[ExquisiteZero]

But you got to admit that the headphones are very, very nice on the outside. At least to me.

 

[Parall3l]

No one is going to disagree with you on that 

 

[MalVeauX]

Quote:

But you got to admit that the headphones are very, very nice on the outside. At least to me.

Heya,
 
Not if you like classy looking stuff.
 
Very best,

 

[jerg]

I love how everyone (well, almost everyone) barely refrains from utterly losing it and just thrash and lash at the Beats in threads like these.

 

[ExquisiteZero]

Barely refrains from utterly losing it?

 

[MalVeauX]

Quote:

Barely refrains from utterly losing it?

 
Pretty nearly.
 
As hyped as they are, they're equally popular to hate on--by a ton of people who've never even listened to them.
 
Very best,

 

[Mercuttio]

Quote:

But you got to admit that the headphones are very, very nice on the outside. At least to me.

I'd sure sure disagree on that point. I've handled several pairs and greatly disliked the plastics and general build quality. 

 

[fabio-fi]

 
Quote:

I'd sure sure disagree on that point. I've handled several pairs and greatly disliked the plastics and general build quality. 

X2
There are tons of good looking headphones on the market...vintage or not, but better than the Dre's. 

 

[ExquisiteZero]

The looks are one thing. The build quality, however, is another. Personal preferences I guess.

 

[bcasey25raptor]

I personally like the look of my Shure 840s better then beats. Odd I know but they look more professional.

 

[Mercuttio]

For science, I borrowed a pair of the Beats from a guy in my office yesterday and listened to them for several hours.
 
Here's your review:
 
The build quality is abysmal. He's had them for less than a year and normal removing them from his head has broken them twice. He made sure I'd be very careful with them.
 
Headphones are without question a strange beast when it comes to pricing; a pair that costs $500 may be only marginally better than a pair that costs $200, but you might like the sound of the $500 much more (though they are not technically better) because they simply fit your audio profile better.
 
That said, I generally rank certain Audio Technica phones (vintage Woodies, the W1000x, the ESW7 and ESW9) and most Grados as very good sound for their pricepoints, despite the fact you can probably get a Sennheiser, AKG, or Beyerdynamic that has comparable audio quality for less. 
 
My point? I'd rank these as having about $50 sound at a $200+ price point. The issue here is that even at $50 I'd still take a KSC 35 or 75 or Portapro over these because they're about as smooth as sandpaper and pitch sound wildly around the soundstage. My P5 images very nicely and was my direct comparison in this particular instance: sounds that have a very specific location around my head or a very specific tactile feel (as confirmed at home later by my W1000X) are suddenly completely out of place with the Beats. Toss on top of that the sounds and frequencies that are just flat out missing from the spectrum. I did more than one double take at my audio player, as if the missing horn part or the guitar or vocals that used to be there were scampering across my desk, trying to escape. 
 
At this point I've got enough experience with headphones to hear a particular pair and say "Oh, well, this isn't my cup of tea but here's what these do correctly and people who like X would like these." This simply isn't the case with these headphones. You can get more durable, more comfortable, and better sounding headphones in any particular signature flavor you want for either less or more. 
 
There's nothing particularly WRONG with the Beats audio, but that's not good enough. They sound acceptable, they don't hurt my ears, and they don't offend with piercing frequencies. But there's never any reason ever to buy them. 
 

 

[Parall3l]

Quote:

 
There's nothing particularly WRONG with the Beats audio, but that's not good enough. 

 
So you mean the only thing wrong is the price ? 

 

[Tilpo]

 
So you mean the only thing wrong is the price ? 

Don't forget the ignorant fanbase.

 

[Parall3l]

Quote:

Don't forget the ignorant fanbase.

They are $500 (in Australia) and the guy endorsing them says its good, so it must be good 

 

[Mercuttio]

There's just nothing RIGHT about them.
 
Quote:

 
So you mean the only thing wrong is the price ?