I got a new pair of earphones for the iPhone the other day: The V-Moda Vibe Duo Nero. Lots of contenders to the throne of the white buds, but all things being equal this is the only one worth getting.

iPhone buds are  the Holy Grail of accessories – while the white ones suffice, unfortunately they’re neither here nor there. To be fair they sound ok, but people keep them around because they have the mic and button on the cord. Those inclined to trade them right off for better ones tend to hang on for the functionality. Honestly, there aren’t any real compromise-free options available.

V-Moda previously released the Vibe Duo model which had the phone mic incorporated into it, but it didn’t have the all-important button that answered calls and stopped, started and forwarded tracks – just like the regular buds. The new models, which come in chrome, red and black, have this button, which is a trifle smaller than is convenient.

But the Vibe Duo is the only one that approximates the original buds in configuration and use without taking anything from the mix. The existing alternatives either have too many cords or have little growths and appendages that carry the mic or the button or both.

At US$99 the pair is the best option so far in terms of function and value. With some extras. Of course the plug fits, and the jack seems sturdily made with a knurled grip, as there are on the left and right buds themselves. The sleek chrome of the buds and jacks are well made, but the big surprise is the cords themselves. They are light, soft and pliable, and cloth-covered! The feel like well-made, durable string, and not prone to tangling or retaining odd shapes when they get wrapped around things. A self-sealing leather carry pouch comes in the box, which is a pretty classy bonus.

The buds are in-ears, which are acquired tastes. Some like it, some don’t. I belong to the former, having used many like them in the past. They come with six pairs of replaceable silicone fittings, in three sizes: S, M and L, and in clear or black. I’m most comfortable with the mediums. The in-ears seal out extraneous noise and amplify the sound; I’m glad I don’t have to dial up the volume to full all the time now. Two-thirds is plenty.

One of the comments is that the Bliss silicone fittings have a tendency to fall off their posts, and you find you lose one or the other in common use, forcing you to use the other color, or the other sizes. I own a pair of red V-Moda Vibes, and I was down to just four mismatched pairs until I figured a tiny droplet of glue on the rims when you pop the fittings on usually does the trick. You just have to settle on the size and color and stick with your choice.

Another usual comment is that V-Modas have tradionally been bassy buds; true, but not excessively so. Mids and highs don’t get buried, and the reproduced tones shine through the low lows. I’m prefer flat settings myself, but I can live with the V-Modas.

One of my friends who owns a pair already complains that it’s odd to use the V-Moda Vibe Duos as a handsfree headset, and having taken calls on it, I know what he means. The lack of the ambient noise is a bit disconcerting, since the in-ears shut everything out. But it isn’t a biggie; it’s just a matter of getting used to it,

I’m glad I got these, and can now set the white buds aside as reserves. Two Mac-A-Doodle thumbs up.

I was in an crowded elevator at the La Salle College of St. Benilde the other week, and I was a bit puzzled at the muzak being piped in. It wasn’t too clear, but I could tell it was a noisy metal band blasting away. Metal muzak? I listened closer and was startled to realize that it wasn’t from the elevator sound system - it was coming from earphones plugged into the ears of a student at the back of the car. Dear God, I thought. Is he deaf?

If he isn’t yet, he will be soon.

iPods are capable of hitting 100 decibels - the equivalent of standing 10 ft from a pneumatic drill running full-tilt-boogie - and just listening at that level for 15 mins can seriously damage your hearing, say experts. New models of iPods can run for more than 12 hours straight, so you can imagine the potential for damage. Even if you don’t crank it up all the way, the cumulative damage from listening at high dBs for 21 hours a week, the average amount of time a typical user keeps the buds plugged in, can be very disastrous.

Telegraph.co.uk reports that Apple is finally acknowledging the problem and has recently put in a patent for a system that automatically adjusts the volume to safer levels in forthcoming iPods and iPhones. Apple’s patent states

Since the damaging effects on users’ hearing is both gradual and cumulative, even those users who are concerned about hearing loss may not behave in a manner that would limit or minimise such damaging effects.”

Apple’s system will calculate the listening levels and length of time the music has been blaring and will gradually lower the audio output to less harmful levels. It will also calculate the “quiet time” between turning it off and then turning it on again so that the level can be raised higher after a significant rest period for the user, although it has been determined if this automatic level control can be optionally shut off.

Ok, ok, we hear ya. We’re turning it down.

From the Yeah-I-Knew-This-Was-Going-To-Happen Department:

Apple’s just dropped the cost of DRM-free, 256kbps AAC tracks from the iTunes Store from US$1.29 to the usual US$.99 per track, making the high-quality iTunes Plus tracks the same price as the regular stuff while “offering audio quality virtually indistinguishable from the original recordings” and free from oppressive digital rights management to boot. (They used to charge a thirty-cent upgrade fee to bump up previously-bought tracks to iTunes Plus level.)

In addition to the EMI catalog of these songs, Apple has added (among other labels) Sub Pop, Nettwerk, Beggars Group, IODA, The Orchard and more. Now at over 2 million tracks, this makes the iTunes Store the largest DRM-Free high-quality online music source thus far.

Hopefully someday soon, it’ll all be like this. And even cheaper.

Late Beatle George Harrison has finally made it onto the iTunes Store as a solo artist, at last completing the Fab Four’s presence there, while not as the group, at least as solo acts.

Harrison was the last holdout, as John Lennon’s tracks recently have made it onto the store. Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney are already on, and Harrison’s presence on the Store hints at the inevitability of an awaited kinda-sorta historic virtual reunion, and the first time that the group will be available online legally.

At the moment, only several Harrison albums are there, most notably a 2001 double-disc remastered version of All Things Must Pass, which includes alternate versions of some of his popular tracks. See them here.

One of the Doodler’s most-favorite-of-all-time-extreme-to-the-max apps is the SRS iWow Plug-in, which tweaks audio from iTunes to create fantastic audal soundstages and environments that make you disbelieve that all this goodness is actually coming from your two cheap, tinny, bargain speakers. The plug-in lets you adjust bass, focus, stereo separation, and definition from your own preferences or the built-in presets and make you feel like you owned Wharfdales.

It’s certainly a plug-in I can’t imagine being without. It’s the best US$20 I ever spent.

Well, SRS has an update available for download as we speak. iWow 2 now lets you save your personal presets, and adds  auto-presets based on the material you’re playing (”Cruise Control”), and more of its own. Best of all, it adds Movie Mode, which has the ability to create. Virtual. Surround. Over. Headphones. (Granted, this is only with the SRS 360 Headphones, but still…)

It usually sells for US$29.99, but the introductory promo gives it to you at US$19.99, with upgrades for old users at US$11.99. There’s even a Free Trial, which I urge you to take so you can be a true believer.

Go get SRS iWow 2 here. iWow indeed.