Les Adams

MDR-7510 - £130 .... Replacement headband £230 (part only) ... THAT sir is the problem! £230+ VAT = £276 for a headband for headphones that cost £130 to buy new?

A couple of years ago I purchased a pair of Sony MDR-7520 professional studio headphones costing circa £300. Last week I dropped them and the plastic mount on the headband snapped. I contacted Sony spares to arrange for the to be repaired and was told to call their service agent CVP. CVP told me a complete new headband was required... the cost? A STAGGERING £576! £230 for "parts" and two hours labour + VAT. When I queried it I was told that was the price and there was nothing I could do, but they offered to sell me a new pair! To compound the stupidity of this quote, it is the SAME headband as used on the MDR-7510 which has different drivers and sells for circa £130... so presumably they would charge the same price to replace the headband on those. Replacing the headband is a simple job, it can be done in 30 mins yet they charge two hours labour at £98 per hour. What they are saying is, we don't repair headphones. Once they are out of warranty and they break, throw then in the bin! £300 down the drain. I also suspect that as I dropped them, they would not be covered by warranty. So please bear in mind before you spend your money on Sony Headphones, they are unserviceable as it is cheaper to buy a new pair than repair them. Anyone else suffered this kind of service on any other headphones?