Beats by Dr. Dre Tour review

I hope this rather extensive review helps. This is a real-world experience from a non-audiophile, non-expert and I think it covers all the elements that I COULD NOT find at all in the very many reviews I looked at on the web.

After the RHS, i.e., the side with the controller, of my Apple iPhone’s shipped headset suddenly stopped working (in all fairness, I think I shoved them too carelessly into my bag), I needed to replace them. I heard a lot about these Dre’s and did quite a bit of research before getting them. At $150 Can pre-tax, $170 with taxes and a “Final Sale”, I thought they’d better be damn good! I am NOT disappointed!

I’m no audiophile, made worse by standing too closely to those huge speaker boxes at parties as a teen! But, I know bass, heights and mid – and what I like. That said, these are fantastic!

However, they must be properly seated in your ears to get the full benefit. I’ve tried the Apple in-ear and though good generally, the bass wasn’t. Their shipped set with the phone was actually very good, except in my case that design cause them to keep popping out. I bought a pair of in-ear Sennheisers and returned them too, because the noise isolation just wasn’t effective at all and the bass wasn’t good and they popped out too.

I have big ears with deep/big ear canals and had to use the largest cones. I do really appreciate the length of the “tips”, i.e., the part you stick in your ears (hey, I am no expert reviewer or audiophile and I’ve got no idea what they’re called, so I’ll call them “tips”). With the biggest cones and angling the “tips” just right, I went from not much bass, to better bass to huge bass!

The bass sounds a bit reverbed, i.e., not a thump, thump, thump, but a mellowed out one – if that makes sense. That leaves room for the highs and mids, which are excellent too. I listen to everything, from old Rockers (reggae type music form the 80′s) and Reggae, to Indian to Hip-Hop/Rap to Pop to Techno to Marilyn Manson to Inspirational, you get the picture – any thing that has a beat and (sometimes) lyrics that pretty much damn well pleases ME!
I heard some things in some of the old Rockers that I never heard before; never! Cinderella Man (from Eminem’s newly released album, Recovery) sounded wonderful in my car; not too much on my Dre’s. That is until I changed the equalizer settings and positioned the “tips” properly in my ears. Wow!

I thought the right-angled connector – and it IS right-angled here in Canada contrary to some posted pics – would have been inconvenient. It actually is more convenient for my pants pocket and on the laptop. And, the cable is super soft and flexible (but strong), so even with the right-angle you don’t feel as though it’s being pressured.
NOTE: In the first week of using them, I have stepped on the RHS “tip” and also inadvertently tugged on the cable so the RHS popped out my ear – seems like I’m doing a loada shit with the RHS! – and it’s still going strong.

That said, because of the cord design, it is a *bit* on the heavy side, but only a bit. AND, I thought the ControlTalk controller being on the RHS of the cord and so high would have pulled out the connector from my ear. I guess because it is buried so deep, that hasn’t happened. AND being buried so deep gives me almost total noise isolation, so when not in a totally safe environment I have to pull them out a bit so I am aware of my environment, which means I lose *some* bass, but it still sounds good overall.

The ControlTalk works as advertised with my 3Gs (even when upgraded to iOS4) for music and phone control.

“That’s all” I gotta say. An expensive leap of faith, but I’m really happy.
However, I’ve been thinking: If other manufacturers like Sennheiser, etc., made longer “tips”, could I have paid much less for an equally good-sounding set of in-ear headphones? Hmmmm….. I don’t know, but I do know I needed a good pair of in-ear headphones that were durable, would stay in, give me good bass and other elements of any music genres I listen to, and these Dre’s have done an excellent job.

Stephen

I’m afraid to say that you have bought fake earphones, they look very similar to the real ones apart from some minor details.
The area of the “b” logo on real ones is not silver, it is white.

I gotta say I love these earphones, bought em at Future Shop up in Canada, hopped on a bus, threw on some Devil Driver, and I swear you could actually pick out the words in their screaming vocals, they have good bass response, and they sound as good as they look. I had to fiddle through the ear tips and use the smallest ones to get the best fit and sound quality, my only complaint is that they do feel like they are going to pop out of my ears, the sound isolation is excellent on these, at one point I had to shut off my music when I got off the bus on my way home because a truck came up behind me without warning, yes do not use these while walking on the streets, can only use them while on or waiting for the bus, on a plane, train or ferry, speaking of planes, they will not only block out the noise from a jet plane but they might even block out noise from a propeller plane, they make great ear plugs too.