Headphones - Which one is Best?

People keep asking me about what are the best headphones out there to use for music and smart-phones. In all honesty, each headphone is unique in its own way and when it comes down to it, it is more of a preference on what you want in the end rather than what I think is the best one. It is also down to whether or not you want a brand name or something that works. But nonetheless, I will mention a few headphones that I personally like (and have used) which are good.

Now for the sake of this entry today, I am going to point out several commonly known headphones to the average Joe (or Jill) so things like professional headphones like Audiotechnica, V-Moda Crossfades and Sennheiser will not be mentioned. I will be talking about Beats by Dr Dre, Bose, Skullcandy, and Sony. These are the ones that are still popular and common today and can easily be purchased at most electronics stores.

Sony
Sony has been for the longest one of the most well known in Walkmans, Discmans, MiniDiscman, stereos, the list goes on and on. One of their products that I had plenty of were their headphones. I've used their in-the-ear and over-the-ear. These have been the headphones you WANTED to get back in the 80's, 90's and Early 2000. They were (for the most part) affordable, durable and you could find them in a pharmacy store like Walgreens or such.
Now with people using their headphones to answer calls and change the volume without ever touching their phones or mp3 players, Sony has kept it simple and implemented their line of headphones with the ability to increase/decrease the volume and press a button to answer your calls. The quality of sound on them are pretty good if all you want is to just listen to your music. The great thing about these headphones are the price. You can get a no bells/whistles headphone as low as 15 bucks and if you want something very good, a really good pair for up to 50 bucks. Please note there are other Sony headphones that range into the 200 bucks area and more and I am aware of that. I am simply pointing out headphones that most people can afford.

Skullcandy
I will be the first to admit I was pretty skeptical about this company when it first made its appearance in 2003. Skullcandy's products were targeted for outdoor action sports such as snowboarders, bikers, skateboarders. It went so well that it eventually went out to the general consumer market and have been going strong every since. Fast forward 5 years later and Fortune's Magazine named Skullcandy "the world's coolest ear bud". You know what? They were right! The designs were amazing and the quality just as great. Not to mention the fact almost anyone can actually afford to get their hands on a really cool set of headphones or ear buds! Let's talk pricing now. If you really want something very basic, you can get some basic buds for as low as 9 bucks online (like Amazon) and these 9 buck buds have volume and mic control. Not bad eh? If you wanted something over the ear, you got a range from 12 to 50 bucks for a decent pair, great quality and not to mention an awesome look to them. I personally tried a few of the over the ears and I gotta say if it weren't for the fact I have several headphones already, I would've purchased a few Skullcandy's!

Bose
Here you have a company that has been around since the 1970s specializing in audio equipment. Bose is known for its loudspeakers, noise-cancelling headsets and automotive sound systems. Here is a fun fact for you all that you may or may not know. Bose has contracts with the U.S. Military and N.A.S.A. So chances are if you see any piece of audio equipment such as military and aviation headsets, its a Bose. Pretty cool right? Here is another fun fact for you. Bose, officially, was the first company to release active noise cancelling headphones as a consumer product. Nice!
You definitely will get amazing quality from their headphones both in the ear and over the ear. Bose is also very particularly protective of its patents and trademarks and with very good reason. Not too many companies have the contracts they do so it is very important to Bose to be defensive of its brand. Now lets talk prices on their headphones. For in the ear headphones, you can find online a decent price as low as 70 bucks. All things considering, with the history of its line and the quality of their headphones, this is not bad at all. The downer though is at 70 bucks, all you get are the headphones, case and replacement buds. It does not come with mic and volume control so for some people it might be a downer. If you want that, you are looking to pay at least 130 bucks. For over the ear headphones you have at least 2 options, you have the normal ones and the noise cancelling ones. For regular ones, look to fork out at least 140 bucks, while the noise cancelling ones, a whopping 190 (at least). Hey, if I was in a room of loud people and construction, 190 bucks will be worth it to me.

Beats by Dr. Dre
The company was founded by hip-hop producer Andre "Dr. Dre" Young (who in my opinion is AWESOME) in 2006. Beats produces a line of audio products and equipment and these in turn are manufactured under the exclusive license of Monster Cable. This lasted from about 2009 - 2012 in which now Beats no longer has a contract with Monster Cable, so it produces its own products. The purpose for Dr. Dre in creating the Beats was because listeners were not able to hear "all" of the music with most headphones and with Beats, it would allow people to "hear what the artists hear, and listen to the music the way they should: the way I (Dr Dre) do." The technology used in these headphones can make even the most basic mp3 player or smartphone sound amazing. If you remember back in the day you would need to go to the radio and fiddle around with buttons to get the bass, the tremble, and all that other stuff in order to get the sounds just right? Beats allows you to take all that legwork out and it makes it feel it does it for you. Even if you have the worst recording of a song or audio clip, you can still hear it pretty darn well. Now here comes the bad news for those people getting all excited. Pricing is a bit steep even for basic ones. For in the ears with mic and volume options, you can expect to dish out at least 50 bucks if you know where to look online. The over the ear basic ones (this is the Beats Solo) at least 180 bucks ... and the ones I mentioned are the discontinued ones. the High Definition (HD) ones are worth even more ... 200 bucks. You can certainly find them cheaper like perhaps slightly used, refurbished or places going out of business but still, its pretty expensive considering the other options.

You see now the more popular options out there that I have described above, now I give you my take. I have either used or owned one of each device and can vouch for its quality. In a pinch, I know I can buy a Sony headphone at your local CVS, Duane Reade, Right Aid, etc. and use it without worrying about bad quality. I've done it before and its reliable. Not to mention I can actually afford them. If it wasn't for the fact I invested in the Beats, I would probably own a pair of Skullcandy's. My pick for something that will not only give you great quality and an affordable price, I would go with Skullcandy. My next pick assumes I have the money and want something top of the line, it will have to be the Bose ... no contest. Yes I love my beats, but it is too overpriced. I can have more bang for my buck purchasing a normal over the ear Bose and still have enough money for something else. (Over the Ear w/ Bose = 140 ... Over the Ear w/ Beats = 180)

That's all for now folks. See you all next time!