Customer Reviews

Monster Turbine PRO High-Performance In-Ear Speakers (Gold)

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Packaging/presentation: A
Outer packaging is eye-catching but not "busy." Technical information is presented in a relatively clear and concise manner.
Inner packaging is mostly excellent. The gold housings stand out in a very eye-catching manner against the black molded plastic. The included carrying cases are very nice, though I would have preferred a more traditional mechanical snap closing on the purse-style case. My iPod is a hard-drive based model, and I'm rather leery of having magnetic closures around it in my luggage.
Extracting the inner tray in order to get to the manual, 1/4" adapter and extra ear tips is a bit aggravating the first time. Once the plastic had been flexed a bit, it seemed much easier to remove. This is nice, as it allows the heavy box to be used to store the IEMs when not in use.
The only negative note on the packaging/accessories is the "for audiophiles & audio professionals only" tag line printed on one case. It's a bit over the top and unnecessary, in my opinion.

Cable management/accessories: B+
The inclusion of a cable management clip is an excellent touch. No headphones I've owned at any price point included anything similar. Similarly, the cable slide is a nice way to keep a big loop of loose wire from snagging on things if you're moving around.
The gold-plated 1/4" adapter is a very high-quality part, comparable to the one included with my Audio Technicas. One thing that I would have liked to see included is a dual-miniplug adapter for those odd airline seat connections. My ATH-ANC7s came with one, and it's handy for traveling on those airliners with that type of connection.
Also, the cable is a bit short. It's fine if your source is very close to your waistline or closer, but plugging them into the vintage receiver on my desk at work required a bit of caution. An inexpensive 25' coiled extension cable makes short work of the problem, but an extra 6" or so on the cord would be a nice addition without too much extra risk of snagging excess cable on something.

Sound quality: A
My previous reference points for quality headphones have been the Koss Porta-Pro, Audio Technica ATH-ANC7 and Skullcandy Full Metal Jacket 11mm IEMs, along with various cheap earbuds of the type included with consumer audio products. The Turbine Pro IEMs easily beat the Skullcandy earbuds across the board, and have better bass response than the Porta-Pros. The Turbine Pros compare very favorably to the Audio Technicas, which is impressive considering the much larger transducer size allowed by a circumaural headphone body.
The bass is especially impressive for an IEM, providing a full, complete sound not found in most IEMs and earbuds I've encountered. While the full bass is a strong selling point of these IEMs, it's not overpowering and "boomy" - a condition some other audio companies seem to think means "good bass." One quirk of the design (noted in the manual) is that a good seal in the ear canal is necessary or bass response is greatly reduced. To that end, Monster has provided a number of different types and sizes of eartips.
Everyone's ear canal is different, and that will have a strong influence on which cushion works best for you - for me, both sizes of the "christmas tree" style was the least comfortable and provided the least bass. The stiffer, spherical eartips in the larger size fit my ears very well and are quite comfortable, though they're somewhat easy to dislodge with any sort of activity (the small version of this eartip was too small to get a good seal in my ears). Finally, the slightly sticky, compressible/moldable dense foam eartips seemed to stay in place the best for me and therefore gave the best sound, though they aren't quite as comfortable as the spherical tips. After wearing the Turbine Pros for a while with that eartip, I start to feel a mildly unpleasant pressure inside the ear canal and need to remove them from my ears for a few seconds.

Listening impressions: A+
The sounds that come out of these IEMs exceeded my expectations, they're equivalent to or better than any other headphones I've personally heard. I tested the Turbine Pro with several types of music: jazz, country, rock, R&B and classical. Any type of vocal sounds and higher-pitched non-vocal sounds in any genre come through crystal clear but not "brittle" and harsh. Likewise, low bass sounds were clear and not "muddy." Midrange sounds were very accurate and pleasant, and the instruments were distinct in smaller groups or with single instruments. Larger jazz/rock ensembles and most classical music tended to blend a bit in the mid and upper bass ranges. This effect wasn't actually unpleasant or inaccurate, but the "air" around the individual instruments (and therefore the "phantom center channel" stereo effect) were diminished. I think this is an unavoidable side effect of reducing the transducer size to a point where it fits in a very small headphone body, I've observed a more noticeable version of the same effect when listening to the Skullcandy Full Metal Jackets.

Final observations:
The metal IEM bodies feel cold against a warm ear. I'd recommend holding them in your hand for a few seconds to warm up before insertion.
Comfort level is high, even in situations adverse to most headphones. I fell asleep one night while listening to the Turbine Pros in bed, and I slept on them all night with no adverse sleep effects. Every other headphone and IEM I've owned has created uncomfortable feelings when being pressed into my head by a pillow.
My overall grade on the Monster Turbine Pro IEM is "A." Good quality, balanced sound in a very comfortable design earns these a recommendation for anyone looking for this type of headphone for critical listening and travel. I haven't had a chance to take the Turbine Pros to the gym, but based on my less-active observations, my other IEM options might make a good case for being used in very active environments.

Presentation - 9/10

Without knowing the retail price of these, the packaging suggests that these are expensive headphones. The sleek outer sleeve with two texture finish and anatomical diagrams were what caught my eye. Once you remove the sleeve, the black inner box is heavy and substantial in design, hinting at what you will find inside.

Inside the box, the first things you see are the two golden Turbine Pro ear buds set against a black velvet background; very classy. Included in the box are two sleek looking suede leather pouches for storage of the headphones and ear bud attachments.

Overall, the presentation definitely is reassuring that you have purchased a quality product.

Cable Management System - 10/10

The cable management system does its job very well of keeping the cord from dangling and getting caught on things. I appreciate the fact that the cord is shorter then usual also, which by design cuts down on the snags, even without using the cable management.

Earbud Fit/Comfort - 9/10

I must have very small ear canals, as the only earbuds which I was able to keep in my ears and still remain comfortable were the smaller conical shaped ones. The others all either popped out of felt like I had two giant cotton balls in my ears. The smaller conical shaped ones on the other hand fit nicely and stayed put. The longest stretch that I listened in one sitting was for an hour and at no time did I feel any discomfort.

Listening Impressions - 8/10

I listened to the Turbine Pros over the course of six sessions, totaling about four and a half hours of listening. The genre's of music included rock, instrumental, jazz and classical.

A few things I noted that these headphones do better then and other IEM's I have ever used. The first, was realistic percussion. In my experience, IEM's tend to get sloppy when reproducing busy percussive pieces. That was not the case with the Turbine Pros; in fact, they reproduced a kick drum better then most full can's that I have heard. I also really like the way that that they reproduce woodwind and string instruments as well, especially violins.

Secondly, they are very dynamic and do not sound congested like some other IEM's I have used.

Personally, I preferred rock and classical with these headphones but that is not to say that they did not excel at jazz. Honestly, the mid bass and dynamics these present just make you want to listen to something with driving percussion.

Overall - 9/10

To anyone looking for a great set of IEM's that do everything well, I would highly recommend the Turbine Pro's. Well worth the retail price.

Anthony - Surprise, AZ

Introduction

First of all, I would like to take the opportunity for a genuine thanks to Monster for giving me the chance to listen to and review the Monster Turbine Pro IEMs.
I was pleasantly surprised when I was picked to be one of the four reviewers and given the time to really listen to the earphones for an unbiased and honest review.
This really is my first attempt at a review which can easily be a double edged sword. I am extremely open about the music I listen to not limiting myself to genres and such. Therefore, really giving me chance to hear what these headphones are capable of with all sorts of music.

Equipment to me is just a means to an end, as I snatch any opportunity to learn and understand more about the music we all love. I believe every artist has an opportunity to express himself/herself and every piece of equipment serves a purpose to that end.
And on that note, lets move forward.

Packaging and Presentation...the sense of sight

In one word IMPRESSIVE. Having owned many a high end piece over the years, I'm quite familiar with how things are and should be presented. It seems as equipment gets higher end and more boutique, the less the emphasis on packaging and presentation. Not here as clearly Monster is selling a high end earphone and it looks the part. The box is beautifully packaged with a magnetic closure as you dig in to get to the goodies. Then there it is, beautifully and simply laid out in front of you with the drivers facing each other.

Most earphones in this price bracket come in plastic moulds that are a pain to open up. Cutting them open, you have to be careful not to cut yourself and it's not really a great experience....but we put up with it because it's all about the sound right?
Monster provides a beautiful moulded velvet case that is a treat for the sense of touch.

Dig in further and you get an assortment of tips and fittings to help you find your perfect seal. The attention to this detail is clearly demonstrated in the number of ear tips Monster has included with the package. They completely understand that to get a good seal and understanding of the performance these headphones provide, they need to help the user get their right fit. A great headphone can easily fall to the bottom of the users pit if the physical logistics are not addressed. Case in point the famed Sony Qualias. Getting the right fit is a nightmare and there is no guarantee you have the perfect fit until you try the others. Hence the listening experience suffers and it's a point scratched against the headphone. What a person actually understands about the sound presentation can ONLY come if the headphone has a chance to fit properly as designed in its optimum state.

With accessories are a plenty and really make you feel that you are holding a premium product in your hands.

I was a little worried about the gold plating the earphones come with as I thought they would be too flashy for my taste. I was wrong, so much for preconceived ideas. The gold plated looked quite smart au contraire and fit just fine with my aesthetic sense.
So tips...check, 3.5mm to 0.25 inch adapter...check, carrying case....check, manual and warranty card...check. Great so lets see what these things can do!

Life is too short to listen to bad headphones" - The Head Monster

Completely agree with that! However, life would be so much simpler if we all agreed to what good headphones are And therein, is the spice of life. The variety, the colors and shades, the good the bad...it is all this that makes any listening experience unique and rememberable for every listener. Each person has an opinion, a thought and a feeling which accumulates as ones personal listening experience.


Build quality...the sense of touch

Make no mistake about it, the ear pieces are absolutely solid. Beautifully crafted, turned gold housing. There is a heft in the earpieces that reassures your feelings about the build quality of a premium product aimed at a certain clientele. This customer cares about the durability and wants to see his money being used for all aspects of the earphones physical and auditory. Monster delivers on this aspect and really lets you feel the happiness of holding a quality product in your hands.

The cable extended out of the earpieces has rubberized feel to it. I am sure this plays a significant role in the quietness when the cable is touched. It is actually quite interesting. The wires coming out of the earpieces converge at a what Monster calls the "Turbine Pro Cable Management System". Basically it is the cable splitting junction which you can adjust to control cable slack from the earpieces down. Quite thoughtful and allows you to manage how much of the cable flaps around. Coming back to the cable micro phonics, there is very slight noise when you touch the cables from that junction upwards. It is very low and I've heard much worse in other IEM products. Doesn't detract from the experience especially when the music is playing. However worth mentioning. From the junction downwards towards the cable plug, the cable has a thicker rubber sheath and there is absolutely no noise when tapped.

The right-angled 3.5mm plug has a nice solid build quality matching the gold plating of the earpieces. It is slim and very easy to use without putting excessive strain on the headphone jack. It goes in very nicely, tight and snug with no play.


And let there be sound...

All listening is being done through lossless AIFF files on an external 6 Terabyte Drobo managed via iTunes on a Macbook Pro. The digital USB signal is routed into a PICO USB (DAC only), connected through an RnB Mini to Mini to a Ray Samuels Shadow amp. Monster Turbines Pro connected to the Shadow and given the duty to "pleasurize" my ear canals

NOTE: The headphones are based on a single dynamic transducer. These DEFINITELY needed some burn and I have about 100 hours on them through various burn in CDs. Opened them up nicely which was a must for a somewhat proper listening experience.

The Monster Turbine Pros have a dynamic transducer compared to a balanced armature design in other IEMs such as the Shure E530, Ultimate Ears Triple Fi 10 pros, Ultimate Ears UE11 which I also own. This is a completely different sound presentation as all sound is emanating from a single point source as opposed to dedicated balanced armatures that are dedicated to bass, mids and highs through a crossover network.

Very much like 2 way, 3 way speakers etc, a balanced armature design employs a crossover network which tells each driver what frequencies it will play. This is obviously a more complicated design and has its own advantages and disadvantages that I won't get into for this review. However, going through many speaker systems and settling on single driver, crossoverless, Alnico magnet drivers in my main stereo system, I have a good idea of the sound a single driver attempts to portray.

Single drivers have a sense of coherency and sound presentation that comes very naturally as part of the design. The amplifier driving the driver sees a very simple load in the form of a speaker. This coupling is very pure and very simple, but putting a lot of pressure on the quality of the driver being used. Hence, single driver speakers design is very critical and involved as the designer has to voice the driver to really sound great. Add to that fact how demanding most audiophiles are, there is a lot of pressure on the product to deliver musically.

The Bass:
The quality and quantity of bass these headphones provide is directly related with the seal you are able to achieve through the fit kit. I had to go through a few to figure out what was best for me and finally settled on using the smaller of the two tri-flanges provided. However, I had to cut of the front piece to make it into a bi-flange and it was PERFECT. The comfort, the sound and the overall presentation just clicked and I knew I had found my fit. This is a VERY important part to achieve a good listening experience with these earphones so do experiment with your fit kit and get it right. You will definitely be rewarded.

The bass quality in the Monster Turbine Pros is very high. The bass is textured and accurate while providing very good heft. Many earphones do this to varying degrees, but the finesse and refinement these Turbine Pros do it with is very commendable. The bass evolves in every note, does it's job and moves back into silence very neatly. This allows for a very nice foundation for the music to progress with.

For example, with Jay Seans new RnB disc "All or Nothing", the track "Ride It" starts a very nice drum intro with the cymbals integrated within. The bass quality is solid and really excites you to hear what comes next. The foundation provided by the bass is clear and exciting.

On the album "Breaking Silence" by Janis Ian on Analogue Productions 24k Gold Limited CD, the track "All roads to the river" the natural tonality of the bass can be clearly heard. The bass guitars heft and amplification comes through like her band was playing right there for you. Bass isn't exaggerated or bloated in any way. It is JUST right as you would be hearing in reality if someone was playing a bass guitar JUST for you. The bass doesn't try to unnaturally seek your attention. It just let's you feel it's presence and simply integrates with the rest of the sonic spectrum. Nicely done Monster.

On the the CD layer of Analogue Productions masterpiece SACD Jazz album "Page One" by Joe Henderson, the pure energy and cohesiveness of the earphones bass shine through. "Blue Bossa" has a beautiful tonality which lets you hear and feel the brass-iness of Hendersons Trumpet. The soft subdued tonal palette is laid bare for your aural pleasure. The percussive and beautiful touch of McCoy Tyner's piano reaches deep within your ear, right into your auditory cortex. Drums played by Pete La Roca accompany the quintet by letting you really hear the textures of the drum skins and soft brushes of the cymbal work. This is an aural ecstasy realized for us mere mortals by the exemplary work of Kevin Gray and Steve Hoffman who remastered the original Rudy Van Gelder session from the analog master tapes. The Monster Turbine bass quality absolutely shines in this musical extravaganza by providing a rich, accurate and natural presentation. There is so much to simply hear in the bass work and the sub 500Hz textures of the audio spectrum. Oh, please do pick up this album if you have even the remotest interest in jazz. Have a turntable? Get the 45rpm 180g vinyl and you will have the definitive pressing of this album.


The Mids and Highs:
The all important midrange is where the heart of the music lives and beats. This critical set of frequencies fall about in between the 500 Hertz to 2 Kilohertz range and if you nail this area well, you will have a piece of equipment that can recreate the musical performance in its unique way. Every headphone we own provides its own unique perspective of what the musical event sounds like. Unless you were right there in listening to the performance in the studio or live, you don't have a reference of what the event sounded like. Even if you did, our auditory memory is so weak, we can't possibly recall the event accurately. However, with all our musical equipment, we can approximate. We can dwell into a unique culmination of the music, the presentation of the equipment and finally your own imagination and listening biases. That...then will be a listening experience unique to you in that moment of time. The Monster Turbine Pros have their unique musical interpretation of the midrange that is different and immensely satisfying.

There is an idea of naturalness that very importantly falls within the scope of the midrange. This idea lets you, as a person, relate to the musical piece. The timbres of instruments (most likely that you will subconsciously relate to your past listening experience of that instrument), the decays of notes, the transient hand off from one sound to another and the overall integration of these ideas is what is HEAVILY represented in the midrange. If the earphone makes a mistake here, it will fail you in recreating the experience and hence, your perception of musical enjoyment. The Turbine Pro absolutely NAILS this. That small driver somehow is able to convey a very natural presentation of this midrange so that you stop evaluating and just start losing yourself in the performance. That, to me is the hallmark of a quality piece of equipment doing its job correctly.

On Norah Jones's new CD "The Fall", we get to experience a very intimate listening session with Norah. Her voice is very beautifully rendered in the mix. The Turbine Pros let you develop a very intimate relationship with Norah's musical chops. Any more intimate and I would have to stop the review and concentrate on entertaining her so that she never stops singing! Norah's voice is raspy, sultry and drop dead gorgeous. Her past works have always sounded great, but the quality of the mix on this CD is so different that it lets you experience Norah in a completely different way. This time you will REALLY get to know her ....ummm....vocally

Transient response can really be nicely demonstrated by the highs in a given recording. How the cymbal hits are rendered from one hit to the next. Is is a hard stroke or a light brush testify to the resolving power of the earphone. This is where the resolution of the earphone should really come through. The highs of the Monster Turbine pro's do NOT have the resolving power provided and heard with IEMs like the Triple Fi 10 pros or the UE11 pros. That is in a different league with those earphones, but what the Turbine Pros provide is a well integrated and well represented resolving power. It melts into the soundscape and feels whole with the rest of the spectrum. Again, a very natural representation of music and it's wholesomeness.


Conclusion

The Monster Turbine Pro is very clearly an IEM that rightfully demands its place amongst the upper echelon of the IEM market. It carves a niche for itself and looks for a user who can appreciate it's strengths of naturalness, fast transient response, good note decay and a intimate, yet vivid sound scape. When listening, I look for a earphone that lets me connect with the music on my terms without forcing it down my throat. I want an earphone that I can listen to for hours on end without any discomfort and uneasiness. Add in the qualities I look for mentioned in the review above and you have an earphone that gets so many aspects right. It might not be the best out there, but a universal IEM that immediately lets you get past the typical audiophile traits and straight to the heart of the music....well thats Monster Turbine Pro's forte. I don't need another headphone as I normally tend to listen to my speaker system now. However, I find myself reaching out for the Monster Turbine Pro more often. There is a musical journey to be had and I'm glad these golden nuggets are by my side.

High quality music can be enjoyed by the masses and that brings joy to my heart and mind. Available for $249.99, this is definitely a piece of ear candy that users must experience and has a high recommendation from me. Enjoy at your own risk...I have some Porcupine Tree to listen to now.

First off is full disclosure. I received the Turbine Pro Golds free of charge from Monster to review as part of their "Turbine Challenge" and will get to keep them after the review. I've been known to be critical of Monster's marketing and legal practices in the past but I do my best to remain as honest as I can and I'm not going to misrepresent the merits of this product based on their other products, what I think of other things the company does, or what they send me for free for no discernible reason. This is my honest opinion presented in as uncolored and unbiased a way as possible.

Since I'm prone to rambling and digressions I figure I should start this review off with the TL;DR version.

Pros:
Smooth and easy to listen to sound.
Forgiving of poor recording or mixing without sacrificing overall quality.
Not fussy about amps.

Cons:
Ergonomics handicapped by a legion of near identical tips and form-over-function casing.
Bass sometimes intrudes upon the lower mids.
Narrow genre bandwidth unless you're a hardcore basshead.

Who's it for?
Hardcore bassheads and fans of rap, hip-hop, modern pop, and maybe electronica.

Who isn't it for?
People looking for a balanced or bright sound signature or those who don't like having different headphones for different genres.

Now for the meat...

About me and my methodology

There are lots of ways to review a headphone. You could take extensive measurements and show how that translates into what you actually hear. You could take copious notes comparing one headphone to another and to itself when fed from varying amps and sources. You could wax poetic with little to no comparison to anything else. The variety of review methodologies is astounding. Some of those aren't practical for me to do and others may be easy but aren't very useful IMO.

My style is mostly just to listen. I listen to all kinds of stuff on just about anything I can safely plug them into. Mp3s from the 90s and well mastered lossless get time along with onboard sound cards and what may be considered "audiophile" amps and DACs. After that I simply write about why I continue to use them or why I don't once I'm relieved from the duty of having to evaluate them. This is hardly exhaustive but it's a fair representation of what's out there in the real world and is fairly close to how people evaluate things in the real world. Except for the rambling anyway.

The majority of my listening with these was done with my Practical Devices XM6 as the amp and either its own USB DAC or my Cowon D2+ as the source but anything I tried that made an important or interesting difference will get a specific mention. My main genres of music are metal of nearly all subgenres followed by various sorts of electronic varying sorts but just about everything except country gets an occasional spot in my random play.

Build Quality

Probably the first thing you'll notice about these is how well built they appear. The cylindrical metal body is about as crush-proof as you can get and the cable looks built to take a beating as well. Its "anti-memory" nature avoids tangling (which is merely annoying) and kinks (which can actually damage the wires) by doing its very best to unfurl itself at all times. It makes it a little difficult to coil the cable to put it away but IMO that's a small sacrifice for the greater longevity such a design will likely provide. I think they look pretty cool too, though IMO the design is far closer to a Minié Ball than any turbine I've ever seen. Given the other recent IEMs named after bullets and firearms this may be a new marketing direction.

I haven't had these long enough for a proper test of durability but given the reports I've seen I seem to be on the right track. Also, given the number of such reports, I don't need to ramble on about this topic any longer.

Ergonomics

This is, to me, the Gold's biggest weakness. If they were a little more comfortable I could have liked them a lot more. All that durability and cool looking design I mention above comes at a price to comfort. There's a good reason why most headphones are made of plastic. Its strength to weight ratio is far better than any sanely priced metal. Only the magnesium alloys in a few `phones like the Denon Dx000 series and some Sonys like the SA5000 and EX1000 come to mind. I'm not sure what the Golds are made from but steel seems about the right weight to me. It could be very thick aluminum but I don't think there would any room left for the driver then. This weight is detrimental to its comfort; hanging out the side of your ear like a small lever, it keeps the tip from distributing its pressure evenly across the ear canal.

This extra weight also causes them to work their way out of place requiring small adjustments fairly often to fix either the sound or the fit. Simple office work at my desk is enough movement to affect the comfort and fit of the Golds due to their excessive mass and lack of inertial damping. Heaven forbid actually getting up and walking with them. Unless you jam a painfully oversized tip into your ear canal or use a very small one for a very deep (and probably uncomfortable for most people) insertion you'll probably be adjusting them every 20 feet. The only time I don't need to readjust them periodically is if I'm lying in bed and not moving at all. Needless to say, using these "on the go" could be problematic.

I thought I'd be able to find a tip that alleviated these problems to some degree but it seems I was out of luck. With 16 different pairs of tips in many different styles I thought I'd easily find a perfect fit. I soon discovered all those tips are far more similar than different. Only the silicone flanges (triple and single) are really different from each other and all the rest in regards to fit and seal. All the gel-filled silicone and foam rubber tips are more alike than different. They're mostly solid and not very compressible without pushing back rather painfully. The gel filled and foam rubber tips provide more isolation than silicone flanges. The overall isolation will vary depending on the tip you use and how deeply you manage to insert it but I never managed isolation on par with my Shures with any combination, even the horribly uncomfortable ones. In addition, the gel filled and foam rubber tips all provide more bass than the silicone flanges by allowing for increased conduction. The downside to all these similarities is that if one foam rubber or gel filled style doesn't work very well then none of the rest are likely to work much better.

For me, the most comfortable tips that actually sealed properly were either the black foam rubber used in a shallow insertion or the small single flange used in a deep insertion but neither are comfortable for very long. The foam rubber tips press back too hard against my ear canal and with the small single flanges used with a deep insertion the form-over-function turbine "fins" or "blades" push annoyingly against the inside of my antihelix. It gets very annoying when I crack a smile or laugh. I can sometimes stretch it out for several hours before my ear canals need a break but they just aren't pleasant compared to my SE530s with either the stock olives or Comply Tx-400 tips (used for the protection of the IEM via the filter rather than comfort) which I can pop in and forget about for the entire work day thanks to my Shure PTH. According to Comply, those Tx-400s are supposed to fit the Golds too, but I nearly destroyed a used pair I had laying around by trying to get them over the giant nozzle so I'm not too keen on trying my last good pair on hand which is currently attached to my 530s. Maybe next time I order some extras I'll give it a try. Also, a de-cored Shure olive was blissful until I had to fish it out of my ear with some tweezers.

All this begs the question: Where's the memory foam! Its hardly a panacea but in a game uncertain as this you need all the help you can get.

In addition to all that, the cable is also highly microphonic as a result of its sturdy construction. If you listen softly the music can easily be obscured by a light breeze. Fortunately this problem can be easily solved by wearing them "over-ear" instead of "under-ear" like a regular pair of earbuds. Unfortunately that doesn't help very much with the other problems.

I may be making too big a deal out of this but I'm not really sure. All of the 4 IEMs I've previously owned or spent extensive time with (Shure E2C, E3C, SE530, and SE535) were vastly more comfortable even without the benefit of the newer Shure olives or the Comply foam. I don't have either the E2C (broke) or E3C (was my dad's) to use any more but I do know I used wear each for hours on end with the Shure silicone single flanges without any discomfort or pain. Shure's not perfect either though. I like the sound of the 535s better than my 530s but I sold them because they weren't as comfortable as the 530s but they were still more comfortable than the Golds.

If you've never used IEMs before, the Golds are probably a poor place to start. There are indeed tons of included tips but because most of them are far more alike than different which severely diminishes their usefulness. The housing also suffers from an unfortunate case of form-over-function design. There's no reason other than branding to call them "turbines" and add those stupid and uncomfortable fins to the back of the earpieces. Even if you don't insert them that deeply it shifts the center of gravity away from the tips and multiplies the sheer weight of the earpieces. The weight is hardly a problem for your neck, but its unsupported weight pulls and twists at the tip and through it, at your ear canal. That unnecessary weight will make any tip less comfortable. Apparently the Coppers come with some ear hooks to grab the housing and place more of the weight on your outer ear instead of your ear canal. The Golds I received came with no such luxury.

Enough of this. Let's get on to the good news.

Sound

The quick description is that the Golds are dark-ish, bassy, and generally do that sort of sound sig justice. Given the plethora of reviews of this product you probably already knew that so let's go on to some details you might not have heard already.

Bass is the focus of these headphones and where a headphone of this sound signature usually fails spectacularly. Poorly controlled bass bleeds into the rest of the spectrum in a way that poor quality mids and treble just can't. The good news is that the Golds have rather slight bleed or bloat despite the rather large boost to their bass. Its not natural or neutral much of the time but it is fun most of the time and if you're not mixing or something that's all that counts. The bass is quite full of either impact or rumble depending on what the track calls for. It also lacks the artificially enhanced "punchy-ness" which is somewhat common among bass-heavy `phones. *glares at the Ultrasone HFI 780, worst offender in my recent possession* I consider that a good thing, though others may disagree.

The bass is hardly perfect though. It can to a small but noticeable degree interfere with male vocals, low tuned electric guitars, and other thing in the lower midrange from time to time. The busier the lower mids get the greater the chance the bass will encroach upon them but it never turns into a complete mess. I'm a mild basshead and I've made plenty of exceptions for that in other headphones. What I find to be a bigger flaw is the tone and timbre of the bass. It isn't quite right. Its certainly not "one-note" since a kick drum is usually easily distinguished from an upright bass or bass guitar but they all tend to sound a little off. Fairly often (but a long way from always) a physical drum will sound like a synthesized, electronic drum which is out of place in your typical rock, metal, or jazz track. Balanced armatures are often said to be handicapped in this area but my SE530s still do a much better job.

The bass extends all the way down to DC but the nature of universal IEMs limits how much of that you'll be able to hear or feel at safe volumes. More bass can be had at the expense of comfort by jamming the largest and firmest tip you can into your ear canal to increase conduction through your flesh and bone. I think bass extension is very important in giving all sorts of instruments (even ones with primary tones fairly high up through the midrange) a proper "feel" and the Golds perform admirably in this respect.

I find the midrange pleasantly euphonic. Female vocals are very good to my ears. Its adding a little something that isn't there in real life, but like a well done touch-up it can be better than real life even if it might occasionally fail spectacularly. Male vocals aren't as good as that but they are free of any honky colorations or obviously obscured details. Timbre is fairly natural throughout most of the vocal range as well though it slowly strays as you get further from the middle.

Overall the mids are quite smooth and syrupy in a manner reminiscent of a tube amp, though distinctly different from any I've had the chance to hear myself. This inevitably smooths over some details but it does so in a nice way. They aren't obviously muffled or obscured by annoying harmonics and resonances. If you're after every last detail then you'll leave empty handed but if you want something that sound good with just about everything at the expense of not sounding great with just about anything then you'll enjoy this sort of coloration. It's the sort of thing the SE530s do to the midrange but turned up to 11.

The sort of music you listen to will determine how well you get along with this sort of coloration. Modern loudness war-ed pop and genres which have suffered similar trauma will greatly benefit from this while well recorded and well mixed music can instead suffer. Until Chesky starts poaching bands from Metal Blade and Nuclear Blast, I'm not likely to mind that sort of thing very much.

In the no man's land between the mids and treble the Golds exhibit just about no sibilance. In addition to not causing any of their own they are also covering up sibilance that exists on the actual recording but once again, that should be a benefit to anyone who isn't trying to mix with them.

This forgiving coloration continues up into the lower treble and seems to slowly fade away along with the upper treble in general. These `phones definitely don't have the sort of "sparkle" and "shimmer" that some people demand and that's fine with me. I'm very sensitive to treble and am quite glad that these are more on the muted side. This also seems to be an important part of their forgiving coloration because extension and presence in the high treble often contributes to an unforgiving sound. None of that bothers me at all because treble is my least favorite part of the sound spectrum. As long as it isn't piercing I'm not likely to care too much about it compared to the bass and mids. They may be extended a little more than my SE530s but I rarely miss anything above 10khz even though I can hear it perfectly well via test tones and more extended `phones. Those who wish to determine the vintage of a violin by ear should probably look elsewhere though.

The soundstage is nothing to write home about either. Its not mind-blowingly great for an IEM but neither is it uselessly small. I don't have much to compare it to since it isn't fair to compare soundstage against full size `phones, but the size of the soundstage is noticeably smaller than my SE530s. The Gold's stage is also much wider than it is deep but its still enough to keep it from coming across as strictly one dimensional. Crossfeed helps dramatically but "purists" will probably cry foul. You could probably adjust it to a degree by playing with different tips but IMO, if its not comfortable its not worth using.

The Golds also fall short of my SE530s in the precision of its imaging within the soundstage but that's hardly a surprise. That's one of the SE530 greatest strengths, even the most full size `phones I've heard lose to the SE530s in imaging. This sort of thing that's hard to quantify but while the Golds certainly don't turn everything into a smeared mess you aren't going to be able to listen to a busy death metal track and draw a picture of the drum kit afterwords like you can just about do with the SE530s.

Genre Bandwidth

Among those with diverse tastes in music only extreme bassheads will likely find the Golds to be a good all-rounder. I like my Sony XB700s quite a bit but I sure don't listen to death metal with them. The Golds are along those lines as well though not to the same extreme.

Most metal sub-genres with fast and busy compositions or truck loads of distorted guitars can make the lower midrange difficult to make out due to the bleeding of the bass into the mids. They do quite well with less busy sorts of metal and classic or modern rock with fewer effects piled on the guitars, assuming you don't mind their bass heavy coloration. The timbre of the bass may occasionally make you do a double take but I don't think it's a huge deal compared to other `phones with a similar sound sig and I've heard far worse offenders in the same price bracket. *Glares at the HFI 780 again*

Electronic music is also a bit of a mixed bag. The Golds have the requisite bass extension and the preferred bass emphasis that can't be put into most tracks for fear of consumers destroying their equipment which is a big plus. What they lack is the soundstage and imaging to properly convey the crazy phase effects and moving sounds that also fill a lot of electronic music. They aren't completely gone or all muddled into one place but other `phones like my SE530s can do this better without sacrificing much (or anything if you're not afraid of EQ) in the bass department. Since nothing's perfect, you'll have to pick you trade-offs according to your own preferences.

Not many headphones can come close to conveying the grand and sweeping stage of a full symphony without the outside assistance of a DSP and the Golds don't buck this trend either. Imaging can get slightly muddled when the pace picks up but I'm not enough of a classical snob to pick out any other flaws. More intimate chamber and solo piano pieces don't suffer from that problem but an unnatural timbre and an unpleasant "thickness" in the mids which I didn't notice (or just wasn't bothered by) with other genres comes to the forefront with lone stringed instruments. I'm not an expert in the field, but overall I wouldn't recommend the Golds for classical.

I'm not huge on jazz either but I generally like what I hear with the Golds here. Some purists may cry foul about the enhanced bass or ask for more painful sounding brass but a lot of purely instrumental jazz mostly stays away from the areas that seem to upset the Golds and it sounds good to me.

Where I think these would really shine is with rap and hip hop. I listen to even less of that than I do classical and jazz and pretty much all that ever do listen to is parody of "real" rap/hip hop so its hard to make firm conclusions, but with the material I do have and am familiar with they are great. The combination of enhanced bass, sparse composition to keep things out of the lower mids where things can get slightly muddled, and its pleasing vocal coloration seem to be perfect with what little rap and hip hop I do have.

I also listen to a bit of Jpop and while it generally isn't as mangled as a lot of American pop, it can often benefit from both the Gold's bass emphasis due to the music's over compressed nature and from the Gold's forgiving coloration due to the intentional clipping, poor recording, and sloppy mixing which pervades such genres. Of course such flaws pervade a lot of metal too, but pop is generally free of the type of instruments or vocals that are easily affected by either the Golds slightly off bass timbre or slight bleed in to the mids so there is little drawback.

Most people around here might not consider this a genre, but video games are important enough to count as one for me. Gaming `phones are divided up into two sub categories. There are `phones for competitive FPS gaming (hearing people sneak up behind you) and `phones for immersion (really feeling an explosion). The Golds defiantly fall into the second category. While even bass heavy IEMs won't give you as much impact or rumble as a pair of full size `phones, not many full size `phones will get very loud and keep that impact and rumble intact when driven straight from my DSiXL's headphone jack. You could always amp, but that gives you a tangle of cords unless your amp is small and light enough to attach to the back of your DS/PSP/whatever. A boosted bass response makes everything from footsteps to explosions weightier and really puts you "in the game" in a way bass neutral or bass light `phones never will no matter what their other virtues are. The Golds do a much better job with that sort of immersion then my SE530s and have replaced them for portable gaming duty. I think my XB700s will stay on for playing action/adventure games or anything old enough to use a hardware synth when at home due to comfort and my modded Fostex T50RPs (my overall best at the moment) are still unchallenged in my collection for more modern RPGs and similar games which have pre-recorded orchestral scores.

Amping

The Gold's combination of low impedance (about 19 ohms) and high sensitivity (not specified and I don't have the gear to measure it) make it easy to get lots of sound out of them. Unlike balanced armature IEMs the Golds have a very flat impedance curve which makes them somewhat insensitive to the quality of the amp. You don't have to worry about non-zero output impedance changing the frequency response or underpowered opamps not handling the large differences in voltage swing needed at different frequencies.

They sounded uniformly good on most everything I plugged them into from DAPs to onboard sound cards. That's not to say there were no differences but there wasn't anything that I considered major, unexpected, or interesting besides what I elaborate on in this section. Sounding slightly better from a slightly better chain isn't news. Something that is news is that the Golds don't seem to be very sensitive to damping factor as I discovered when I ran them from by Bottlehead Crack OTL tube amplifier, both directly and through an external transformer box. Either way makes my SE530s into a muddy mess of warm syrup but the Golds remained listenable, though probably too warm for most people's tastes, including mine. I think the Golds hardly need any more warmth in their mids but if you want more you're free to go for it without repercussions in other areas.

Interestingly, my Cowon D2+'s bass roll off with low impedance phones is, at an impedance of 19 ohms, a good match for the Gold's ramp up. This pretty evenly reduces the overall level of bass with no need for EQ and makes them work much better with metal but makes electronica a bit disappointing until you add an amp in between.

Comparisons

Here are a few quick and dirty comparisons between the Golds and some of the more similar `phones I have or have recently had in my possession. Some people don't think its fair to compare IEMs to full size `phones but IME the only place IEMs are handicapped is the size of the soundstage which is only one area out of many to compare.

Sony XB700: A very similar sound in a very different form factor. The XB700s have more low bass, less mid/upper bass, and a bit more treble than the Golds. The Sonys have better timbre through the bass and midrange but the Golds treble is a bit more natural. The Golds are smoother through the midrange and treble which makes them more forgiving of poor sources. The XB700s also have a much wider soundstage but with little to no extra depth over the Golds.

The Golds have one big advantage over the XB700s though, volume. The Golds keep it together at loud levels which the XB700s just can't. The Sonys need a decently strong amp just to get to medium volumes without breaking up into a mess and even a beast of an amp doesn't let them go loudly without breaking up into crap. The Golds are the winners for headbangers while its more of a tossup if you listen at low levels. Except for comfort anyway. Closed headphones more comfortable than the XB700s are few and far between though while the Golds are both uncomfortable overall and within the category of IEMs

Ultrasone HFI-780: I hated these with a passion so I'm not sure how objective I can be but the 780s are another `phone bassheads might be looking at and I recently had pair so here's how I think they stack up. Sonically, the Golds are better almost across the board. The 780s had a wider and deeper soundstage and more treble extension but the Golds win just about everywhere else. Better timbre everywhere, deeper bass extension, no grain reminiscent of 40 grit sandpaper, no "false detail" treble peaks, doesn't sound like the music is from an alternate dimension where cymbals are the elementary particles that all things are made from, etc, Fatality - Golds Win.

Shure SE530: Despite the fact that Shures used to be bass monsters by default back in the mists of time, these IEMs really aren't competitors with the Golds but since they're the only other pair I own right now they'll get compared as well. On a technical level, the SE530s win or tie with the Golds everywhere but treble extension. They have equal bass extension (though certainly not amplitude) and the SE530s have better timbre and detail everywhere except for the last octave of treble which is essentially missing from the 530s. The 530s have a wider and deeper soundstage with pinpoint imaging as well. The Shure's midrange is less colored, though certainly not dead neutral. The Shures, while still relatively forgiving, are less so than the Golds. Through the Shures a bad recoding is usually obvious though rarely painful, and they have more of a chance to shine with well recorded material.

If they were going after the same sound signature then this would be a clear victory for the Shures but technicalities mean nothing if you don't like the sound sig. I prefer the Shure's presentation the majority of the time, but I always find occasion for a well done bass heavy `phone as well. I just wish I could get past the comfort.

Conclusion

I put most of my conclusion in the beginning but there are a few more parting thoughts I'd like to express. In some areas, especially the fit, it may seem like I'm coming down rather hard on the Golds. This isn't out of hate, dislike, or spite but is instead frustration. I wasn't sure what to expect from these but I was very pleasantly surprised at the sound when I first got them. They exceeded my expectations and while they haven't sonically dethroned my SE530s they came a lot closer than I expected. With a few tweaks to just the ergonomics I think these could be so much better than they are now and that's where the attitude comes from. I want to wear these more often but I can't get past the comfort.

As it stands now, I only see using them with my DSiXL which is the only situation where they are superior enough to my SE530s for me to get past the comfort. If they were more comfortable I could easily see switching between them on a daily basis depending on what musical mood I was in. A change of pace is always nice but the Golds are far too uncomfortable to wear all day while performing boring tasks at work. Eventually the discomfort takes over and music is no longer a distraction from either the tedium or pain.

I have owned a half dozen head phones before finally buying these - my last. I have owned Bose in ear phones foe almost two years but they are NOT sound isolating and their bass is muddy, the highs are not sharp in comparison to these. I upgraded to Altec Lansing UPH326's and had to get the COMPLY ear pieces to get a tighter fit and better bass. The bass immediately improved and the sound then easily surpassed the Bose - manly due to the sound isolation and the tighter bass. I accidentally damaged the cords of the Altecs between two weight plates so I had to make a decision. To make a long story short - now I have the Monsters, and yes they are much more money than the Altecs - they cost more than the Bose AND the Altecs together. But they are well worth it if you like to listen to music. For one thing, the Monsters come with nice cable management system - I wont get these caught - they don't dangle.
I hear things with these headphones that I definitely did not hear with the other phones. Background instruments, background singers (more of them), clapping, cymbals, are sharper, drums are tighter.
By the way, of the 10 or so ear pieces the Monsters came with - I chose the COMPLY earpieces that ALSO come with them.

A full review of Monster Cables new Turbine Pro in ear headphones.

-Presentation - 10/10
Upon first recieving these buds in the mail, I was very impressed with the packing and just how nice it was, Monster really went all out! The box the buds were shipped in even had a nice essay about the design of the headphones. Upon opening the package, I saw the earbuds well laid out in the box, they look great and had the appearance of quality (which they were). Underneath the headphones were 2 storage bags, one for the buds themselves and one for the accessories. The different size earbud tips, 1/8 to 1/4 stereo adapter, and cable management clip, were also there, along with some paperwork.

All in all a very nice well done packing job!

-Cable Management clip and cable slider: 9/10
The clip included with the earbuds to help keep them from being pulled from your ears worked great. I took my Ipod video(while off) and dropped it into a basket of laundry, while attached to the buds clipped to my shirt, to test the clip, and it worked great the clip didn't budge and the Ipod detached. I would say that the clip is most sufficient. The slider on the cable I found handy also kept the wires snag free, which I assume is its purpose:yes:

-Earbud fit - 1/10
I have to admit I have fairly large ear canals, but man I had a very hard time to get these things to keep a good seal in my ears. The only tipps that would hold a seal for more than a few seconds were the biggest stepped ones, but man they went along ways in and were VERY uncomfortable!!! I have used quite a few different pairs of earbuds and I must say these were the most uncomfortable, unreliable in there seal (even with the stepped tips), and well just disappointing. Because of this I could hardly wear them for more than 20 minuets at a time. Even though I like the sound more than my Shure e5c's I would never trade them because of this problem. Its sad these buds sound quite good, and I could see using them alot more, but not with the present tips available, I might have to try modifying some Shure e5c foam tips and see how they sound, I mean these won't get any use otherwise......


Well now for the sound.......however uncomfortable, and awkward they are......

First up was a quick Ipod test, but I knew they were capable of so much more, they don't sound bad, I just knew that they were capable of much more so I just gave them a quick listen and moved on to bigger and more powerful analog things:thmbsp: So I put them in the headphone out of my newly recapped Pioneer SX-450, and threw on some Vinyl.

The Psychedelic Furs "Heartbeat" from there single "Ghost in you" was the first to spin. Upon first listening I noticed that the dynamics were very good at the start, and as more and more instruments came into the song, I was sure of it. The buds also had very good separation, they gave each instrument there own space and air. The vocals were very raw and believable, just how I like them:yes: The synth throughout the song was great very full and dynamic, quite well done. The drum machine, well as with most, you could hear the imperfections, as you should. The sax in the song was was good, but just had somthing missing. What was great about the Sax was the echo that was on it, the buds kept the detail and decay of the echo even in the most congested sections of the song, quite good in my book.

Next up was one of my all time favorites Beck: Modern Guilt. I really only criticly listened to 2 songs off it though, but they are 2 songs that are hard to reproduce well, "Walls" and "Replica". On "Walls" the snare and the effects on it were reproduced very well, alongside everything else, which is hard to do with that song. On "Replica" the drums again had some effects on them and were reproduced well alongside everything else with no loss in separation or detail. Quite impressed with the abilities of the buds with these two songs.

I decided to throw some classical at them next, Tchaikovsky's 5th symphony, which is a favorite piece of mine, and the best pressing I have of any Tchaikovsky. First thing I noticed, was the good bass resolution even at low volume pianissimo. The strings were also very full and rich, nicely reproduced. The wind instruments were very clear and sweet. Brass instruments on the other hand just were lacking some texture, just a bit sterile, not that they were terrible, just not as good as I've heard. Again they had excellent separation and detail, even durring the Loud busy parts of the song, you could still hear each instrument well and make out fine the fine details of it, but it was very slightly congested, but only very slightly, but thats comparinga them to full can's I've heard, not just IEM's.......

I figrured I would throw some Live music at the buds next, so I dug out my copy of Tony Bennett's Live at Carnegie Hall. Right off I noticed the crowd noise and some people talking, thats some detail! Tony's voice was quite nice, It was nice and raw and real. The Brass instruments again were just lacking something, not quite as smooth as I would like. Also noticed again that these headphones are very detailed and have excellent separation, even when there was alot going on I could still hear just exactly what was going on:)

Now I figured I would end my Journey with another live cut, but one completely different, so I pulled out Judas Priest: Unleashed in the East. I wanted to see how these buds did with some distorted guitars, and vocals. I noticed that the buds picked up the stadium echo on the vocals well and showed the decay of the effects on them as well. The guitars sounded quite good, distortion was right on, and could make out some pick noise here that there. On the drums you could hear the attack on the heads and symbols very well. All in all some good reproduction of Rock/Metal.

Now with all the music under my belt, I find that these suckers sound better than the rest of the earbuds I currently own, which are a pair of 50 dollar Sony buds and a pair of Shure e5c's that I use as in ear monitors when I play bass. The Sony's sound good, but not even close to the quality of these Turbine Pro's. The Shure's are a bit on the warm side, and well too bassy for my tastes, but honestly do a great job as in ear monitors when I play soely because they STAY in my ears well, and are quite comfortable while doing so! The Monster Turbine Pro's are a more neutral, maybe with the mids just a bit recessed, and a bit forward in there overall presentation, but still leaning on the neutral side. I honestly I like the sound of them alot, they are nice and detailed with excellent separation. They are more forward then I am used to, but not overly so. The have a great lowend that is deep but still solid and tight, the problem is you never hear it if the buds wont stay sealed in your ears (I know I'm beating a dead horse). The topend is quite extended but not harsh, but open, airy, and crisp, just that great sparkle that we all love The mids are a bit sterile, but then again I am used to a warm and upfront presentation of the mids so they could just be normal

-Sound- 9/10

In then end I must say these headphones sound exceptional for the price, but for me they just don't fit well with the supplied tips, and if you cant get them to fit then they are useless. So I really hope Monster rethinks the earbud tip design for people with large ear canals, or these things, however good they can sound, are useless to me.


Overall rating 6/10 (would be FAAARRRR higher if they would fit properly)

Excellent sound as advertised. The sound quality is crisp and clear. You can hear every single sound and tone from all the musical instruments. It really is like having a speaker in your ear..! I am very happy with the product.

Monster Turbine Pro Review
Introduction:
Sorry for the delay but I recently had to get nose surgery which screwed with my sinuses and hearing. Finally almost a month later I can smell like never before and my hearing has returned back to normal. This is my first real write up of headphones and the most expensive IEM I have tried for an extended time to date. It has certainly wet my appetite. This review will start with the physical aspects of the Turbine pros and move into the sound.

To make all previous bias clear, I received these headphones as part of Monster's review program. I have and do own one Monster product (a power supply) that I bought used over a year ago and have had no issues with. As for bias regarding their products, I have never been impressed by the way they run their business but I am treating these headphones like they were sent to me by any company.

Build / Physical Appearance:
First impressions do mean a lot and as I unpacked these IEMs I was certainly impressed. The box even had the new car smell going and everything felt like a serious high quality product. While I have not bought very many new IEMs I am fairly certain that the packaging will not disappoint.

The first day I got these I was walking from my dorm to class and when I sat down my friend noticed the "bling" in my ear and asked what they were. They did not disappear in my ears at all but don't stick out half an inch like some models I have seen. I consider myself pretty conservative dress wise and would have not bought a gold colored IEM in the first place but really don't mind walking around in these.

The build quality seems to be very solid to me. I had read a bit about issues with the cable but the build quality doesn't leave much to be desired. The cable is not very micro phonic (something that usually really bothers me) and the cable management system works perfectly well for my needs. The only micro phonics I really heard were when I was not using the clip supplied with the cable and when the cord above the Y split rubbed against something. The slim plug first had me worried but after using it for a while I like it a lot. It seems sturdy and is about as slim as I can imagine. The Y split seems to be sturdy and the strain relief seems to be well designed. No complaints with either.

I tried various tips and found that most of them didn't really give my ears a good seal (they are very small to begin with). The fact that I found comfortable and good sounding tips pleased me.. I have had trouble in the past finding something that both sealed well and didn't hurt after more than half an hour of listening.

Sound:
My sound equipment came from two chains, both seen in my profile / signature. In case that changes I did most listening at my desk through the Presonus Central Station which I believe to be a very good DAC and headphone amplifier. My home headphones are Stax Lambdas powered by the Adcom GFA-1 and SRD7. On the go I played the Turbine Pro's directly from the Sansa Clip+. My listening tracks vary greatly and I tried picking music that would appeal to a large audience. I mostly spent time with the music I have been getting into heavily lately and then a few favorites that I use to test all new audio equipment.

After listening to the Dr. Dre headphones for about thirty seconds I did not enjoy them at all. I can see how they would appeal to a lot of hip hop fans but I did not enjoy them that much at all. The bass was overpowering and not very detailed - far too sluggish for me in general. The Turbine Pros have much better bass response - it is certainly strong but not overbearing. Turning the headphones up on some of my favorite hip hop tracks was a pleasant surprise. There was more impact than I expected from an IEM but I did not find there to be any issue on most of the tracks I listened to. At high volumes a couple of the tracks on Raekwon's new album got a little distorted but I kind of expected it ahead of time. The headphones do lack the speed of my Lambda setup, even in the lower frequencies but I hardly consider that a fair comparison. They do better than any IEM I have tried to date on this front.

For most of what I listened to I did not find the vocals to be recessed at all. The only tracks I had an issue with were on the Rolling Stones album. I know there is a difference in the mastering but compared to other full sized phones the phones fell short here. For all hip hop and the recent rock / indie I had no issue. I really missed the high end presentation compared to what I am used to but the Turbine Pros surpassed all other IEMs I have owned on that front. I felt that the presentation was very natural overall and not like many reviews I had read about the older non-Pro version. I found that the overall balance was not too tilted in any way.

The soundstage presentation was very enjoyable to me and better than I would have expected from IEMs (against I have not listened to the super high-end models). Nothing seemed out of place and was well enough separated in the jazz albums. While I am not very experienced in writing reviews like this I can say that I know I like a headphone when certain songs give me chills where I expect them. These headphones certainly did that. While they don't match up to my home rig they are the best headphones I have heard to date portably and didn't have any glaring errors that I noticed. I certainly enjoyed listening to them and this opportunity has renewed my interest in IEMs and portable listening.

Where do I start? I read and watched many reviews from various sources on these ear buds and decided to buy mine ($160 new for Gold) online. I was excited as I consider myself a audio head. I had been using cheap $10 Sony wrap around your ear head phones. Just an inexpensive headset that was not very good but you heard the music. It was a "whatever I got head phones and they work fine" type of thing. Well I was completely convinced to get these Pro Gold's and for $160 out the door.....perhaps I can buy em. $300 is a little steep imo and no way would I go that high. I don't think anyone should. It simply isn't worth the money. Now for the quality...

Just outside the break in period I noticed a slight improvement of the sound coming out of the in ear speakers. Bass is heavy, punchy and can reach low levels. Very nice if you can get the right bud tips to fit in your ear. One thing that really annoys me is the constant poke check to my ears to make sure they're sealed in my canal just right. It does take patience and getting used to as I normally hate in ear buds. These I'm growing into so they're not that bad. Just takes patience I'm learning. The highs are okay and mids are decent. Bass as I mentioned go lower than I new many of the songs I've listened to go. Some music I hear noises I never knew existed!! That is pretty cool. Now I can see why music engineers like these as they can here little noises that help them edit tracks.

Dealing with Monster customer service was ok as well. They're sending me the christmas tree style ear tips as I was missing mine when I bought them. I doubt these will make all the difference to up my review score buy we'll see. I do use the smaller tips as the several other ones do me no good. They're too big for my ears. I tried all the rest though. I do like the lifetime warranty and the replacement for free one time even if you break em? Very nice! I don't own a collection of 20 headphones like many other on here have but either way these are not worth any more than I paid for em. I'll keep em but I think $80 would be a fair price for these. I think the regular Turbines go for this price about now? Either way....decent little ear buds. The marketing Monster did was huge and I feel that was the biggest selling point for them. Not sure how many celebs and engineers were paid off to say all the awesome things about it. "Here say this about our product and we'll give you a pair for free" sort of thing. Hey you never know. Either way the hype surrounding these Pro Golds worked cause I bought mine. Primary listening with these have been on my iPod Touch 2nd Gen. 4 stars thus far. I like to listen to hip hop, rock, reggae, jazz, trance, r&b and various guitar artists fyi.

UPDATE 6/13/10: 5 stars. These earbuds make me realize how terrible my car stereo sounds. Usually I would hope for the quality of sound from my car system I get from a cd regarding bass and highs but now it is the reverse. I listen to most music on the Pro Gold's and it really picks up sounds that normal sound systems otherwise would not pick up. You don't realize what you're missing until you get these buds and spend time with them. You really don't hear the music until you have these head phones!

Disclaimer: I received these IEMs as part of the Monster Turbine Challenge on Head-Fi.org-- note that this is the full review from Head-Fi (minus pictures) and that the review is strictly professional... Although interlaced with the occasional bad joke.


The Review:

Well, this has been quite the turn of events! I had auditioned a full-sized Monster headphone, which I felt rather negative about, but the Turbine Pro Gold (TPG from here on) caught me quite off guard. Overall, the TPGs are excellent sounding, have superior build quality to many earbuds and IEMs I've owned/seen and offer a wide array of tips for fitted comfort, so let's explore what makes these so special! ...After I make some tea.


Build Quality

Sorry, I made some toast too. Let's put it this way, the majority of headphones, earphones and IEMs have are largely made out of plastic and other hilarious materials that make folks cry when they're paying large sums of money for them, but when an enclosure is mostly made of metal, even if you can't be sure of any sonic benefits, it makes you more confident in the design and stability--which I definitely feel in this case.

The cable is quite standard looking, although thicker than all of my other IEMs and earbuds. I'm fairly hopeful the cable should be secure given Monster Cable's more prominent and common product next to the Monster Beats would be the, well, Monster cables... Did not see that coming!


Accessories

Like opening a present on Christmas day... Without the socks! A sexy suede-like stitched envelope pocket and a snapping mouthed coin purse of sorts made out of the same material. Along with that, you get 11 pairs of Super Tips (gel and foam), 3 pairs of regular bulb tips and 2 pairs of triple-flange tips. As if it weren't exciting enough that Monster is throwing all these goodies at you, they also include a 3.5mm to 6.3mm adapter and a very fine cleaning cloth. I feel it necessary to mention that my box had a new car smell upon opening; I had hoped they included a car in there too, but no luck on that end.


Sound, Tips, Super Tips and Tipping the Pizza Guy

Now for delicious the cream filling of the review!

Upon arrival, I had a wee issue with the Super Tips... I think my post office kept the package in some odd heating area, and well, the tips sweat all over themselves or perhaps the box has a miniature built-in sauna I was unaware of. After scrubbing the tips down, I tried the array of them and found the smaller of each tip fit best. The gel and foam Super Tips gave me the best isolation and bass, so much so I turned on my TV to a loud volume, stood next to the speakers and could barely hear the news report. Although the Super Tips technically gave me the most sonic benefits, their snug fit became a bit too snug after a while of listening and thus I tried the smaller triple-flange tip which did not isolate nor allow as much bass, but damn, it gave me one fine fitting-- the best I've ever had for an IEM period. Chances are no matter what size of ear-hole you have, you'll find a tip that will fit... Yes, even you with the funny ears.

Let's start at the bottom and move to the top. I was told the low end on the TPGs was exaggerated when compared to the Pro Coppers, but I definitely find that the bass quantity is very dependent on the tips used; for example, I found a heavier bass quantity while using the thicker foam or gel tips as well as better isolation, likely due to a more snug fit. However, I found the smaller of the triple-flange tips to fit best and sound more to my liking. The bass does indeed go low and one of my favorite albums supports this:


Ketama ft. Toumani Diabate & Danny Thompson - Songhai (FLAC)
Spanish flamenco and Mali kora

The final track on the first disc, Ne ne Koitaa, has a very subtle bass line (Danny Thompson, up-right bass) that comes in about 30 seconds into the track and the notes extend from below 50Hz to near mid-bass. The lower notes are very hard to hear clearly on headphones without a clear bass and even when heard on many headphones, don't seem to mix as well as they do on the TPGs--the notes are pronounced and don't simply murmur or sound like a tonally low act of flatulence. One of the first things I noticed with the TPGs was the treble; now I'm not one to get excited about a "sparkly" treble, but the treble was really, really enjoyable for me and I love me some fine kora (African string instrument) and in this case, Toumani's kora sounds great! The kora is an instrument that can sound bright at times, but the TPGs do an amazing job of taming brightness while keeping life in the music.


Muse - The Resistance (320kbps)
Rock-pop w/ electronic aspects

Muse likes to toss a lot of ambient noises and heavy bass rhythms in their music headed by a strong vocal spectrum. Again, the most likeable aspects of the TPGs I find in this case are the lively treble and prominent bass. As opposed to my test with Ketama's Songhai album, the vocals are now much more relevant and I find a short fall for the TPGs, the vocals don't entirely sound fully encompassing or acoustically real on this album, however, I ran into a similar issue with my Sennheiser IE6s, so I can't be sure if that's really a particular issue or an issue that plagues IEMs in general; I've confirmed this issue over the past month or so while swapping between circumaural headphones and my IEMs. Soundstage/headstage becomes apparent in many of the tracks off this album with the help of those ambient noises I mentioned earlier and as most IEMs and earbuds give an inner-head soundstage, the TPGs mostly exist in there but I find a lot of ambient noises will still appear in different directions outside the head. I think most folks will enjoy the bass more than anything off this album while using the TPGs.


Flogging Molly - Float (FLAC)
Irish-celtic folk-punk

I love the violin and banjo in this album, especially in the title track Float, which I coincidentally must correct myself that this song is able to create that encompassing sound I spoke of while going over the Muse album. Near the end of the song, there's a background vocal over the chorus that is placed upward and downward on the soundstage giving a more encompassing sound. The way that the violin flows across this entire album, and doesn't sound shrill (as I've experienced with some headphones), brings a blissful smile to my face every time.


Kenny Dorham - Quiet Kenny (FLAC)
Trumpet jazz


With the treble standing out so much on both the album and TPGs, I was a wee bit worried on how this album would stand up given that I've had some sad encounters making this album nearly unlistenable due to how shrill Kenny's trumpet can sound at times and, sadly, my favorite track, My Ideal, is a prime example of being too bright for comfort on some headphones. Thankfully, the TPGs fall just short of being too bright for my liking with Quiet Kenny--but "just short", is still worrisome for prolonged listening.


Conclusion

With prominent bass and treble these are awesome in-ear monitors, however, the mid-range is slightly buried under the two, kind of like a Boston Cream doughnut with only a dab of cream inside instead of a sea of deliciousness to match the icing and dough. I didn't experience any sibilance that I couldn't blame on the album's recording and nor was I entirely fatigued at any time.

The MSRP is a bit high, but like every other headphone out there, there are authorized dealers out there that you can score a good price from. My Sennheiser IE6s were found for less than the average street price of the TPGs, but I would easily pay the difference for the Turbine Pro Golds. Between the myriad of accessories including the array of Super Tips, hefty 6.3mm adapter (which I shall use for just about any applicable headphone) and envelope pouch (that I haven't left home without), I would highly recommend the Turbine Pro Gold IEMs.


Super Conclusion

8/10 - Like getting hugged in the ear.




Love,
Evan