“Aww, those are so cute!” says my wife as I took the new JBL Roxy headphones out of the shipping box. Me? I could not care less how my gadgets look, as long as they work well. But my wife instantly reminded me that looks are more important to some, so I came up with the idea to send the headphones to high school with my little sister-in-law for some teenager hands-on.
So that’s what I did. I told Bridget to have fun, let her friends jam-out on ’em, take some pics, and don’t break ’em because I had to send the pair back when she was done.
A few days later, I got the headphones and she didn’t have a negative thing to say about either one. She really digged the classic cans. They were super comfortable on her tiny head and had bass “that shook her toes.” She also thought that the in-earphones sounded good too, and she found that they blocked out sound (her mom) well.
There you have it: A 15-year girl’s take on the new JBL Roxy headphones. She and her friends liked ’em a lot. Oh, and they are super cute too.
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My take:
Even though they aren’t exactly my color, I spent an afternoon of listening with both of these headphones and one impressed while one disappointed.
The reference 430 over-the-ear set is a solid performer. It has great bass response with a clear note. The quality of the sound honestly impressed me out of the $59 model. Just like Bridget found out, they do fit anyone’s head including mine and my 2-year old son, so small girls shouldn’t have any issue rock’n these.
Now, the reference 250 in-earphones. I don’t have anything good to say about ’em. They lack any bass and have a flat sound overall. In fact, standard Apple iPod earbuds from a few years back sound better to me than this set. The bottom line is that they are totally not worth the $39.99 price even if they are kind-of comfortable.
However to some it doesn’t really matter how the headphones sound as long as the style is right. And according to every girl that saw these, both got that right. (and the on-ear cans sound great too)
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