[cel4145]

So 1/3 of the weight of the headphone comes from metal weights, and the reviewer estimates the actual cost of the components is about $17:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ben-einstein/we-took-apart-some-beats-headphones_b_7639618.html

Overpriced? Who would have guessed? LOL

 

[WraithApe]

cel4145: Beats a headphone when it's down.

 

[cel4145]

cel4145: Beats a headphone when it's down.

:groan:

:etysmile:

 

[Roderick]

Those headphones turned out to be fakes in the end: https://medium.com/bolt-blog/how-it-s-made-series-beats-by-dre-154aae384b36
 
There is no way that parts are worth $17. You could propably buy those headphones from chinese oem for about $5/piece if you order a lot of those. Actually I don't think the parts are worth $17 in the authentic one either. I'm not saying that to mock beats. Most headphones would be worth close to nothing  if those were mass produced in china and you leave out money that went into r&d, marketing, taxes, markups for manufacturer, wholesaler, retailer etc...
 
By most heapdhones I of course mean "normal" headphones. I'm sure production expenses get more expensive fast when you are building headphones with more complex designs. Most headphones however are like the ones in the article. Beats, skullcandy, low end sony and philips and so on... Not that regular $200 headphones have that complex designs either...

 

[cel4145]

So the original teardown pair was likely fakes, but further research they find there's not much difference. LOL

 

[AdamTR]

Makes me wonder how much does sennheiser pay to make a HD800?

 

[cel4145]

Look at Bose 901 speakerss. You could buy a pair in 1995 for ~$475. Then at today's prices, you can buy replacement drivers for $20 at Parts Express: http://www.parts-express.com/replacement-speaker-driver-for-bose-901-4-1-2-1-ohm--290-922. That means probably cost Bose a few dollars per driver to make those.

 

[CaveManta]

   As much as I like to hate on and joke around about Beats, I'm going to support them for once.
 
   Credible(and awesome) headphone reviewer Lachlanlikesathing made a video negating that article. He indicates that the metal is used in the most sensitive part of the headphone, the hinge, which is necessary for the headphone's durability. The plastic, however, is used because it is lightweight and doesn't compromise the durability of the Beats 2.0 series headphones.

 

[Simon Templar]

  Makes me wonder how much does sennheiser pay to make a HD800?

Beats me!