The Plantronics Backbeat Pro are an above-average pair of headphones. The ergonomic design is great, and the build quality is solid if a little stiff. The sound profile caters more to bass-heavy music genres but still offers passable audio reproduction. They have one the best wireless ranges and latency that we've measured to date. Unfortunately, they're a bit too bulky and cumbersome for sports, and their noise cancellation is below-average for a noise canceling headphone.
Our Verdict
The Backbeat Pro make for above-average, everyday headphones. They perform fairly well in most cases and have sufficient features to handle different environments. They're also durable and have an excellent and intuitive control scheme.
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Solid build quality.
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Great ergonomic design.
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Heavy and stiff ear cups.
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Hyped Bass and treble audio profile.
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ANC produces audible low rumble when turned on.
Above-average for neutral listening. They have a good and excited sound with a pronounced bass. Instruments are also remarkably clear and well balanced but their closed back design and unevenness is not ideal for pure neutral listening,
suitable for commuting. Noise isolation is good enough for moderately noisy commutes.
Mediocre for sports use. They're comfortable and wireless with an excellent control scheme. However, they're a bit too bulky and unstable for running or exercising.
Decent for office use. Noise isolation is enough to block the chatter of a busy office and leakage is not too high. Additionally, their wireless range is well above the average and is more than sufficient for moderately sized offices with a lot of walls.
- 7.0 Mixed Usage
- 7.3 Neutral Sound
- 7.1 Commute/Travel
- 6.9 Sports/Fitness
- 7.1 Office
- 5.8 Wireless Gaming
- 7.4 Wired Gaming
- 6.7 Phone Call
- Updated Nov 21, 2019: Converted to Test Bench 1.3.1.
- Updated Nov 21, 2019: Converted to Test Bench 1.3.
- Updated Feb 16, 2018: Converted to Test Bench 1.2.
- Updated Sep 28, 2017: The microphone has been tested with our new methodology, as explained here
- Updated Aug 10, 2017: Converted to Test Bench 1.1.
- Updated Mar 01, 2017: Converted to Test Bench 1.0.
- Updated Feb 26, 2016: Review published.
Compared To Other Headphones
The Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 are much better headphones overall when compared to the original Plantronics Backbeat Pro. The Pro 2 have a better design that's slightly more comfortable and has a sleeker look and feel. The Pro 2 also have better battery life, wireless range, noise cancellation performance, and sound quality. They pack a lot of bass but sound more balanced than the Pro. On the other hand, the original Backbeat Pro have a slightly better and more tactile control scheme. They also come with a better audio cable that has mic support for consoles and PC. The original Pro are also at a better value for your money than the Pro 2.
The Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 are slightly better headphones than the Beats Studio Wireless. The Plantronics have a better control scheme than the Beats. They also have a longer battery life and a better wireless range. On the other hand, the Beats have a more balanced sound quality but do not pack as much bass. The Beats also have a more comfortable and sleek-looking design, and that's a bit more stable for physical activity.
The Sennheiser HD 4.50 are better noise cancelling headphones overall when compared to the Plantronics Backbeat Pro. The Sennheisers have a more compact design, a tighter fit on the head for the gym, and they block a lot more noise with their ANC feature. On the other hand, the Plantronics have a better battery life, wireless range, and easier-to-use controls. They're also a bit more comfortable than the Sennheisers since they're not as tight on the head. Their sound profile also packs a lot more bass, which some may prefer.
The Bose QuietComfort 35 II/QC35 II Wireless 2018 are much better noise canceling headphones than the Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014. The Bose are a lot more comfortable and have a much better-balanced sound profile. They also have a significantly better ANC feature that blocks a ton of background noise. The Plantronics, on the other hand, have a better control scheme, a slightly longer battery life, and are a lot cheaper, providing better value for some people.
Test Results
The Backbeat Pros look a little utilitarian with their all black design and rugged build. The headband is thick and heavily padded. The ear cups have a round over-ear design that works well with the ergonomic controls. The purple within the ear cups helps highlight the left and right label, which is a nice touch.
They're slightly heavy but comfortable headphones. the ear cups are well padded and the headband doesn't put too much pressure on the head. Unfortunately, the circular ear cups do not always fit well and may get fatiguing during long listening sessions.
Very good functional design. The buttons are accessible and in the right place. They also provide all the essential functions, track skipping cal/music volume control and a dedicated talk through mode. You can even turn off the noise canceling and use the headphones as simple Bluetooth headphones. However, it's the feedback that's most impressive with a unique control scheme that extremely responsive and easy to use.
The Backbeat Pro are too bulky and cumbersome to carry around on your person. They are not portable and do not fold up int a more compact format for storage or transport. The ear cups lay flat to take less space in a bag. However, they are too big to fit into any pockets or handbags.
Comes with a rugged, soft pouch, that does not add extra bulk and will protect the headphones from scratches. The tough fabric will also shield the headphones against minor water damage but not from falls.
The body is mostly made out of plastic, but it feels quite solid. The buttons feel high quality too. Headband adjustment has a good click to it, and there is a mark representing each notch on the band. The joints feel a bit cheap but there's little worry of them breaking.
These headphones are little bulky and sway while running. They're able to maintain their position well during casual listening sessions but will slip off your ears if used while doing high-intensity exercises. On the upside, they are wireless and have no cables that will get tangled or hooked on something.
The passive isolation provided by the thick earpads is very good down to 1KHz. The ANC (Active Noise Cancelling) provides decent isolation of the mid-to-low range, down to 50Hz. However, from 50Hz down to 20Hz, these headphones provide their own audible low-end rumble which gets worse by walking around or gently tapping on the headphones.
These headphones leak very little sound in the bass range but there is significant leakage from around 2KHz to 6KHz, which covers sibilant sounds like hi-hats.
The BackBeat Pro deliver a good set of power saving features and a long battery life of 21.2 hours. They have a built-in auto-off timer that will automatically switch off the headphones after 10 minutes of not being in use. They also continue streaming audio while charging, which makes them good headphones to use when you're close to a power source, like being at the office or on a train/plane. You may still have to charge the headphones after a day of regular use, but they should have enough battery life for a long flight.
The Plantronics Hub has a disappointing yet unique list of features. This app doesn't provide any actual control over the sound quality of the headphones. There's no equalizer, room effects, in-app player or battery status. However,it does deliver a find MyHeadset feature that lets you track the headphones and even let it ring at a distance, but the functionality is a little limited.
