Marshall Headphones - 'Major' Over Ear (Black)

 


 


 


This is actually the first "over-head" headphone i ever bought, but compared to my philips and LG tone+ this one is a lot more for 70$, i mainly use it on my gaming rig with sound card installed. i listen to rock mostly, bass heavy stuff and some r&b, alternatives.. i just listen to anything that sounds good basically. anyways, i had some issues with the fit when i first got it, the soft cushion felt like heaven but it's so tight, which got better overtime so that's fixed. to be honest i was expecting alot more since it's marshalls and being able to play around with marshall amps i just thought it will be the same feeling... i was expecting too much though.


 


as for the design.  Great job with the marshall theme, i have the black one, the texture is like a matte and the band has a leather like the amps. it's foldable which i think should come with a carrying case which apparently is not included.. the chord is coiled which is also cool. retro themed is awesome and is catchy when im wearing it outside.


 


Audio quality : the quality is good, very detailed bass and mids, trebles are also good. no problems using it on my computer because of my sound card but using my android device, this things wont sound as good, maybe it needs more power.. or is it my phone?. i dont have problems with the burn in periods like most people say. it sound's warm which is cool.. i actually use this on my practice amp, using my Gibsons with a small 50watt practice amp oh my God it's just awesome i don't have to worry about waking anyone up..


 


Comfort : the soft cushions are very comfortable to wear, it's bit tight at first but it will loosen over time, it gets warm and my ears get sweaty which is not nice if your listening for more than and hour.


 


Price : i think it's a bit over priced, should have included a carrying case.



and i also wanna mention the build quality on this things.. though it looks good and sturdy (which actually does feel like it) buts it's actually a little fragile, maybe it's just me but it's falling apart and it's just over a year so warranty is bye bye. i hate that the chord is fixed, it's actually breaking from the top going down to the mic controls which really frustrates me, also the cushions are breaking like the stiches from the inside are breaking so i had to do some home economics work just so i could use it the outcome is good though, a friend told me that it looked hell of a lot better after i did the slight modifications lol. i'd probably just cut the old cable and solder a 3.5mm jack from the top.. which i think will be a good idea so i wont have to worry about the cable and just use it indoors. 

I'm a professional DJ/Producer. In my rider I ask that the venue supply the headphones. So I have at least 100 pairs of headphones, and that's after giving away the majority of them to friends. Not going to bother to run off every pair but I've tried just about every pair out. 
 
Just before I was about to play in Stockholm I received a pair of these Marshall Major FX headphones and out of the box they were noticeably the best sounding portable headphones I'd ever heard. A friend had just come into my room (He's also a DJ) and I let him hear them and his response was the same. He had an iPhone 5 and I had an HTC 8x Windows Phone and the latest generation iPad that I tested them on. We played Simon and Garfunkel, Carly Simon, Van Halen, The Police, and Bill Withers. 
 
My friend begged me not to DJ with the headphones because "they sounded too beautiful and sweet to DJ with" and he thought I may blow them out putting them on the DJ system's headphone jack. I decided to try them out anyway since i got them for free and I figured I'd just but another pair if I blew them. Anyway, I DJ'd with them and it was a beautiful experience, and trust me they took plenty of punishment that night. 
 
Anyway, they quickly became my go-to headphones for air travel and portable listening. Every single music business professional I exposed them to said the same thing: best sounding portables ever. I made it back to Chicago, where my family is, and did a listening test with another roomful of professional and they all agreed. Afterwards, my cousin had gotten a new iPhone and I gave her my beloved Marshalls. No problem, I'd just order a new pair off Amazon or somewhere. 
 
 The new pair came and sounded totally different. Like crap actually. The high end was completely gone. The soundstage was non existent. Everything was muddy as hell. I couldn't believe it. Now normally I would have given them 24 hours of burn in and tried them again, if they didn't sound better I'd toss them aside or give them away. But the problem here was I'd heard these at their absolute best and they were made for GOD. 
 
 So I did 24, then 48 hours of burn in and got only a slight change. I was incensed. What was the problem???? I thought that maybe I'd gotten a defective pair or worse, fake pair. Surely the difference couldn't be THAT [size=small] dissimilar?? [/size]I began emailing Marshall and asking them what the problem was and they suggested that maybe I got a defective pair and they were willing to replace them. I kept burning them in in, playing them on iPods and phones as I slept. 
 
FINALLY, after 3 weeks and 200+ hours of play, I got a noticeable breakthrough. Within the next 5 days, the sound quality was at the very least on par with my previous pair, if not even better! I've never owned a pair of headphone where burn-in made such a radical difference. I contacted Marshall and told them the crisis was over. 
 
 That part deals somewhat with the sound quality, which is phenomenal. 
 
Now, as far as build quality goes, I give low marks because they seem flimsy, but they're actually much sturdier than they look. And the non-replaceable cable is a HUGE downer for me, it means I'll have to buy and possibly burn in another damn pair if the cable craps out. And yes I WILL buy a new pair if that happens without hesitation, because I am now addicted to the sound. Comfort I can't really comment on because you have different sized heads and I've found with on-ears more than any other can that what's nirvana for one guy is hell for the next. These are comfortable for me but they're a snug fit so I'll bet they'll hurt like heck on someone else. 
 
I HAVE to give these 5 stars based on the sound alone. 

This is my review of the Marshall Major. I am currently living in Denmark and got these as a christmas present from the company I work for. They retail for a whopping $150 US, and that puts them in a very hard competition. I had a pair of AKG K172 HD, and decided to go for these for my commuting needs.
 
Build quality/looks
The Major headphones look very nice. They are built quite solid and can handle a fair share of abuse. The jack plug is in the classic Marshall gold color, and seems quite sturdy. The cord is long enough. The headband is metal covered in synthetic leather, again a very sturdy looking combination. All in all great build quality.
 
Sound
The sound is not too bad. It's decent, but lacking detail. The headphones begin to struggle below something like 100hz. Most of the time they struggle with detail, and it sometimes feels like the sound is being muffled. I have used them for hours without pause and the sound isn't tiring. Comparing them to the AKG K172 HD (which at time of writing can be had for $20 more in DK), they fall short in the mids and in the clarity of the sound. The AKGs are not portable at all, so that's certainly something to consider.
 
The music I found sounded best on these was some more or less hard rock, but that may vary with taste. 
 
Conclusion
These are very expensive in Denmark for some reason, and they land just in the middle of in the mid-fi sweet spot. As you can imagine I was expecting quite a lot from them, but they were just 'meh'.
The AKGs I mentioned are in the same price range, and they deliver an overall better sound. You can get quite a few 'Name your brand' headphones in the same price range that surely would outperform the Major, but Marshall Major aren't mid-fi headphones, they are streetwear. Seen as street headphones they accomplish the job pretty well, and they easily fit in your bag/purse.
 
For the $150 they cost in DK they are way overpriced, and should be avoided. If they are down to ~$70 they would be reasonably priced. 
 
The bottom line: buy them if you want decent, portable sound, but avoid them if you want hadphones for listening at home. (If you reside in Denmark: find cheaper alternatives)