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Panasonic RP-HC200 Headphones Review

Tested using Methodology v0.9
Reviewed Mar 18, 2016 at 12:00 am
Panasonic RP-HC200 Picture
6.1
Mixed Usage
6.7
Critical Listening
5.6
Commute/Travel
5.9
Sports/Fitness
6.0
Office
6.7
Home Theater

The Panasonic RPHC200K are plasicky and cheap-looking noise-cancelling headphones. They're comfortable, won't leak too much and sound decent. However, they severely lack in bass and their poor noise isolation may also cause ambient noise from loud environments to ruin your listening experience.

Our Verdict

6.1 Mixed Usage

RPHC200K are cheap-looking and flimsy everyday headphones, that sound moderately good and won't leak too much sound. However, they don't isolate well enough for all environments.

Pros
  • Lightweight, comfortable design.
  • Leaks little sound.
Cons
  • Poor noise isolation.
  • Weak build quality.
  • Severely lacking bass.
6.7 Critical Listening

Average critical listening experience. They have a skewed bass-lacking audio reproduction and a poor soundstage.

5.6 Commute/Travel

Not suitable for commuting. The noise canceling is weak and struggles in loud environments.

5.9 Sports/Fitness

Below-average for sports. They're lightweight and decently stable but lack good audio controls and the stereo audio cable is a bit cumbersome.

6.0 Office

Mediocre for office use. They don't leak too much but poorly isolate listeners from the ambient noise of a busy office.

6.7 Home Theater

Average for home theater use. They're comfortable, and they're wired so they have no latency. However, their audio cable is short so they won't the ideal headphones for a home theater set up.

  • 6.1 Mixed Usage
  • 6.7 Critical Listening
  • 5.6 Commute/Travel
  • 5.9 Sports/Fitness
  • 6.0 Office
  • 6.7 Home Theater
  1. Updated Mar 18, 2016: Review published.
  2. Updated Mar 16, 2016: Our testers have started testing this product.

Test Results

Design
Design
Style
Type Over-ear
Enclosure Closed-Back
Wireless No
Transducer Dynamic
Mic No

The RP-HC200 look a little cheap with their all-plastic build but have an understated studio design that could work for some. They are matte black, with a glossy finish on the ear cups. The two types of padding material used are also black. The only other color comes from the branding logo and the noise cancelling button, which are blue.

7.0
Design
Comfort
Weight 0.39 lbs
Clamping Force
0.88 lbs

The Panasonic RP-HC200K are surprisingly comfortable. The lightweight build does not put too much tension on the head and the padding is relatively soft and molds well around the ears. However the flimsy build isn't very stable and the inner ear cup protrudes close to the listener's ear, which may cause discomfort for some.

3.2
Design
Controls
Ease of use Subpar
Feedback Average
Call/Music Control No
Volume Control No
Noise Canceling Control No
Talk-Through No
Additional Buttons No

There is only one noise cancelling switch on these headphones. Disappointingly, the non-detachable cable provides no inline controls of any sort, which means there will be no call/music or volume buttons to control your audio.

7.0
Design
Stability

The lightweight ear cups of the RP-HC200 do not sway easily. This makes these headphones above-average at maintaining their position during high-intensity activities like running or jumping. They're not designed for sports and won't be ideal for the gym, but they will rarely slip off your ears during casual listening sessions unless the non-detachable cable gets hooked on to something.

6.1
Design
Portability
L 7.09"
W 7.68"
H 1.77"
Volume 96.41 in³
Stand required N/A

The RP-HC200 are mid-sized over-ear headphones. Their relatively small ear cups fold flat to take up less space, which makes them somewhat portable. Unfortunately, they do not fold up into a more compact format and won't be easy to carry on your person and will require a bag.

5.0
Design
Case
Type Pouch

Comes with a soft fabric pouch that will protect the headphones from scratches but not from hard falls or physical stress. The soft fabric also won't shield the headphones from water damage.

5.5
Design
Build Quality

The RP-HC200 feel flimsy and cheap. The all-plastic design does not feel sturdy or durable. The joints are fragile and are potential weak points. The headband is hollow, thin and would easily crack under moderate stress.

Design
Cable
Detachable No
Length 5.15 ft
Connection 1/8" TRS

Design
Front

Design
Angled

Design
Side

Design
Rear

Design
Top

Design
In The Box

  • Panasonic RP-HC200 Headphones
  • 1/8" to 1/4" Adapter
  • AAA battery (x2)
  • Airline Adapter
  • Manual
  • Carrying pouch

Sound
6.1
Sound
Bass
Std. Err.
5.18 dB
Low-Frequency Extension
57.81 Hz
Low-Bass
-7.97 dB
Bass
-1.47 dB
High-Bass
1.99 dB

6.8
Sound
Mid
Std. Err.
4.26 dB
Low-Mid
1.52 dB
Mid
5.76 dB
High-Mid
2.45 dB

5.8
Sound
Treble
Std. Err.
5.26 dB
Low-Treble
-2.62 dB
Treble
1.7 dB
High-Treble
1.38 dB

7.2
Sound
Soundstage
Openness
8.3
Acoustic Space Excitation
2.4

9.1
Sound
Total Harmonic Distortion
Weighted THD @ 90
0.056
Weighted THD @ 100
0.361

Isolation
4.6
Isolation
Noise Isolation
Overall Attenuation
-8.32 dB
Noise-Cancelling Yes
Bass
-1.38 dB
Mid
-4.63 dB
Treble
-20.65 dB
Self-Noise
10.22 dB

Poor isolation, especially for active noise-cancelling headphones. These headphones perform poorly in bass, mid, and treble.

7.6
Isolation
Leakage
Overall Leakage @ 1ft
36.32 dB

Good leakage performance. The overall leakage is not too loud, and only leaks a relatively narrow band of frequencies (1KHz-2KHz).

Active Features
0
Active Features
Wireless
Type
N/A
Obstructed Range
N/A
Line of Sight Range
N/A
NFC
No

10
Active Features
Latency
Base Latency
0 ms
aptX Latency
N/A
aptX(LL) Latency
N/A

8.6
Active Features
Battery
Battery Type
AAA
Battery Life
112.5 hrs
Charge Time
N/A
Auto-off
No
Audio while charging
N/A
Passive Playback
No

The RP-HC200 have an exceedingly long battery life of 100+ hours, which should be more than sufficient for a weekend's worth of continuous play time. You can also use these headphones passively by switching the noise canceling off when the battery runs out. They're great headphones to take on a camping or road trip where you don't have access to stores, to purchase other AAA cells. Unfortunately, they don't have any battery saving features.

0
Active Features
App Support

No compatible app.