quite evident that many elements that went unnoticeable otherwise, would sound exceptionally well in the MetroFi 170. In many cases the bass would probably wash down the mids. The mid range cannot be called as bad, but in comparison to lows, they sounded a little off. There was no sign of muddiness and most of the bass heavy songs were awesome. After some time, we also noticed that the highs that we initially felt as sharp, later on subdued to give some very bright music. It’s also noteworthy that even though there were slight hints of distortion, these were only felt when the volume was maxed out. While we cannot really judge the soundstage on a pair of earphones, in the MetroFi 170 we could make out the direction of different instruments being played in a track.

Looks very trendy!

The MetroFi 170 in earphones as mentioned earlier, also double up as a handsfree set. The sound quality is quite decent and the button designated for attending calls or pausing music also works quite fine. All in all, these can be used as a headset as well.

Verdict
For a price of Rs. 3,495 the MetroFi 170 in-ear phones certainly feels to be a little too expensive. However, at that price you’re getting a pair of good quality earphones that will stay for quite some time to come and will also give you that satisfaction in terms of its sound. If you’re into some serious music and are willing to shell out the money, then these are just waiting to be brought. For a thousand rupees lesser, there’s the Xtreme Mac FS1(http://tech2.in.com/reviews/headphones-headsets/xtreme-mac-fs1-in-earphones/107652/0) which was priced at Rs. 2,500 back in February last year, these are value for money as well.