V-Moda ships its listener-influenced Crossfade M-100 headphones

V-Moda's Crossfade M-100 headphones represent a rare experiment that suggests some of the listeners themselves are the best designers. We're about to learn whether practice matches theory now that the over-ears are shipping. Those who spend $310, slightly more than the originally promised $300, should get a black or white body, an in-line microphone remote and a set of removable shields to tailor the look. V-Moda justifies the price mostly through a more refined sound than the M-80 as well as as a folding, dual-input design that's built for traveling and sharing. A pair of M-100s is expensive relative to some off-the-shelf headphones, but potential customers may already know whether or not they're buying -- many of them had a hand in the venture, after all.

Show full PR text

Award-Winning V-MODA Crossfade M-100 Crowdsourced Headphones Now Shipping

Winning multiple editors' choice awards and rave reviews, M-100 is now available to music aficionados in time for the holidays

Milano – December 18, 2012 – V-MODA, the multi-platinum selling designer of headphones trusted by the pros and elite, announces the availability of the highly-anticipated M-100 headphones designed by and for music aficionados. V-MODA tapped the collective intellect of artists, editors and audiophiles to design, develop and vote on the first units to go to mass production. M-100 quickly became the most highly discussed headphone on the internet forums with over 10,000 posts and 700 pages on the world's largest headphone site, Head-Fi.

"Developing this project alongside the passionate audio enthusiast community was a very special experience that I dedicated my life to over the past year" states Val Kolton, Chief Visionary Officer at V-MODA. "I'll never forget the key moments such as collaborating with numerous Grammy-winning and artists or staying up late discussing and testing prototypes with audiophiles globally. We opened the first unit with world-renowned producer/DJ AVICII at Radio City Music hall and immediately afterwards let CNET's Steve Guttenberg judge and listen to it first. The results so far has been unparalleled praise and editors' choice accolades from CNET, Engadget, Gizmodo, Head-Fi, Innerfidelity, Laptop Mag, NY Times, Popular Science, Sound & Vision and other media. It's an achievement, not for V-MODA, but for the entire artist and audiophile community that brought M-100 to life," added Kolton.

Superior Sound – M-100 evokes the experience of a live performance with clean, deep bass, lifelike vocals and ultra wide clarity in an immersive 3D soundstage. Patent pending 50mm Dual-Diaphragm Drivers sport inner and outer rings separating the bass from bleeding into the mids and highs. V-MODA's analog noise isolation naturally blocks out the distractions of jet engines, outside noise and booth monitors minus the extra digital-to-analog conversions of battery powered headphones that pollute the purity of your music.

Natural Ergonomics – The Crossfade series' exclusive hexagon shape was sculpted to frame and contour to natural facial features while minimizing gaps and the blocky angles found on round, oval and rectangular headphones. An inspiration of both bespoke fashion and wind-tunnel dynamics produces a tailored fit and high-performance sound that is comfortable for the largest variety of individuals.

Military-Grade Durability – The M-100 is built to last with a steel frame, aircraft grade metal shields, and STEELFLEX headband that fortify this exquisite headphone design with Military-Level MIL-STD-810G test standards. M-100 will survive 70+ drops on concrete from 6 feet, extreme high and low temperatures, humidity, salt spray, and UV exposure. The Kevlar reinforced cables can bend up over 1 million times which is up to one hundred times the industry standard.

Ultimate Versatility – Beyond its superb fidelity and tank-like durability, V-MODA includes an array of extra features that empower M-100 users with a complete listening experience for travel, music production, DJing, gaming and more. The Swiss-like CliqFold hinge precisely folds the headphones into the impossibly small Exoskeleton case with a v-strap system to organize the included cables and ¼" adapter. M-100 features dual inputs so a DJ can mix two sources at the same time or share the music by daisy chaining other headphones. The unused input can be sealed with the patent pending V-CORK to accurately balance the sound and prevent corrosion.

The re-optimized SpeakEasy Mic cable is tuned for voice recognition even in the noisiest environments and works with all 3.5mm smartphones and tablets including Apple, Android, Windows, Kindle and Blackberry while the extended SharePlay audio cable allows you to share your music with a friend. The optional BoomPro professional-grade boom mic is made for gaming and Skype while the CoilPro locking extended coiled cable allows DJs and musicians to reach further. Modern music enthusiasts can further customize their M-100 with the Matte Black Metal, Shadow or White Silver colors and a selection of shield colors which can be customized through V-MODA's laser engraving service with virtually any logo, text or a variety of select designs.

M-100 Features

50mm Dual-Diaphragm Drivers (patent pending)
No batteries or artificial sound processing
CLIQFOLD folding hinge (patent pending)
Dual Inputs with V-CORK seals (patent pending)
Form fitting Exoskeleton case
Two Kevlar-reinforced cables
Universal SpeakEasy microphone cable for Apple iPhone, iPad, Android and Windows devices
SharePlay extended audio cable and ¼" adapter
Compatible with locking CoilPro, BoomPro Mic and 3-button mic cables (sold separately)
Two year warranty, lifetime 50 percent immortal life program and V-MODA Six-Star Service

MIL-STD-810G and V-MODA Quality

Survives 70+ drops on concrete
Virtually indestructible SteelFlex Headband
Minimal sound variances from unit to unit checked along six parts of the sound curve versus 10-30dB+ of competing products
Kevlar-reinforced detachable cables and 45-degree plug strain relief can each bend more than 1 million times, over 100x industry standards
MIL-STD-810G environmental tests including high and low temperatures, humidity, salt spray and UV exposure

The Crossfade M-100 is available now in limited quantities for $310 in Matte Black Metal, Shadow or White Silver at V-MODA.com which includes an extra set of personalized shields ($45 value). It is also available at Amazon.com and fine retailers of headphones worldwide including Europe and Asia. High resolution images are available at VISION.V-MODA.com.