The second set of headphones up for review from Swedish Urbanista is the Copenhagen. I can see inspiration from both the Koss PortaPro, and the B&W P5 in these headphones. At times taking inspiration from well known products is a great thing, especially if the feature you want to use is good in the original product. In the case of the Copenhagen one feature doesn’t work as good as in the PortaPro, and I wasn’t a fan of it for the PortaPro either. The Copenhagen uses the same kind of foldable headband design that allows it to be completely collapsible. The collapsible part of the feature is excellent, but the headband construction is uncomfortable. It sits to hard on my head, and if I adjust the headband my hair get stuck in the middle of the two steel bands. This is really annoying.
As for the B&W P5 inspiration it can be seen in the flat square shaped leather covered foam ear cups. This is a great design choice that gives the Copenhagen a lot of personality, and a sophisticated look. It is also quite comfortable to the ears. One thing worth noting is that the ear pads get quite warm, and sweaty if you are in a warm environment. For exercising these are not an option in my opinion.
The sound of the Copenhagen is great with a strong bass, and clear sound in the rest of the spectra. It packs a surprising amount of punch, and I found myself cranking the volume up to feel the music. All types of music work well with these headphones, as do audio books and podcasts. The sound has a fair amount of spatial dispersion, and to some extent these would work when creating or mixing music as well.
Noise isolation is decent due to the blocking effect of the ear pads, and the fact that the backs of the earphones are covered with large metal plaques. This also limits sound from leak out. Of course there is some leakage, as the ear pads are square without any capsuling borders.
The cord is a flat in the style that Monster Cable, and Jays uses for their in-ear headphones. It is lightweight, and not prone to tangle. After the fork to the earphones the dual cords are thinner, but still feel durable and strong. The cord is of perfect length for use with a mobile phone at just over a meter. For use with a computer it might be short depending on your setup.
The microphone is located on the left cord above the fork split. It is large, lumpy and has a cheap look and feel. It doesn’t match the high-end look of the headphones. The microphone took a couple of days to behave correctly, and after a couple of weird calls it now works as it is supposed to. The placement is ok at about chin height. A perfect placement had been three centimetres higher up. An extension plug for Nokia, Sony Ericsson and Samsung phones is included.
As with the London from Urbanista the Copenhagen is packaged in a luxurious box. Inside the box there is a VIP registration card, and a travel case with the headphones inside. It gives a really good first impression, and if you are looking for a gift these are perfect. Compared to all those headphones hanging in stores in ugly plastic boxes that are near impossible to open Urbanista shows that getting a new product should be a complete experience. Other brands good at this are Urbanears, Coloud, Atomic Floyd, Beats by Dr Dre and B&W.
The Copenhagen from Urbanista is a great addition to the on-ear microphone enabled headphones section. Strong aspects are the great sound with good bass, luxury packaging, comfortable fit and lightweight. Negative points are the hair pulling collapsible headband, cheap looking microphone and the fact that the ear pads get sweaty in warm environments. I still find the Copenhagen easy to recommend, and since it comes in a wide range of colours it is easy to find a pair that fits you or a friend.
Final Rating
Copenhagen at Urbanista.com $99.00
Copenhagen at Urbanista.com 699 SEK
