Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

kofman13

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
May 6, 2009
585
168
when power beats pro came out or new airpods pro came out, i kept seeing comments refering to the Beats X as greatly inferior. comments along the lines of "im coming from beats X so anything is a step up in quality" and etc. I have been eyeing them because regular airpods dont fit me that well and dont have isolation, new airpods pro im returning because the ANC gives me head aches and i dont want to pay $249 if im not going to use ANC. I want something with simple silicone tips. (i know airpods pro has silicone tips but again i dont want to keep them for $249 if im not using the main feature). I could go the route of the many decent amazon brand wireless earbuds for $40-$60 like anker and taotronics BUT THEN i lose the ability to jump between my apple devices with the H1 and W1 chip....... which makes me look at the Beats X since they have the W1 chip like airpods, although that wire between them feels dated. in comparison to the more recent Beats and Apple headphone releases, what do you all think about Beats X?
 
I still really like my Beats X. They've held up nicely for almost two years now. They charge really fast. I wear them quite a bit at work and they're nice to quickly pair with either my MacBook or my iPhone. I use them mostly with Podcasts and while watching YouTube videos but I think they sound great for music as well. They're comfortable, they fit well (I do use the wings). For me, Airpods were never an option because the regular Apple earbuds always fell out of my ears. I'm interested in the AirPods Pro but not until these Beats X's die on me.
 
I still really like my Beats X. They've held up nicely for almost two years now. They charge really fast. I wear them quite a bit at work and they're nice to quickly pair with either my MacBook or my iPhone. I use them mostly with Podcasts and while watching YouTube videos but I think they sound great for music as well. They're comfortable, they fit well (I do use the wings). For me, Airpods were never an option because the regular Apple earbuds always fell out of my ears. I'm interested in the AirPods Pro but not until these Beats X's die on me.
thank you! are they light? since all the weight is in the neck part? im wondering for running, and also laying flat in bed, would it fall out of my ears or not...? also i read that they have high failure rate some people complaining going through 3 pairs in 2 years. all good for you?

im also thinking if i want to go back to having a wire between ears after using airpods lol
 
I Iove my Beats X. They are comfortable, have great battery life even after a year of heavy use, they actually have a fairly decent frequency response curve, a little bump in the lows and highs giving a fun sound signature without the boomy bass that older beats had. They also have outstanding range. I actually prefer the wire joining them as they hang around my neck at work so I don't have to worry about losing them.
 
  • Like
Reactions: cdcastillo
when power beats pro came out or new airpods pro came out, i kept seeing comments refering to the Beats X as greatly inferior. comments along the lines of "im coming from beats X so anything is a step up in quality" and etc. I have been eyeing them because regular airpods dont fit me that well and dont have isolation, new airpods pro im returning because the ANC gives me head aches and i dont want to pay $249 if im not going to use ANC. I want something with simple silicone tips. (i know airpods pro has silicone tips but again i dont want to keep them for $249 if im not using the main feature). I could go the route of the many decent amazon brand wireless earbuds for $40-$60 like anker and taotronics BUT THEN i lose the ability to jump between my apple devices with the H1 and W1 chip....... which makes me look at the Beats X since they have the W1 chip like airpods, although that wire between them feels dated. in comparison to the more recent Beats and Apple headphone releases, what do you all think about Beats X?

I personally dont think they sound bad. Out of all the apple/beats headphones, theyre still my favorite as far as sound quality goes. I also own the Powerbeats Pro and the Airpods Pro, which both are (to me) a step down from the Beats X with the airpods pro falling in last place out of the three.They definitely have a high failure rate. I've purchase two pairs in the past year and both had to be replaced by Apple at around 6 months.
 
I personally dont think they sound bad. Out of all the apple/beats headphones, theyre still my favorite as far as sound quality goes. I also own the Powerbeats Pro and the Airpods Pro, which both are (to me) a step down from the Beats X with the airpods pro falling in last place out of the three.They definitely have a high failure rate. I've purchase two pairs in the past year and both had to be replaced by Apple at around 6 months.
ugh im scared of the failure rate. its covered at an apple store for a year right? can you get extended apple care for them?
 
I've had no problems with mine at all. I did buy some Beats X for my gf's daughter at Xmas time for a gift and this summer they stopped taking a charge, just nothing fixed them. Took them to the Apple Store (even though they were purchased at BestBuy) and they sent them out for repair - got them back in the mail less than a week later at no cost, I'm not sure if they were just refurbs or the actual same pair.
On your other question - they're very light - I don't notice the weight on my neck at all. I've used them for moderate mountain biking and walking exercise. They're not marketed as sweat-proof but I've certainly sweat in them to no ill effect.
 
when power beats pro came out or new airpods pro came out, i kept seeing comments refering to the Beats X as greatly inferior. comments along the lines of "im coming from beats X so anything is a step up in quality" and etc. I have been eyeing them because regular airpods dont fit me that well and dont have isolation, new airpods pro im returning because the ANC gives me head aches and i dont want to pay $249 if im not going to use ANC. I want something with simple silicone tips. (i know airpods pro has silicone tips but again i dont want to keep them for $249 if im not using the main feature). I could go the route of the many decent amazon brand wireless earbuds for $40-$60 like anker and taotronics BUT THEN i lose the ability to jump between my apple devices with the H1 and W1 chip....... which makes me look at the Beats X since they have the W1 chip like airpods, although that wire between them feels dated. in comparison to the more recent Beats and Apple headphone releases, what do you all think about Beats X?
Here is a review, dated one.

 
I have had my beats x for around a year and don’t know where I would be without them. They have never let me down ever. The charge time is quick and they last a good amount of time. Like the magnet for when not In use. They are comfortable and the sound from them really in my eyes is really really good have good all round sound. Have took calls with them no problems either end. I don’t know how they stack up against other type of headphones but would think they can hold there ground very well. I am going to purchase the pros end of this month and hope I have made the right decision and hope they are a step up as having used the beats will take a lot to beat them. I can only speak highly of the beats x and forgot to mention blocking out noise is superb on them can only ever hear just the music when on nothing else. Paired with my iPhone 11 use to have a iPhone X and the sound with them has just made them even better now coming from the x and now the 11 can notice a lot of a difference in sound quality from the two phones.
 
thanks for the input guys sounds really good just worried about failure but i can always get 2 years applecare + for headphones for $29 if i like them
 
thanks for the input guys sounds really good just worried about failure but i can always get 2 years applecare + for headphones for $29 if i like them
I would not be concerned about the failure rate because I have had mine for a year and never ever had one problem with them. If something is working good people tend not to mention it as they don’t have any reason to mention anything because it’s all working good. Where as if something is wrong natural thing is to mention it. I would say go with the beats x at the price they can be had for in my eyes they can’t be beaten. Like with any product failure rates will get the mention success rates won’t.
 
I would not be concerned about the failure rate because I have had mine for a year and never ever had one problem with them. If something is working good people tend not to mention it as they don’t have any reason to mention anything because it’s all working good. Where as if something is wrong natural thing is to mention it. I would say go with the beats x at the price they can be had for in my eyes they can’t be beaten. Like with any product failure rates will get the mention success rates won’t.
makes sense, on apple website they have 2 out of 5 stars all failure reviews so i got worried, and 30% 1 star on amazon same reason. but maybe ill get lucky!
 
thanks for the input guys sounds really good just worried about failure but i can always get 2 years applecare + for headphones for $29 if i like them
I've had mine for over a year I use them 5 days a week for 8 hours a day at work, I abuse the hell out of them and they still work perfectly. I like them so much that I plan on buying another spare set in case they are eventually discontinued.
 
how are they for running and gym? does the long wire and neck part flap around and shake?
also another random question, does the neck band/battery portion get in the way if youre laying down flat in bed and youre laying down on it basically?
 
how are they for running and gym? does the long wire and neck part flap around and shake?
also another random question, does the neck band/battery portion get in the way if youre laying down flat in bed and youre laying down on it basically?
You probably want wireless ones for that.
 
My BeatsX are going good after almost 2 years. Battery life is closer to 6 hours than the 8 it managed when it was new. Charge times are fast so thats not an issue. Pairing is super easy with iOS/ Mac.
Fit is good, there's decent external sound isolation, the neckband doesn't get in the way during workouts or running.
Audio quality is good for general youtube, movies and podcasts. I'm no audiophile, but personally its good for the price.
The only real problem is probably the mic which isn't great in picking up what you say, you need to kinda hold it up close to be heard. And battery drains faster over calls. That said, the BeatsX is quite long in the tooth compared to AirPods which has seen constant updates.
 
The Beats X set I had was the only Apple product I was really disappointed with

Died after maybe 20 uses and I let them sit for months before I brought them into a apple store to diagnose. The person helping me thought sweat got into the connection between the battery and power switch and said it would be $100 to replace with a new set of beats x. My fault for not bringing them in earlier but I wasn't going to pay to replace them with the same model that was plagued with reliability issues

Walked out of the store and threw them in the trash on the way to the car and ordered some airpod 2s to replace them until I replaced those with airpod pros.
 
I’ve run well over 1000 miles with them and really like them. My first pair did lose sound in 1 ear after about two years- but I had been doing a lot of heavy yard work leading up to that and may have abused them a bit- I wasn’t upset. I replaced them.

the cord is essential for me - and the magnetic buds snap together - making it safe to run with them out of your ears whenever you want without fear of losing them.

I do take care to roll them up carefully after use- because they seem delicate.
highly recommended.
 
  • Like
Reactions: cdcastillo
I still really like my Beats X. They've held up nicely for almost two years now. They charge really fast. I wear them quite a bit at work and they're nice to quickly pair with either my MacBook or my iPhone. I use them mostly with Podcasts and while watching YouTube videos but I think they sound great for music as well. They're comfortable, they fit well (I do use the wings). For me, Airpods were never an option because the regular Apple earbuds always fell out of my ears. I'm interested in the AirPods Pro but not until these Beats X's die on me.

The EarPods never fit me but the AirPods OG was fine.
 
I would get AppleCare anyways imo. For $30 bucks you’re guaranteed free battery replacement before the 2 years is up. That’s the primary reason why I have them on my AirPod pros and Powerbeats pro. I bought them on the solo pros because of the solo 3 tendency to break.
 
interesting read. I just returned Airpods 2, I had them about 1 month, but they just hurt my ears. I have been reading about AP3 - might have same issue with them. I know that Beats X are listed as the best for people with small ears. Maybe I will take a leap with them with Apple Care
 
And my experience was the opposite of yours. I went through four pairs before I gave up, and was not being picky by any stretch. Bluetooth quit working on couple of pairs and the on/off button quit working on a couple of others. That, combined with the flaky W1 chip, caused me to give up on them entirely.

I went to the powerbeats pro, which has its own issues (extremely flaky charging on both pairs I've owned).

I still really like my Beats X. They've held up nicely for almost two years now. They charge really fast. I wear them quite a bit at work and they're nice to quickly pair with either my MacBook or my iPhone. I use them mostly with Podcasts and while watching YouTube videos but I think they sound great for music as well. They're comfortable, they fit well (I do use the wings). For me, Airpods were never an option because the regular Apple earbuds always fell out of my ears. I'm interested in the AirPods Pro but not until these Beats X's die on me.
 
And my experience was the opposite of yours. I went through four pairs before I gave up, and was not being picky by any stretch. Bluetooth quit working on couple of pairs and the on/off button quit working on a couple of others. That, combined with the flaky W1 chip, caused me to give up on them entirely.

I went to the powerbeats pro, which has its own issues (extremely flaky charging on both pairs I've owned).
Mine have been perfect but there are too many reviews talking about the issues with them to ignore. Perhaps i just got really lucky for once because i've really abused the hell out of mine and they are still going strong almost a year and a half later.
 
I've used my Beats X nearly every weekday since I got them in May 2017, and have had no problems at all. The battery is definitely wearing, but still lasts long enough for my needs.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.