News - Apple confirms acquisition of Beats for US$3 billion

[HEXUS]

The finalised deal is Apple's biggest-ever acquisition and should complete by Q4 2014.

Read more.

[TheAnimus]

It's a marriage, a synergy made in a heaven. Both make market leading high end equipment which is always top of class and in no way over priced and sold to utter morons who think that they are creative.

[Jowsey]

It's a marriage, a synergy made in a heaven. Both make market leading high end equipment which is always top of class and in no way over priced and sold to utter morons who think that they are creative.

I hear you...

XD

Also, what audio gear does everyone use?

On the go I use my sennheiser HD439's. At home I use an Objective2+ pushing some sennheiser HD555's ( I inherited these from my older brother, nice guy)

[crossy]

"I’ve always known in my heart that Beats belonged with Apple," said Iovine, who was a long-time friend of Apple's Steve Jobs and thus has a prior relationship with Apple. "The idea when we started the company was inspired by Apple’s unmatched ability to marry culture and technology. Apple’s deep commitment to music fans, artists, songwriters and the music industry is something special."

Don't know how he managed to say that lot with a straight face.

A rare move by Apple at this stage is the announcement that it will continue to use the Beats brand, since the company has nearly always focused on its Apple branding.

Erm, I thought a big part of this deal was that the Beats brand has a lot of recognition. So ditching that would surely be a real bone-headed move. Being catty, if you ditch the brand then what's left of value - pretty much Dr Dre's celebrity endorsement alone...

I suppose to the hardcore Apple and Beats fans this is a big deal. Personally, I'm not bothered either way - I would have been a LOT more impressed if Apple had bought Wolfson Microelectronics.

Also, what audio gear does everyone use?

On the go I use my sennheiser HD439's. At home I use an Objective2+ pushing some sennheiser HD555's ( I inherited these from my older brother, nice guy)

Shure SE535's (B grade stock) or the active noise-cancelling set that came bundled with my Sony A845 player when out and about. Beyerdyamic DT660's+Fiio E18 when I'm in "contemplative" mood - the 660's came as part of a trade-in deal. And Audica MPS-1 (B-grade stock) desktop set for something to listen to when I'm working (might not have the top of the line audio performance, but it's good enough and the charger port and multiple inputs are a god-send).

Might treat myself to some Sennheiser gear (HD600?) when the 660's start to really annoy me. The bass on them is good, so quite suitable for the "music" I tend to listen to. No particular desire to pay over the odds for the Beats name - not caring how "funk-kay" they look, preferring to spend my hard earned on sound quality.

[Andrew McP]

I'd like to thank Apple for giving me the first belly laugh of my birthday. If only all presents were this good!

[scaryjim]

Apple’s deep commitment to part music fans from their money, ...

FTFY

I guess this kind of makes sense for Apple - the branding and target demographic is just about right, and now they can sell "Beats" bundles to bump up the margin on their products even further. Not sure I've ever even tested a set of Beats headphones, and I've certainly never bought one. I can't see that changing just because they're owned by Apple...

[Jowsey]

Don't know how he managed to say that lot with a straight face.

Erm, I thought a big part of this deal was that the Beats brand has a lot of recognition. So ditching that would surely be a real bone-headed move. Being catty, if you ditch the brand then what's left of value - pretty much Dr Dre's celebrity endorsement alone...

I suppose to the hardcore Apple and Beats fans this is a big deal. Personally, I'm not bothered either way - I would have been a LOT more impressed if Apple had bought Wolfson Microelectronics.

Shure SE535's (B grade stock) or the active noise-cancelling set that came bundled with my Sony A845 player when out and about. Beyerdyamic DT660's+Fiio E18 when I'm in "contemplative" mood - the 660's came as part of a trade-in deal. And Audica MPS-1 (B-grade stock) desktop set for something to listen to when I'm working (might not have the top of the line audio performance, but it's good enough and the charger port and multiple inputs are a god-send).

Might treat myself to some Sennheiser gear (HD600?) when the 660's start to really annoy me. The bass on them is good, so quite suitable for the "music" I tend to listen to. No particular desire to pay over the odds for the Beats name - not caring how "funk-kay" they look, preferring to spend my hard earned on sound quality.

How is the Fiio E18? My girlfriend is showing a real interest in my set up so we will be look at some equipment for her soon but I'm not sure where to start, tbh.

I tried a pair of HD650's in Hong Kong apart last month and it was BLISS! Total comfort and the sound is as I expected, fantastic.

They wouldn't let me try the HD700's

[tribaljet]

Well, Beats can indeed be great to own (say, if you've been gifted one or something), then quickly sell it for those ludicrous prices people apparently are willing to pay, then getting proper headphones.

I've been exhilarated for years with My Ultrasone Pro 900. Currently using a NI Audio 2 DJ to which is routed processing from a Creative X-Fi Go! (the better model, not the "Pro" "upgrade") for gaming purposes, along with a PA2V2 that punches nicely above it's weight. Used to run a UA-4FX but that was a loaner, sadly.
Basically, I have little reason to consider upgrading, especially since I'd have to move into high/ultra end gear costing upwards of 1000€, excluding DAC and amp costs.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Apple paid how much for Beats Electronics??

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beats_E...ical_reception

Audiophiles and numerous sources have been critical of the "fluff words", buzzwords, and marketing hype used by Beats Electronics to describe the technical aspects of their headphones.[42] Unlike other audio companies, Beats doesn't state basic stats for their headphones like driver diameter, frequency response, max input power, sensitivity, and impedance. Investigations has shown their technology is basically a combination of audio equalization that boosts the low and high ends of the audio range,[43] audio compression, and audio amplifier to drive the headphone speakers "harder".[44]

Look at the names behind Beats Audio,there is not a single engineer among them.

[Funkstar]

Remind you of someone else with a strong brand and premium prices?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bose#Te..._not_published

Amar Bose believed that traditional measures of audio equipment are not relevant to perceived audio quality and therefore does not publish those specifications for Bose products, claiming that the ultimate test is the listener's perception of audio quality according to the listener's preferences.

[snip]

When tested by independent reviewers, Bose systems often produce inferior results compared to similarly priced products from other manufacturers.

[The Hand]

I have a pair of Sony headphones which do the job very well. Other than image (maybe pretentiousness!), I can't see the appeal of the beats headphones myself.

[peterb]

Dare I raise my hand and say I had never heard (no pun intended) of Beats until this announcement?

Still, I'm sure it will sell because of the HERD (pun intended ) mentality.