I was able to get a pair of Dr. Dre Beats Headphones by Monster Cable. They’re glossy, and look cool with their red “b”…but I listen to my iPod, how good could they be? I had bought a pair of $100 in-ear Sony earbuds some months ago and they have good sound. But the Beats are amazing! It’s the difference between just listening to music on my earbuds and having a musical experience! And, even more amazing about the Beats–they come with a cable that has a microphone…they work with my iPhone!

I put on the Beats and close my eyes and the musicians are in the room with me! The nuances of how the music was produced–echoes, gentle bongo beats that increase to a head pounding boom, a whispering vocal–is clear. I heard every instrument. It moved me, tapping into my emotion, filling all my senses as if I could see or smell or touch the music– a whole body phenomenon.

Listening to music without good speakers, or in this case, good headphones, is like looking at a fine painting that’s hung in the dark. You miss the change in hues, mixture of colors, details, brush strokes. It’s just a picture of something. Shine the light on that same painting and you can appreciate the emotion and the artistic expression and skill that tells the whole story. You see hidden details that delight. The Beats is like that light on the painting.

Everyone I have put the headphones on have been blown away at first note. Maria Muldaur’s classic “Midnight at the Oasis” brought my girlfriend (a singer) to tears. I had to pry them off my son as he played his video game in full immersion.

iTunes compresses songs so you can fit a lot of them on your iPod, so it’s such a surprise that the Beats can bring that much out in the music. Add a less compressed music format, like the digital downloads on the Monster Music discs, and it’s all that much better. I think I’ll seek out a good turntable and some vinyl records. I bet that will be existential!

See below for Unboxed video by Andru Edwards of gearlive.com Shows you the experience of taking them out of the box!