[mmayer167]

, any decent hp sounds good if you leave it on your head for long enough. It's when you directly compare one right after the other that we run into problems. Dang human auditory memory, too bad we cant remember exactly how everything sounded, that would make this hobby so easy!
 
cheers, M

 

[kingtz]

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I think that to express "anger" even frustration, over another person's purchase is simply silly.  This is not to flame you or your opinion, simply to put up another perspective. 
 
People buy things based on totally different motivations, needs, desires etc, from other people.  Some of these buying motivations are tangible, objective things and many others are emotional and subjective.  Brand/label marketing depends on this emotional decision making, things don't necessarily have to be "better" than a competing product, simply be percieved as being better.  Peer pressure and group acceptance all play a role in our buying decisions, goodness there is enough of that here on HeadFi.
 
I own a pair of ED 8s (love them) and have listened to DR Dre Monster Beats (albeit for a short period of time) and to me there is no contest.  However I don't find it inconcieveable that someone else might prefer the sound signature of the Beats, or because of "street cred" prefer the "sound" of the Beats.  Lets face it, here on Headfi there are people that love the ED8, people that think the ED8 is Meh, and people that think that it is an overwhelming bass disaster.  Who is right?
Of course all of them are. 
 
So do the Beats sound better than ED8s to some people? Well yes.  Will some people buy them not because they sound "better" but because they are "the Headphone" to have in their peer group? Well yes again.  And other people will buy them for different reasons.  Are they being ripped off?  Should they buy a "Better" sounding headphone because the "experts" on HeadFi believe they should?
 
My advice, stop worrying about Monster, Bose, Skullcandy etc-and concentrate on your own listening enjoyment and your own Headphone journey, and share it with your HeadFi peers.  Happy listening. 
 
Oh, and to  all the doof, doof car stereo freaks out there, what are you thinking?

A very rational perspective, no doubt. However, I still reserve the right to scoff and look down my nose at people who choose style and social acceptance over quality.

 

[Matt B]

incidentally, if in some bizarre universe the ed8's were heavily supported and the average consumer was aware of them and their price of $1400 (much the same way as people are of Beats and their price, or for a better example, designer clothes) you would most likely see them here and there adorning various heads in the bigger cities...well, until they got stolen

 
actually that raises a pretty interesting question...if in bizarro world regular folks were shelling out for the ed8 (or ps1000 or hd800) what would the audiophiles do? would they be thrilled that everyone was now getting the 'most' out of their music?...or would there be a new burgeoning demand for something even more elaborate and pricey? which the companies would be happy to fill....
 

 

[1Time]

You can catch more flies with honey than vinegar. The better (more mature) approach is one of compassion, which is the opposite of your approach - competition. It would be better to share the experience of listening to your preferred headphones with others and respecting those who choose otherwise. 
 
Those you criticize are no different than any Head-Fier in that they choose headphones to serve multiple purposes. It's just that one of the purposes they choose is not one that you choose - style / social reasons. An analogy, the driver of a 2 seater sports car scoffs / looks down his nose at a driver of a pick up truck. The truck does things the sports car can't, just like the sports car does things the truck can't.
 
Quote:

However, I still reserve the right to scoff and look down my nose at people who choose style and social acceptance over quality.

 

[amp2xpand]

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Who determines what is overpriced and sub-par?
 
Value is not determined by democratic majority of a sub-class.  IE: More headFiers than not (allegedly) believe that Dr Dre Beats are "sub-par".  I'm sure there are plenty of music consumers that would say that K701s are sub-par to Bose, Beats.  I think it is arrogant and closed minded to say that that other people are wasting their money purchasing things we don't value.

I'm sure that many people may have different opinions on a certain sound. I agree that audio is subjective. Something I may think is good, someone else may not agree. I may not be a huge fan of Beats or Bose headphones, and there may be many others that like them; but i still think the same sound can be had for less money than what Bose or Beats cost, thats why I still think its a waste of money. When I listened to the Beats a few times, I think that kind of sound can be had from another headphone for under $100. 

 

[Kernmac]

1time-I think kingtz is just having a bit of a laugh- taking the p*ss out of the slaves of style. And fair enough, why not.

 

[swbf2cheater]

There is no question a lot of people just don't hear and understand it.  Ive had dozens and dozens of sets just this year alone and i always let my family take a listen, i hear the "i cant hear the difference" line almost each time.  I believe the majority of the world doesn't really care about audio because they are in fact def to it and their brains and ears cannot pick up on the difference between something like the Eddy8 vs the Monster Beats for example.   They just see it all music either way and do not pick up on soundstage size, clarity, or separation.  

 

[amp2xpand]

Quote:

There is no question a lot of people just don't hear and understand it.  Ive had dozens and dozens of sets just this year alone and i always let my family take a listen, i hear the "i cant hear the difference" line almost each time.  I believe the majority of the world doesn't really care about audio because they are in fact def to it and their brains and ears cannot pick up on the difference between something like the Eddy8 vs the Monster Beats for example.   They just see it all music either way and do not pick up on soundstage size, clarity, or separation.  

I definitely agree. Many people can't hear the difference, thats why they aren't interested in this hobby. My friends think more bass= better sq. So I guess the Dr. Dre. Beats are perfect for them; the style/look of the headphones also seems to attract them as well. So it all comes down to what you want. sound quality vs. style.  
 

 

[Kernmac]

Quote:

I definitely agree. Many people can't hear the difference, thats why they aren't interested in this hobby. My friends think more bass= better sq. So I guess the Dr. Dre. Beats are perfect for them; the style/look of the headphones also seems to attract them as well. So it all comes down to what you want. sound quality vs. style.  
 

For many it will be style and sound quality.  Perception is reality.  To many in the target market, Beats will not only be the headphone of choice for its style, but it will be the best sounding headphone as well.
 
This is my point.  To a lot of Headfiers, Beats are over priced and do not represent value, because they do not deliver a desirable sound signature.  To a lot of Rap, Techno, Hip Hop, etc listeners Beats are the gear.
 
Nothing wrong with that.IMO

 

[129207]

Booooooring... 

 This has been discussed so many times before it's not even funny. The Ultrasone's aren't even that good. I'd choose the Beats for the fun-factor. Now that you're at it, why not start bashing Skullcandy too and get it over with. 

 

[1Time]

I already provided reasoning for a better / more mature objective and an approach to obtaining it. As guilty as many of us are (me too) of using kingtz's approach, using compassion is better, more mature, more liberating (and even more). That's why. 
 
Quote:

1time-I think kingtz is just having a bit of a laugh- taking the p*ss out of the slaves of style. And fair enough, why not.

 

[RPGWiZaRD]

I think many people are forgetting every1 have their own prefers to how it should sound like. Some headphones are more likely to appeal to big crowd and some may actually have so bad sound quality so it doesn't appeal to most people etc but there's also expensive well regarded headphones that some people wouldn't like either. You shouldn't really be talking in the sense of "headphone X is better than Y because I've tested both and it sounded better in my ears", instead you should provide objective description of a headphone and if you can compare it to other headphones and tell how it sounds differently so other users can more easily relate to if it's what you're looking for. For example myself despise headphones like AKG K701 because of the overly laid-back analytical/flat response, for me such signature is boring, but some other people like it. That being said I haven't tried Beats so can't comment on those in particular and I'm sure it's overpriced etc but there still may be some people that prefers that sound over other headphones and I don't think it's right to criticize those people cuz of that unless they like the headphone for no proper reason. Most of the time there exists alternatives with similar signatures but does it better but Beats are quite unique in the sense of being the active noise blocking type and huge in bass quantity and this may appeal to some bassheads that have to wear the headphones in noisy public environments.

 

[reiserFS]

Were you expecting something different? There's even a guy running around with his HD800 driving them from his onboard soundcard.

 

[1Time]

The bigger concern should be for those showing a lack of respect and compassion for other headphone users. 
 
Quote:

Were you expecting something different? There's even a guy running around with his HD800 driving them from his onboard soundcard.

 

[swbf2cheater]

What I fail to understand is how people look at me funny for paying 200$ for a set of headphones but they paid 2,000$ for their HD TV and are only getting half the experience. I mean, the headphones these people are just fine with are the equivalent to using a tv out of the early 1940s, but those people seem to be just fine with it, those cheap RCA or dollar store sets.  They really cannot grasp the idea of 3D sound, what soundstage is and how important it is ect ect.  
 
...but again these are the same people who are proud of their Samsung LED Tv they shelled a few thousand for, but kind of look at my hobby as a dumb thing, something to lol over  :\
 
i dont get it lol, makes no sense to me how most people can spend a few hundred on a tv but not 50-100$ on a good set of headphones and understand the difference between a set costing over a grand in the Edition 8, and a set costing 250$ in the beats.  You can see the difference from a TV made in the 40s, but you cant tell the difference in audio quality from golden audio quality from crap?  lol, its best to let them be and not say anything or argue your case lol