What do you think of the Beats by Dr. Dre Bluetooth Wireless Speaker /Beatbox?

Some audiophools think power cords make a difference, some interconnects, some speaker wire, some champion one similar amp vs another, etc. Why worry about what "they" think?

OTOH I wouldn't even consider something with that much marketing on principle alone....or a battery powered active speaker, just wouldn't occur to me to get one at all. Did they ever get bluetooth up to a high audio standard?

That last thing you want to do is trust the opinion of a self-proclaimed audiophile. This is why:



From an engineering standpoint the Dre's are mediocre products sold at exorbitant prices.

Yea audiophiles are strange, I should know I am one. I would think that most top quality gear is designed by audiophiles or people passionate about audio!
Edited by Todd68 - 12/12/12 at 1:46am

Most top quality gear is designed by people passionate about audio. That used to be the definition of an audiophile. But now the term means less about a passion for good sound than it does a curious mixture of hubris and gullibility, as often as not equating price and hype with quality, even though there's no correlation. And that cuts to the crux of the OPs question.

Well thats the definition of some audiophiles not all, a lot of us are not stupid and gullible. Although most of us know there is more to sound quality than a spec sheet.

I made my own cables that I think sound better than the cheap stuff that you get at Radio Shack: You need to keep an open mind, that's all.
Edited by Todd68 - 12/12/12 at 12:13pm

Its all about marketing and branding now a days rather than quality of product.

If you mean that you made cables that have lower DCR or capacitance or inductance or a combination of those three than a Radio Shack cable then it very well may sound better. But being an engineer I never accept subjective opinion at face value, not even my own. Especially my own, as I'm no more immune than anyone else from letting my expectations color my judgement. If you think it has to sound better, it will.

My IC cable are super low capacitance with solid core silver conductors and decent quality connectors, made from copper or silver instead of brass. If you can't hear any differnce than thats great but I can.

As far as silver goes it has 5% better conductivity than copper. To duplicate it with copper you can either go with 5% larger gauge or 5% less length. Brass is a relatively poor conductor, but the amount of it used in a typical connector is so small that it's not an issue, the difference being barely measurable and certainly not audible. Very low capacitance is useful with very long cables and/or high source impedances, but very seldom is it of consequence with interconnects. If you're happy that's all well and good. But I never recommend to anyone anything that isn't 100% positively both audible and worth the price. IME no cable costing more than a dollar a foot and no connector costing more than five dollars is.

Thats a fine opinion, but not everyone thinks that way. Especially us gullible audiophools.

I'm an engineer, I don't post my opinions without identifying them as such. I post engineering facts. As for not everyone thinking that way, the snake oil merchants depend on that for their existence, and they're doing very well. Pixie dust sells.

So you own it? If so make your own decision. The problem with audio is it is so subjective that what sounds great to me might sound like **** to you, vice versa. $120 for a powered bluetooth system is not a bad deal I would say. Im sure if you searched and listened to a ton of comparable systems you might find something better. But if it does the job and your happy with it then what others think doesnt really matter.

Some people spend money on tweaks, it is their money so what?

Cheers!

I have listened to one at work (not really sure which version), $120 is probably what one of these is worth. Still, I don't think it sounded very good. If you just want something that gets loud and overemphasizes bass then these are great. Sadly, many people regard this as "good sound." Even more puzzling to me is that many people will use these types of docking systems as a stationary stereo system when they could just as well be using real speakers for the same price or less than some of these "premium" docks.

In any case, I have found that beats products that I have used (docks, the beats pill, and various editions of their headphones) rely more on their obnoxious looks and "cool factor" than anything. These products usually sound disappointing, or as good as something that can be had for 1/3 the price. The puzzling thing is that when try I help a customer at work who is looking to spend $300+ on a pair of beats, they are rarely even willing to look at something we carry in the same price range from Sennheiser, AKG, Audio-Technica, etc. it's a tragedy, really.

Yea I could never understand why people would buy Beats headphones over Sennheiser. But this is the old Bose discussion all over again.

Dr. Dre isn't the first celebrity to push a product and he won't be the last. As an audiophile, I feel his products are fair at best. As someone in the media, I can unequivocally say you are paying through the nose for the name and not the product itself. True, it is your money and can spend your hard-earned cash anyway you want. It's also our perrogative to point out the obvious in the hopes you'll find something of better quality and less expensive.

Yep...you are buying a combo if "fashion" and audio utility!