gdgt

I checked these out at Best Buy and found they were set up for people into hip hop and that's about it. The sound quality wasn't bad (the available ranges were clean enough) but they are totally focused on bass performance (which is something many headphones lack).

For non-audiophiles with a bit too much money to burn and a limited taste in music... they'd be perfect.

I had a pair once and swiftly returned them. I got the on-ear versions and after about 30 minutes they absolutely killed my ears. In other words, they hurt a lot. I have no experience with the over-ear versions, but have found other pairs of over-ear headphones that are very comfortable.

At any rate, I do recommend straying away from the on-ear versions and leaning towards the over-ear.

On a technical note, the sound was about a 7.5/10 with the Beats - I love my Bose headphones (www.amazon.com­/gp­/product­/tags­-on­-product­/B00478O0...) much more.

Good luck!

In my opinion:

The Beats are good, but not great. If you're listening to only rap or R/B or pop, then the Beats are a perfectly fine sonic experience. If you are using your headphones for more than that, and especially for movies, look elsewhere for more neutral sound.

Every review I have read about the beats is that they are not balanced at all. For about half the price you can get a pair of Grado S60 that will perform far better. www.amazon.com­/Grado­-Prestige­-SR­-60i­-Padded­-Headph...

Variable, I'd say. In my experience the Studio's are OK. Solo's suck.

You could do better in some ways but it depends on what you want. e.g. These certainly are not the dorkfest that most "audiophile-approved" phones are and they are pretty practical in use.

Anyone recommending Grados for portable use, by the way, are either deaf or a bit clueless :p

it's not a matter of "do they suck?" -- "what other headphones are available at the same price point (or less) that are of equal or higher quality?". if you like the low end, check out some Sennheiser cans. the hd 25-1 ii set are cheaper, durable (and if anything does break, individual parts are available to fix), and have a balanced sound. the low end is well replicated and audible, but not overextended.

The reason Beats by Dre often have a lot of questions asked about them is because of the Dre marketing machine bringing expensive headphones into the limelight of pop culture. If you do some research, you'll find there are much better options for your money. I recommend doing your own research. check out www.head­-fi.org.

As with most other celebrity-endorsed products, you probably won't be getting the best bang for your buck with the Beats. Unless the only bang you're concerned about is head-pounding bass. Monster isn't all bad though. Their high end IEMs (Turbines) are actually pretty decent but you still pay a pretty penny for them.

Are you planning on getting headphones for portable use or at home/work?

The sound quality isn't horrible, but they aren't very comfortable and they are pretty fragile.

For me they are OK, it's true that if you listen rap o r&b the music sounds great. For other styles of music I don't recommend it.

I have tried both Beats and the Dell's JBL for their XPS line

JBL > Beats

hmmm..i think it nuts!

A little expensive, but for sure worth it. Sound quality is amazing! Super comfortable to wear for long periods of time, and you never have to worry about the cable breaking or stripping. Due to the metal construction they do take several weeks for your neck and back to build up enough muscle to wear comfortably. Once you reach that point, you are in headphones heaven!

I got them recently for free from my work and they are def overpriced. Look into skull candy or another brand for a better over the ear experience.........ok maybe not skull candy just dont buy the BEATS

I own the $300 Beats Solo HD, and I have the $150 Klipsch Image ONE on ear headphones. I can tell you that the beats are worth maybe $45, while the others are worth much more. You are indeed correct that Beats are simply much better marketed, while brands like Klipsch, Sennheiser, Shure, Klipsch, Beyerdynamic, Koss, and AKG have much less marketing, but offer much better sound and value. But to answer the last question, my beats are fairly durable, but not worth it. So I recommend anything from the list of manufacturers I just listed.

Ok here is the deal. If you like Beats by Dre dont even bother reading this post. I am the admin of a Facebook page called "Beats by Dre Suck" (www.facebook.com­/pages­/Beats­-by­-Dre­-Suck­/214341738...) So that just gives you an initial idea of what I think about Beats by Dre. I have been trying very hard in the last two years to sway people away from Beats. Why? First off they sound TERRIBLE. Yes they will sound better than the cheap Apple ear bud pack ins, but are they really worth as much as they charge for them? The answer is NO, and their is no debating that. You can try to justify your purchase whatever way you want but at the end of the day Beats are not a good purchase. In short they have a terrible price to performance ratio. Second major factor is build quality. Come on people I cant believe you would even spend 200, 300, and 400 dollars on this cheap crap! The only Beats that have decent build quality are the Pro's (but this still does not justify their 450 dollar price tag especially considering the sound is 'decent' but not what you should expect from a 450 dollar headphone) Honesty, my friend owned a pair of Beats by Dre Studios before I converted him to Ultrasones. The Beats felt flimsy, and they would creak when I stretched them to put them on my head. Cracks also began forming around the screws after a roughy two years of moderate use. I wondered how something like this could possibly be worth the 300 dollars he paid to get them (and I believe they currently charge 350 for the Studios now) Then theres the problem of the Solo Beats hinges breaking, the Tours loosing sound on one or both ear buds under a year of light usage. Its truly a mess. It seems the only Dr. Dre Beats that wont fall apart in two years or less are the Pro's but those have issues in other areas. Thirdly is the PRICE. The price is simply awful for what you receive from Dre Beats. There are so many better options out their that either cost the same or less and almost all of which sound better. Companies like Sennheiser, Ultrasone, Sony, V-Moda, Shure, Polk Audio, AKG, Audio Technica, Grado and others all make several models that out perform Beats in every way. In summary, I beg you to not buy into the celebrity endorsements and media and what is "popular" because this current trend is a massive waste of your hard earned cash. Heres something to think about: Did you know that Dr. Dre rarely even uses his own headphones in the Studio? He prefers Audio Technica ATH-M50's, a proven professional quality headphone. Just something for you Beats by Dre fanboys to think about. Please check out my Facebook page: www.facebook.com­/pages­/Beats­-by­-Dre­-Suck­/214341738...