Club Benefits
I grew up in a time when wired earbuds were the only way of listening to music as Bluetooth technology took a few years to get to where it is. A big chunk of my childhood and teenage years was spent untangling the cables which had knotted themselves together in my pocket. Back then, it was frustrating, but today? I yearn for it. I want wired earbuds and my Discman and burned CDs, is that too much to ask for?
There's something almost charming about wired earbuds nowadays, and it's no surprise that they've made a comeback in the big 2026. They've become trendy again, and I often see people using them on my commute or other public transportation. As a reviews writer, I get to test my fair share of wireless earbuds and headphones but they can never deliver lossless audio (it's nearly impossible for wireless tech to do so). I've spent the last couple of weeks using the wired Sennheiser CX 80U earbuds, and boy are they good.
There's plenty to love about the CX 80U. They sport an inconspicuous all-black design. They feature a USB-C plug-and-play interface so are compatible with many, many devices. And the sound quality, above all, is simply outstanding, with a crisp and vibrant treble and refined mid-bass and upper ranges. If you're a baby audiophile or someone who likes the simplicity of wired buds, then the CX 80U are perfect for you.
You'll truly appreciate your favorite artists
If you love music or appreciate nuanced sound, or you're taking your first steps into world of audiophile sound, you need a pair of wired earbuds, like the Sennheiser CX 80U. You see, wireless earbuds struggle to and cannot deliver true lossless audio primarily because the Bluetooth technology they rely on lacks sufficient bandwidth to transmit the massive amount of data required without compressing it first.
The CX 80U sound phenomenal, especially for the sub-$40 price. The treble is vibrant and crisp in tracks like ‘You First (Re: Remi Wolf)’ by Paramore, and through the earbuds, the hi-hats and snare snaps in the percussion never sound shrill or harsh, while retaining the track's character. Songs like ‘White Feather Hawk Tail Deer Hunter’ by Lana Del Rey, which feature many shifting moments between low and high vocals, sound loud and clear, and the words don't bleed into each other.
Mid-bass performance is strong as the bass sounds loud and punchy but never booming or overwhelming in tracks like '41 Mosquitoes Flying in Formation’ by Tame Impala. Overall, the CX 80U are nothing short of outstanding when it comes to their general audio performance — though the sub-bass is a little lackluster, but these are $40 earbuds at the end of the day. Check out my full Sennheiser CX 80U review for the detailed breakdown.
Comfortable for hours and hours
Regardless of how much a product costs, whether that's less than $50 or more than $5,000, I don't think it's worth spending money on it if it isn't comfortable — and that's especially true for earbuds. The Sennheiser CX 80U? They're so comfortable that you'd think they cost at least a good $200. These earbuds are very lightweight, first of all, with each bud weighing just 0.5oz. That means that your ears don't get weighed down, so you can wear them for hours.
But just because they're lightweight doesn't mean they fall out of your ears. In the box, you get three sets of eartips, and one of these sets features a longer design, so these buds burrow into your ears and stay put. These are the eartips I used for most of my testing period, and they provided a good level of passive noise cancellation. I couldn't hear the clickity-clackity sounds of my Keychron Q6 HE 8K magnetic keyboard or the sound of my coworkers speaking.
Another advantage of using these longer eartips is that the sound is also concentrated in the ear canal, so you can appreciate the CX 80U’s wide soundstage. It's all you need to appreciate your favorite artists (and a hi-res music streaming service), as I mentioned earlier.
These are the buds you're looking for
A lot of people's earliest memories of wired earbuds are Apple's EarPods. They're still popular, and can be picked up from Amazon for $19 / £19. Most of the time when I see people using wired earbuds on the bus or train, they're using EarPods. And why wouldn't you use them? They're cheap, after all. But I'm here to tell you that they are not the best way of spending your hard-earned money.
Instead, spend a little extra on the Sennheiser CX 80U, and grab them for $39 / £34. They feature a built-in DAC, they're mighty comfortable, and there noise-sealing eartips do a good job of blocking out external sounds in lieu of the earbuds featuring any active noise cancellation (ANC).
When I was reviewing the earbuds, the only fault I could find was that the sub-bass was slightly lacking. If, after a week of testing, that's the only real fault I can find in a pair of earbuds — or any product, really — then surely they must be great. The "CX" in Sennheiser CX 80U stands for "Categorically (e)Xcellent."
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