When looking for headphones, sometimes you want to find the quality gear that can be an all-in-one product, but sometimes you need to find the quality gear that is focused on providing an optimized experience for a specific aspect. When it comes to the latest headphones from Monoprice, music lovers and creators will find themselves enjoying the Monolith M1570. However, I was still hopeful that the quality of these headphones would be suitable for gaming; in short, they are not.

What’s In The Box

First off, these headphones don’t come in a box. They are placed in a specialized case with a circular shape that holds it safely. The hardened container is sure to keep the headphones safe from an intermediate amount of damage, which makes it great for traveling with.

Inside the case, you will have the headphones, the cable that plugs into the headphones and an end with a 6.3mm mono connector plug, and an adapter to place of the 6.3 mono connector and allow it to plug into your typical 3.5mm headphone outlets. The cable is a very firm and stable piece of equipment, so it is sure to be durable in a variety of settings. With this plug and adapter piece, you should be able to plug these headphones into just about any source you could need to.

Aesthetics and Build Quality

The headphones themselves have a hard outer shell that feels very sturdy and of great quality. The top of the headphones has a fully wrapped cushion around it that makes it soft while being held in hand and while placed on your head. The default ear cushions are rather huge and will feel a bit tight, but it doesn’t take long before it compresses into the proper shape to fit comfortably on your head. You can always swap them out with the softer, smaller cushions that have a more fluff-focused touch.

Given that from the top of the headset all the way through the cable itself you have a black look, it will always maintain a flat aesthetic overall. They definitely weren’t going for anything flashy with this one, so with these headsets, you are looking at a quality-focused product.

Last thing to mention is what makes these headsets unique; the open back. Most heavy headsets like this can make your ears feel closed in with the sounds that are emitted, but with the open backs, it gives a more natural sound quality experience. This is pretty noticeable if you are someone who can be sensitive to the enclosed sound space that some headphones provide.

Specs and Audio Quality

Aside from the open back and planar magnetic design, using linear symmetry magnets that push-pull neodymium, the specs are:

Driver Size: 106mm
Maximum Power Handling: 5W (for 200ms)
Maximum SPL: >130dB
Frequency Response: 5Hz ~ 50kHz
Total Harmonic Distortion: Less than 0.1% @ 100dB
Impedance: 60 ohms
Efficiency: 96dB / 1mW
Optimal Power Requirement: 200mW ‑ 4W
Weight: 24.7 oz. (700g)

What It Could Have Done Better

They describe the changing of the ear covers as an “easy switch,” but they definitely aren’t. You will need to be careful with it, but switching out the ear covers will take a fair amount of effort.

These headphones have no actual directional or surround sound type quality in them. Perhaps with a program, this aspect can be achieved, but as a base headphones on their own, this is not a feature it has. This aspect alone is the main reason I would say that these headphones are not for gaming or even really general entertainment outside of music-making and listening. It is a limiting feature that I am surprised to see in any new headphones released today.

Verdict

Monoprice’s new Monolith M1570 Headphones are certainly a top-contending choice for the music lovers out there. Whether you want to plug them into an amp for production purposes, directly into your electric instrument for up-close listening-while-practicing sessions, or anything else in the music world, these would be the headphones for you. However, I was hopeful for a more versatile experience and use them in a variety of settings, but they simply aren’t built for that. So, while I recommend them to users accordingly, I do feel these headphones limit themselves a bit despite having such a great build.