Lots of people equate weight with quality. Good for selling them in store, bad for actual use.

I remember a teardown where weights were taped inside. I think it was a beats headphone.

It was Beats. At first it was found in counterfeit Beats, but later the same was found in genuine Beats. And then guess who bought Beats for their exquisite metal weight technology? That's right, it was Apple.

The weights are an impedance match to your wallet

They bought them for the streaming service that came with it. Not for fake weights in headphones.

Streaming service?

> And then guess who bought Beats for their exquisite metal weight technology? That's right, it was Apple.

It's self-evidently extremely disingenuous to claim that Apple bought Beats for their "exquisite metal weight technology", so I thought I'd double check your claim that there are "metal weights" inside Beats headphones.

All of this appears to stem from two blog posts, written by the same VC.[^1] The first time they accidentally tore down counterfeit Beats, and when they managed to repeat the process, they "stuck by [their] claim" that:

> "…these metal parts are there to add a bit of weight and increase perceived quality with a nice look."

The BOM estimate they provide lists the following metal parts:

* Inner cast metal separator

* Springs

* Torx screw

* Self tapping screw

* Cast metal supports

* Stamped metal ear cup

None of these are extraneous weights not serving a purpose. The claim of the author might be better presented as:

"Beats headphones use heavier metal components instead of plastic ones, and I think it's because they add weight."

There are a lot of very good reasons to use materials that dampen unwanted interference like parasitic vibrations. Stiffer materials such as metal parts typically flex less, and have fewer (but usually more pronounced) resonances than plastic parts, which have intrinsic damping but might distort.

A good example of this is that the driver in your headphones is moving. Therefore the housing it is placed in must consider sprung/unsprung mass. Adding metal components increases the mechanical impedance.

So:

1. It is entirely possible that your claim about the weights is correct, and Beats chose to use metal components rather than plastic purely to add weight to the product.

2. There are a great many other possible explanations for using metal rather than plastic, and I don't think that you're likely to be party to them. For example: maybe they had the parts in-chain already and didn't want to have to tie up hardware engineering or supplier quality engineering for a new plastic part.

[1]: https://beneinstein.com/how-it-s-made-series-yup-our-beats-w... (the one where they tear down real Beats)

Thanks for doing the legwork. Any “nehhh apple BAD they make products for IDIOTS!” comment should be treated with skepticism, as usual.

Idk im not sure why they bought Beats aside from marketing hype in the first place...

Beats is a $1B+ a year business. Investment-wise it was a no-brainer.

Cultural cachet of Beats - note how Apple kept the brand.

Jimmy Iovine & Dr Dre showed them how to tap into a new demographic.

It helped Apple get up and running with streaming faster, they needed to compete with Spotify.

The Beats brand was a great entrée to an entire market segment that Apple was trying to better access. I'd say it was a masterful acquisition (and integration).

I completely disagree.

Beats brand basically disappeared after that or at the least has become "uncool".

Apple had iTunes already, they very well could've acqui-hired and improved their service themselves.

Apple music slowly died and is only becoming resurgent now, many years later.

Beats (or I guess Apple under the Beats name) still make H1/2 based in-ears that are generally well received.

Yep! I own both a pair of AirPods and a pair of Beats. The Beats were designed for a lower price point, without noise cancellation, than the AirPods so I can’t offer a head-head comparison.

For Apple Music

Exactly. Look at something like the Sony XM5s that have a defective design that breaks in a light wind. There a class action against them for the crap they pulled and refusal to warranty. Not that I’m bitter at them or anything.

Nothing new here then. Back when I used to DJ some 20+ years ago, people would complain back then that Sony headphones would constantly break on them.

Meanwhile I had Sennheisers and they could take an absolute beating and still work fine. While also being plastic and cheap looking in comparison to other brands in the same price packet.

Yeah, I had a pair of MDR-V700 back in the day, and they broke in about 2-3 years max, without any abuse, just randomly.

I gave them to a friend who "quick-fixed" them with a screw at the pivot point, but they lost all their flexibility after that. He didn't mind because he was using them solely for drumming, but I couldn't use them anymore.

That being said, I have had some nasty experiences with Sennheiser's IEMs as well. Had to send 2 of them in warranty within a year, products that were in the 300-600 euro range back around 2010!

Oh is that why my wife’s cheapo crappy Beats earbuds have a special UI for pairing with my iphone…

All genuine Beats as far I know come with the H1 chips and pair just like AirPods - even my cheap $60 Beats Flex I use on planes since I don’t have to worry about them falling out - they just fall around my neck

Beats.

But my favourite hack was a Sennheiser model which had foam inserts to dampen the sound. 555 - foam = 595

The weight is sign of reliability

-Boris the bullet dodger

People wear them at work daily and it doesn’t seem to be a problem. One guy looks likes he’s Tier 3 support and uses them 8 hours a day 5 days a week for years.

People compliment my Jabra’s voice quality otherwise I would’ve switched already.

Sure, plenty of people also wear a 14 oz hard hat strapped to their head all day with no negative health impacts. Doesn't mean it's enjoyable or comfortable for everyone.

I have a pair and they’re fine for wearing when sat down. In fact they’re my preferred headphones for airplane journeys and noisy offices because the noise cancelling is top notch.

However I tried to wear them one on a train commute and it was horrid. Walking around with them really isn’t fun precisely because of their weight.

Every head movement feels like hard work and the headphones don’t even feel stable on your head during any movement due to the weight.

So I end up owned two headphones (well, technically 3):

1. AirPod Max for focus time

2. Sennheiser earphones (in ear) for commuting / exercise workouts.

3. Sennheiser DJ cans for DJing, video streaming and other times when I need wired, zero latency, audio.

I used to wear them daily and I didn't like it. Noise cancellation was important for me, but they were really heavy.

I have absolutely no problem with the weight. My only gripe is with the battery and lack of a power button.

That’s 385g vs Bose QC45’s 240g (8.5oz).

I have them The weight and clamp pressure are too much for me

Much prefer lighter Sony or Bose top of line

There is a procedure to lessen the clamp pressure. I did it and was worried I’d break them, but it worked like a charm. Still too heavy, though.

I also found them too hot/sweaty compared to other over the ear designs.

It's heavy but not unheard of; my headphones weigh 14.8 oz and some of the heaviest I know of are something like 1.3 lbs!

Still though, I think this is just a case of Apple making them heavier purely for a premium feel.

Did those headphones have a band over the top?

Can you name the models? I'd be curious to know.

I know my way around premium wireless headphones and I'd wager most of them within that price range are somewhere between 250 and 320 grams (like 8.8 oz to 11 oz).