Monster N-Tune On-Ear HD Headphones

The ‘NTune’ part is a bit generic, but the ‘Monster’ part is an excellent indication of what these headphones are all about. Whether you’re a gamer or a music enthusiast, these headphones won’t leave you feeling indifferent.

The outward appearance can make or break your decision to buy any product, no matter how good it really is. However, that’s not something you need to worry about with these headphones. There’s nothing off-putting about the simple design. Also, seeing as there are well over a dozen colors to choose from, we’re positive everyone can find a model to their liking.

But there’s a catch:

The exterior is made mostly from plastic. The benefit to this is the overall light weight of the headphones. All things considered, they feel very durable and they have a good few years in them, but they’re still plastic so breaking them is always a worry.

The NTune headphones are a simple but effective one-size-fits-all example. The adjustability may be limited to extendable sidebars, but the swivelling ear-cups will ensure that the headphones fit nicely on any head.

Speaking of the ear-cups, it takes only a quick glance to see that they feature extensive padding. This is always a plus, but be aware that the thick layer of padding on the NTune isn’t as soft as you may imagine. This goes both for the ear-cups and the headband padding.

This shouldn’t be a problem for most users, but it might annoy gamers who indulge in prolonged gaming sessions, as you can expect slight ear pain and sweating after an hour or two of use.

What’s most unique about the NTune headphones, however, is the cable.

Judging by the pictures alone, you might think that these are wireless headphones. They’re not. They also don’t have a cable sticking out of them. Instead, they come with a detachable cable. While it may seem gimmicky at first, the detachable cable is actually ingenious and we would love to see more headphones featuring it.

The reason for this is very simple:

Most headphones meet their demise when the cable gets damaged. It can get run over by the office chair, stepped on, tangled or pulled… the possibilities are endless. But if you think about it, the headphones themselves should still be functional. It’s just that the cable renders them completely unusable.

With a detachable cable, however, you don’t have to worry about this. It’s incredibly practical and convenient. Instead of the headphones flying off your head when you turn around while the cables are all jumbled up, it’ll simply unplug. And, should it truly get damaged, it’s still much cheaper to buy a new cable than new headphones.

Of course, you don’t get just any old cable with the NTune headphones. No, this cable is packed with in-line features.

For starters, the cable itself is unique in that it doesn’t get tangled. It also features a button that you can use to answer and end calls as well as to change songs. On top of that, it has a neat in-line microphone with self-correcting volume.

If only it didn’t lack convenient volume controls, the cable alone would’ve gotten a 10/10. These are nowhere to be found, even on the ear-pads. This definitely feels like an oversight and it’s an inconvenience that many don’t want to deal with on PC and consoles, so just be aware of that.

Everything else is useless if the sound quality isn’t up to snuff. And while the 40 mm sound drivers are great when it comes to instrument separation, they’re also extremely bass-heavy.

Of course, this is not an oversight – it’s a feature! This makes the NTune headphones excellent for gaming and modern bass-heavy music genres. On top of that, the passive noise canceling is very good. They noticeably mute outside noises even when they aren’t playing anything, so if you like to completely tune out the outside world when listening to music or immersing yourself in video games, these headphones will not leave you wanting.

Nevertheless, know that the base can get a bit overwhelming when used for other things. So if what you’re looking for is a more faithful sound reproduction with cleaner vocals, it’s best to steer clear of the Monster NTune.

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