The Phiaton Moderna MS 200's carbon graphite fiber exterior and bright red accents may be flashy, but this pair of earphones offers an audio performance that's more refined than over-the-top. At $150 (list), they fit squarely in the middle of a crowded field of quality in-canal earphone options. It's hard to find fault with them—sure, they could fit a bit more securely or comfortably, but their response isn't very exaggerated, bucking the current trend of boosted bass and overly sculpted highs. This is not to say they suffer from a lack of low-end response—deep bass tracks are conveyed with plenty of presence, cleanly and distortion-free, even at top volumes. In a field with many options to choose from, however, it's worth reading on to get a sense of how the MS 200 compares.

Design
The red-and-black design of the Moderna MS 200 may not be original, but it is striking, nonetheless. Flexible black bases connect the red audio cable to the black-and-red, carbon graphite fiber-coated earpieces. The flat, linguini-esque red cable trend was started by Monster Beats by Dr. Dre, and now we see flat cables gracing plenty of competing models, like the recent Sony X Headphones (MDR-X10). The Phiaton Moderna MS 200 uses a bright red cable, but rather than a flat or round cable, it's like a hybrid, oval shape.

The in-line phone remote control and microphone work with Apple iOS devices, as well some popular Android phones and tablets, like Samsung's Galaxy series. Call clarity is about what you'd expect—not mind-blowing, but intelligible. Cell phones tend to have only mediocre call audio quality to begin with—the MS 200 can't do much to improve upon it, but the isolation for the in-canal earpieces at least shuts out competing noise.

Included with the Moderna MS 200, a classy, tube-shaped black-and-red snap-shut carrying pouch, as well as a total of five pairs of red silicon ear tips in various sizes, and one pair of Comply foam ear tips. The fit of the ear tips is stable, but they don't create the strongest seal in your ears, and over long listening sessions, can begin to feel slightly uncomfortable.

Performance
The Moderna MS 200 offers solid audio performance, with no distortion on deep bass tracks, even at top (and unsafe) listening levels. The Knife's "Silent Shout" is a challenging track for many sub-$200 earphones and headphones—the deep bass can often lead to distortion when the volume is maxed out. The MS 200, however, had no such issues, and conveyed the thunderous sub-bass of the electronic kick drum with clarity and not much embellishment. Despite the clean delivery, this is definitely not the pair for you if you're seeking booming low end.

The sound signature is more flat than much of the competition—it's most noticeable on classical tracks like John Adams' "The Chairman Dances." Where some bass-heavy earphones tend to exaggerate the lower register strings and percussion to the point that they sound unnatural, the MS 200 reproduces the frequency range in a more accurate manner. This means that some highs seem a bit less crisp than they do on a sculpted pair as well, but overall, the response is well balanced.

Jay-Z and Kanye West's "No Church in the Wild" still packs plenty of punch—the drum loop hits and bass synths have plenty of thump to them, but it's not the booming feeling you get with a bass-heavy pair like the Denon Urban Raver AH-C300 In-Ear Headphones . The response basically handles the whole range—sub-bass to highs—without tweaking anything too much.

Compared with the slightly more expensive Bowers & Wilkins C5 In-Ear Headphones , a standout in the below-$200 price range, the Moderna MS 200 offers significantly less low frequency boost, and slightly less crisp highs, resulting in a response that is closer to a clinical, super-accurate pair like the Etymotic ER-4PT . Another notable difference between the C5 and the MS 200 is the fit—the C5's earpieces have a loop that presses against your ear for added stability, putting less pressure on the ear tips to do all the work. The MS 200 stays in place, but sometimes the seal in the canal doesn't feel as secure as it could be. Overall, the MS 200 sounds great—solid audio performance for the purist-leaning listener on a $150-range budget. If this price is still too high for your budget, consider the slightly less expensive Shure SE215  or the much more affordable AKG K 350—both deliver excellent performance for their price.

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