V-Moda is best know for their over-the-ear headphones, but the new V-Moda Forza and Forza Metallo have hit the market and are poised to grab a lot of attention. The first thing you notice when you pull the earphones out of the box is just how small they are. The included sports fins do add some bulk, but when you strip them off, you can truly appreciate V-Moda’s attention to detail and design.
The Forza Metallo and standard Forza are sweat and water resistant, both come with a 5.8mm driver, inline mic and 3-button remote which allows you to play or pause your music, switch track and adjust the volume and they also feature a 45 degree, 24k gold plated plug. The main difference between the standard Forza and Forza Metallo is that the latter has a CNC forged aircraft-grade metal housing and a reinforced cable which V-Moda claims is 20 times stronger than the industry standard. To emphasize that V-Moda is serious about the V-Moda Forza and Forza Metallo V-Moda’s build quality, both have passed MIL-STD-810G military-grade testing and also come with a two-year warranty.
With that out of the way, let’s audio quality. V-Moda’s headphones are typically top notch, but they went out of the way to make sure these earphones were Hi-Res Audio certified, making them the perfect companion to the HTC 10. It you like bass, the V-Moda Forza and Forza Metallo deliver just the right amount. But that doesn’t mean that these earphones compromise on the mids and treble. You’re able to pick up all the subtlety and nuances that you can hear in high-quality over-ear headphones, making V-Moda’s in-ear earphone perfect for audiophiles which want something they can take with them and store away in their pants pocket.
The included rubber tips also do a great job of isolating your music. You can blast your tunes as loud as you want and the person sitting on the bus next to you won’t have a clue that you’re slowly going deaf. V-Moda has included four different sized tips just to make sure that the earphones will fit nice and snug no matter what size ear canal you have.
Most of the time, I kept the fins on just to make sure earphones didn’t slowly slip out of place while sitting at my desk or walking down the street. But the fins also do an incredible job of hold the earphones secure while running. I’ve used them for the past few weeks while on my training runs for an upcoming half marathon. I haven’t had to use the over-ear hooks that are also included in the box, but I do recommend you use the included clip to secure the cable since you it does transfer noise to the headphones when the cable rubs against your clothes.
If you’re interested in picking up the Forza ($100) or Forza Metallo ($130), V-Moda sells them on its site. They are expensive, but I think they’re well worth the money when you consider the audio quality, durability and two-year warranty. Personally, I’d buy the standard Forza earphones since they are lighter than the Forza Metallo and I really enjoy the bright orange. In the end, it comes down to what your color a build preferences are. You definitely can’t go wrong with either option.
