How We Research
We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
If you want a wired on-ear headphone with a microphone and inline controls for phone calls and video, choose Sony Mdrxb450Ap; if you need tiny, lightweight in-ear earphones that disappear in your pocket and push heavy bass through a sealed fit, choose エレコム(ELECOM) EHP-GB100ARD.
• Sony Mdrxb450Ap — biggest strength: it's the only one of the two built as a headset, with an in-line mic, volume control and a free app for customizing the remote. Trade-off: it's a 165 g over-ear-style design with a fixed 1.2 m cord, so it's bulkier and more to carry.
• エレコム(ELECOM) EHP-GB100ARD — biggest strength: a featherweight 8 g in-ear design (cord excluded) with a semi-open ducted housing, four ear-cap sizes and a pouch — a bass-forward earphone you can forget you're wearing. Trade-off: no microphone and no inline remote, so it's for listening, not talking.
• Sony Mdrxb450Ap is for the person who wants one wired device for calls, music and TV and doesn't mind a bigger object in their bag.
• エレコム(ELECOM) EHP-GB100ARD is for the person who wants maximum portability, a tight in-ear seal and thumping low end at a tiny size.
• Quick verdict: calls and controls → Sony. Size, seal and pocketability → ELECOM.
The MDR-XB450AP is an Extra Bass wired smartphone headset — that's the whole pitch, and the specs back it up. Sony pairs a 30 mm dynamic driver with an "Acoustic Bass Booster," and quotes a frequency range of 5 Hz to 22 kHz. That low-end figure is unusually deep on paper, and it's the clearest signal about the tuning: this is a headphone that leans into bass rather than chasing a flat, neutral sound. Impedance sits at 40 ohm with 102 dB sensitivity, which is an easy-enough load for a phone or laptop headphone jack.
What separates it from a plain pair of earphones is the "headset" half of the name. There's an in-line microphone for hands-free calling plus volume control on the cord, and Sony's free SmartKey app lets you customize what the in-line remote button does. It's also listed as compatible with both Apple and Android smartphones. The physical design is a lightweight on-ear shape that swivels for portability, with a 1.2 m tangle-free Y-type cord terminating in a 3.5 mm jack. The enclosure is aluminum and it's listed as black. Weight is 165 g.
So who should buy it? In my view, this is the pick for someone who wants a single wired headphone that does double duty: music and podcasts on a commute, then a call or a video meeting without swapping devices. The swivel hinge and tangle-free cord make it a reasonable toss-in-the-bag item, and the 40 ohm / 102 dB combination means you shouldn't need to fight your phone's volume. The theme tag — movie, TV series — hints at the intended use, and a bass-heavy tuning suits explosions and soundtracks.
Who should skip it? If you want something that vanishes in a jeans pocket, 165 g and a swiveling on-ear frame is not that. If you mostly listen in loud places and want isolation from a seal rather than a pad resting on your ear, an in-ear design will beat it. And if you don't make calls or use inline controls, you're paying attention-wise for features you won't use. This is also not a wireless headphone — despite a "wireless technology: Bluetooth" field in the listing details, the connectivity technology is wired and the jack is a 3.5 mm plug, so treat it as a corded product and check the listing carefully before you buy if wireless matters to you.
The ELECOM EHP-GB100ARD is a canal-type (in-ear) stereo earphone from the "GrandBass" line, and the engineering story is all about getting bass out of a very small shell. It uses a 10 mm outer-magnet dynamic driver with large neodymium magnets in an external magnetic circuit, a WFC paper and PU composite diaphragm chosen for high internal loss and elasticity, and a lightweight CCAW voice coil that's meant to improve vibration response for a wider range and cleaner sound. The rear housing is rigid aluminum to cut vibration coming off the driver yoke.
There's also a semi-open construction with ducts on the front and rear of the driver unit, with the duct tuned for ventilation resistance so the diaphragm moves more freely. In plain terms: ELECOM is chasing "overwhelming bass and clear sound" through airflow and magnet design rather than just boosting the low end electronically. The quoted specs are 16 ohm impedance, 95 dB/mW sensitivity, 5 mW input, and a 20 Hz – 20 kHz range. Passive noise cancellation is listed, which in practice means the ear-cap seal does the isolating.
And that seal is taken seriously. ELECOM includes four ear-cap sizes (XS, S, M, L) and describes "deep adjustable mounting position ear-caps" for a better seal and stronger bass. You also get a cord keeper, a pouch and a manual. The cord is 1.2 m, Y-type, with an L-shaped 3.5 mm 3-pole mini plug. Color is red, and weight is about 8 g without the cord. The model number is EHP-GB100ARD and the warranty period is listed as 6 months.
Who should skip it? If you take calls or want a play/pause button on the cord, this earphone has no mic and no remote — that's the Sony's territory. If you dislike things inserted into your ear canal, canal-type is the wrong genre entirely. And if you're hard on gear, note the 6-month warranty and the tiny, light build.
Side-by-Side: Which Should You Choose?
• Best for phone calls → Sony Mdrxb450Ap. It has an in-line mic and volume control; the ELECOM has neither.
• Best for customization → Sony Mdrxb450Ap. The free SmartKey app lets you remap the in-line remote behavior.
• Best for portability → エレコム(ELECOM) EHP-GB100ARD. Roughly 8 g without the cord versus 165 g, plus a pouch and cord keeper.
• Best for a secure, isolating fit → エレコム(ELECOM) EHP-GB100ARD. Four ear-cap sizes (XS/S/M/L) and a deep-adjustable canal design; passive noise cancellation comes from that seal.
• Best for deep-bass spec on paper → Sony Mdrxb450Ap on frequency range (5 Hz – 22 kHz vs 20 Hz – 20 kHz), though ELECOM's bass work is in the driver and housing design rather than the quoted band.
• Best for easy driving from a phone → エレコム(ELECOM) EHP-GB100ARD at 16 ohm, versus Sony's 40 ohm.
• Best for watching movies/TV at a desk → Sony Mdrxb450Ap. The on-ear fit, swivel frame and 1.2 m tangle-free cord suit a laptop or TV setup.
• Best for gym, walking and commuting light → エレコム(ELECOM) EHP-GB100ARD. Nothing to swivel, nothing heavy, nothing to snag.
My Verdict
Treat it as wired. The listing's connectivity technology is wired with a 3.5 mm jack and a 1.2 m Y-type cord. A "Bluetooth" field appears in the product details, so if wireless is essential, verify the exact variant on the product page before buying.
No. The EHP-GB100ARD is a listening earphone — no inline mic and no remote are listed. If you need hands-free calling, the Sony Mdrxb450Ap is the one with the in-line microphone.
Both are bass-focused, just differently. Sony quotes a 5 Hz – 22 kHz range with an Acoustic Bass Booster and a 30 mm driver; ELECOM uses a 10 mm outer-magnet driver, neodymium magnets, a WFC/PU diaphragm and semi-open ducts for "overwhelming bass." In my opinion, ELECOM's bass depends heavily on getting a good ear-cap seal, while Sony's is delivered through a larger on-ear driver.
That depends on what you need, not on a number I can quote here — check the current price on Amazon for both, then weigh it against features. If you want a mic, controls and an app, Sony earns its place. If you want something tiny, sealed and bassy with a pouch and four ear-cap sizes, ELECOM is the leaner buy.
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