Monoprice MP1046BR review
Throughwork
Monoprice, started in 2002, sell mostly audio‐visual gear. They work by re‐sourcing and direct selling—and sometimes designing their own. Their products have often gained good reviews. These earphones are the most expensive of their ultra‐cheap models.
Contents
Build
I suppose the quality is passable. The cable is thick for this level of build, but has memory and will tangle. Everything else is cheap, though the metal inserts are wise choice of expense. The strain relief is a design I can’t explain at all, it won’t prevent any damage to wire/earphone joins, and is prone to catching. The metal housings may have purpose. I think 1046s will break, though if not ground, struck or wrenched they may survive long enough. The silicon plugs are sophisticated, mid‐depth and hold well. Avoiding the strain relief they are easy to get in your ears. The metal looks good, but the strain relief and incoherent metal inserts look cheap—I’d rate the 1046s visually as only passable.
Sound
Volume is passable. Volume range is only passable too. There’s no definition to attack and decay. Timing seems reasonable to good. Handling of swells is outstanding. Mid‐horns seem to fade a little. There is a tinniness surrounding upper frequencies. The top notes fade at top strings, but go surprisingly high. Low notes are mostly missing, but there is a throb somewhere that can sometimes be triggered—I ran an quick EQ on that, and found the throb in the 30Hz+ range. Very little detail at any frequency. Positioning is good. Scale, granted the lack of detail, is outstanding.
Good for orchestra due to the clarity and control. On pop music intros, they can sound like low notes are broken. After that, everything else—vocal or musical—has the same slightly distant, clear and controlled sound.
Spec
| mic available? | no |
| cable noise | reasonable |
| accessories | Three sizes of eartip |
| support |
Assess
Monoprice claim these earphones need burning in. The idea seems to be to make a cheapo but high‐note bias earphone. That ought to be good for a lot of people. For what it is, the build is reasonable, though the strain‐relief design is inexplicable. As for the sound, everything has a narrow‐volume, tinny, distant, detail‐free sound—that never rasps, and is controlled over a wide frequency range. With the exception of that mid‐bass hump, which is also controlled but which can wreak havoc on an occasional pop track.
This is an archetypical design—the 1046s have speed, evenhandedness, and high reach. It’s also a useful implementation—yes it can be tinny, yes it has a low throb, but the 1046 is determined and open about the sounds it makes. Customer reviews confirm that it is a feeble build—but people don’t expect much—and that it’s open refinement is useful for a lot of users on a variety of sources. Baseline; 1046s may be everything that a lot of users need.