[SandvichDISH]

I've been able to check out a load of Beats by Dre headphones when me and my friends had some fun in a local electronica store just checking out the big 3D TVs and such. They had a headphone section with a surprisingly half-decent selection of headphones. 
But to my surprise, I don't know what it was but they somehow managed to make every single pair of headphones there sound rubbish. And I took a quick sneakpeak about the place and found that they had like batches of 6 powered by the same amp (It was a tiny metal box with 6 3.5mm outs labelled "headphone amp"). So I really couldn't tell how good anything was. Even the HD700 didn't sound great in that place.
 
I can tell you the solos feel incredibly cheaply built.

 

[BlueRain]

My Studios don't get much play time anymore but they don't seem to be the hideous constructions many here make them out to be. They're bass heavy for sure and enough so that they're muddy and knock back the mids but they're not the worst headphones I've ever heard. My feet are firmly planted on the ground.

 

[wburton]

I saw this on Beats website. The tester's ears must be broken...
 

it also says the noise cancelling can reduce a jet engine to a whisper... It can hardly block out voices...

 

[JuanseAmador]

u know nuthin cuz u got no swaggg! beats r de best evaaarrrr! beats r swaggyy thats y dre uses dem their da best headphone in da worrld!

 

[Ishcabible]

Quote:

 
it also says the noise cancelling can reduce a jet engine to a whisper... It can hardly block out voices...

 
Noise cancelling doesn't block voices; it blocks constant noises like engine noises or fans. 

 

[BetaWolf]

Quote:

 
Noise cancelling doesn't block voices; it blocks constant noises like engine noises or fans. 

You sure about that? I turned noise canceling on during a One Direction track, and it muted the whole song!

 

[wburton]

Quote:

 
Noise cancelling doesn't block voices; it blocks constant noises like engine noises or fans. 

all im saying is that its not the best

 

[JuanseAmador]

Noise cancelling doesn't block voices; it blocks constant noises like engine noises or fans. 

You sure about that? I turned noise canceling on during a One Direction track, and it muted the whole song!

That's the point. It is noise!

 

[hiiisociety]

Quote:

My Studios don't get much play time anymore but they don't seem to be the hideous constructions many here make them out to be. They're bass heavy for sure and enough so that they're muddy and knock back the mids but they're not the worst headphones I've ever heard. My feet are firmly planted on the ground.

Totally on point!  But it did get my started my interest in quality headphones.  LOL

 

[wburton]

and the bass on Beats is terrible

 

[kimvictor]

Quote:

and the bass on Beats is terrible

interestingly, i was impressed by the amount of bass output beats has. The clarity, separation and detail sucks though. I've tried bass boosting the studios and the bass actually greatened(not tightened or clarified), which I thought was physically impossible. No headphone that I've owned can produce that much bass even with bass boost.

 

[ThinkAwesome]

Quote:

interestingly, i was impressed by the amount of bass output beats has. The clarity, separation and detail sucks though. I've tried bass boosting the studios and the bass actually greatened(not tightened or clarified), which I thought was physically impossible. No headphone that I've owned can produce that much bass even with bass boost.

Have you tried the XB500? Headroom FR charts show it beating even the Beats in bass quantity (not to mention quality too). 

 

[kimvictor]

Quote:

Have you tried the XB500? Headroom FR charts show it beating even the Beats in bass quantity (not to mention quality too). 

Whoo. More bass than Beats? How much bass does a Basshead need? Too bad that I'm not a bass head, but a mid-treble head. Still, I might recommend XB500 to my basshead friends than(they are non-audiophiles and prefer quantity).

 

[Sony Slave]

I listened to the beats studios or pro's, I couldn't tell which was which but I will give you a run down on them.
 
The highs and mids were very restrained and distant, the bass was overwhelming, slow, and muddy.
They heavely lacked detail, sound stage, and clarity.
The build quality was good, the comfort was pretty good as well.
 
Couldn't imagine wasting money on those, the sound they emit are worse than my $20 sony IEM's from walmart.

 

[Kanto]

Apologies if this has been mentioned before, but I find it really interesting that most early posters in this thread said that the Beats they auditioned were perfectly competent cans, but most likely not worth $350. That's in direct contradiction to the opinion on Beats here now. It'd be interesting to see someone confirm that the original line of Beats were actually better, and they got worse somewhere along the line (either because Monster stopped making them, or they started using cheaper components somewhere along the way).