Mellotronix
Super Member
My son and I always cringe when we see a perfectly happy looking citizen sporting Beats headphones. To be honest, neither of us has ever had a pair even close to our ears, so our assumptions are based on irrational stereotypes, biases, and generalizations.
Earlier this week I received a brand new set of Beats Solo 3 on ear 'phones for FREE with my new MacBook Pro. After a brief test drive, I decided that they needed to be broken in, so I paired them with my old mac and ran them on shuffle mode under a pillow in my studio closet nonstop until the battery died. Surprisingly, that's about 40 hours. Holy shit. 40 hours on one charge? I'm impressed. The computer moved all over the house and never lost track of the wireless Bluetooth Beats hiding in the studio closet. I'm even more impressed.
Today I listened to them for several hours including a ProTools session where I was doing some drum replacement work using Superior Drummer 3. Music was mostly prog.--Anathema, Porcupine Tree, Opeth, Smashing Pumpkins, NIN, Tool, and King Crimson. That's what I listen to, so I could care less how they sound with Jennifer Warnes or that Hallelujah dude.
The ergonomic design of these Beats including the built in multifunction buttons and bluetooth features are fabulous with Apple products. Ease of pairing, wireless range and access to controls are all excellent and I've already mentioned the battery life which is phenomenal.
If only the sound were a bit more refined. The calling card here is bass and while you would expect a closed, on-ear design to excel at mondo bass, it is not as invasive as I have been led to believe. The Solo 3's were relatively non-fatiguing, and once I got used to the 200-400 Hz traffic jam, the music sounded OK. I have a pair of AiAiAi TMA2's that sound very similar, but they were purpose built for noisy nightclub DJ work and maybe the draw for these Solos is just that. They remind you of the bloated sound system at your favorite disco. Still, after years of mixing and mastering with Byerdynamic 600 Ohm DT880's and more recently DT1990's, the Beats Solo 3's take some getting used to. But I can say with certainty that the top end is slightly burnished, but it's not the fault of the über bass. Unfortunately, the Solo 3's just lack detail in the upper mids, and sibilants are soft. Lots of listeners are probably gonna love the perceived lack of harshness.
Do they sound horrible? Not at all. Do they sound quirky in a fun sort of way like the AiAiAi's? Not really. Could I find a use for them? Absolutely. I have a feeling that if you can get your mix to sound good on these Solo 6's, your project will probably sound good on almost anything, including those free earbuds that the airlines pass out. So I'm keeping them, and I found myself liking them quite well for sampling drum sounds and mixing drum kits.
Earlier this week I received a brand new set of Beats Solo 3 on ear 'phones for FREE with my new MacBook Pro. After a brief test drive, I decided that they needed to be broken in, so I paired them with my old mac and ran them on shuffle mode under a pillow in my studio closet nonstop until the battery died. Surprisingly, that's about 40 hours. Holy shit. 40 hours on one charge? I'm impressed. The computer moved all over the house and never lost track of the wireless Bluetooth Beats hiding in the studio closet. I'm even more impressed.
Today I listened to them for several hours including a ProTools session where I was doing some drum replacement work using Superior Drummer 3. Music was mostly prog.--Anathema, Porcupine Tree, Opeth, Smashing Pumpkins, NIN, Tool, and King Crimson. That's what I listen to, so I could care less how they sound with Jennifer Warnes or that Hallelujah dude.
The ergonomic design of these Beats including the built in multifunction buttons and bluetooth features are fabulous with Apple products. Ease of pairing, wireless range and access to controls are all excellent and I've already mentioned the battery life which is phenomenal.
If only the sound were a bit more refined. The calling card here is bass and while you would expect a closed, on-ear design to excel at mondo bass, it is not as invasive as I have been led to believe. The Solo 3's were relatively non-fatiguing, and once I got used to the 200-400 Hz traffic jam, the music sounded OK. I have a pair of AiAiAi TMA2's that sound very similar, but they were purpose built for noisy nightclub DJ work and maybe the draw for these Solos is just that. They remind you of the bloated sound system at your favorite disco. Still, after years of mixing and mastering with Byerdynamic 600 Ohm DT880's and more recently DT1990's, the Beats Solo 3's take some getting used to. But I can say with certainty that the top end is slightly burnished, but it's not the fault of the über bass. Unfortunately, the Solo 3's just lack detail in the upper mids, and sibilants are soft. Lots of listeners are probably gonna love the perceived lack of harshness.
Do they sound horrible? Not at all. Do they sound quirky in a fun sort of way like the AiAiAi's? Not really. Could I find a use for them? Absolutely. I have a feeling that if you can get your mix to sound good on these Solo 6's, your project will probably sound good on almost anything, including those free earbuds that the airlines pass out. So I'm keeping them, and I found myself liking them quite well for sampling drum sounds and mixing drum kits.
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