Noise cancellation

Well-known and well-loved, Beats by Dr. Dre headphones tend to be aimed toward fashion-conscious consumers more than serious audiophiles. With this year's update to their Studio over-ear headphones , Beats managed to deliver noise cancellation with bass-forward beats and style to spare.
As with the rest of the Beats line, the Studios are image-obsessed, and the spiffy design is largely what you're paying for here. The glossy plastic bands come in black, red, orange, and white varieties; the removable, tangle-resistant red cables are made with quality materials; the three-button remotes are responsive and easy to reach. Best of all, these cans are comfortable.
Style aside, the one problem with these headphones is that in spite of their name, the Studios aren't built for studio work. The sturdy build indicates a potential for travel, and the active noise canceling suggests the presence of unwanted sound — not exactly the traits of a studio recording environment. The biggest tell, though, is in the Studios' consumer-friendly performance results.
Users can expect a bass-forward yet detailed soundscape. Specifically, energizing bass notes play a very prominent role, but daintier instruments like flutes, violins, and guitars aren't blasted out of the picture. Whether low, middle, or high, every note gets a fair shake. We do wish the bass was just a bit quieter and the high midrange were just a tad louder, but on the whole, music sounds properly balanced.

You won't hear a lot distortion, and not much sound from your tunes will leak out to annoy those around you, either. We did note some issues with the sound being ever-so-slightly louder in the right ear, but most people probably won't ever notice this minor issue.
One of the Studios' biggest selling points is the Active Noise Canceling (ANC). Although the ANC feature on the Beats Studio is not the most effective we've tested, they're among the most comfortable ANC sets we've tried; specifically, they don't put too much pressure on your eardrums.
To power the noise cancellation, the Studios use a rechargeable lithium-ion battery that juices up via micro USB and a standard wall adapter. But take note: If the battery dies, it's not just ANC that stops working — you won't get any sound at all. Worse still, the tiny ANC button doesn't have any indicator to show whether the phones are on or off. That means there's no way to know if you're draining the battery aside from trying to play some music.
The only other notable feature is the hidden button on the left ear cup. Lightly pressing the "b" icon on the left side mutes your tunes and disables noise canceling. It's a handy feature, because simply pausing playback via the remote doesn't actually shut noise cancellation off.
The Beats Studios have plenty going for them. Their sound reproduction is right in line with what most consumers want, with strong bass and detailed mids and highs. Distortion isn't an issue, and the active noise cancellation offers a soothing environment without applying unreasonable pressure on the inner ear. As icing on the cake, the design is as comfortable and sturdy as it is hip.
Yet for all that, the Beats Studios still don't top similarly and even lower-priced competition for raw performance, like the Beyerdynamic Custom One Pro or the Sony MDR-V6. Do you really want $300 headphones that don't work when the battery dies?
Of course, if you just want hot style, big bass, and a bit of peace and quiet all rolled into one overpriced package, then these sleek Studios might be just the thing. For everyone else, a battery-free, less-expensive option is always just a few clicks away.