The Lowdown
These headphones appear really durable, are certainly loud enough thanks to those large drivers, and while they don’t sound as refined as headphones costing close to US$200, the sound is clear, enjoyable and definitely nice and full.
First Impressions / Setting up
The phones come nicely boxed with a separate, coiled cable with gold-plated plugs. The plug that attaches to the headphones is twist-to-lock, and the cable is single sided. There’s a pretty normal black, soft drawstring bag provided for protection and transport.
The headphones seem durable and understated in style – they’re similar-looking, in fact, to the high-end AIAIAI headphones. They’re finished in a matt rubberised material, with the logo part of the earcups being brushed black painted metal with silver branding. The padding is smooth leather, and there’s a leather cushion at the top underside of the headband.
The headband is adjusted in the standard way with a plastic extension section on each side, and the earcups hinge on a ball joint, which although it appears to be plastic also seems durable. The drivers are big (50mm) and so the earcups are wide, fitting full over the ear with ease. The ‘phones fold up in a pretty standard way into their own headband and while they don’t fold flat, they at least go “small” for tucking into your DJ bag or gear case.
In Use
I found them comfortable on the ear, with the padding that stretches across the drivers also making contact with your ear as well as the leather surround, due to the leather surround being quite shallow.
They aren’t too aggressively tight so they should be good for extended listening, although of course with DJ headphones it’s not extended listening that’s the key, rather, isolation. The isolation is pretty good, thanks to the closed-back design and the size of the earcups.
Due to the rubberised headband and the fact that it’s rounded and narrow, they sit comfortably around the neck, and the earcups can be adjusted forward and back as well as up and down (all the way around 180 degrees if you want) so they will be fine for one-ear cueing, whatever your preferred wearing style. The sound quality is surprisingly good at this price point, with deep bass, a lack of harshness and good definition. Just as importantly, they are sensitive, meaning they should give you enough volume even when using with USB-powered DJ controllers that traditionally don’t have the highest of headphone volume outputs.
Conclusion
DJs want something that won’t break, that is loud enough for club use, and with clear enough sound for easily telling elements apart in tracks. Above that’s it’s personal choice that decides things like size, style, how small they fold and so on.
These headphones appear really durable, are certainly loud enough thanks to those large drivers, and while they don’t sound as refined as headphones costing close to US$200, the sound is clear, enjoyable and definitely nice and full.
And looks-wise, Behringer have got it right – they look great! I like understated headphones, and the matt black look seems to be popular at the moment, so chances are you’ll like them too.
Of course the best thing is the price – for US$69, you’re getting a lot for your money, and assuming they last as long as they look like they will, they’re a bargain. (Behringer recently announced a three-year guarantee on all of its gear, so they obviously have confidence that the product will last the duration.)
