How to Spot Fake Mix-Style Headphones
December 30th, 2009 | Published in Guides and How-To's, Tech and Gadgets | 93 Comments
After I had discussed my somewhat adulterous love affair with both mix-style and Skullcandy headphones, I noticed a huge spike in traffic for the search term “fake mix-style”. Intrigued, I decided to do a bit of sleuthing on my own, and discovered that not only were there mix-style knock-offs, but that they were cheap and readily available on the local market.
So, how do you tell a fake mix-style product from the real deal? I still have a spare headset purchased from Tokyu Hands Shibuya during my last Tokyo trip, but I also went out and bought one of the fakes from a local dealer that I found online, so that I’d be able to conduct a proper investigation.
I will not be divulging who it was or where their store is, but a bit of creative Googling will yield you some answers. In fairness to the shop-owners, they will tell you outright that you are purchasing a counterfeit, but not all sellers are as forthcoming as they are so this post aims to protect you from the unscrupulous ones.
Please note that in all succeeding photos, the ones on the left are pictures of the genuine mix-style, while those on the right are from the counterfeit.
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Let’s start with the packaging. AFAIK the printing and the stickers on both boxes are identical. However, the box on the original has a stiffer body — both the cardboard and the clear plastic window are more resistant to squashing compared to the box for the fake. The quality of the paper also feels different — the original feels weightier and inside lining sports a very faint yellow tinge, while that on the fake feels more flimsy and is flat white on the inside.
Another huge tell-tale sign is the cord that connects the headphones to the jack. On the original mix-style, the cord is attached to the headphones, but in turn it is attached to an extension cord about a metre long that terminates with another sound jack. On the fake, the cord leads from the headphones directly to the jack in a metre-long stretch.
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Moving on, a quick inspection of the leather insulation for the headphone cups reveals that while the originals are clad in a smooth, buttery genuine leather shell, the fake comes with wrinkly synthetic leather that feels hotter to the touch and is more prone to inducing sweat in and around your ears. The ear cups on the original are also wider by a couple of millimetres compared to the counterfeits.
When you look at the headband, you will notice that the original actually comes with a smaller, narrower headband compared to the fake. The plastic also feels more sturdy in the genuine mix-style than the fake. The most telling sign however is the embossing of the brand logo on the inside of the right-side headband for the original mix-style; the fakes do not bear this embossing on either sides of the headband.
Last but not least are two non-physical indicators to help you tell the originals apart from the fakes: sound quality and price point. The bass is richer and more punchy with the original mix-style, while the treble is more peaky on the imitation mix-style which sometimes interferes with bass quality. As for the pricing, there is a huge disparity between the two: the original is worth about JPY 4000 (or PhP 2000), while the counterfeit only fetched a price of PhP 500.
If you’re looking to invest in a pair of good-looking midpriced headphones, it pays to do your homework ahead of time. Good luck and I hope you score your own pair of mix-style headphones very soon! :D
December 31st, 2009at 06:52(#)
Thanks for this. I already saw fake Mix-style headphones at the malls recently. I didn’t know there were already fakes and to think it’s from a well-known mall! x_x
Anyway, I almost bought one because it’s cheaper. But then upon inspection and my intuition said, it wasn’t ‘the one’
Meanwhile, I bought my (orig) Mix-style online and yeah it costs 2k but hey it’s a good investment. ^^
December 31st, 2009at 14:37(#)
i’m considering buying the fake online for $500 i’l just better it by using an amp(Fiio E5) which increases the vol and bass,should make the sound qual comparable or even better than the auth. I have to improvise since i can’t spend too much anyway on a headphone that doesn’t pack much bass, i mean it does but not that much compared to skullcrushers..
December 31st, 2009at 14:59(#)
if you’re purchasing a fake for USD 500 then you’re being royally ripped off — a genuine pair costs only USD 50 from YES ASIA o.O
December 31st, 2009at 16:01(#)
i’m sorry it was 500 php i mean uknow those at sulit and multiply.. do u know the diff though between those that sell for 500 than those that sell for a thousand? like those for 1k any good over those at 500 or they’re all just the same kind just diff price??
December 31st, 2009at 20:01(#)
i was wondering why you were going to pay ten times as much for a fake. anyway, i think that anything sold for less than the SRP of JPY 4000 could be a fake. there’s just too much of a price difference for me not to be suspicious of the authenticity.
January 9th, 2010at 01:11(#)
nice one, i sell the fake one, and it match all what u said, the difference is, I told everyone that they can chose to buy a real one with the real price, or to buy mine with 1/3 price. And even after they used it, no one complain, and still said, it has nice sound, even I admit, this is a nice replica with nice sound.
What I don’t like is, if someone sells a counterfeit but told people that it is the real one, and sell them with the real price.. curse them.. =.=”"
Bravo for ur investigation ^^
January 10th, 2010at 18:07(#)
If I were to buy from hmv.co.jp (http://www.hmv.co.jp/en/product/detail/1259637)
Would these be actual Mix style headphones?
January 10th, 2010at 18:46(#)
yup — HMV is a trusted source of legit japanese goods :)
to see other designs, check out the official mix-style website.
January 10th, 2010at 18:51(#)
Ahhh YAY~! Haha. I was so close to buying one off this site (like a trading site that is available in my country) I had already *bought* it as well! Then I found your page, and asked the seller and they didn’t have the logo, and after discussing and her reading this page, she too realised hers weren’t real. So I managed to cancel the trade~ thank fully.
I was wondering about HMV because I couldn’t look the close enough to see if it had the logo.
Thank you for replying~!
January 11th, 2010at 03:46(#)
no worries — i hope everything works out for you :) cheers!
January 13th, 2010at 18:09(#)
hi, i’m interested on mix-style.. in your last article you mentioned about yesasia.com.. i wanna ask you if the one that sold there is the real thing? or is it fake?
please reply on my email.. thank you.. i’m dying to have it!!
January 13th, 2010at 18:25(#)
yup — YES ASIA sells the authentic mix-style; i have one pair from them identical to the one purchased in SHIBUYA.
January 13th, 2010at 18:34(#)
owh i see… now i know where to buy…
thank you!!
January 15th, 2010at 12:11(#)
Hi,
Do you know any reliable sources where i can purchase genuine mix-style headphones in bulk at a cheaper price?
I am thinking of ordering about 100.
Thanks,
Alan Wang
January 15th, 2010at 12:22(#)
hi — sorry but i only know of retailers; for wholesale inquiries you’ll have to go directly to the manufacturer. thanks!
January 19th, 2010at 12:59(#)
Hi, thanks for the article! :)
Anyways, where in the Philippines can I buy authentic mix-styles? I’m hesitant to buy from local retailers (Multiply people) because of counterfeit.
Thanks!
January 19th, 2010at 17:49(#)
AFAIK there are no official retailers locally; i get mine from YESASIA.COM.
January 19th, 2010at 22:42(#)
I see.
I checked-out YESASIA.COM and it seems that the item is eligible for FREE SHIPPING (standard).
I’m new to this online shopping thing… Two questions:
1. Have you had any problem retrieving the item (Post office problems)?
2. Did you pay any taxes?
Thanks! :)
January 19th, 2010at 23:30(#)
YESASIA is very reliable — if the post office loses your parcel for any reason, they are willing to ship you a replacement for free. as for customs fees, if they hold your parcel at the post office you may need to pay taxes, but if it goes through without a hitch all you have to pay is the PhP 35 releasing fee.
January 29th, 2010at 15:30(#)
I am buying mix style headphone today..
I never thought it was at par with skullcandy, until I searched for it today. Now, I can concluded that the mix style headphones I am buying from Ayala today will be fake.. hehehe never thought it was that popular..
anyway, I am still buying the fake ones for 450php.. Hopefully it will last long..
wish me luck ^_^
February 3rd, 2010at 11:14(#)
Hii. ^^
I’m looking for Mix-Style headphones on eBay. However, the seller on eBay is selling the headphones for around $14 USD. Would you suspect it as a fake?
Here is a link of it. Thank you very much for posting this. I really appreciate it. :)
February 3rd, 2010at 12:17(#)
well, the seller just posted pics from the mix-style catalogue, and unless he takes hi-res photos of his on-hand items himself like i did with the side-by-side comparison of real versus fake mix-style, i am not inclined to believe that his merchandise is authentic.
February 3rd, 2010at 12:55(#)
Thanks for the warning!
But it’s a little to late for me…I read this article the day before they arrived and I started freaking out! Just one glance at them when they came and I knew that they were fake. Now I know never to buy from HD Accessory again, but thank you for suggesting yesasia.com! I’ll get my headphones from there now! XD
February 3rd, 2010at 13:29(#)
yikes — that sucks :( well, i hope you didn’t lose too much money in the deal :/
February 4th, 2010at 02:12(#)
Ahh yes I saw a few other sellers who posted pictures that looked pretty dead-on compared to the pictures you supplied. But the price was very cheap so I’m guessing they’re fakes. >.<
$50 for headphones is pricey for me. D: But I really don't like the idea of buying fakes. :/
I think I'll try my luck and buy one I suspect to be fake. I hope the sound quality isn't too bad. :S
February 4th, 2010at 10:46(#)
well, it’s a compromise between price and quality. i suggest though that you skip buying the fake and just save up your money for the genuine one. fifty bucks seems like a lot right now but the headphones will last you a year — if not more, and i doubt the fakes will last beyond a mere three months.
February 4th, 2010at 10:55(#)
[...] Posts30 December 2009 — How to Spot Fake Mix-Style Headphones20 May 2009 — Tips for Purchasing J-pop CDs Online: HMV, CD Japan, and Yes [...]
February 9th, 2010at 16:14(#)
oh thank you for the tip…very helpful…cause i was trying to buy the headphone as a gift to my self…i don’t want to end my birthday with tears..you save me here..i’ll just ask my sis in japan to buy me one..instead..phew!
February 15th, 2010at 05:36(#)
I bought my mix styles from YESASIA, and they look like the counterfeit ones D:
February 15th, 2010at 11:03(#)
counterfeit ones are supposed to look like the item they are copying — that’s why they are counterfeit in the first place >.> if you are not pleased with your purchase YESASIA has a return policy — just check up on their website for details.
having said that though, if you weren’t happy with the originals you bought off YESASIA (and they never sell fakes, at least not to my knowledge) i doubt you’d be any happier with another authentic mix style bought off a different store. you’d probably be better off buying a different brand altogether.
February 16th, 2010at 04:43(#)
I bought them during the summer, so the option of returning anything is out of the question. I like mix styles, but I don’t want to overpay for fakes. The “leather” portion of my headphones look identical to the image of the counterfeits.
February 23rd, 2010at 23:43(#)
you said that the original costs for about $50, how about this one??
February 24th, 2010at 00:20(#)
sorry but the seller (a third-party seller, not amazon) is using the catalogue photos so it is impossible to tell if they are original or fake.
February 25th, 2010at 02:15(#)
hmm its only 350 php here.
February 25th, 2010at 10:30(#)
that’s a fake — she said so herself on her selling page (with a disclaimer). besides, PhP 500 or PhP 350 or Php 1000, it does not matter — as long as it falls way below the SRP of JPY 4000 (PhP 2000) i have my doubts about its authenticity.
February 28th, 2010at 19:49(#)
salamat sa post na ito. =) ang daming nanloloko sa multiply.!
chos!
March 6th, 2010at 06:57(#)
I was about to buy them from ebay, but i
read your site and i dont want to get a fake
one, so spenind 20 more dollars wouldnt hurt.
so, hmv is a good site to get it from???
March 7th, 2010at 01:41(#)
yup, HMV should be a good place to buy them :)
March 7th, 2010at 18:39(#)
Wow i bought Fakes — From a Shopping center How Gay but i got it for 300php I hope mine lasts long =.= ill kill my self thanks for the info.
March 8th, 2010at 00:39(#)
How to buy stuff online if you’re from the Philippines or My First Online Shopping Experience…
As a self-proposed geek and a professional software developer, it is hard for me to admit that I was totally clueless about online shopping for the longest time. Early last year, I got hit by the Hallyu wave and got addicted to all things Korean. KPOP,…
March 9th, 2010at 23:45(#)
hehe sa monumento station 350 lang. hehe iniintay ko pa magkaroon ng bagong kulay at design. malupit kasi yung parang reggae colors. parang “BALLER” craze lang yan, sa praktikal ka na kung porma porma ka lang naman. nasa nagdadala lang yan. pero kung full blown musician/music lover ka, i recommend to buy the 2k pesos [it is cheap pa nga actually compared to SONY]. wag kau bumili nung 450, 1k at wag kayo bumili sa multiply, sulit,at kung anu anu pa. kung japeks sa 350 lang kayo ganun din un.
March 10th, 2010at 10:01(#)
[...] Good Smile guide. I will also try to come up with larger photos I have taken myself, similar to the mix-style guide I posted earlier. If anybody has a pair of original and fake Nendroids of the same character, [...]
March 10th, 2010at 14:52(#)
i just got some from yesstyle.com are mine real or fake?
March 10th, 2010at 15:07(#)
they’re genuine — YES STYLE is the apparel arm of YES ASIA (CDs, DVDs, etc.)
March 10th, 2010at 23:43(#)
Haha. I bought my Mix-Style headphones from the Uwajimaya store in Seattle,Washington. Only 53 USD for Stereos, and 37 for Earbuds.
March 11th, 2010at 13:59(#)
hi magnetic rose,
you mentioned that the authentic ones only last a year? i just bought myself a pair from yesasia and am expecting them by end of march. that’s so sad, somehow i feel ripped off already that its life expectancy is so short. i mean i dont expect it to last for a decade, but a year?! really?
March 11th, 2010at 14:05(#)
yes, i replaced my headphones after about a year because the headband had become uncomfortably loose and had a tendency to slip off, although the sound quality of the output was not affected by age.
when you think about it, a year or so isn’t so bad since headphones are peripherals and meant to be replaced after some time. if you wanted something nigh-near indestructible, i suggest you go for the professional USD 300-500 headphones used by sound engineers and deejays :)
March 11th, 2010at 14:22(#)
Awww, i feel kinda sad about these turn of events, a few days ago i was so happy that i had found good quality headphones. didnt expect its body to have weak structural features. too bad i read about its structural issues too late.
$50 is pretty big for me, and id at least expect to enjoy it for 2-4years.
March 11th, 2010at 14:27(#)
lol sorry but i think your expectations are a bit unrealistic. if you wanted to up the ante on durability you’d obviously need to scale up on your price range as well :) hope it all works out for you in the end…
March 23rd, 2010at 11:43(#)
[...] But there are two class of this mix style headphones, the authentic and the replica. just put in mind before buying if you are buying the authentic or the replica one, here’s a guide on how to spot a fake mix style headphones. [...]
April 4th, 2010at 13:46(#)
Thanks for this. :) Where can I find the original mix-style headphones, btw?
April 4th, 2010at 18:18(#)
as mentioned before, YES ASIA or HMV should set you up nicely.
April 11th, 2010at 11:19(#)
Where can i have a Mix Style Headphones Pink Colour and with a White Star which is authentic. Please help! Yesasia doesn’t have the colour i wanted.
April 11th, 2010at 12:38(#)
if YES ASIA/ YES STYLE does not have them in stock you can either wait for it to be available again, or you can — as suggested above, order from HMV japan.
April 15th, 2010at 16:19(#)
i bought my mixstyles from yes asia.. but the earphone cups are not leather!! :(
is that supposed to be so??
April 15th, 2010at 18:35(#)
if you touch it does it feel really soft and smooth or really rough and a bit rigid? if it’s the former that’s leather, and if it’s the latter that’s synthetic. you can also check if you get a genuine set by looking for the brand name embossing in the inside of the headband. if it has it your item is authentic, otherwise it’s faux.
April 27th, 2010at 22:24(#)
Thanks to this, I almost bought a fake one. I was eager to buy since I’m starting school again, and one way to pass the time is to listen music. (Traffic jams and breaktimes)I think I’ll better save up for an original one.
April 28th, 2010at 00:30(#)
original is always better :)
April 29th, 2010at 19:34(#)
Do you know where I can buy authentic mix style headphones without using a credit card? Because my parents won’t allow me to buy online… do you know where I can buy?? I really want this because Donghae (from Super Junior) wore it in the music video of Seoul… XD but of course, I’ll use it too so I don’t want to spend money if the quality isn’t good s i don’t want a fake one… can you help me??
April 29th, 2010at 21:13(#)
sorry but there is no local reseller in the philippines. the only way to get a guaranteed authentic one is if you get it from an online store — and all of them take either paypal or credit cards only :(
May 2nd, 2010at 12:02(#)
the ear cups are soft but it still feels like fake leather :/
and the name is embossed.
is it supposed to also say made in china??
thankss
May 3rd, 2010at 18:58(#)
is there a tax fee? how much would it be?
May 5th, 2010at 07:21(#)
yes, it’s supposed to say “made in china”. anyway, seems that you got yourself a genuine pair, but if you’re not happy with the performance i suggest that you return it and get a different brand instead, or try to get a swap from craigslist or something. sorry, i can’t be more helpful :(
May 5th, 2010at 07:39(#)
customs fees and other taxes are dependent on the value of the item — please click here for more information.
May 17th, 2010at 21:19(#)
oh my goodness thank you so much for this information! do you know where i can find mix headphones for as cheap a price as possible?
i looked around on ebay. i wasn’t sure if these were real? i can’t really tell :\ can you please tell me?
May 17th, 2010at 21:31(#)
sorry but it’s really hard to tell since the seller used photos from the mix-style catalog and not actual photos of his items on hand. to be safer, just buy them off HMV.CO.JP or YESASIA.COM.
May 19th, 2010at 14:31(#)
Holy….. O_______O
I bought one for 300.00 and it was freakin’ fake?! O________O
May 19th, 2010at 14:56(#)
USD 300 or PHP 300? if you paid USD 300 — genuine or original, you were royally ripped off. if you paid PhP 300, then i’d say that’s a fair price for a fake. it’s still a fake though, as originals cost seven or eight times that, not including shipping fees from tokyo, seoul, or hong kong.
May 28th, 2010at 23:18(#)
I Got FAKED . ! damn…
June 4th, 2010at 14:28(#)
May 200php na fake. haha
June 4th, 2010at 15:54(#)
yeah, but in case you didn’t notice — this post was done in december 2009, when the cheapest fakes were going for PHP 500 and the most extortionate ones at PHP 1200; prices for the fakes started to drop as demand and competition grew.
June 5th, 2010at 20:23(#)
hey is there other differences from the real and fake one othere then the appearences
like is the quality also different
June 5th, 2010at 21:50(#)
yes, there is — did you read the article in full?
June 6th, 2010at 22:13(#)
di nman tinitingnan ng tao kung orig. o hindi.. ang importante lng nmn dun ay my naririnig k. mhrp buhay ngyn.. d rn nmn msama bumili ng fake eh… nsa pag-aalaga din un kung gs2 m tumagal syo..
June 6th, 2010at 23:06(#)
that’s actually untrue. if you’re buying a fake just to look “cool”, it really doesn’t work because the ones who have the originals can pretty much tell the fakes apart, and that makes you even more uncool than when you started out.
buying the original or a fake is a personal choice — it’s up to you if you choose quality over price, style over substance. word of advice: if you only have PhP 300 for a pair of headphones, just buy authentic PHILIPS earbuds instead of fake MIX-STYLE — it’s the same price, and the quality is much better.
June 14th, 2010at 13:38(#)
I actually got a fake one for just $8.99 but I didn’t know it was a fake until after. I’m still okay with it though.
June 14th, 2010at 15:22(#)
as long as you’re happy with your purchase there’s no real harm done :)
June 20th, 2010at 05:28(#)
All the ones on eBay are fake if they’re $15 or less and not pre-owned. T_T The interior of the circle gives it away big time.
July 11th, 2010at 16:00(#)
Hello, I recently ordered a pair of Grey Mix-Star headphones from yesasia.com for approximately $60 AUD. They just arrived but I’m unsure whether it is genuine. The insulation of the headphones look more like the fake picture on the right opposed to the smooth one, but that might be picture quality. On one side of the headband there is the text “(c) mix-style made in china” (lol) but not on the otherside. The cable is about 30cm starting from where both side meet up to the jack and it comes with an extention cable. I’m pretty sure its real because it came from yesasia but the insulation makes me a little unsure. What do you think?
July 11th, 2010at 16:30(#)
hi there! i’m pretty sure it’s genuine due to the embossing (yes, it does only show up on one side of the headband), and the dual jack system. unfortunately i have been getting a lot of reports that the insulation on the ear cups was not as expected, so i am hazarding a guess that maybe they changed suppliers for the material, and as a result the newer ones look and feel a little different from the older ones (models purchased over a year ago).
July 11th, 2010at 19:14(#)
Ah thanks a lot, though I must admit the smoother surface does look a lot more appealing.
July 25th, 2010at 21:45(#)
Where the real ones sell?… yes asia?
July 25th, 2010at 22:14(#)
yes, and HMV JAPAN.
July 29th, 2010at 17:11(#)
But still, is the 500 peso headphones still worth it like you just want to listen to your iPod, mp3?
July 29th, 2010at 17:25(#)
in my opinion, no. having heard what a genuine pair can do i won’t waste my money on fakes which sound like crap. although the sound quality is not as excellent as professional deejay headphones that can cost several hundred dollars, the richer bass and crisper treble from genuine mix style are still better compared to the tin can sounds coming out of the fakes.
August 4th, 2010at 08:25(#)
Hello.. Where do you think I can buy authentic Skullcandy headphones online that shoulders the shipping fee? LOL
August 4th, 2010at 10:06(#)
some stores offer free shipping — just keep shopping around until you find one that stocks the headphones you want. GOOGLE helps.
August 16th, 2010at 15:53(#)
Hi. I read on yesasia that some buyers felt that the any that came with the headphones were alittle light and flimsy. Is it supposed to feel like that?
August 16th, 2010at 15:56(#)
Sorry I meant box
August 16th, 2010at 15:59(#)
the box of the original is laminated cardboard so it is flimsy to a certain degree. it’s just that the boxes that come with the fake are even more flimsy. for example, the box from the original will not bend or fold until you sit on it, but with the fake if you just put it in a bag for short periods it gets all crushed and bent out of shape.
August 16th, 2010at 17:21(#)
Thanks. You say yesasia sells authentic mix styles, but the pictures provide on their website are blur and I can’t really see the wording on the headband
August 16th, 2010at 17:28(#)
i know that YESASIA sells authentic headphones because i bought one from them already, and it was identical to the one i bought in TOKYU HANDS SHIBUYA six months before that (i bought a spare just in case i broke my first one).
i still have both headphones with me and both are still working — although the headband on the one from shibuya is already loose and has chipped in the middle (where the headband folds).
August 17th, 2010at 19:50(#)
Thanks so much!! When I saw these, I immediately wanted to buy them xD my dad found a pair under $50 on a Korean website that were definitely real. Your information helped a lot!!!