[trellus]

Are you still looking at buying a pair of the Studio3?

I honestly think they may have picked up on some of the points in their review from this thread . That's the first review I've seen to mention the narrow soundstage and lack of sub-bass after we were discussing it the day before they published their review. I wouldn't blame them for double-checking their opinions against a few audiophiles.

Eh, color me a skeptic now after having read early impressions lately, but I definitely still want to get a listen in-store somewhere when they are demo units on the floor.

 

[eripa]

I got the Stuido3 yesterday. Compared to my QC25 (wired) they sound fine, better with some songs, worse with others. I got these to test them against QC35 as they are supposed to be very similar to the QC25. I was hoping that the ANC would be almost on par with the Bose but it simply is not. Also there is a very noticeable ANC hiss, which was even heard when listening to quieter parts of some songs.

The Studio3 is also less comfortable than the Bose. To the point that I cannot see having them on for any extended period of time. The Bose excells here.

So while the W1 is great and the sound is ok, the ANC and comfort is just not good enough for justifying these over getting the QC35. Will return the Studio3.

 

[malibuboats91]

Do any of you own both Beats Studio 3s and VModa CFW2s? If so, what do you think? I currently have the VModa M-100s and am looking to go wireless. 95% of the time I'm listening to hip-hop/rap (Gucci Mane, Kendrick Lamar, Future, Yo Gotta, Ty Dolla, 2Pac, Flume, etc). I had the Sony 1000X's home and liked them but was concerned about the band breaking issue. The reason I've been holding out for the Studio 3's is because I have an iPhone and the VModa's become uncomfortable after awhile. Thanks!

 

[Carnelian]

My first post here, although I've lurked over the years. I'm mostly a two-channel speaker person, but I was very intrigued by the Beats Studio3 with the W1 chip as I'm very integrated into the Apple ecosystem. I ordered it from Apple and received them a little over a week ago. I have used Bose QC25s on trips and own Audio-Technica ATH-ANC7B noise canceling for travel and ATH-M50x for miscellaneous home use.

I've got to say, I'm liking the Studio3s a lot. Bass is really solid. Coming from 2-channel open air listening, anything more than the Studio3s would seem to me to be unnatural. Midrange and highs are good, maybe not great, but the overall listening experience is really nice. They have good impact for movies and I'm enjoying listening to music from iPhone or iPad. Fit for me is fine, but I haven't worn them on a long flight yet. I think the ANC will be fine for flights and yes, there is a little hiss in a quiet room, but I don't need ANC in quiet rooms. I also agree that music is a little better with ANC off but not night and day. Range is fantastic and pairing is as easy as advertised.

For me, they are keepers.

 

[MICHAELSD]

I tried the QC35 II paired to my iPhone and it’s clear the sound is much better on the Studio3. Better bass, better mids, better treble, better imaging, much clearer and detailed even with ANC on. Bose does have noticeably better ANC and is more comfortable but the sound quality on the Studio3 is significantly better. I haven’t had a chance to hear the MDR-1000x but Beats compares well to the headphones it’s actually competing with. I wish it competed with more expensive wireless headphones but they’re fine for $350, would be a slick deal at under $300.

 

[MICHAELSD]

Do any of you own both Beats Studio 3s and VModa CFW2s? If so, what do you think? I currently have the VModa M-100s and am looking to go wireless. 95% of the time I'm listening to hip-hop/rap (Gucci Mane, Kendrick Lamar, Future, Yo Gotta, Ty Dolla, 2Pac, Flume, etc). I had the Sony 1000X's home and liked them but was concerned about the band breaking issue. The reason I've been holding out for the Studio 3's is because I have an iPhone and the VModa's become uncomfortable after awhile. Thanks!

I’ve owned the M-100 as well, and the Studio3 is a significantly more comfortable headphone. Surprisingly I’d say the mids are better on the Studio3 while bass and treble is more refined on the M-100, soundstage is also wider on the M-100. Studio3 holds up well to the M-100 IMO. The CF2W do have better mids than the M-100 from what I’ve seen posted online, but if you’re using an iPhone I’d grab the Studio3 for the same price as CF2W just uses standard Bluetooth.

Edit: By the way, many of those artists you’ve mentioned sound fantastic on the Studio3. The tuning is versatile but clearly skews towards hip-hop.

 

[MICHAELSD]

Apple lets you disable the ANC in Bluetooth settings.

 

[MacedonianHero]

Apple lets you disable the ANC in Bluetooth settings.

If you hold down the ON/OFF button for 3 seconds, it will disable the ANC as well. FWIW, I have both the QC35 II and Studio 3 here and I prefer the former, but the latter hold their own. Beats have come a long way thanks to the engineers at Apple.

 

[RamGuy]

For three seconds? You just need to double-tap it to disable/enable ANC.

 

[malibuboats91]

I’ve owned the M-100 as well, and the Studio3 is a significantly more comfortable headphone. Surprisingly I’d say the mids are better on the Studio3 while bass and treble is more refined on the M-100, soundstage is also wider on the M-100. Studio3 holds up well to the M-100 IMO. The CF2W do have better mids than the M-100 from what I’ve seen posted online, but if you’re using an iPhone I’d grab the Studio3 for the same price as CF2W just uses standard Bluetooth.

Edit: By the way, many of those artists you’ve mentioned sound fantastic on the Studio3. The tuning is versatile but clearly skews towards hip-hop.

Thanks for the feedback! I’m headed to Best Buy right now to see if they have a display. My thoughts were I’d buy the new 1000x and Studio 3s then keep the ones I like best.

 

[MICHAELSD]

It’s downright painful that the Studio3 doesn’t reach the lowest sub-bass frequencies. Many headphones also roll off sub-bass for more clarity in the other frequencies, but it’s just embarrassing for a pair of Beats to not dig deep and pull the impact out of the bass notes. They could have put higher-quality drivers in the Studio3 capable of a full bass response while still retaining the same tuning in the mids and treble.

The more closed-off soundstage I can get used to, but the bass response will be the main reason I end up returning my pair. Still, they’re stable for fitness and ANC does make the world a bit quieter while being particularly effective with wind.

 

[Carnelian]

Michael - you're kind of schizophrenic on these Studio3s. Love them one day, hate them the next. Give an example of real music where you think they lack in sub bass. I haven't found any type of acoustic, rock, classical, or movie that I think they are lacking in bass.

 

[neil74]

Apple still has a huge opportunity to release the best wireless over-ear headphones on the market with the W1 chip as no other wireless tech matches it..

Why do people say things like this? W1 offers nothing other than ease of pairing. Sound quality wise W1 does not compete with aptx or aptx-hd

Sorry just don’t get it...

 

[MICHAELSD]

Michael - you're kind of schizophrenic on these Studio3s. Love them one day, hate them the next. Give an example of real music where you think they lack in sub bass. I haven't found any type of acoustic, rock, classical, or movie that I think they are lacking in bass.

Don’t really love them as I’ve been saying since the first day the bass and soundstage were issues. I like them and wanted to love them but they’re just fine. I stand by all the opinions I’ve listed here. I’m just trying to get across the point they’re solid compared to the ANC competition even if they’re not nearly as good as I was expecting.

You’ll notice it more in pop, hip-hop, and EDM as those genres rely on sub-bass more.

 

[MICHAELSD]

Why do people say things like this? W1 offers nothing other than ease of pairing. Sound quality wise W1 does not compete with aptx or aptx-hd

Sorry just don’t get it...

It also offers range and connection reliability. Speaking from real-world experience it’s the best chip on the market for Bluetooth headphones. Apple also uses the Bluetooth AAC codec, which is better than regular aptX, so consequently the sound quality of their wireless headphones has no degradation with iTunes/Apple Music.

All-in-all W1 + AAC = zero compromise wireless.