Normally I hate Monster (I'm a guitarist and I'm sick of people waving overpriced Monster cables in my face) yet for some reason (I blame Dre) I picked up a set of the Solos yesterday. I couldn't audition them in the store, so I picked them up figuring I'd just return them if I didn't like them.
I have to admit, when I first tried them on they were pretty bad. The bass was bloated and boomy, the midrange was scooped and weak, and the high end was scratchy. It was around this time that I sought out this forum to see what I had gotten myself into, and these cans perfectly matched what most of the haters in this thread describe.
As an experiment I decided to plug them into my computer and leave it playing overnight so that the speakers would break in and they did a complete 180 on me. By the morning the bass was tight and punchy, the midrange was now present and defined, and the treble smoother and clearer. The mix was also much more balanced with the bass sounding full without being overbearing (to me, others may still find the bottom end too strong).
If it makes any difference, I listen to mostly stoner metal, so I wanted something where I could clearly hear the bass guitar. I was using High on Fire and Electric Wizard as my reference material.
Your mileage may vary, but I'm pretty happy with mine. I only joined to point out that these sound better with some break in on them, so comments made by those who only auditioned new ones, or in a store should probably be taken with a grain of salt.
Then again, my comments should be taken with a grain of salt too.
