My roomate mentioned something to me about getting a new mp3 player and some headphones a week ago. This past weekend I reminded him of it, so we nabbed an open box Fuze off New Egg for $40, and so it was on to headphones.
We went to Best Buy, and despite having both the Koss DJ100 and the sony XB's, he chose the Marley's. He was asking me questions about them (he knows I'm a head-fi'er), and I said that I havent heard anything about them, other than a couple things about their IEMs. So we agreed that they're worth a try.
Keep In mind...this is my first review. Don't expect too much, hehe.
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Positive Vibrations
By The House of Marley
Rasta colorway pictured.
http://www.thehouseofmarley.com/headphones/jammin/positive-vibration-headphones.html
BE CAREFUL. This site freezes my entire computer upon every visit.
Specifications
Frequency Response: 20Hz to 20+kHz
Drivers: 50mm Dynamic
That's the only info I can find.
Comfort
I can't say I like these headphones comfort-wise. The clamp isn't too bad, but the fact that the "plush" pads are hard as rocks does not help. I have a keloid on the back of my left ear, and this is the only headphone I've worn that makes it hurt...and it hurts alot. *Note: after wearing them for 3 hours my ears grew numb, which I thought was the headphones adjusting to my head. Turns out the pain got so intense it numbed out. Taking them off hurt my ears. Just taking them off. My ears were not happy for a while.
Design
The design is targeted toward the mainstream listener, and is available in more than one color. Portability is decent, there is a fulcrum where the headphone adjusts at. I think if these came in all black with red and blue coiled cables they'd look awesome, but that's just an opinion. Cable is cloth covered with a rasta print on it. No microphonics, which is always nice! They seem closed...but i still hear alot of outside noise, which makes me wonder. Solid build, metal cups, cloth on headband seems prone to tearing though.
Sound
SO SO SO?!?! Calm down! Well...
Frequency Response: Sub bass in present, rolled off though. Mid bass has more emphasis, but is not uncomfortable. Mids are recessd for the most part, bloated a little, and can get muddy. Mid-His are emphasized too, and though not uncomfortable, it's most certainly an unnatural feeling, and they can also get pretty muddy. His are the biggest disappointment to me. They are nearly entirely rolled off, not even Foobar's great EQ can recover them. I have to say that I'm not impressed. The sound is, in my opinion, targeted at the standard scooped, mainstream sound, except a little darker.
Soundstage: Not much to say. No depth to the sound. It's just kinda...there.
Amping: Not necessary, my cmoy made no change to soundstage or musical presence. Driven easily off HP output from laptop.
Clarity: With the his so rolled off, and the mids getting muddy, it's hard to find any.
Instrument/Voice Separation: Not very good either. Most everything just kinda blends together, which lend to the muddyness I keep hearing I suppose.
Summary
I can't honestly say I like these cans, nor would I recommend them to anyone. At $60, there are much better choices available. They didn't respond well to rock, heavy rock, alternative rock, R&B, rap, hip hop, dubstep, house, electronic, classical, or even Marley himself. Though I do see these becoming popular in culture though. The boxes and materials are eco-freindly, and the looks are targeted at the youth, so these should place well in the market with skullcandy's and beats. Sadly, I don't think they are Head-Fi material.
Thank You,
Kyle
