The PerfectRec Earbuds or Headphones team Learn more
Updated January 10, 2024·
If you prioritize portability and the ability to use earbuds wirelessly during exercise, the Beats Studiobuds are a cost-effective choice with active noise canceling suitable for outdoor use, travel, and workouts. Conversely, if you desire top-tier sound quality, expansive soundstage, and comfort for long listening sessions at home or in quiet environments, the Sennheiser HD800S headphones excel, though they are significantly pricier. The HD800S are open-backed for natural sound but are not designed for commuting or noisy settings. They also lack wireless capability, which means you're tethered to a source device. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the Beats Studiobuds
Good for phone calls
Good for exercise
Very good for air travel
Excellent for podcasts and audiobooks
Advantages of the Sennheiser HD800S
Best in class for music
Good for gaming
Best in class for TV and video
Key differences
Music
7.2/10
9.9/10
The Sennheiser HD800S is best in class for music, while the Beats Studiobuds is good.
Gaming
5.2/10
7.5/10
The Sennheiser HD800S is good for gaming, while the Beats Studiobuds is poor.
Phone Calls
7.0/10
5.0/10
The Beats Studiobuds is good for phone calls, while the Sennheiser HD800S is poor.
Podcasts and Audiobooks
9.0/10
8.1/10
The Beats Studiobuds is excellent for podcasts and audiobooks, while the Sennheiser HD800S is very good.
TV and Video
5.6/10
9.7/10
The Sennheiser HD800S is best in class for TV and video, while the Beats Studiobuds is poor.
Noise Reduction
6.5/10
2.5/10
The Beats Studiobuds is only fair for noise reduction, while the Sennheiser HD800S is poor.
Battery
6.0 Hours
N/A
The Beats Studiobuds has 6 hours of battery life. The Sennheiser HD800S does not have a battery.
Cost
$80
$1,380
$50
$100
$150
$200
$250
$300
$350
$400
The Beats Studiobuds has a price of $80 and the Sennheiser HD800S costs $1,380.
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Sennheiser HD800S to have excellent build quality, while the Beats Studiobuds has very good build quality.
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How the Beats Studiobuds and the Sennheiser HD800S compare to other earbuds and headphones
"For less than the price of the AirPods, the Beats Studio Buds delivers a good fit, great sound, and active noise cancellation. This is also the first set of Apple-owned Beats earbuds to feature quick pairing with Android devices, albeit at the expense of some key features for Apple users."
"The cans offer stellar sound quality, comfort, and good maintenance options—so they're an easy recommendation if you have the cash and the need for the last headphones you'll buy for years."
Get a great deal on the Beats Studiobuds or the Sennheiser HD800S
About Beats
Beats is an American, consumer-focused, audio products manufacturer. Founded originally by American rapper and producer Dr Dre, the company is now a subsidiary of Apple. Beats sells a wide range of audio products, including several models of headphones, earbuds and speakers as well as full car audio systems.
About Sennheiser
A family-owned company, Sennheiser is a German, high fidelity, audio equipment manufacturer founded in 1945. Their consumer audio division is now owned by the Swiss hearing aid and cochlear implant manufacturer Sonova. Sennheiser offers a wide variety of, very high quality, audio equipment solutions, from headphones to earbuds, full sets of monitoring speakers, amplifiers and microphones. They also make what is widely regarded as the best, and most expensive, headphones in existence, the HE-1 Orpheus, costing a whopping $59,000 dollars.
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This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec earbuds & headphones team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest earbuds or headphones information and makes it digestible for you.
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About the Earbuds or Headphones team
Joe Golden, Ph.D
CEO and Earbuds and Headphones Editor
Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Jason Lew
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Jason is a staff expert and software engineer that has been making laptop recommendations for 7 years and moderates one of the largest laptop subreddits.
Chandradeep Chowdhury
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
Luis Torres
Earbuds and Headphones Expert
Luis is a Mexico-based headphones expert. He’s been making headphone recommendations for five years and has close to 100 pairs in his personal collection.