Even after finding a good fit, many people have trouble with earbuds inexorably sliding out of their ear canal. Sennheiser thinks it has the solution—it’s called Twist-to-Fit— but we found this invention to be far worse than the problem.

The MX 55 VC Street’s are an in-ear design, just like the other earbuds here, but the ginormous drivers are so big that your ear canal would have to be the size of Carlsbad Cavern for them to fit.

The Twist-to-Fit design, meanwhile, wouldn’t pass muster under the Geneva Conventions. It consists of a rubber-covered stem rising above the speaker. You place the earbud in your ear and twist to jam the stem into the fold in your ear.

If you can endure the pain, the MX 55’s sound pretty damned good. They deliver solid bass response without losing touch with mids and highs. That’s quite an accomplishment considering their low price tag. And we welcome the in-line volume control on the cable. But we’re convinced that if Sennheiser were to apply its earbud-fit concept to the design of a hammer, it would have you nail the hammer to your hand so it won’t slip out and hurt someone.

Month Reviewed: October 2006

+ EAR CANDY: In-line volume control--great idea!

- EAR INFECTION: Twist-to-Fit: horrible idea!

VERDICT: 4

URL: www.sennheiserusa.com