For a first world dweller, I am a terrible consumer. When I say I’m going shopping, people know I’m going to a second-hand thrift store or dumpster diving for discarded doughnuts. The only time I spend more than $200 is when I’m splurging on myself during the holidays. So it was a pretty big deal when I decided to purchase the Beats By Dre 2.0 Orange Studio Special Edition Over Ear Headphones.

There are two reasons why I decided to do this. The first is I got sick of continually buying new headphones. Prior to buying the Orange Beats Studio Headphones, I had always opted for the Sony Over Ear Swivel Earcups Headphones, which are only $20. I spend a lot of time sitting in front of a computer each day and without music, my day would be very mundane. I consistently need something to block out vapid conversations and petty arguments to retain my sanity. The Sony headphones weren’t noise-isolating, but they worked well enough in preventing me from turning into a profanity-laced, spit-screaming Hulk. In a span of two years, I’ve had to buy three pairs, as they’ve snapped at the middle of the headband during transport.

The second reason is my girlfriend and I recently split, so I decided to buy myself something nice and expensive to feel better. It worked, as I was overjoyed by the beauty of the bright, orange color as soon as I opened the box. The headphones’ overall design was smooth, sleek and they felt light in my hands. As soon as I put them on my head, the earcups cushioned comfortably against my ears.

After strutting around the house with my brand, new toy, I finally plugged the Beats Nike Orange Studio headphones into my music player to test the sound. I broke them in with some new Avicii. The first thing I noticed was a dominant bass response. There was definitely a punch on drum beats and bass lines, but I didn’t feel like I was being beaten over the head with it. The LeBron James Headphones also do pretty well in vocal reproduction. Whenever my playlist shuffled to something ska, I was impressed by the way my Studio was able to render dark horn sounds with a well-rounded richness.

This is the first time I’ve ever owned proper noise-cancelling headphones, so I was ecstatic when I discovered I could hear nothing outside my audio world. The headphones also have the added bonus of coming with a case and tangle-resistant cables, which is ideal for clumsy, disorganized people like me, who consistently end up spending a good amount of time untangling oneself out of things.

All in all, I highly recommend them for personal use, or as a great gift for the holidays. Take a peak for more info.