Monster DNA On-Ear Headphones, Cobalt Grey

I purchased these headphones for about 75 dollars during the Black Friday sale on Amazon. I'll be writing this review without the benefit of any burn-in (the benefits of which are still dubious). I will be comparing these to the Beats Solo HD, Ludacris Soul (available for around 70) and the ATH-M50 (available for around 100). The DNA, Beats, and Soul are all on-ear headphones while the ATH-M50 is over-ear. I include the M50s in this review because it's the one that is recommended most on audiophile sites for budget headphone consumers.I am a very amateur audiophile who has begun collecting different headphones and so will be giving my non-expert opinion.I was not very optimistic that the quality of these headphones would be anything impressive considering the poor reputation of Monster Beats headphones. However, since the headphones were available for about 1/2 the price that it's normally available, I decided to make a leap of faith.Build Quality: As soon as I unwrapped them and started handling them, I realized they were on a different level as the Beats. The build quality is much higher than the Beats; while the Beats can creak when you handle them, the DNA has no such give or creak. The plastic seems very solid and not as flimsy as the Beats. It has a similar build quality as the Soul, which also has a plastic body. The ATH-M50s beat all three in build quality though. It seems more solid than any of the fashion headphones and there is virtually no creak or bend to the headband.Lows: I would say that bass is the reason why most people would buy these headphones. They are NOT for audiophiles who like a neutral or flat sound signature. The bass comes off strong and punchy, although muddier than I would like and tends to overwhelm the mids and highs. The bass is about as clear as the Ludacris Souls, though it is tighter than the Beats HD, which sounds to me as very dirty and messy, though probably more impactful than either Souls or DNA. Again, M50s are the most neutral in this category; its bass doesn't overwhelm the highs or mids nearly as much as the others in this category. However, the M50s also have less "punch" and you don't feel the vibration in the jaw nearly as much.Mids: I think the mids here are the weakest part of these headphones, as in the other three. The Soul's mids sound clearer than the DNA, though the DNA isn't awful. I would say the mids here are very comparable to the Beats. They're loud but can get muddled and lost and it is difficult to differentiate different instruments in this range. While the M50s have less punchy bass, the mids are much clearer.Highs: the highs are pretty great and aren't drowned out by the bass. It handles highs better than the Soul or the Beats. The highs twinkle and are clearly differentiated from the rest of the music.Conclusion: While the M50s are the clear winner with my listening tests, the DNA holds up well. I think they compare well to the Souls, though probably would be useful for different music. While Souls would be better for hip hop, I think the DNA would be better for EDM music. The M50s are a great middle of the road compromise for people who listen to all sorts of music, including jazz, classical, etc. The M50s have the best sound signature, but are also the least attractive, imo. If you're going to get a "fashionable" pair of headphones that you'd like to travel with, I recommend either the DNA or the Souls. The Beats are far too expensive for the price, and I don't think any of it really is an improvement over its competitors.So:for travel: go with Souls or DNAfor home use: go with ATH-M50for all genres of music: go with ATH-M50for EDM; go with DNAfor hip hop: go with SoulsPS: one awesome benefit to these headphones is that it features an extra headphone jack so you can share your music with a neighbor!

The sound is beautiful but the quality of the headphone's material itself is the bane of it.This is so disappointing. I bought these for Amazon's Black Friday, November 29. They came Nov. 30 thanks to the beauty of Amazon Prime and I was immediately enamoured by their simple yet bold aesthetic. I noticed that a part of the headphone came off but I remember seeing earlier in a Monster DNA review video by EPICSKATENYC on Youtube where he provides the ultimate stress test by basically being really violent and careless with the headphones and that specific part came off which he snapped back in with ease so I thought that part coming off was fine.So I thought.That part would repeatedly come back off so I always handled my headphones with care. They provide great sound quality and this is my first time buying headphones that are a bit more higher end- this is a reviewer who would use Skullcandies before. Yeah, forgive me. However yesterday, I took these headphones out of their included pouch and once again, that part came off by itself. I thought that it was fine so I tried to put it back in, but one of the headphones completely detached. I was a little worried so I set it down carefully and tried to put it back on.. and it unfortunately would not click back on. I took a closer look at the part and it turns out the reason why it would detach from the day I got it was because some of the grooves that help the part lock into place were chipped. -__- And now it wouldn't attach at all because it somehow got chipped again!If this thing had this issue that I failed to notice from the very moment I got it, either I was sent a defective pair or this thing was so fragile, it was damaged while being delivered! I am SO disappointed because it is not even the end of December yet!I have only had these headphones for SIXTEEN DAYS. 16 days!! Two weeks and two days and this thing has already failed me. It's so sad because I think the quality of the sound it provides is BEAUTIFUL! Maybe not as bass-heavy as I'd like it to be, but nevertheless, beautiful. Yet I already have to return it because it broke on me. It's VERY comfortable too and has a very attractive and unique look- I'd easily receive compliments from total strangers whenever I adorned these on my head. I could wear them for hours with no ache and appreciated the 1-inch adjustability of the phones especially since I am African with natural, thick, and dense kinky hair so that extra space is necessary for me to enjoy any pair of headphones.I'm not sure if I can get a refund since I no longer have the original box (stupid of me!!) but if I can return this, I am getting a refund, period. Had the build of these headphones been far more durable and could have at least withstood being mailed, I would have easily given five stars. I'm hoping if I have to keep it, Monster will at least have a warranty.5 stars for sound. But ultimately 1 for quality of the headphones' build.I was really hoping all of the negative reviews of these headphones were just the "Paid Monsters Haters" some of the more popular reviews are talking about so I initially took them with a grain of salt but I believe those negative reviews now! My god, even Skullcandies lasted longer than this!Other than the built of these headphones, I do believe they are worth it. However, Monster really does need to improve the quality of the build of these headphones because this is unacceptable, especially to the buyers paying full price for this. I got this on Black Friday so at least I only paid $80, but imagine how much worse I'd feel if I paid $200 only for the headphones to come defective and fully detach two weeks later.EDIT 12/18/13: So I decided to keep the headphones because honestly, the sound is beautiful and the headphones are delightfully comfortable. There is no denying that and I don't like to have a naked iPod so I've decided to keep it.Buyers of Monster DNA, I STRONGLY recommend you consider the risk that some parts of these headphones are sadly quite fragile as my experience has shown. The inner plastic mold that houses the metal part where you can adjust the headphones has unfortunately cracked but because I wanted to keep these and not let them go to waste, what I did was buy some Loctite super glue and fused the plastic mold together.The glue has provided a bond that has truly strengthened the headphones and I know I no longer have to worry about my headphone falling apart. I even did a little stress test.So ultimately, it's really disappointing that these comfortable and beautiful sounding headphones are so fragile, but if you want these, please either be prepared to fix the plastic parts when they come off OR even better prevent this from happening by using some strong glue to seal the plastic shut permanently. The loctite glue I used was so fantastic, I even did a little stress test of my own and the headphones are truly durable now. :DI keep that little bottle of loctite in my headphone pouch just in case, haha!Edit: 3/15/14So I gave the DNAs one more chance after I ended up returning the pair I did my original review on. I'm usually gentle with headphones but my prior experience with these headphones compelled me to be even more gentle. I had the headphones for a couple of months and everything was going smoothly! Then one day, I prepare to put my headphones on my head and I hear a small "crack!" I'm confused wondering what just happened and what I did wrong and I see it: a little crack in the saaaame place my original pair came broken in: the left casing that hosts the metal headband part. I know what horror was to come so I quickly get my loctite glue out and glue it praying the problem doesn't worsen. The next day, despite my gentle and careful use, the crack split and a chunk of that same plastic part outright broke off. I used even more loctite glue and was even considering using gorilla glue because I was so tired of this particular part giving me hell. I contact Monster asking for help with this.. but they ignored me multiple times. Now that I'm putting in this edit, I see that this color has been discontinued which may explain their total ignoring of me.Anyway, the loctite is holding the left part of the headphone together. I'm still pretty disappointed, especially since I gave this pair another chance and the same problem occurred. But its still playing music and the sound quality is still good.Since this is a consistent problem and Monster has outright ignored my requests for help, I think the cons are outweighing the pros and I'm giving one star.

They sound pretty good and look nice, but have a plastic-y cheap feel and the headband gets uncomfortable after a short while. Also the carrying bag liner disintegrated after a year or two, while being stored away the whole time. Flat cable with buttons is ok, and I never really needed to fold them.

Die Monster DNA sind Alleskönner und sind sehr gut ausgeglichen, sehr klar und universell einsetzbar.1. Klang: die Monster DNA sind sehr gut ausgeglichen in Höhen, Mitten und Tiefen. Die Tiefen sind minimal hervorgehoben, was aber bei Klassik oder gesangorientierter Musik nicht stört. Für Leute die gerne laut basslastige Musik hören sind die Monster schon gut aber nicht ideal, da der Bass trotz eingestellten Equalizers nicht dominant ist (was eigentlich gut ist, aber halt nicht zu elektro, ect passt). Dennoch macht es großen Spaß mit den Beats auch Elektro zu hören. Die Lautstärke ist meiner Meinung mehr als ausreichend, obgleich die Kopfhörer bei voller hoher Lautstärke gelegentlich leit verzerren.2. Isolation: sehr gut. bei eingeschalteter Musik (egal wie laut) hört man praktisch nichts. Ohne Musik nimmt man die Umwelt stark gedämpft war. Aber: für Leute, denen das wichtig ist... keine aktive Geräuschunterdrückung (active noise-cancelling).3. Comfort: Einziges Manko dieser Kopfhörer ist dass sie bei intensivem tragen z.T. 8h täglich ziemlich auf die Ohren drücken, weswegen ich eher die (leider) wesentlich teurere Over-Ear variante empfehlen würde.4. Praktikabilität: die Kopfhörer sind hervorragend verarbeitet und haben links und rechts einen Kabelanschluss, was das beste ist dass ich jemals irgendwo gesehen habe. Dadurch ist es möglich bei einer gemeinsamen Zugfahrt die Köpfhörer an seinen laptop/smartphone anzuschließen und einen Film zu schauen und der Sitznachbar steckt seine In-Ears in den 2. Kabelanschluss und schaut den Film mit... meiner Meinung nach die beste Entwicklung ever.Randinfos: für alle die überlegen ob sie die völlig überteuerten Beats holen wollen möchte ich noch sagen, dass Beats vorher Monster gehörte und die Kopfhörer Monster Beats by Dr. Dre hießen. Nach einem Streit hat sich Beats unabhängig gemacht und pumpt millionen in Marketing, erfolgreich, weswegen sie überall zu sehen sind. Beats haben auf jeden fall mehr Bass als die Monster aber ansonsten sind die schlechter verarbeitet und sind nicht so durchdacht erstrecht wenn sie gefaltet sind. Zudem rechtfertigt der Beats Preis nicht die meiner Meinung schlechtere Qualität.Beats vs. Monster... Go get Monsters ;-)

It was a choice between Monster DNA's and Beats for me. I went for these based on facts by others saying that Beats were more for hip/hop music and more bass heavy. Monster DNA's were said to be better all round. I'm so glad I made the choice to buy these. The sound quality is brilliant, even on hip/hop songs the bass is decent enough to be clear. They're extremely comfy. I wore them for about 4 hours the first day I had them and had no problems, in the past my ears have always hurt after wearing on-ear headphones. They're solidly built, compared to Beats which feel a bit flimsy. They pack away very easily. The fact that you have two headphone ports which you can connect another headset to (maybe for someone sat next to you) is also another cool little addition. Can't find any faults with these headphones. They look stylish, feel comfortable, and most importantly the sound quality is second to none. The service provided by Amazon was also faultless. Very happy customer!

Stylish, comfortable and sounds great.

Mein Sohn hat diesen "cool" wirkenden Kopfhörer unbedingt haben wollen und hat am Ende auch sein Ziel erreicht.Meine Rezension gilt für die Qualität der Ware sowie für den Abwicklungsprozess bei einem Reklamationsfall.Nach einem Fünf- Monate-Gebrauch wurde der Kopfhörer wegen vermuteter Produktionsmängel (Sound wechselt von links nach rechts, oder ohne Grund leiser) bei Amazon reklamiert, Amazon wiederum die Ware bei der Vertriebsfirma reklamiert und letzlich hat die Vertriebsfirma ohne Verzögerung nach Erhalt der Ware beim Hersteller von Monster reklamiert. Ergebnis: Bis zu acht Wochen Warten ist angesagt, bis ich weiß, was mit dem Kopfhörer passieren soll. Es trifft die Vetriebsfirma sicher keine Schuld, nur der Kopfhörer hält nicht, was er verspricht.Diese Wartefrist ist unzumutbar und diese Reklamationabwicklung ist keinesfalls ein Kundenzufriedenheit förderndes Mittel, für niemanden.Ich warte ab und besorge meinem Sohn u.U.einen anderen Kopfhörer, der dem Preis gerecht ist.