We love this time of year, with March Madness. With
basketball teams duking it out, we figure, why not do a headphone shootout, and
let headphone manufacturers duke it out. Only with headphones, instead of
seeds, we have price points. It’s always fun to see how things turn out. We
have the headphones divided between in ear and over the ear. First up will be
the over the ear models.
We have some exciting products from some great manufactures
this year. They are Audiofly, Audio-Technica, Beyerdynamic, JBL, Monster, and
Sennheiser. Most of them are wireless, and have new technologies. As usual we
will start with the lowest price point, and work our way up. And as sometimes
happens with March Madness, we could have some surprises. It’ll be fun to see.
Once known mostly for high quality cables, Monster has also
gotten quite the name for quality headphones. One prime example is the Monster
Clarity BT Designer Series. They are an over the ear design that is wireless in
functionality. The sleek design with built-in swipe controls perfectly fits the
name. At $199 MSRP they are an excellent
value!
Features and Specs:
Cutting-edge swipe controls for play/pause, tracking, and volume.
Superior wireless
performance (apt-X).
Ultra-soft ear
cushions
Pivoting ear cups.
Concealed
adjustable headband. Silicon padding won’t slip off your head.
Active echo
suppression technology. Built-in, high-intelligibility mic for crystal clear
calls.
Extended battery
for all day and all night listening – Over 24 hours at ample level. 30 hours
talk time. 20 days standby.
Low battery warning
tone and light.
The Monster Clarity BT Designer Series came in a nice
looking color printed box with photos of the headphones and it’s features and
specs. They were well protected, held in a molded plastic enclosure. Materials
used in the construction was mostly plastic with some metal. Quality of
materials used were good, as was the fit and finish. They are a well made
product. Also included was the owners manual, charging cable, audio cable, USB
to microUSB adapter, and soft cloth bag.
I like the design of the Monster Clarity BT Designer Series.
With an MSRP of $199, you get a big bang for the buck. There’s cutting edge
swipe controls to control your listening experience. And the microUSB
connection doubles as a charging connector, and a direct digital USB audio
input. It’s awesome features, but how do they sound?
Why the People Like That – Vocals were nice and smooth. Bass
had nice low end extension and was only a tad muddy. Piano sounded natural.
Harmonica was crisp and clean. Rhapsody
in Blue – Clarinet was smooth with nice timbre. Bassoon had nice midbass
extension. Piano sounded natural. Flutes had good air. Brass was not overly
brassy. Imaging was better than expected at this price point. Earth Wind and Fire: Let’s Groove – Vocals
were smooth. Bass had very good extension, impact, and authority. Brass was
nice and clean. Katy Perry: Dark Horse –
Bass had nice low end extension, hit hard and was only a tad muddy at the
highest volumes. Vocals were natural with good timbre.
Next comes the Audiofly, AF240. Audiofly is a company based
out of Australia
with a growing reputation for quality headphones. We have reviewed several of
their in ear models, but none of their over the ear models. So this is the
first for us. It’s a standard closed back corded design. With an MSRP of $249 they are very well
priced.
Features and specs:
Driver type: 40mm single
membrane neodymium driver
Frequency range: 20-20 kHz
Sensitivity: 103dB at 1 kHz
Impedance: 16 Ohms
Cable length: 1.5m/60"
Plug type: 3.5mm gold plated straight jack
Frequency range: 20-20 kHz
Sensitivity: 103dB at 1 kHz
Impedance: 16 Ohms
Cable length: 1.5m/60"
Plug type: 3.5mm gold plated straight jack
The Audiofly AF240 came in a nice looking color printed box
with photos and specs of the headphone. Opening the box revealed a well
protected product held in custom molding. Materials used in the construction
was mostly plastic, with some metal and leather. Quality of materials used was
good, as was the fit and finish. I loved the design using a detachable cable.
And the cable was the very high quality cloth wrapped cable that Audiofly is
known for. Also included was a cloth bag
and owners manual. Now let's hear how
they sound.
Why the People Like That – Vocals were natural and smooth,
bass had nice low end extension and authority. Percussion was sufficiently
crisp with good resolution. Harmonica was dynamic. Rhapsody in Blue – Clarinet was nice and
smooth with good timbre. Brass was smooth without being to brassy. Piano
sounded natural. Bassoon had nice low end extension into the midbass. Flute had
good air. They threw a nice sized sound stage, with good imaging. Earth Wind and Fire: Let’s Groove – Vocals
were nice and smooth with good texture. Bass had nice low end extension and
impact. Bass was crisp and clean. Katy Perry: Dark Horse – Bass had ok depth,
with ok impact and authority. Vocals were smooth with really good texture and
timbre.
Next up is the JBL Everest Elite 750NC. JBL is well known
for their high quality products. Having reviewed multiple products of their in
the past, including headphones, we know this is the case. The JBL Everest Elite
750NC is on innovative product with adaptive noise canceling, and TruNite auto
calibration. So the sound can be tailored to you and your environment. There’s
also a cool app for it. And with a price
of $229, they are a killer bang for the buck!
Features and specs:
General Specifications
Dynamic frequency
response range: 10Hz-22kHz
Driver size: 40mm
Driver sensitivity: 92dB@1kHz, 1mW
Maximum SPL: 104dB
Microphone
sensitivity @1kHz dB v/pa-42
Impedance: 16ohm
Weight (g): 280g
Control and Connection Specifications
Bluetooth Max Output
Power: 4dBm
Bluetooth profiles: HFP v1.6, HSP v1.2, A2DP v1.2, AVRCP v1.4
Bluetooth version: V4.0
Bluetooth transmitted
modulation: GFSK, π/4-DQPSK, 8DPSK
Bluetooth frequency: 2.402GHz-2.48GHz
Battery
Battery type: Polymer Li-ion Battery (3.7V, 850mAh)
Charging time: 3 hours
Music play time with
ANC on and Bluetooth on: up to 15 hours
Music play time with
ANC off and Bluetooth on: up to 20 hours
The JBL Everest Elite 750 NC came in a nice looking color printed
box with photos of the headphones and it’s features and specs. It came well
protected, packaged in a hard zipper case. Opening the case revealed the folded
up headphones. Materials used in the construction was mostly plastic with some
metal. Quality of the materials used was very good, as was the fit and finish.
They are a premium JBL product, and it shows.
I enjoyed the design of the JBL Everest Elite 750NC. They
are wireless, but there’s also a wire connection so you can use them when the
battery dies. They have adaptive noise canceling so you can turn it completely
on, partially, or off. And then there’s the TruNote Auto Calibration, which
calibrates the headphones to your fit. Of course, there’s also the JBL App.
The adaptive noise canceling worked well. It has the ability
to be in full active noise canceling mode, and then it can be in ambient mode.
In full active noise canceling mode, it worked well, canceling about 80% of the
noise. In ambient mode, you can select none, some, or all. The ambient mode
worked well, and it was easy to move between the level using the button on the
earcup.
The JBL Headphone app is really cool. It was really easy to
install. Pairing with the JBL Everest Elite 750NC was equally just as easy.
Ever worry about how much battery you have left? Now you don’t need to. With
the app, you know just how much percentage you have left. Want to change your
ambient settings? In the app, you have tons of setting son a sliding scale. You
can even set each ear differently! And if you like to customize your headphones
to your own custom sound with an EQ, you can do that too. The app doesn’t give
you a ton of control, just the perfect amount of control. So far it’s all good,
but how do they sound?
Why the People Like That – Vocals were nice and smooth and
very natural sounding. Bass had nice deep extension and played with authority.
The piano sounded natural. Percussion was crisp and clean. Harmonica was very
smooth with good harmonics and dynamics.
Rhapsody in Blue – Clarinet was smooth with nice texture. Brass was just
a tad edgy. Piano sounded very natural with nice harmonics. Bassoon had
sufficient resolution of the timbre. Flute had nice air, soundstage and imaging
were good. Earth Wind and Fire: Let’s
Groove – Vocals were really smooth with good texture. Bass had very good low
end extension and play with good impact and authority. Brass was clean with
nice harmonics. Katy Perry: Dark Horse –
Bass had really good depth and clean impact, playing with good authority.
Vocals were clean with good texture of the timbre.
German engineering has been a quality saying for decades.
This saying can also be used with headphones, and Sennheiser is a good example
of this. Now it’s time for Sennheiser’s HD1 Wireless Around the Ear Adaptive Noise
Canceling Headphones. And in addition to German engineering, Sennheiser taps
into premium materials. MSRP is a huge
bang for the buck at $399.
Features and specs:
Technical Data
Headphones
Color: black, ivory
Impedance: passive: 28 Ω
Impedance: active: 480 Ω
Frequency
response (Headphones): 16 Hz – 22000
Hz
THD, total
harmonic distortion: <0 .5="" nbsp="" o:p="">
Contact
pressure: Approx. 3.6 N
Microphone
Frequency
response (Microphone): Wideband: 100 -
8,000Hz
Frequency
response (Microphone): Narrowband: 300 -
3,400Hz
Pick-up
pattern: Dual omni-directional
microphone (2 mic beamforming array)
Sensitivity
as per 121 TR 9-5: -44dB V/Pa
(1kHz)
General
data
Bluetooth
Version: Bluetooth 4.0 + EDR
Supported
Profiles: A2DP + AVRCP + HSP + HFP
Ear coupling: Circumaural
Jack plug: 3.5 mm, angled
Cable length: 1.4 m (Detachable)
Transducer
principle: Dynamic, Closed
Attenuation: Up to 25dB
Charging
time: Approx. 3 hrs
Operating
time: 22hrs (HFP + ANC)
Battery
Specification: Rechargeable Lithium-ion
Polymer (600mAh)
Codecs: apt-X®
NoiseGard™
noise compensation: NoiseGard™ Hybrid
technology with 4 pick-up microphones
The Sennheier HD1 Wireless Around the Ear Adaptive Noise
Cancelling Headphones came in a nice color printed box with photos of the
headphones as well and it’s features and specs. Opening the box revealed custom
foam molding holding the case in place. Inside semi-hard neoprene zipper case
was the headphones, held inside a soft cloth bag. Pulling out the headphones
revealed an elegant product. Materials used were plastic, leather and metal.
The headband was metal, wrapped in leather. The earcups were plastic with what
appears to be a cream colored pearl finish. The pads were memory foam wrapped
in soft leather. Quality of materials used was excellent, as was the fit and
finish. The Sennheiser HD1 is definitely a premium product and it shows. Also
included was the owners manual, charging cable, wired analog cable, and airline
adaptor.
I love the design of the Sennheiser HD1. I loved the fact
that it comes with a wired analog cable, because you never knew when your
battery is going to be dead and you’ll need the analog cable. When I first saw
the cable, I was disappointed, thinking, what, no mic? But then I thought…wait,
this is Sennheiser. I then looked at the earcups and saw the multiple built-in
mics. A small downside…whether you want it or not, the active noise canceling
is always on, unless you use the wired cord. But the soft English leather, and
memory foam are nirvana for your ears. It’s so soft and comfortable they could
live on your ears! Now let’s see how well they sounded.
Why the People Like That – Vocals were very natural, smooth
with great texture. Piano was very natural. Bass was very deep and played with
tons of authority and kick. Percussion was crisp and clean. Harmonica was silky
smooth with excellent dynamics. Rhapsody
in Blue – Clarinet was silky smooth with very good timbre, being able to make
out the breathing and tonguing technique. Piano sounded very natural. Bassoon
had nice texture and midbass harmonics. Brass was very smooth without being
overly brassy. Dynamics were very good as was the imaging. Earth Wind and Fire: Let’s Groove – Vocals
were smooth like honey with great timbre and texture. Bass had excellent low
end extension and hit like a sledge hammer. Brass was crisp and clean with
excellent harmonics. Katy Perry: Dark
Horse – Bass had excellent low end extension, was really clean, and hit hard
with serious authority. Vocals were smooth with excellent texture and timbre.
Speaking of German engineering, another company to tap into
those bloodlines is Beyerdynamic. They are known for their high quality and
innovative products. This tradition continues with the Beyerdynamic Aventho Wireless.
With their MIY app, the sound from the Aventho Wireless is tailored just for
you. It's innovation in spades! MSRP is $449.
Features and specs:
- Mobile
Bluetooth headphones with optimum sound quality thanks to Tesla technology
and top-class Bluetooth transmission (Qualcomm® aptX™ HD
und AAC)
- Adapts
acoustically to the user's hearing thanks to integrated sound
personalization and thus delivers perfect sound, no matter which device
- Personalization
via the beyerdynamic MIY app: create a sound profile, adjust the
sensitivity of the touchpad, track daily listening habits – all with
ultimate ease
- Impressive
battery life of more than 30 hours, intuitive handling using the touchpad
integrated in the right ear cup as well as high-quality handsfree
microphone for phone calls
- Stylish
design for on the go thanks to high-quality materials and top-class
workmanship made in Germany - available in black or brown
- TRANSMISSION TYPE
- Wireless via Bluetooth
- REMOTE
- Without Remote
- NOMINAL IMPEDANCE
HEADPHONES
- 32 ohms
- HEADPHONE FREQUENCY
RESPONSE
- 10 – 40,000 Hz
- NOMINAL SOUND PRESSURE
LEVEL
- 105 dB SPL (1 mW / 500 Hz)
The Beyerdynamic Aventho Wireless came shipped in a nice
looking color printed box with photos and features for the headphones. Opening
the box, I found the headphones in a nice cloth bag. Materials used in the
construction were plastic and metal. The headband is stainless steel wrapped in
a soft synthetic, which is understandable at this price point since they are
made in Germany .
The earcups are the same combination of plastic, metal and soft synthetic. The
quality of materials used were excellent, as was the fit and finish. They are a
very well made product. Also included was the owners manual, analog audio
cable, and charging cable.
To be honest, I’m not a fan of the small on the ear design.
I prefer the larger over the ear design. But I had the feeling I was going to
become a fan. I heard about the MIY app, and if it works the way I believe it
will, Beyerdynamic will have a very, very special product on their hands. How
does it work?
In simplified terms, everyone hears differently. So through
the MIY app, using special technology, multiple test tones are sent to each
ear. The user, through the app, tells the app how soft or loud each test tone
was heard, though the different frequencies. It's basically like a hearing
test. After the setup is complete, you
have a specific sound profile for the way you hear. If it works like I hope it
will, there’s only one word to describe it: game changer. Now that I have them
set up for me, let’s see how they sound.
Why the People Like That – Vocals were silky smooth, very
natural, and excellent texture and resolution. Bass had very good low end
extension and played with great authority. Percussion was really crisp and
clean and dynamic with tons of resolution. The harmonica was as smooth as honey
with killer dynamics and resolution. Rhapsody
in Blue – Clarinet was so silky smooth with excellent texture and timbre, with
plenty of resolution to hear the breathing technique. Piano sounded
surprisingly very natural! Bassoon had excellent texture of the midbass
harmonics. Flute had very nice air. Dynamics were excellent, as was the imaging
in the large soundstage. Earth Wind and
Fire: Let’s Groove – Vocals were silky smooth with excellent timbre and
texture. Bass had nice deep low end extension and played with authority. Brass
was so clean with excellent harmonics. Soundstage was huge. Katy Perry: Dark Horse – Bass had very good
extension, playing really clean with a ton of authority. Vocals were extremely
smooth with excellent texture of the timbre.
We all work hard for our money. So when we look at spending
our hard earned cash, we want a good bang for the buck. You want good quality
and price with great performance. Audio-Technica continually makes their brand
with this. They also provide some good innovation. A perfect example of this is
the Audio-Technica ATH-DSR9BT.
Features and specs:
Exclusive Pure Digital Drive system keeps audio signal completely
digital from source to driver for exceptionally pure sound
Dnote chipset controls driver amplitude directly with digital signals –
no D/A converter required
Compatible with Qualcomm aptX HD, aptX, AAC and SBC codecs, enabling
wireless transmission with a resolution up to 24-bit/48kHz
Exclusive 45 mm True Motion Driver, featuring 4-core twisted OFC-7N
voice coil and diaphragm with DLC (diamond-like carbon) coating, extremely
accurate audio reproduction with extended high frequencies
Housing’s dual-layer isolation structure keeps the electric circuitry
separate from the acoustic space for optimal phase and transient response
Acoustic resistor controls airflow inside the diaphragm housing,
yielding more natural sound
Mic and volume/control switch are built into the earcup for convenient
control of smartphones and other Bluetooth wireless devices
NFC (Near Field Communication) functionality enables touch pairing with
NFC-compatible Bluetooth wireless technology devices
Remembers the last eight Bluetooth wireless devices paired
LED indicators in the earcup display pairing and charging status,
battery level, and the codec currently in use
Heat-reactive soft foam earpads and an easily adjustable leather
headband provide a comfortable fit with outstanding sound isolation
Internal battery provides approximately 15 hours of continuous use (1000
hours on standby) on a full charge
Includes a 2.0 m (6.6') USB cable, for charging and Hi-Res Audio
playback. and hard carrying case
The Audio-Technica ATH-DSR9BT came in a nice color printed
box with photos of the headphones and it’s specs. Opening the box revealed a
well protected product in a hard zipper case. Materials used in the
construction was a lot of metal, with some plastic. Quality of the materials
used was excellent, as was the fit and finish. The Audio-Technica ATH-DSR9BT is
very well built for a long lifespan. It’s a premium product and it shows.
The design of the Audio-Technica ATH-DSR9BT is stellar. We
live in a digital age, and our music is following suit. So to keep the sound
the best possible, they came up with a design for the signal path to be
completely digital. Enter the Pure
Digital Drive system. It keeps the signal path
digital from source to driver to deliver the best sound possible. I also really
like having NFC built in for easy connectivity, as well as the LED’s for a
battery level indicator! It’s an overall excellent design, but how well does it
sound?
Why the People Like That – Vocals were very smooth with
great texture. Bass had great low end extension and played with tons of
authority. Piano sounded natural. Percussion was very dynamic, crisp and clean.
Harmonica was silky smooth with great harmonics and dynamics. Rhapsody in Blue – Clarinet was smooth like
honey with excellent resolution to hear the breathing and tonguing technique.
Piano sounded very natural. Brass was crisp and clean without sounding brassy.
Flute was smooth. Bassoon had excellent midbass harmonics and texture. Imaging
was very good in the large soundstage. Earth Wind and Fire: Let’s Groove –
Vocals were silky smooth like a dove chocolate bar, with excellent texture and
timbre. Bass had excellent low end extension and impact, hitting hard like a
sledge hammer. Brass was so clean with excellent harmonics. Katy Perry: Dark Horse – Bass had excellent
low end extension, was really clean, hit hard and had tons of authority. Vocals
were smooth, clean, extremely natural, with excellent texture and timbre.
It’s been a crazy year for March Madness, with some teams
really underperforming, and some over performing. A bit of the madness found
its way into the Headphone Shootout. All of them performed well. Bur there were
a couple that surprised me.
The Monster Clarity BT Designer Series did better than
expected at their price point. The styling is excellent, the clarity and
resolution was as expected at their price point. But the bass performance was
much better than expected. They are targeted as a high value big bang for the
buck. As I would expect from Monster, they hit it out of the park.
Audiofly is known for their high quality products that sound
great. The Audiofly AF240 follows suit. Build quality is excellent, as I have
come to expect from them. There was great resolution and clarity in the mids,
and highs. The bass output was just a tad lacking.
I like JBL products. If you’re not sure what to buy, JBL is
typically a safe bet, and that proved to be the case with the JBL Everest Elite
750NC. The sound quality was on par for their price point. But you also get a
lot of bang for the buck with the extra features, like wireless functionality,
active noise canceling and the app.
Sennheiser is a brand that you can always count on to give great
performance. The design is off the charts! Real leather wrapped over stainless
steel headband and the ivory finish is absolutely sexy looking! Add to that the
English leather wrapped over memory foam that is a soft that you can wear them
for hours. When you included the stellar sound into the equation, you have a
synergy that will bring an ear to ear smile for any buyer.
Beyerdynamic is another excellent brand that I have came to
expect great things from. I was not a fan of the on ear design. I know it’s
much more portable, but it just isn’t my style. They quickly won me over with
the better than expected performance. Because my bar was already set high, as
it was Beyerdynamic. That’s saying something. The sound was stellar. Add to
that the ability to customize the sound to your particular hearing with their
app, they hit this one out of the park. The app didn’t help me much, but I also
protect my hearing, so that didn’t surprise me.
Last but not least is the Audio-Technica ATH-DSR9BT.
Audio-Technica is a company known for giving a good bang for the buck, and that
trend continues. Their direct digital drive is innovative, and gives you some
great technology. Better than that, the technology worked, giving excellent
clarity and resolution! The built quality was also excellent. The only thing I
didn’t like…since it is completely digital, there’s no option for using an
analog cable, if the battery runs out. Being completely digital, not being able
to have an analog cable makes sense. And
the excellent sound....worth being without a cable.
We also can't forget the wireless performance. Having a 2 story house with a full basements,
I thought the best way to test is to pair it with my HTC One M9 Smartphone,
leave it in the far corner of the basement, and start walking around. I walked around the basement, walked up to
the main floor, walked around the main floor, and then went upstairs to the 2nd
floor. They all started to give a little
hiccups at the extreme other corner of the basement. Walking upstairs, I got a few more
hiccups. And going up to the 2nd floor
was even worse. I was actually surprised
with the Bluetooth performance. The
Sennheiser HD1 had the best performance, being able to go all the way up to the
2nd floor, with a few hiccups along the way as it was trying to keep hold of
the signal. The JBL Everest Elite and Monster Clarity BT Designer Series had
pretty equal performance. The Beyerdynamic and Audio-Technica couldn't make it
up to the 2nd floor - just too much crackling for having a hard time holding
onto the signal. Just keep in mind when reading about this performance.....how
far away do you really wander from your signal device, which is probably your
smartphone. All of these could handle 50
feet without much problem. Adding the
multiple walls and floors just reduced this distance. So in realistic real world use, more than
likely all of them would perform great for what you are needing.
With all said and done, it was a fun Headphone shootout with
some standout products. The good news for you shoppers, no matter your budget,
all of these contenders will give you great sound. Based on their design,
features, quality and performance, the Monster Clarity BT Designer Series and
Audiofly AF240 has earned our Recommended Award, the JBL Everest Elite 750NC
have earned our Highly Recommended Award, and the Sennheiser HD1, Beyerdynamic
Avertho Wireless, and Audio-Technica ATH-DSR9BT have earned our Editor’s Choice
Award. For more information and complete specs, check out their websites at www.audiofly.com,
www.audio-technica.com, www.beyerdynamic.com, www.jbl.com,
www.monsterstore.com, and www.sennheiser.com.
