I’m a hobbyist musician, which of course means I’m not going to be paying top dollar for studio equipment. Hell, I try not to even pay medium-dollar for any kind of musical item, whether it be a guitar, piano, or recording interface (my most expensive purchase was a $700 Schecter guitar that I got when I was first starting out around 2004).

So when I decided that I needed some kind of monitoring device for my recording setup, I forewent the typically accepted method of virtually all professional musicians – studio monitors – and opted instead for a pair of headphones. And not just any pair of headphones: a cheap pair of headphones. That’s right, something that virtually every article will warn against. Hey, rules were made to be broken.

After searching around Amazon for some time, I finally settled on a pair of OneOdio Studio Pro-10 headphones in all black, although there are some other cool color choices and combinations for those who want to stand out a little more.

Pulling them out of the packaging, the first thing that really struck me was how sturdy they felt. Any time you drop $30 on something that typically costs at least twice that (if not more), durability has to be a concern; these are heavy, but not too heavy, and every piece feels as if it’s crafted out of materials that are built to last. Seriously. There’s not a single part that feels like a cost-cutting measure, which is absolutely rare in this price point.

I’m by no means an audiophile, at all, so all I require are my “cans” (I hate that term for headphones) have a decent sound that’s comparable to what is actually recorded onto my computer. (Prior to these, I had two pairs of $20 Sony headphones that I taped up when they fell apart just so I could keep using them; that’s how little I used to care about studio monitoring).

Even by this meager criteria, these are mind-blowing headphones at a mind-blowing value. I know a lot of Amazon products have inflated reviews, so you can’t always judge a product by its star rating, but these are even better than the 4.5/5 they currently hold. If you’re an audiophile, or have a professional studio, then obviously you’re probably going to need something better, or more expensive – there’s no way these are going to compare to the likes of Bose, or any other high-level product.

But in the entry- to mid-level segment, I have no doubts that these are up there with some of the best. The sound is rich, with a focus on the bass, but even the mids and highs are richly detailed and clear. Supposedly, we have the “neodymium magnets” contained inside to thank for that, although I have to be honest that I have no idea what the hell those even are. Whatever the case, they sound absolutely fantastic for virtually any genre of music. As stated earlier, all I have to compare them to are $20 Sony headphones, and it should come as no surprise when I say these absolutely blow those out of the water. Some Amazon reviews even mention these can match – if not exceed – the quality of headsets costing $100, a claim that I have no problems believing.

As good as the sound is, I had one other major concern: comfort. When you’re spending so little on a product, you’re expecting there to be an obvious cutting of corners somewhere in the design to justify the cheaper price tag. I figured: “Well, sound is good, so these will be made to fall apart within a month.” Would you believe me if I told you that these are comfortable as all hell? The padding nestles snugly to the ears and forms a fit that’s tight, but not at all uncomfortable – I’ve worn them for a couple hours at a time before, and they’re so comfortable that I honestly forget they’re even on.

As for the noise isolating capabilities, there have been many times my wife has tried getting my attention while I had them on – even sometimes while in the same room – and I was completely oblivious to her increasingly frantic and angry attempts to do so. Needless to say, these do a fantastic job of blocking out excess noise while

My only complaint are that these are DJ headphones, which means the ear cups swivel around. I’m a moron by nature – especially when it comes to certain electronic products – so there have been several times I’ve had to spend several seconds figuring out how the hell to get them to swivel the right way just so that I could put them over my ears. That’s not really a design flaw so much as a personal flaw, though – I’m sure most people will have no problems figuring that out. (They’re also clearly labeled as DJ headphones in the description, so I knew what I was getting into when I got them.)

I purchased these two years ago, in 2019, and while family life relegates music to a very part-time hobby for me, they’ve certainly gotten enough use to put their durability to the test. Even after hours upon hours of use, there’s not a single thread out of place: the padding is still completely intact without so much as even a hint of use. Hell, there’s not even a scratch on the whole thing.

Even better still, the packaging comes with two different cords to connect to whatever you need to connect them to: a 3.5mm cable allows you to connect them to your laptop or similar device, while the red “DJ style coiled cord” stretches up to 10ft and allows you to plug them directly into a mixer or audio interface. There are no adapters here: they are full-length cords that simply plug directly into the headphones. It’s an excellent feature that lets you connect to virtually any device on the planet within seconds.

Overall: 10/10. These are fantastic – it’s truly hard to imagine anything else even coming close to these not only in the same price range, but even for double the price. The bass is heavy, mids and highs are crystal clear, and they’re oh so comfortable to wear. I’ve used them for hours upon hours of projects and studio time over two years, and the padding doesn’t even show any sign of wear. I was hoping to get a set of cans that would last me at least a year or two until I could save up for something better, but I found a set that I would replace without hesitation should these ever break. These are incredibly well made, and just a fantastic value on all fronts. If you need a set of basic headphones for an amateur recording studio, look no further. For around $30 these are a steal.