First off, I am not affiliated nor against Monster. I purchased them for $50 and I will judge them as $50 IEMs. I read some reviews about how these had great build quailty and had a lot of bass, which, then, I belived was good. So I bought them and a year later, I write this review after I've heard much better IEMs so to compare them.
Accessories
If I remember correctly, these came in a rather flimsy paper box which had 3 pairs of tips and a clothy material snap lock case. The case is not protective at all and is just a bag to keep your IEMs. If you drop them or something it will b ok, but I'm less sure if you hit them will a hammer. Not great, but also not the best that I have seen.
Build Quality
Some say that the build quality of these IEMs are good. Monster advertise these by saying that they are indestructable. There is no strain relief on the IEM casing, jack or y-splitter. This is a bit concerning, but my pair seem to have held up pretty well. The metal IEM casing seems well built, but I think that Joker said that his pair broke in a day. I'll let you be the judge of build quality as it doesn't seem to be very consistent. Oh, and there is driver flex - that is, when you push the IEM into your ear, there is a sort of crackling sound.
Isolation, Comfort and Microphonics
Isolation is bit above average, but it certainly get's the job done. It's more than the IE8s, and around the B2s. It is quite comfortable for me, and my ears are pretty small, so it should be fine for yours'. There is quite a bit of microphonics when you wear them straight down, but when worn around the ear, they are great.
[size=medium]Sound Quality[/size]
[size=small]Bass[/size]
[size=small]The bass is certainly exaggerated like I expected. To be honest, my expectations for the Monster Jamz were fairly low since the only other Monster IEM that I had heard was the Beats Tour (which I am not even going to review). The bass isn't too bloated, but you can certainly tell that is is overexaggerated. The low end is quite boomy, which may be a plus for some people, but not me. Bass quality is pretty low and drums just sound like a boom and there is no texture to it. However, Monster caters to the non-audiophile crowd and are consumer oriented and ordinary people don't know much about bass texture and quality, so it will be ok. [/size]
Midrange
I really did expect the midrange to be recessed and a mess, but this wasn't so and the Monster Jamz surprised me in a good way. Is the midrange recessed? Yes, but not to the extent of beats. I actually quite like the midrange sound signature - a little bit recessed, but not too much. There is, however, a veil in the vocal areas where it got really annoying to listen to. Male vocals are alright, but female ones are lifeless and downright unnatural. It really would be alright for the average consumer who like the Monster branding, but you guys reading this on Head-Fi will probably know better than to get Monster products (except for their Turbine series which are actually pleasant to listen to, even though they are bass heavy).
Treble
I feel like the treble is the section that lets the Monster Jamz down the most. The treble is veiled and lifeless, not at all interesting to listen to. Cymbal that, when heard with headphones with nice treble sections sound so nice sound like a dull thud with a tiny bit of sparkle. The treble veil is perhaps what also affects the midrange veil. There is hardly any sparkle, but there is more than beats, but that's not saying much. One good thing from the treble is that it is very smooth and there are no peaks anywhere. Also, there is no sibilance no matter what volume you crank it up to, but that is not really a good thing with these.
Conclusion
Unlike beats, these are listenable, but these are in no ways special. Get these is you are looking for a brand product that is very bass heavy and is better than the Beats that high schoolers now believe are the best headphones ever.
Accessories
If I remember correctly, these came in a rather flimsy paper box which had 3 pairs of tips and a clothy material snap lock case. The case is not protective at all and is just a bag to keep your IEMs. If you drop them or something it will b ok, but I'm less sure if you hit them will a hammer. Not great, but also not the best that I have seen.
Build Quality
Some say that the build quality of these IEMs are good. Monster advertise these by saying that they are indestructable. There is no strain relief on the IEM casing, jack or y-splitter. This is a bit concerning, but my pair seem to have held up pretty well. The metal IEM casing seems well built, but I think that Joker said that his pair broke in a day. I'll let you be the judge of build quality as it doesn't seem to be very consistent. Oh, and there is driver flex - that is, when you push the IEM into your ear, there is a sort of crackling sound.
Isolation, Comfort and Microphonics
Isolation is bit above average, but it certainly get's the job done. It's more than the IE8s, and around the B2s. It is quite comfortable for me, and my ears are pretty small, so it should be fine for yours'. There is quite a bit of microphonics when you wear them straight down, but when worn around the ear, they are great.
[size=medium]Sound Quality[/size]
[size=small]Bass[/size]
[size=small]The bass is certainly exaggerated like I expected. To be honest, my expectations for the Monster Jamz were fairly low since the only other Monster IEM that I had heard was the Beats Tour (which I am not even going to review). The bass isn't too bloated, but you can certainly tell that is is overexaggerated. The low end is quite boomy, which may be a plus for some people, but not me. Bass quality is pretty low and drums just sound like a boom and there is no texture to it. However, Monster caters to the non-audiophile crowd and are consumer oriented and ordinary people don't know much about bass texture and quality, so it will be ok. [/size]
Midrange
I really did expect the midrange to be recessed and a mess, but this wasn't so and the Monster Jamz surprised me in a good way. Is the midrange recessed? Yes, but not to the extent of beats. I actually quite like the midrange sound signature - a little bit recessed, but not too much. There is, however, a veil in the vocal areas where it got really annoying to listen to. Male vocals are alright, but female ones are lifeless and downright unnatural. It really would be alright for the average consumer who like the Monster branding, but you guys reading this on Head-Fi will probably know better than to get Monster products (except for their Turbine series which are actually pleasant to listen to, even though they are bass heavy).
Treble
I feel like the treble is the section that lets the Monster Jamz down the most. The treble is veiled and lifeless, not at all interesting to listen to. Cymbal that, when heard with headphones with nice treble sections sound so nice sound like a dull thud with a tiny bit of sparkle. The treble veil is perhaps what also affects the midrange veil. There is hardly any sparkle, but there is more than beats, but that's not saying much. One good thing from the treble is that it is very smooth and there are no peaks anywhere. Also, there is no sibilance no matter what volume you crank it up to, but that is not really a good thing with these.
Conclusion
Unlike beats, these are listenable, but these are in no ways special. Get these is you are looking for a brand product that is very bass heavy and is better than the Beats that high schoolers now believe are the best headphones ever.
