Avantone Pro MP1 MixPhones Multi-mode Reference Headphones with Vari-Voice - Creme Reviews

reference monster! steal at this price got them when my tutor told me I need to reference my songs on diff systems like on a mix cube came across these and I feel in love. learn the gear though they look like crude but do what they meant for pair with your main mix hp I use em with my open backs. take advantage of refercing as an engineer thats gonna its gonna train your ear and help you translate your mix easier.

These Avantone Pro MP1 Mi phones are great sounding and well built. I like to have several types available for comparison. These are just fine, and I have had no problems with the removable cords. Yes, if you tap on the headphone cans you can hear it but there shouldn't be any hailstorms while recording. LOL

I can't believe how awesome these HeadPhones sound. The Vari-Voice is a considerable help in mixing with its three settings Vari-Voice lets you switch between normal stereo, mono, and Mix mode You will no doubt fall in love with these amazing Head Phones from Avantone.

This is a must have if you produce music or mix. Hands down

I love these headphones. The only drawback is the cables they come with. They are terrible. I swapped them out and haven't had a problem since. I wish they were fixed cables. Otherwise expect your mixes to get much better, instantly with these headphones. Thanks Sweetwater for such speedy delivery.

I have used many different tactics to produce my mixes. The game of getting mix out of the DWA sounding the same as in the DWA is now over!! Having three selections to hear your mix is PRICELESS. TO GET YOUR MIX CORRECT AT ALL TIMES MUST HAVE;})

These things are freakin' MAGIC!!!!
I wish I would have discovered these a long time ago.
Completely takes the guesswork out of mixing.
Very clunky looking, but fairly lightweight and comfortable.
I LOVE THESE HEADPHONES!!!!!!!

I prefer headphones that completely cover the ears to cut out outsude sounds. Very distinctive in appearance these also produce a crisp and clean output. The readily replaceable cord is sturdy and feels like it will last for a long tine. These phones made me aware of subtleties in my synth creations that other/cheaper headphones did not detect. Highly recommended.

Some of the critical reviews are complaining about the lack of bass compared to other headphones, and they're not wrong - these headphones don't emphasize the bass frequencies like some others do. However, if I listen to the same song through these headphones and my others and compare them, I can hear a lot of details with the Avantones that don't come through as clearly with the others, especially with really dense metal and fusion songs. And although I prefer the "stereo" mode to the other two modes, if I ever want to isolate the melody in a dense mix, the little switch does come in handy.

I purchased the Avantone Pro MP1 for mixing. I was having problems defining the midrange frequency of my mixes. Since I didn't have the cash at the time to purchase mid field monitors, I bought the Avantone MP1. These are detailed headphones that shine in the mid-frequency range (i.e., vocals, guitar). In a word, they get the job done and I don't mix without them. Actually, I start my mixes using the MP1 and check the balance of my mixes on my Near Fields. I highly recommend these headphone for mixing. Also, the switch modes are a plus. I mainly use the MP1 in the Cube Mix mode. I never worked on Avantone Cube Mix. However, after using the MP1, I'm going to buy a pair.

I purchased these headphones for Christmas for my husband and he simply loves them. They were packaged well for safe shipping and received days before expected during the holiday time close to Christmas. I ordered that morning and they were shipped by the afternoon. I was also impressed with the customer service received from Sweetwater.
These guys could write a handbook on how to satisfy customers for other companies.
Great job guys and I look forward to referring and using you again!

I"m truly impressed with these hp. I can switch between all the modes to be able to mix accordingly. I just mixed an 11-Song album with them and got the perfect mix for big, home, car and phone speakers in one session. I can take them on the road if I need to.
They are a bit heavy (over 1kg), but nothing that would get me tired of wearing them for long periods or time. The MixCubes mode was particularly helpful to get a good low end balance in my experience.

Big cans, well made. Very comfortable, with a true, honest flat response. I use them with an Audient ID14. Between the excellent stereo mode and optional center/mono mix mode within the ID14, and then the MP1's multi-mode mix capabilities, I can get my mixes 90% there before switching to a set of 5" Focal powered monitors and a 10" sub to finish the job. Avantone has done an outstanding job with this model, providing top notch professional grade cans at a very reasonable price. My only complaint is I should have bought them sooner.
A super deal from Avantone and Sweetwater, be smart and buy a pair. Satisfaction assured!

Wow! In a sea of choices for high quality headphones at this price-point, the MP1's are in a class unto their own. They are great cans,well made....solid. Big yet comfortable. They sound so good, as in flat yet very responsive. They have a mojo factor that just can't be beat when you add in the Vari-Voice magic, a great tool for the serious mix-meister. I would buy them again. I will always have a pair from here on out, amazing what they provide during laptop mix-down mode. Sonically superior at a very reasonable price.

Fantastic sound in stereo mode. I found the other modes to very useful for mixing. Great product!

These headphones are one of the best investments I have made in my music production. It is definitely the best investment I have made this year and I have spent A LOT of money this year on some great gear.

I was already in the middle of a mix when these arrived. Once I listened to the mix with these on I could hear a serious muddiness in the mix. Although I could hear the same thing with my monitors, the headphones really exaggerated the mud. The fact that you can switch from flat, mono and stereo mode is awesome. I decided to finish the mix using just the headphones. Once I had the mix sounding great in all three modes (flat, stereo, mono) I listened through my monitors and I was blown away. I did some minor tweaking here and there but most of the work was done using the headphones. This is the perfect solution for those with a home studio and needs to mix while traveling. Although you will use other sources as a reference, when you get your mix to sound good with these, 95% of your work is done!

Get them, you will not be disappointed. I am purchasing a second pair.

Finally, the headphones you can really trust and mix with. Sounds really good and flat! Love the Mono mode I can switch to easily. Thanks Avantone and Sweetwater!

I have a great monitor system at my studio that I am very comfortable with, and that is easy to mix on (thanks Mike Harris for all the great recommendations). I was looking for a great pair of headphones to edit and do preliminary mixing on at home on my laptop without keeping everyone in the house up at night.

When I first saw these Avantones, I thought the mode switch would be kind of a gimmick, but I decided to try them anyway.

I was dead wrong. In my humble opinion, these cans are awesome for editing, mixing, and pretty much any studio activity.

Sound: Obviously I haven't used every pair of cans ever made, but these are certainly among the best I've ever heard. They don't seem to emphasize any particular frequency range - just smooth from low to high, like great reference headphones should be.

Comfort and isolation: You may find these to be tight if you have a large cabeza - they do clamp down a bit. They are comfortable for me, but if they were any tighter, they might be fatiguing. Just be forewarned that if you have a skull like the Incredible Hulk these may not be for you. The ear pads are comfortable for me, as is the headband. I think they are definitely way to big and heavy to be anyone's everyday listening headphones for computer or mp3 player use - but that's not what they are intended for anyway. One interesting thing - they are spec'd as open back, but to me they seem to be somewhere in between open and closed back. If you aren't playing music you can hear what is going on in the room around you, but they do seem to attenuate room sound more than any other open back cans I'ved used. This seems pretty much ideal to me.

The mode switch: stereo full range, mono full range, or Mixcube Mode. This actually works very well. If you need to focus on critical mids, Mixcube mode does just that. I've never mixed on Mixcubes, so I can't say if this mode really sounds like them, but it really does focus on midrange very well without killing all of the presence. I might even use this while at the studio as another reference.

Construction: These are big, beefy cans that are built like a tank. Any parts that aren't fabric seem to all be made of metal, and bolted together. This is the first pair of cans I've seen in 20 years that isn't made primarily of plastic. The cable is detachable, and therefore easy to replace, and two cables are supplied - coiled and straight. I think it would be very difficult to break these cans.

Overall, I think they are great cans for editing and mixing. Highly recommended!

I like these cans a lot. A LOT. I bought them just over a year ago, specifically to update / replace a set of 22+ year old AKG"s that had developed a rattle after too-many drops. I record a LOT of music – not only my own, but friends. The MP1"s had good reviews, so I rolled the dice on them and ordered.

To my surprise, they were quite solid headphones with a knack for "getting things right" – I began by using them just for tracking… but to my surprise, I did a couple of Test Mixes with them on a few tracks, and my test mixes translated better than my Rockit 8"s or my nearfield Genelecs (nothing bad to say about either set of monitors – I have a very tricky room, and have spent $ several thousand trying to tame it. My Bride drew the line at a $30K refit of the house from an Audio Engineering company"s survey and estimate. Meanwhile, my mixes in the Avantone headphones seemed to be more "present and immediate", and the bass was very-controlled, just the way I wanted it.

I played my test mixes in everybody"s cars (my "acid test"), and upwards of 95% of the time, they were what I wanted… across about 30 car systems. I then played them on random friend"s boom boxes, Bluetooth speakers, etc. – whatever I could find. Same result: success across a very broad statistical sample.

So I took them the next step – doing the entire Mix and Master on my 18th & 19th albums. Let me be honest – according to my Audiologist, I do not have the ability to discern the difference in a tone +-1dB… meaning I am not physiologically-equipped to be a real "Mastering Engineer"… but I CAN hear +-2dB. And having released both albums, I have not since gotten a SINGLE comment from ANYONE regarding having done everything in headphones. Sure, I get lots of comments about "style" and so on, but the Pro MP1"s do not enter into those conversations.

My conclusion is: they work, and they work well. Both myself (as artist) and my listeners are pleased with the results. For under $200. I call that a good deal, and am now working albums #19 and #20 the same way. I see no reason to mess up a winning combination.

I subtract half a star, because as weighty, solid headphones, the cord connection to them is prone to mechanical noise: if the cord rubs anything at all, you hear the physical rumbling inside the headphones. At first, I found that quite distracting, I"ve since gotten used to it. But either way: these are solid, great-sounding, great-looking, reliable performers, and I don"t begrudge a penny spent on them. If the dog chewed them apart (although thankfully, they appear not to be dog-tasty) I'd buy another set immediately. I like these cans a lot. A LOT.

These cans sound great! Really love the 3 modes. Great for mixing tracks. They are definitely heavier than your average headphones. They're also kind of big. They feel loose and slightly awkward on my head. The weight and size were not enough to keep me from giving these a high rating. I'd definitely use them to mix an album. If you were planning to use these for live, you should seriously reconsider. I don't feel like they give a lot of isolation and they're bulky to carry around. They come with a bag but these cans are not collapsable. I just don't feel like they'd stand up to the riggers of the road, despite their sturdy construction. In conclusion... Studio - YES! Live - probably not.

When you have a mixing room with a sound that you're used to, it's easy to become complacent when you hear "that familiar sound" coming from your monitors, and you assume your stuff is sounding great. So when I purchased the MP1's (because I like Avant products and have found them without fail to be incredible bargains) I expected them to sound pretty much like what I was hearing in my control room, just more "enclosed." I unpacked them and put them on, played a mix I was working on, and was horrified by the boxy, muddy sound. I hated the headphones and almost (stupidly) sent them back the same day. But I decided to experiment with them a little more, pulling out some CDs of my favorite mixes: Zappa, Pink Floyd, Bernstein conducting Mahler, James Taylor... and they all sounded absolutely wonderful. Then I realized what I had... a pair of honest headphones! The problem was not the cans, but my mix! Putting them back on I experimented with EQ tweaks and in just a couple of minutes I cleaned away so much mud that I had never even realized was there. These things unabashedly show you your problem areas... and I have since actually mixed AND mastered some tracks on them, with stellar results.
The mixcube mode is quite useful, and can be used the same way as actual mixcubes (A/B comparison of "bass-challenged" systems,) though to me the MP1 cube mode has quite a bit more fidelity than my mixcubes.
The only reasons I deduct a half star are for (a.) the carrying bag, which is really too small and has to be stretched around the cans , and (b.) the detachable cables, each of which have a strange little connecting nut that keeps turning after it's supposedly tight. Is it stripped? Is it designed that way? It's a bit unnerving.
Otherwise, I'd recommend these to anyone with a thick enough skin to hear what their mixes REALLY sound like!

I had an opportunity to use these this weekend and it really helped identify problems with my mix before they go to be mastered. They are very neutral sounding and defined. The different modes are definitely a plus and very useful.

These cans are HUGE; If the ear covers/speakers were detachable, they could be Baby Mix Cubes! Fact is, they are much lighter and way more comfortable than I imagined when I first held them. They have become essential favorites for mixing, along with trusted monitors (5" pair, 8" pair w/sub), and since I use other headphones for tracking, I haven't noticed them being overly heavy.
What I like about these cans most is that I have forgotten that I was even wearing them when I was in the sweet spot between my studio monitors, which is awesome. They sound exactly like my monitors sweet spot; when I A/B between the cans and/or the monitors, I have mistaken the headphone mix for the powered speaker mix more than a few times, and only caught on when I physically moved and the headphone cable pulled me up short. (Ever been lost in a mix?!) I can count on the Avantones MP1's to give me truth when it comes to mixing, plus they are sturdy and well made. Only con is the cable is the shortest I have ever seen on a pair of cans, making an extension cable a must-have. Our studio will have a set of these around forever,we love 'em. Recommended

These are not for listening to your beloved vinyl collection, they are made for work.

Compared to my Beyerdynamic headphones (those having a buzz in one cup for several years now), I can hear more spatial definition, which is part of the idea. They are meant to sound more like speaker-monitors. The sound quality seems accurate, but it is unexciting, again keeping with the intention of a flat-response, uncolored, accurate representation. They are a great way to bypass the coloration that your room imposes, even just for a check. My thinking is that if you get your mix to sound great with unexciting, flat response, it will really pop with the usual coloration that consumer equipment provides.

The switch - such a great idea. In seconds, I can check for phase issues, and for the wonderful, deep bass in my mix that will simply disappear when it is played on a computer, ear buds, phone, etc.

If you want casual listening 'phones, these are not for you. They are a tool with a specific purpose.

A half-star deduction - the plug adapter is defective. Sweetwater is on it, and I am sure I will be pleased with their response.

OMGAWWWD, these new MP-1's aren't even broken in yet & S (Stereo mode) sounds LOVELY to me. They're equal to/if not better & clearer than my old, trusty - 10k bumped - Limited Edition Silver - ATH M50s ;-)~ that broke last month ;-(~.... C is cube mode, which is supposed to be like Avantones "mix cubes" sound. The difference is subtle but u CAN hear it after the switch. Mono is mono.

Sweetwater "recommended" the Spirit Pro's. I wanted THESE Avantones. My studio is literally Purple foamed, Silver painted trim (chrome accents) & silver faced racks/equipment all around), with cream colored laminated floors. Soooo, needless to say, the Avantones MP-1 was a perfect fit, right out the box!!! Str8 sexy sexy sexy...

Now, I never heard Focal headphones b4 but "I heard" THESE Spirit Pro's were supposed to sound exactly like their thousand dollar monitors, in ur ears. Lolol... They uhmmm, sounded GLORIOUS Too!

On the other hand & pleasantly to my surprise, because the Avantones are a lil farther away from the ear canal (yet still cups OVER my ears completely) it offered a nice, rich, full-bodied experience. It's almost like a "3D-ish soundstage" that translated, mix-wise, to what listening to my car system is like. You hear everything, clearly & more naturally this way. The slight distance give you like a crossbreed 20% open-back sound yet with a 80% closed back headphone. Best of both worlds. Again, a more natural listening experience & less, future fatigue I'll wager, too. I will most DEFINITELY be using these Avantones to mix in-studio. It's like WYSIWYG except WYHearIWYG... ;-)~

On the flip side, the FOCALS have less outside noise leakage but the $300+ price for the tiny, tiny, tiny, so tiny, slight bit of more perceived bass & high clarity, as opposed to the Avantones, aren't really worth paying over $300 as opposed to Avantone's $199 ---> for the average person ---> IF u had to only pick one! Trust me, It's only due to the Focal's tighter fit and how it ever so slightly blocks more outside noise. BUT NOW, with THAT SAID, I'm definitely keeping BOTH!
Focals have a lil button I can use with my iPhone to answer calls. I'll wear the Focals on the street. Since they're not gaudy, they're perfect for the train or street instead of friggin' clichéd & horrible for mixing, BEATS BY DRE's. LMMFAO. Overall the sound IS indeed crispy crispy/pristine & BOTH Headphones feel comfortable on my head & over my ears. Not too much clamping at all to me. I'd call it a snug fit tho...

ONLY DRAWBACKS: Avantone lost .25 rating for my petty "bulk/portability issues" looking like a cool Martian with it outside of the studio & it's 2 short cord factors... Focal lost .25 rating for it's French price, lack of folding up completely, as well, & their 2 short cords too!!!

I picked my pair second hand after my Denons were destroyed by the dog. I thought of them as just bridge for my headphone addiction until I had enough money saved to buy a new set of Denons. I knew nothing about them and did not expect much for the $... price tag. I am pleased to say I was completely wrong.

Build quality is where these headphones stand out. They claim to be made primarily for mixing work and to stand up to the accompanying abuse. They are optimized for pulling the headphones off & on constantly. The connection wire only goes in one side and swivels around freely to allow movement. The cups are large thick plastic with an aluminum ring for extra measure. Once you have adjusted the size you can lock the cups in place with a unique allen wrench feature. The pads are designed to provide adequate comfort without getting in the way. But they feel fine to me even when listening for hours. All in all they are quite comfortable.

But what good are headphones without decent sound. The big 50mm drivers placed in the sealed monster cups do a good job in this area. The headphones have a rich full sound in listening mode. But the selling gimmick is a "multi mode" switch to adjust the sound for mixing or listening. This seems like a wasted good idea. The headphones have two terrible sounds and one good one. Avantree really could have achieved much more if they had gearing this feature to optimized sound profile for music types. Instead they claim one mode is flat for mixing and other mono for ??? and the middle stereo for listening. The other two settings are so bad I doubt they have any use.

Surprisingly the sound is pretty good throughout the frequency range. The traditional V profile is more like a W. These headphones have strong midrange sound that does not bleed into the lows or highs. My only complaint is the sound stage seems limited. But that perception could be my being spoiled from more expensive headphones. A clear and enjoyable sound profile is an exceptional achievement for headphones...

In summary they are a good value. Decent sound with industrial durability. If you look in the mirror one time while wearing them you will immediatly understand why they are only for private use at home. Unless you don't mind being seen with two gallon sized paint cans strapped to your head.

No review would be complete without pointing out the opportunity Avantree wasted. They went to the expense of using a big 50mm driverin a large enclosure with a sound profile feature. This just did not come together. Imagine if they had added some dampening insulation and a baffle to increase the movement of the driver?
These headphones would be superstars not just a good value. But they do represent a good investment... Other headphone companies could certainly learn from the robust design.

What an awesome piece of gear this is!

I own a number of Avantone products (Mixcubes included) and these headphones are in keeping with their high standards. Because my room is untreated, I needed a set of high quality neutral speakers to reference my mixes on and the MP1 does the job perfectly. The size of the cans may surprise you when opening the package but they don't seem to weigh much more than my previous smaller headphones. They are suited to long periods of use and I didn't experience much fatigue after use.

If you are looking for a high quality set of headphones, look no further than the MP1 which also is a great companion to the Mixcubes.

Great product in terms of mixing--amazing results (mixing/mastering-wise). Headphone jack on the headphones was maybe installed quickly and not assessed properly before packaging. After months of use, the wires in the jack finally went. Sweetwater offered to repair but customer was looking for a trade in or full-on replacement (same product/new pair), which was denied. Love these headphones. Super bummed I can no longer use them after barely a year of use.

They would be nice if I could get past the chord malfunctioning straight from the box.
I read other posts about this and said, what are the chances of me getting a malfunctioning chord?
I spoke too soon. I am the guinea pig (Tester) for the product I guess. They sound pretty decent,
but it's sad to know that these headphone will sit in my studio as a prop. I love the company but they rushed these headphones. I bought them around two years ago and I used them 2 dozen times (Maybe). I hope they fix this issue. Don't forget that we all hear music different, so when I read people's opinions about the sound, keep in mind that our ear damage from listening to music loud for years can affect our opinion about sound. The chord malfunction is my issue, I couldn't get passed that. I would have given 4 stars because of the look and sound, a little heavy, but comfortable.

Love the sound of these headphones, very clear and detailed. My biggest issue is with the removable headphone cord that you have constantly unscrew plug in again due to half of the signal being lost and distorted. I end up going back to my old sony MDRs because the sound quality of these headphones is so inconsistent because of the removable cord. Most ancillary design feature i ever seen in a pair of headphones

For mixing I found them to be adequate, not to bright and not to much bass. I was particularly interested in creating quick mixes that play well in the car via bluetooth, CD, etc. I do a lot of test mixes of arrangements and listen to them while I'm driving to and from....wherever. They are fairly comfortable for their size and weight.

For the record, I have burned in these headphones upwards of 100 hours, so their potential should be fulfilled.

This headphone has a nice soundstage. As a closed-back, it's not really 3D, but there is more space than from my previous headphones (Lyx Pro Has-10). As a mixing headphone, mistakes and bad sounds are evinced more readily than before, but not remarkably so. Isolation is good once you start playing music, but without it the cups resonate with other noises around you.

That other headphone has noticeably (but not significantly) inferior sound, but I think I will keep those instead. The MP1 punches a bit more and also with more clarity, but you could switch them (not that I wouldn't notice... these are bulky) and I wouldn't care. I feel like you'd have to be an audiophile to care. Because they're flat, they don't actually punch or make the sound bounce around, but as a headphone intended for mixing that's fair enough.

They're about as comfortable as they look. Have you seen these things? The cups are huge. They clamp like crazy. At 6'2" my head is long but not wide and they still play hell with my jaw. Despite the flat and clear sound, you can't really mix with these... too uncomfortable. Honestly... I was naive to think this would be comfortable, but maybe you have to pay a price for mixing headphones. It's not like they're an established type. Either way, these headphones made me appreciate the comfort of my other headphones.

What I like about this headphone is that you can wear them the other way around without any additional discomfort. More than the mono and C (whatever the hell C means... lol) mode, this has given me a different perspective on songs I've listened to for years. I can't really do this with my other headphones because the headband isn't built to do it. I'm not sure if this has any practical purpose for mixers, but it's cool. In one example, I can hear distortion on an ostensibly clean guitar I never heard in 7 years (and 4 months... LOL)! It's like flipping a picture of your face. Mono is cool because you hear more of the vocals. The C mode I find kinda useless; it seems like it's emulating an iPod earphone. You might spend 95% of your time in stereo.

All in all, a fine-sounding headphone made undesirable by its negation of comfort.

Missing some screws, found them in the box and put them back in with a greenie. Makes me wonder about build quality. A/B'd these with my ATH-M50s and was not impressed by the sound and imaging.

For a $ pair of headphones, these feel really cheap. Super bulky in size, but yet not sturdy and well-constructed like you would expect for headphones at this price point. Build quality is very comparable to a set of bottom-of-the-line Tascam headphones I bought recently. If you drop these and they land on the main plastic housing, this type of plastic feels like it will absolutely crack right in half. It's not the softer plastic you find on other consumer electronics, but the low-quality type that shatters in clean breaks like a glass plate. Think plastic Easter egg. Compared to my Bose QC35, these literally feel like a children's toy. Based on build quality alone, an MSRP in the $ range would feel much more appropriate.

The TRS 1/4" to 3.5mm adapter was also non-functional right out of the box, which was a bad sign of quality control as well. One feature that seems high-end at first glance is the threaded input jack on the earpiece. But then you realize how counterintuitive that actually is; if you accidentally step on the cable, you WANT the cable to be able to break away and disconnect from the earphone. Having it threaded to the earpiece totally defeats the practical purpose of having a jack there instead of a hard-wired cable. So, with that in mind, you'll end up leaving the threads unscrewed, listening to the bushing rattle around, and wondering how much of the $ pricetag was justified by silly design features like this.

Other reviewers claimed that these were comfortable to wear for extended periods of time. I have not found this to be the case. Generally way less comfortable than my AKG and Audio-Technica studio headphones. I can take about 30 minutes tops, before I want to remove these. With my other mid-level studio headphones, I can use them for 2 hours and forget I'm even wearing them.

It seems like the main thing you're paying for with these is the switch that toggles between stereo, mono, and crossover...And the "unique" aesthetic look. Overall, pretty disappointing, considering that so many reviews rave about what a game-changer these are. Really seems like some reviewers must be getting a kickback... In all, these are fine to have as one of several playback devices to test your mix, but so far I am experiencing none of the "magic" that people are describing in the reviews. There are a lot more affordable and more well-built options out there, in my opinion.

Ok, I had these cans for 1 day. Yep, that bad. First off, I thought they'd be made out of what appears to be some kind of metal but, nooo- plastic. Even what looks like screws are plastic. Putting them on, the first thing I noticed was a popping noise every time I moved! Loud as well and extremely annoying! Then the sound. Oh brother it's just plain nasty. Everything and I mean everything, has the muddy midrange. I compared them with Shure cans I have at a similar price and there was no comparison. Each switch positions just got louder or weaker, that's what I heard through several listens. I thought.. "these really suck! The Shure's were like a blanket was removed from the sound source. The packaging was beautiful as well the two cords they come with.
That as far a impressed I was gonna get.

I REALLY wanted to love these headphones, but I just can't find many good things to say about them.

WEIGHT: After reading other reviews, I expected these to be heavy, and they are. PAINFULLY so! I'm a fairly big guy and after only 15-20 minutes I couldn't stand wearing them. After a few of days I noticed neck pain. I read another review that claimed the same and thought they were exaggerating. Nope. It's true.

SOUND: The Pro MP1 headphones sound OK at best. They're VERY mid range heavy. The low end is present and full, but there is virtually no high end at all! I compared these with custom IEMs and 6 other pairs headphones and EVERY single one of them had high end detail that these just didn't have.

FEATURES: The Mono, Stereo, Mix Cube feature was intriguing to me. It's one of the main reasons I bought these. My DAW has a Stereo to Mono button so I don't need that. The "Mix Cube" mode just cuts the low end and adds a lot more Mid Range… which these already have too much of.

BUILD QUALITY: They are heavy… uncomfortably heavy. A combination of metal and hard plastics make them sturdy enough. However the jack where the cable screws into the left ear isn't secured to the headphone body. Every time the chord gets bumped theres an obnoxious "THUMP" in my left ear. Very distracting.

Beautifully conceived and work well for "studio"type use and for audiophile listening.The only reason I gave them a "2" is because one of the "grille cloths" is waded up, but they still work well.

Sound is irrelevant if the headphones are uncomfortable
Design needs looking at.
Don't sit on ear properly. Sent back

The 3-position switch seemed like a clever idea for mixing, so I ordered them. And after less than an hour wiht them returned. A huge disappointment. I could live with them being very heavy and awkward to wear, but what matters is sound. It is just mud, no separation, weird sound. I listened to Aja, knowing what to look for, and packed them right back in their box to send back. They are utter garbage.

These would be great if the company pays more attention to quality control. There are issues internally with wiring/connections out of the box which render them practically useless. The connection is poor at best and makes the audio signal pan hard to one side if the cable is barely touched. The selector switch has issues with crackling too when switching modes. Tried both cables included and tested through my interface and through my phone just to help diagnose the problem. A second pair was sent to me as a replacement but unfortunately both sets had problems. If this issue gets corrected, this gear would be stellar.

Sweetwater took good care of me with both defective units and made sure my replacements were sent to me ASAP, even during the pandemic/shutdown period, so major kudos to the sales, tech support, and shipping teams for that!

After 5 minutes on my head I packed them back up and sent them back to Sweetwater. I'm such a huge Avatone fanboy too (CV-12=greatest mic under $10k!) but these just are useless. Whoever thought strapping ankleweights around your noggin would be OK for extended use wasn't using their own noggin. These headphones are crazy heavy and could seriously damage your neck or spinal alignment over time. Buyer beware! This was a good idea executed poorly.