Beats by Dr. Dre

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CES 2013: It’s Alive! It’s Alive!

I have seen the future of audio. It is pretty neat.
- By Ken C. Pohlmann
- Posted January 9, 2013
The future of audio. That is a significant statement – the fact that audio actually has a future. There has been much handwringing by people (including me) wondering whether the awesomeness of screens big and small has forever eclipsed the coolness of audio. We feared that much like the tiny speakers in flat-screen TVs, audio would become something trivial. After walking the CES floor and taking to people, I can confidently state that rumors of audio’s demise are greatly exaggerated, and in fact they are not true.

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Review: Sol Republic Tracks, Tracks HD, and Tracks Ultra Headphones

A trio of on-ears from this year's Olympian headphone company of choice
- By Michael Berk
- Posted November 6, 2012
Since Michael Phelps was seen sporting a pair in London this summer, Sol Republic headphones have been everywhere. And there's plenty of curiosity about the company itself, run by industry veterans Scott Hix and Kevin Lee, the son of Noel Lee — the Head Monster of Monster Cable, and the man who pretty much built today's headphone industry as the manufacturing force behind Beats.
All well and good. But should you buy headphones endorsed by a guy with water in his ears?

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Psst! Wanna Buy a Headphone Cheap?

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, right?
- By Ken C. Polhmann
- Posted October 3, 2012
When you buy a Rolex Submariner from a guy with a dozen of them in a cardboard box in Times Square, there is absolutely no chance of misunderstanding. Both parties fully understand that the timepieces in question are fakes. But what if you buy a pair of high-end headphones from that kind-of-weird stereo store across from the mall?

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Review: Pioneer SE-MJ591 Headphone

A veteran brand battles back with a luxury on-ear model.
- By Brent Butterworth
- Posted August 8, 2012
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Pioneer’s gotta be a little PO’ed. The storied Japanese company has been making headphones for more than 50 years, yet it’s been overshadowed by upstart brands like Beats, HiFiMan, V-Moda, Phiaton, and others. But Pioneer’s fighting back with a freshly designed new line, in which the SE-MJ591 on-ear headphone is one of the top models.

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Beats Buys MOG: Next Stop, World Domination?

Is Beats looking to take a bite of the big Apple?
- By Leslie Shapiro
- Posted July 9, 2012
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Although the rumors have been flying for months, it’s now official: last week Beats bought the music streaming service MOG, paying somewhere in the neighborhood of $10 million.

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In the Mix: What Makes a DJ Headphone?

We take a listen to new models from Shure and Skullcandy (and an old friend from Beats) in order to figure it all out
- By Michael Berk
- Posted April 16, 2012
Today we take a look at some more fallout from the personal listening explosion, with an assist from the vinyl revival and the continuing rise of electronic music. Visit a headphone retailer these days, you'll find a lot of models meant, supposedly, for the professional DJ — or at least meant to make the casual listener look like they might be the sort of person who spends a lot of time at the decks.

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Tech Trends 2012: Headphone Haven

This year, veteran firms and upstarts alike gave us an earful
- By Michael Berk
- Posted March 27, 2012
THERE WERE countless headphone exhibitors at CES 2012: familiar names showing incremental upgrades to longstanding models, Chinese OEMs showcasing suspiciously familiar designs under house brands, upstart firms testing the waters with hybrid driver designs and innovative fit systems, automotive and furniture firms muscling their way into the latest hot retail category.

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Audio Quality Lives!

No one cares about audio technology, right? It’s all about screens and phones and apps, right? That’s certainly been the case, but I think audio’s demise has been exaggerated, and instead is showing vigorous signs of life.
- By Ken C. Pohlmann
- Posted March 26, 2012
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Everything runs in cycles, and audio has passed its nadir and is now trending back up. And high-fidelity audio — for heaven’s sake! — is moving back onto the radar screen. Consider these 10 points:

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CES Day One: Monster Press Event

Six new headphone lines, a Bluetooth speaker, and more
- By Brent Butterworth
- Posted January 9, 2012
Cutting the cable” is a fashionable trend, but Monster is doing it in a different sense: It’s now just going by Monster instead of Monster Cable. True to its new moniker, the company didn’t even mention cable in its CES press conference today. But given the onslaught of cool new products the company introduced, nobody seemed to notice.

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Beats, Red Courtesy Phone, Please: HTC's Rezound

Does HTC's new media handset live up to the hype?
- By Michael Berk
- Posted November 21, 2011
HTC's Rezound, which made its way out to consumers last week from Verizon, is the first US phone to get the full Beats Audio treatment, the specifics of which have been hazy 'til the release of this very device. So has HTC's substantial investment in Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine's headphone juggernaut paid off?

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Beats by Dr. Dre Holiday Preview

Monster unveils custom colors, a pop-up-shop, a boombox, and a nifty new headphone (or two)
- By Michael Berk
- Posted October 12, 2011
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S+V dropped by the Beats by Dr. Dre/Monster Cable holiday product preview last night, to check out what the company had to offer to follow up on the Beats Pro headphones we looked at in this month's headphone shootout.

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Field Trip: Beats Summer Soundoff

We visit Quad Studios to see how Dr. Dre's flagship cans stand up to the competition
- By Michael Berk
- Posted August 17, 2011
This morning the Beats by Dr. Dre folks put on an interesting little listening party.

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