Top critical review
3.0 out of 5 starsREVIEW FOR NON-AUDIOPHILE MUSIC ENJOYERS
Reviewed in the United States on November 30, 2023
This review is written to be as accessible as possible. Things will be explained in parenthesis ( ), feel free to skip them if you already know the meaning of the term. Important notes will be in ALL CAPS, to allow for easier skimming. I WILL NOT BE COVERING THE APP EXPERIENCE AND TOUCH CONTROLS, as I felt they were all fairly STANDARD FOR THE PRICE.
Audio quality:
Definitely BASS HEAVY (bass being the low sounds, like bass drum, bass guitar, or a particularly deep synth), bordering on muddy (refers to so much thick, unrefined bass that it drowns out other parts of the music), but they manage to stay NOT MUDDY due to the CLARITY of the bass. IF YOU CRAVE BASS BUT HAVE SOME STANDARDS, these will be EXCELLENT for you. The MIDS (sounds like piano, the human voice, horns) are DROWNED OUT BY THE BASS, with specifically ELECTRIC GUITAR tending to LOSE DEPTH, but MOST HUMAN VOICES ARE STILL CLEAR WITH SLIGHT DEVELOPMENT (clear, present, and a slight bump to depth), WITH FEMALE VOICES HAVING A PLEASANT EXTRA SPARKLE (A little bit of extra sharpness and presence, with particular regard to high pitched sounds). The TREBLE (higher sounds, cymbals tend to fall here, high strings, etc) generally has a slight SPARKLE, but is overall INCONSISTENT. If you listen to 2 songs from different groups, the cymbals will be varying volumes between them. This is because drummers do not (usually) tune to set notes, and instead tune to a "feel". Having such variance in sound quality in an area that already has so much variance between songs can be very DISTRACTING, and can make some songs feel completely different than intended.
They have NARROW SOUNDSTAGE (soundstage is the "wideness" of the sound, does it feel like the band are playing in a closet with you in the middle, or does it feel like you are in the studio, and they are all spaced out around you?), with the extra bass particularly feeling like it resides right in the center of your skull. They have MEDIOCRE IMAGING (imaging is the specific directionality of the sound. with good imaging on a good recording, you should be able to point to exactly where each band member is around you), leaving the non-tonal audio quality metrics as LACK LUSTER FOR THE PRICE TAG.
Comfort:
The EAR PADS are PLUSH, with the fake(?) leather feeling NON-PLASTICY. The HEAD BAND PADDING is SUB-PAR, feeling little better than no padding at all. The CLAMPING FORCE (how tightly the ear cups press on your head) is SLIGHTLY OVERDONE, so these WILL NOT FALL OFF, but can be UNCOMFORTABLE FOR LONG PERIODS OF USE.
General Build Quality:
They are almost entirely PLASTIC and pleather, but both feel like they are implemented with the consumer in mind, with the PLEATHER being COMFORTABLE ON SKIN, and the plastic being SMOOTH, with only 1 notable SHARP SEEM where the cups are pieced together on the LEFT SIDE, but NOT SO SHARP AS TO BE A DOWNSIDE. They seem DURABLE ENOUGH, I wouldn't slam them against the wall, but they feel like THEY WILL SURVIVE REGULAR USE LONG ENOUGH FOR THE BATTERIES TO GET FULL LIFE EXPECTENCY.
The Bluetooth Problem:
Bluetooth headphones are NOT A LIFE-LONG PURCHASE. They have a life expectancy of about 1-3 YEARS due to battery degradation. IF YOU ARE LOOKING TO PURCHASE A PAIR OF HEADPHONES THAT WILL LAST, BUY WIRED.
Closing Remarks:
While the heavy bass is undeniably FUN, these would be very GRATING FOR LONG TERM USAGE. I would recommend purchasing if you can check at least 2 of these boxes:
- The hardest of hard bass heads
- A lifestyle headphone that doubles well for gaming (the bass punch makes gunshots sound very clear, something entertaining for gaming)
- Getting high (if legal where you are) and listening to the spaciest of spacing out music
- Have the expendable income for a pair of exclusively "Fun gimmick" headphones
With the caveat that:
-They are terrible for movies or anything primarily spoken word
-They have enough bass to kill a stable of horses
-Seriously, don't give these to your horses
-You can get nicer sound quality for the price
(Audio impressions were taken mostly from my favorite analyzing song, Cygnus X-1 Book 2: Hemispheres, by Rush. Your impressions may vary. Have your own opinions. If you LOVE how these sound, I am so happy that you could find what you wanted in these headphones.)