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Beats Solo by Dr. dre alternative (proper sound?)

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Rich'[ard]

Member
Joined
Apr 28, 2008
Location
Melb, AUS
hellooooo

i'm looking for a pair of headphones that are very similar in style but offer better sound quality.
i've never personally heard a pair of Beats Solo headphones, nor many others but after watching some youtube videos and reading a few reviews and comparisons, i've come to find that the general opinion about them is that they're too bass heavy to the point where it ruins the balance with treble and so on.

I've read a lot of people usually recommend a pair of Sennheisers or Audio Technica, and explain how they'll have far superior sound quality for a lot cheaper, but they don't really like how the headphones themselves look.

so far i'm looking at the V-Moda M80.
i've googled others such as the Fanny Wang 1000 series, AIAIAI TMA-1...
i've also read reviews on the Sennheiser HP25-1-II (which seems to be the benchmark for these type of headphones?) but it's a little too expensive where i live.

the Fanny Wangs i tried in store just seemed...fairly ordinary, sound quailty wise. the bass didn't have much 'oomph' and it feels like my $20 Ultimate Ears in-ears have more 'oomph' than they did. i read a comparison between them and the Beats Solo, and the reviewer came to a conclusion that the Fanny Wangs provided a similar amount of bass, but without muffling out other parts of the sound compared to the Beats Solo. the TMA-1s sounded much better and had a much more premium feel, but i've yet to try the V-Modas, which i've read pretty good reviews about.

i plan to use them mainly on my computer, android phone, laptop when at Uni. i wouldn't mind using them for some gaming every now and then either.

do you guys have any opinions?
 
+1 for sennheisers :D i have and oold pair my cousin gave to me that he had for a long time and they still sound great even though almost all the foam rubber on the cushions is gone :p
and the other said brands are less expensive because they dont have dr. dre's name on them my friend has a pair of them and i dont like them that much
 
i just LOVE the look of the V-Moda M80.
20-V-MODA-Crossfade-M-80.jpg
you can purchase custom plates that go over the headphone cups as well.

i'm about to purchase an HP Folio ultrabook, and there's currently a promotion where you get a free pair of Beats Solo by Dr. Dre and i'm planning on selling it, then purchasing something similar, but better! :santa:
 
i just LOVE the look of the V-Moda M80.
20-V-MODA-Crossfade-M-80.jpg
you can purchase custom plates that go over the headphone cups as well.

i'm about to purchase an HP Folio ultrabook, and there's currently a promotion where you get a free pair of Beats Solo by Dr. Dre and i'm planning on selling it, then purchasing something similar, but better! :santa:

they had them on sale half off at radioshack last week if they are the same ones im thinking about, only ones ive ever seen withthe metal sides like that and that shape. 200$ normal 101$ off idk if they are still on sale worth a look if your intrested
 
V-moda M-80s are excellent. The Sennheiser HD598 are good too, but more expensive.
 
Goo hear Maxvla :).
Wagex, if only i posted this a little earlier! But i don't think they ship to Australia anyway haha. i'm thinking about getting some Chinese characters for the custom headphone plates.

does anybody have info on the other headphones? if there's no major advantages i'm gonna stick with the m80s.
didnt even know about v-moda till last week
 
Goo hear Maxvla :).
Wagex, if only i posted this a little earlier! But i don't think they ship to Australia anyway haha. i'm thinking about getting some Chinese characters for the custom headphone plates.

does anybody have info on the other headphones? if there's no major advantages i'm gonna stick with the m80s.
didnt even know about v-moda till last week

Ah I didn't notice your from aus lol
 
-1 for Dr Dre Beats Solo for me. Was a t best Buy the other day & tried out the demo pairs all seemed that the treble was really high to the point of irritating with no bass; maybe it was the mp3 player putting out the much not configured properly but the music was lousy on all demos rock, r&b, jazz etc.

Might get a pair of Bose Quiet Comfort 15 Acoustic Noise Canceling or HD 558 Sennheiser or PC 350 Sennheiser my top 3.
 
Quiet comfort are only good for the noise cancelling. There are better sounding cans at that price for sure if you aren't using them on a plane/bus/train. PC350 are pretty bad also despite being Sennheisers.

If you want some suggestions let me know what you want from your headphones and where you will be using them.
 
Quiet comfort are only good for the noise cancelling. There are better sounding cans at that price for sure if you aren't using them on a plane/bus/train. PC350 are pretty bad also despite being Sennheisers.

If you want some suggestions let me know what you want from your headphones and where you will be using them.

Older son has a pair of quiet comforts. I love em personally. Especially while sitting out on the porch; live near an airport & planes are always flying by overhead. For inside on the rig I like the HD 700 my buddy has a pair but at $1,000 sorry that's $$$$ I would spend elsewhere. But let me tell you they rock hard; almost surreal.

I pretty much like surround with really nice deep bass but to compliment the mids & some highs. But I cant stand the highs that are like scratching your nails on a chalkboard :temper: like back in the day in school .
 
lol Dre beats...re-skinned skullcraps.

Anything Seinheisser will do the body and soul good...
 
Anybody got a pair of Fanny Wangs? they look like copies of the Beats Solo. Monster even had a go at them in court but didn't win haha. i want to know how they compare.
the TMA-1si tried sound decent and don't look as showy or over the top
 
I'm Pimping two pairs of the V-Moda LP2's over here. They kill all of my other Sony Professional cans (MDR-7506, MDR7509, HN7506) plus quite a few others. They are very efficient (work fine on iPods, etc), yet still handle gobs of power (I drive mine with a $1000 10WPC 8-Channel Lectrosonics PA8 Power Amp). And oh-my-god - the low-end will rattle your brain!

Tyll Hursten's headphone roundup sold me! I bought one pair, and then bought the second pair a few weeks later so more than one musician can experience their killer sound when recording.

Here is Tyll's Headphone roundup on TWiT's "Home Theater Geeks with Scott Wilkinson":
http://www.hometheater.com/content/podcast-91-tyll-hertsens-part-1

He totally rags on the Dre Beats!!! No surprise there ;)

:cool:
 
They work incredibly well for High SPL tracking IMNSHO (the reason I bought two of them). I do love low-end all around, but I still find myself adding a tiny bit more when laying down drums. You'd be surprised what a good high-power low-impedance (high-damping factor) amp can do with them. They do sound a bit "Woofy/Wooly" on lesser HP Amps (practically all built-in HP amps I've tried thus far), but on the Lectrosinics power amp - OMG!!!

Needless to say, they replaced all of my expensive Sony cans (I'll be buying 2 more pairs). Even the last two singers I had in commented on their huge sound w/o me prompting them! Measurements are one thing - "Real World" useage is my reality in a working studio...

If you want "sterility" and a "True Reference" experience w/o any low-end hype - then you might want to look elsewhere. But coming from the Dre Beats (as I believe the Op is), the LP2's are a whole different world - especially when driven with authority :) ...

Check the M-80's as mentioned above if you want "Flatter" bass...

:cool:
 
Can we make a sticky about overclockers not letting overclockers buy Beats? Serisously!

Ive listened to multiple sets of them and the ALL sound awful! Muddy midrange, muffled highs, and overbearing bass. You can get wonderful Sennheisers for HALF the price and they will sound twice as good! Hell, I DJ and my Numark Redwave's sound 2x better at 1/4th the cost.

As for VModa.. I have a love/hate relationship with them. I havent tried the ones you want, but Ive had 3 sets of Vibes (1st gen). The sound is incredible but after heavy use they just fall apart and I die inside. The second gens i heard were more durrable but the SQ suffered tremendously. So for earbuds Ive been playing with MEElectronics and I love em.

It seems that youre looking for something more "fashionable" SO I will stop rambling now and give you my recommendations :p
Beats: Burn them.
Sennhessers: Always a SOLID bet - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846
VModas: Lovely sound but had/maybe still have durability issues
SOL: I think these will be best and my pick for you. Style, decent price, and good sound. Check them out :) - http://shop.solrepublic.com/
Beats: KILL IT WITH FIRE!
 
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Can we make a sticky about overclockers not letting overclockers buy Beats? Serisously!

Lolz!!!

As for VModa.. I have a love/hate relationship with them. I havent tried the ones you want, but Ive had 3 sets of Vibes (1st gen). The sound is incredible but after heavy use they just fall apart and I die inside. The second gens i heard were more durrable but the SQ suffered tremendously.

I purchased my first pair of V-Moda's sight & sound unseen/unheard. The LP2's construction is nothing short of Military Grade. I've already yanked the cable (well, me and my clients) out of the Headphones at least a dozen times, and even dropped them more than a few times - they are solid - bar none. As far as "Style", they also get an easy "A+" in my book - especially with the gun-metal accent covers! The combination of crazy sound and killer looks are what seemed to deliver the "one-two punch" to the last set of hip-hop artists I had in my studio. The cans INSPIRED the performance - I can't possibly ask for anything more than that from a set of headphones at any cost.

They do seem more aptly aimed at higher SPL scenarios - scenarios that other cans quickly fall flat on their face. My Beyerdynamic DT770M's and Sony MDR-7506's completely choke with any substantial energy below 80Hz or so (and the 770M's are marketed as "Bass Heavy/Drummer" type recording/live monitoring cans!! Whatever!!!) - where the LP2's just keep bringing that "Sub range" punch as loud as you can bear it (helpful for energetic recording scenarios - maybe not ideal for low-volume "critical listening"). The amp has a tremendous impact - even more-so in the "High SPL" range where me (and the other talent) tend to hang out ;) The Sony MDR-7509's come close in the extreme bass SPL capabilities of the LP2's, but need MUCH more power to match the LP2's SPL's (not as sensitive as the LP2's).

They are a match made in heaven for Roland V-Drums (et al.), too!!!

SPL isn't a major concern for most iPod/PC type "Audiophiles", but for me, "Authoritative" low-frequency SPL is a MUST in any set of cans I would even consider for use in my studio.

I'd be looking towards the Senheiser 600/650 series for a "Flatter" type reference headphone, but I cannot use such headhones for recording as they are "Open Back", and will bleed into the mics. However, I use Dynaudio AIR-15's and Air-Base-2's as my "Reference Monitors" (plus a set of HR-824's as a 2nd reference) - so the Headphones are more for the "zing" factor (to make the actual recording process "fun and exciting", not to use for mixing and mastering)...

Many ways to approach this - Mine is just one take...

As you were :p

:cool:
 
The Vibes are pretty poor construction, but the full size headphones are much much better built.

I for one can't believe you are using LP2s in a studio environment. Should find a pair of Klein + Hummel O 300D's and skip headphones altogether.
 
The Vibes are pretty poor construction, but the full size headphones are much much better built.

I for one can't believe you are using LP2s in a studio environment. Should find a pair of Klein + Hummel O 300D's and skip headphones altogether.

You obviously don't run a "Rock/Funk" type studio ;) I'm NOT mixing on the LP2's - they are used for "Tracking" (as mentioned in all 3 of my posts ;) ). They KILL for tracking duties - bar none! I mix on Dynaudio AIR-15's + AIR-Base-2's - a $10,000 speaker setup - thank you very much...

The O 300D's leave much to be desired as a sole "Main Monitor" if mixing Rock/Pop/Hip-Hop IMNSHO. My Dynaudio 10" Full-Range (or) 4x10" Sub/Satellite setup makes more sense (and is TONS more flexible) as a "Midfield/Main" IMNSHO...


:cool:
 
The O 300D's are flat, which is precisely what you want for mixing. Anyways we're off topic.
 
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