Tik Tech -
20 Minutes
Very fashionable a decade ago, Beats Audio headphones have sometimes been the subject of critical comments as to their true quality.
Thanks to Solo Pro, the brand, owned by Apple since 2013, asserts a real know-how with a noise reduction headset that does not have to be ashamed in front of the greatest.
Sold for 279 euros, it remains expensive and suffers from some shortcomings, such as the lack of equalizer.
Love on the Beats?
The Solo Pro headphones from the Beats Audio brand are the first from the manufacturer (owned by Apple since 2013) to integrate an active noise reduction system.
Sold for 279 euros, the Solo Pro thus tries to enter the fray of NC headphones (for Noise Canceling), such as the Marshall Monitor II ANC, Sony WH1000XM4 or Headphones 700 from Bose, whose sales have exploded for 2 years.
Plastic is more fantastic
We are far from the plastic of the first Beats Audio headphones (see box).
Delivered in its black cardboard box, the Solo Pro displays exemplary manufacturing quality.
This supra-aural headband helmet (it sits on the ears but does not include them) immediately gives off an impression of quality.
Its weight (267g) calls out.
In 2015, the Internet taxed Beats Audio to include metal parts in its headphones in order to artificially increase the weight, and therefore the perception of quality.
The iconic red of the Beats Audio brand.
- AUDIO BEATS
However, we note here that the hoop or the metal joints of the Solo Pro do not make up the figures but contribute to its overall quality and resistance.
Other side of the coin: the helmet encloses the skull quite firmly.
If the maintenance of the Solo is impeccable, the pressure it exerts on the ears can be annoying after a long listening ... Around the neck, it is not too annoying.
Codes from Apple, owner of Beats Audio
We see that Apple has been there.
Charging using a Lightning cable (if supplied, there is no charging pad in the box), the Solo Pro is instantly identified by an iPhone, as is the case with AirPods, AirPods Pro or with AirPods Max headphones.
You will have to go through a classic Bluetooth pairing with an Android smartphone.
We find with the Solo Pro certain codes specific to Apple, proprietary brand of Beats Audio.
- AUDIO BEATS
Regret: the Solo Pro has no adjustment application, with equalizer.
However, this is the case with many competing helmets.
But, as with Bose, here we have to be satisfied with the settings imposed by the brand.
Pleasant surprise though.
They are rather well dosed.
Weighted down by Apple's H1 chip, the Solo Pro achieves the right balance between treble / midrange / bass, without giving in to excess in the low frequencies, where its manufacturer has only excelled in the past.
A rather trendy rock headphone
Thus, this headphone can be suitable for most sound registers, with, without a doubt, some good predispositions for rock.
The guitars of the cover of
I Will Survice
by Cake or, more classically, of
Smells Like Teen Spirit
by Nirvana (just to get the eardrums back!)
Will
win all the votes.
Passage obligatory by the cabinet of Dr. Dre, with
Let me Ride
or even
What's the Difference
which beat their low frequencies without fail note.
The Beats Audio Solo Pro takes care of its look but also its audio quality.
- AUDIO BEATS
Warmer tracks, such
as Celeste's
Love is Back
or
Melody Gardot's
Love Song,
get a restitution full of sweetness.
Ibrahim Maalouf's
complete album
40 Melodies
confirmed this impression.
And a good surprise: listening to Solo Pro is not distorted.
With the caution that this requires, we can therefore read loud music without its quality being degraded.
No doubt the Solo Pro lacks a bit of shine.
How is your pain?
by Benjamin Biolay or
Corps
d'Yseult, would have deserved a little more sparkle on the voices of the artists, but this impression remains at the margin.
One thing is certain, this helmet can be heard among the greatest and does not suffer from the flaws of youth that some of its elders may have displayed.
Effective noise reduction
Located on the right shell of the Solo Pro, physical buttons allow some manipulation (Volume / Play-Pause / Pick up-Hang up / Personal assistant), while under the left shell, a button calls up noise reduction.
According to the tests we carried out in a relatively busy street, it is quite relevant and stands out in particular for its ability to muffle voices.
Headphone noise reduction is effective, but it cannot be measured out.
- AUDIO BEATS
Too bad it is not possible to dose this noise reduction in order to adapt it to the ambient environment.
It is impossible for the moment to test the Solo Po by plane… but one can imagine that it would be effective there.
Its autonomy will also allow long-haul flights to be considered: up to 22 hours of use with noise reduction activated and up to 40 hours without.
A great performance.
Sold for 279 euros, the Beats Solo Pro remains rather well placed in a family of products where we are more used to encountering circumaural headphones (which include the ears).
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Beats story
Originally was the American rapper Dr. Dre and big sound.
Launched in 2006, its brand of headphones had its heyday in the 2010s. Nothing could be more "trendy" at the time than to walk with one of the famous headphones flanked by the "b" of their designer on each. headset (the must was the red version!).
So much so that imitations and counterfeits were numerous.
The critics too.
Many experts then underlined the perfectible sound quality of Beats Audio headphones, essentially based on bass reproduction.
Success helping however, the brand Beats Audio was bought by Apple in 2013 which used it as a springboard to launch its Apple Music streaming service.
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