Best Earbuds You'll Find Under $10

Lifehacker: The Monoprice 8320s Are the Best Earbuds You’ll Find Under $10

Picking the perfect set of headphones can be hard, especially if you don't want to spend hundreds of dollars. If you have a small budget but still want some good sound, look no further than the Monoprice 8320 earbuds.

Our friends over at The Wirecutter pitted these earbuds against a few others in the $30 range, and found that the Monoprice 'buds easily blew the others away. They aren't the only ones, either—just check out the reviews over at Head-Fi. After buying a pair for myself, I have to agree: these earbuds kick some pretty serious butt.

The Pros: They've got some great thumping bass, and while there isn't a lot of sub bass slam, they do a great job of making you feel the music without overpowering everything else (like some "enhanced bass" earbuds do). Mids sound surprisingly great, and highs come through loud and clear. They're a little strangely shaped due to the large drivers inside, but once you figure out how to put them in your ears (upside down, as shown in the video above) that's hardly an issue. The cable is a nice mesh cord instead of the usual rubber, which can crack and tangle a bit easier, which is great. It isn't as nice as other mesh cables—it still tangles up a bit—but the tangles are much easier to get out. Either way, it's a really nice touch that you don't see a lot in this price range.

The Cons: It isn't all butterflies and rainbows, of course. They feel a little cheap and plastic-y, but again, what do you expect for a $7 pair of headphones? The nice thing is, if you don't love the feel of the 'buds or cable, there's a huge thread over at Head-Fi detailing some mods people have done on these headphones (not to mention lots of people proclaiming their love for these babies). The rubber tips that come with it are also pretty bad, at least if you have small ears. It doesn't come with any other sizes, so if the stock tips don't fit your ears, you'll definitely want to buy some aftermarket tips if you want the good sound described above. And lastly, they don't come with a remote for your phone, but you can always buy or make an adapter to solve that problem, too.

The bottom line: Are they going to blow a pair of $100 headphones out of the water? Of course not. But they'll definitely destroy everything in the $10 range, and probably even beat most $20 and $30 headphones, too. Check out the video above to see a bit more of them, or hit the link below to visit their product page over at Monoprice. And if you're interested to read more about how they stack up against other headphones, be sure to read the Wirecutter's review as well.

Monoprice Enhanced Bass Hi-Fi Noise Isolating Earphones

The Monoprice 8320s Are the Best Earbuds You'll Find Under $10