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  1. Table of Contents
  2. Top
  3. Main Differences
  4. Design
    1. Style
    2. Comfort
    3. Controls
    4. Breathability
    5. Portability
    6. Case
    7. Build Quality
    8. Stability
    9. Headshots 1
    10. Headshots 2
    11. Top
    12. In The Box
  5. Sound
    1. Sound Profile
    2. Frequency Response Consistency
    3. Raw Frequency Response
    4. Bass Accuracy
    5. Mid Accuracy
    6. Treble Accuracy
    7. Peaks/Dips
    8. Imaging
    9. Passive Soundstage
    10. Virtual Soundstage
    11. Weighted Harmonic Distortion
    12. Test Settings
  6. Isolation
    1. Noise Isolation
    2. Leakage
  7. Microphone
    1. Microphone Style
    2. Recording Quality
    3. Noise Handling
  8. Active Features
    1. Battery
    2. App Support
  9. Connectivity
    1. Bluetooth
    2. Non-Bluetooth Wireless
    3. Wired
    4. PC / PS4 Compatibility
    5. Xbox One Compatibility
    6. Base/Dock
  10. Comments

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 vs Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016

Side-by-Side Comparison

Products

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016

Tested using Methodology v1.3.1

Updated Aug 07, 2021 12:22 AM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com

Tested using Methodology v1.4

Updated Jan 12, 2024 09:24 PM

Unavailable
Missing store
Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 Picture
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 Picture

Variants

  • BackBeat PRO
  • BackBeat Pro 2 (Black)
  • BackBeat Pro 2 (Gray, SE)

Our Verdict

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014

Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016

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.

0

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Standard
BackBeat PRO
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
BackBeat Pro 2
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Gray, SE
BackBeat Pro 2
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Notice: Two or more of the products selected have been tested with different test methodologies, so some of the results below aren't directly comparable. Learn how our test benches and scoring system work, and read more about the latest changes to our headphones test methodology.

Main Differences for

Threshold 

0.10

Mixed Usage 

7.0
7.2

Noise Isolation 
 

5.7
6.9

Full Comparison

Design

Style  

Design Picture 2  

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 Design Picture 2
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 Design Picture 2

Type  

Over-ear
Over-ear

Enclosure  

Closed-Back
Closed-Back

Wireless  

Yes
Yes

Transducer  

Dynamic
Dynamic

Show text

Comfort 
 

7.5
7.5

Comfort Picture  

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 Comfort Picture
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 Comfort Picture

Weight  

0.75 lbs
0.65 lbs

Clamping Force 
 

0.83 lbs
0.9 lbs

Show text

Controls 
 

8.2
8.0

Controls Picture  

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 Controls Picture
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 Controls Picture

OS Compatibility 
 

Not OS specific
Not OS specific

Ease Of Use  

Excellent
Great

Feedback  

Good
Great

Call/Music Control  

Yes
Yes

Volume Control  

Yes
Yes

Microphone Control  

No
No

Channel Mixing 
 

N/A
No

Noise Cancelling Control  

Yes
On/Off

Talk-Through 
 

Yes
On/Off

Additional Controls  

No
No

Show text

Breathability 
 

6.5
6.5

Breathability After Picture  

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 Breathability After Picture
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 Breathability After Picture

Avg.Temp.Difference  

5.6 °C
5.7 °C

Show text

Portability 
 

5.5
5.5

Portability Picture  

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 Portability Picture
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 Portability Picture

 

7.09"
8.5"

 

7.28"
8.5"

 

3.54"
2.4"

Volume  

182.9 in³
172 in³

Transmitter Required  

N/A
No

Show text

Case 
 

6.5
7.5

Case Picture  

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 Case Picture
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 Case Picture

Type  

Pouch
Hard case

 

N/A
9.3"

 

N/A
8.8"

 

N/A
2.9"

Volume  

N/A
234 in³

Show text

Build Quality 
 

7.5
7.5

Build Quality Picture  

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 Build Quality Picture
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 Build Quality Picture

Show text

Stability 
 

6.5
7.0

Stability Picture  

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 Stability Picture
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 Stability Picture

Show text

Headshots 1  

Angled Picture  

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 Angled Picture
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 Angled Picture

Side Picture  

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 Side Picture
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 Side Picture

Headshots 2  

Front Picture  

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 Front Picture
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 Front Picture

Rear Picture  

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 Rear Picture
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 Rear Picture

Top  

Top Picture  

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 Top Picture
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 Top Picture

In The Box  

In The Box Picture  

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 In The Box Picture
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 In The Box Picture

Show text

Sound

Sound Profile 
 

Frequency Response  

See details on graph tool

Frequency Response  

See details on graph tool

Bass Amount 
 

4.3 dB
2.09 dB

Treble Amount 
 

2.82 dB
-0.33 dB

Frequency Response Consistency 
 

7.8
7.8

Consistency L  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Consistency R  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Avg. Std. Deviation 
 

0.43 dB
0.44 dB

Show text

Raw Frequency Response 
 

Raw FR L  

See details on graph tool

Raw FR L  

See details on graph tool

Raw FR R  

See details on graph tool

Raw FR R  

See details on graph tool

Bass Accuracy 
 

6.3
7.6

Bass  

See details on graph tool

Bass  

See details on graph tool

Std. Err. 
 

5.24 dB
3.33 dB

Low-Frequency Extension 
 

10 Hz
10 Hz

Low-Bass 
 

8.87 dB
5.76 dB

Mid-Bass 
 

-1.1 dB
-1.49 dB

High-Bass 
 

-4.61 dB
-2.79 dB

Show text

Mid Accuracy 
 

7.4
9.2

Mid  

See details on graph tool

Mid  

See details on graph tool

Std. Err. 
 

3.41 dB
1.13 dB

Low-Mid 
 

-4.04 dB
-1.32 dB

Mid-Mid 
 

-3.26 dB
-0.41 dB

High-Mid 
 

-2.46 dB
-0.22 dB

Show text

Treble Accuracy 
 

8.7
8.6

Treble  

See details on graph tool

Treble  

See details on graph tool

Std. Err. 
 

2.59 dB
1.9 dB

Low-Treble 
 

-0.13 dB
-0.25 dB

Mid-Treble 
 

-0.53 dB
0.52 dB

High-Treble 
 

2.15 dB
-7.64 dB

Show text

Peaks/Dips 
 

7.4
7.6

Peaks/Dips Graph  

See details on graph tool

Peaks/Dips Graph  

See details on graph tool

Peaks 
 

1.56 dB
1.59 dB

Dips 
 

1.48 dB
1.14 dB

Imaging 
 

7.1
8.2

Group Delay  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Phase Response  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Weighted Group Delay 
 

0.62
0.43

Weighted Amplitude Mismatch 
 

2.12
0.81

Weighted Frequency Mismatch 
 

2.69
1.75

Weighted Phase Mismatch 
 

8.95
7.56

Show text

Passive Soundstage 
 

6.3
5.3

PRTF  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

PRTF Accuracy (Std. Dev.) 
 

2.81 dB
2.73 dB

PRTF Size (Avg.) 
 

6.86 dB
4.36 dB

PRTF Distance 
 

16.89 dB
13.98 dB

Openness 
 

4.1
3.1

Acoustic Space Excitation 
 

2.5
2.5

Show text

Virtual Soundstage 
 

0.0

Virtual Soundstage  

Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 Virtual Soundstage

Head Modeling 
 

No

Speaker Modeling 
 

No

Room Ambience 
 

No

Head Tracking 
 

No

Virtual Surround 
 

No

Weighted Harmonic Distortion 
 

7.1
7.6

Weighted Harmonic Distortion  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

WHD @ 90 
 

0.254
0.182

WHD @ 100 
 

0.472
0.197

Test Settings 
 

Firmware 
 

Unknown

Power 
 

On

Connection 
 

Unknown

Codec 
 

aptX, 16-bit, 48kHz

EQ 
 

No EQ

ANC 
 

On

Tip/Pad 
 

Default

Microphone 
 

Integrated
Isolation

Noise Isolation 
 

5.7
6.9

Noise Isolation  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Isolation Audio 
 

Overall Attenuation 
 

-14.81 dB
-18.91 dB

Noise Cancelling  

Yes
Yes

Bass 
 

-2.32 dB
-7.06 dB

Mid 
 

-11.4 dB
-14.05 dB

Treble 
 

-31.43 dB
-36.06 dB

Show text

Leakage 
 

8.0
7.8

Leakage  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Leakage Audio 
 

Overall Leakage @ 1ft 
 

33.44 dB
34.65 dB

Show text

Microphone

Microphone Style 
 

Integrated 
 

Yes
Yes

In-Line 
 

Yes
No

Boom 
 

No
No

Detachable Boom 
 

N/A
No

Mic  

Yes
Yes

Recording Quality 
 

6.3
5.7

Microphone Frequency Response  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Recorded Speech 
 

LFE 
 

289.23 Hz
530.46 Hz

FR Std. Dev. 
 

4.13 dB
3.76 dB

HFE 
 

3,517.32 Hz
3,568.48 Hz

Weighted THD 
 

14.216
3.193

Gain 
 

39.55 dB
39.08 dB

Show text

Noise Handling 
 

7.0
6.8

SpNR  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Speech + Pink Noise  

Speech + Subway Noise  

SpNR 
 

20.74 dB
19.11 dB

Show text

Active Features

Battery 
 

8.5
9.2

Battery Type 
 

Rechargable
Rechargable

Continuous Battery Life 
 

21.2 hrs
30 hrs

Additional Charges 
 

0
0.0

Total Battery Life 
 

21.2 hrs
30 hrs

Charge Time 
 

2.23 hrs
2.1 hrs

Power-Saving Feature 
 

Yes
Auto-Off Timer

Audio While Charging 
 

Yes
Yes

Passive Playback 
 

No
Yes

Charging Port  

micro-USB
micro-USB

Show text

App Support 
 

6.0
6.0

App Picture  

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 App Picture
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 App Picture

App Name  

Plantronics Hub
Plantronics Hub

iOS  

Yes
Yes

Android  

Yes
Yes

macOS  

N/A
Yes

Windows  

N/A
Yes

Equalizer 
 

No
No

ANC Control 
 

No
No

Mic Control  

N/A
No

Room Effects 
 

No
No

Playback Control 
 

No
No

Button Mapping  

N/A
No

Surround Sound  

N/A

Surround Support 
 

No

Show text

Connectivity

Bluetooth 
 

8.9
8.7

Bluetooth Version 
 

4.0
4.0

Multi-Device Pairing 
 

2 Devices
2 Devices

NFC Pairing 
 

Yes
Yes

Line Of Sight Range 
 

237 ft
250 ft

PC Latency (SBC) 
 

195 ms
173 ms

PC Latency (aptX) 
 

169 ms
166 ms

PC Latency (aptX HD) 
 

N/A

PC Latency (aptX-LL) 
 

32 ms
34 ms

iOS Latency 
 

472 ms

Android Latency 
 

140 ms

Show text

Non-Bluetooth Wireless 
 

0.0
0.0

Non-BT Line Of Sight Range 
 

N/A
N/A

Non-BT Latency 
 

N/A
N/A

Wired 
 

9.5
9.5

Cable Picture  

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 Cable Picture
Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 Cable Picture

Analog Audio 
 

Yes
Yes

USB Audio 
 

No
No

Detachable  

Yes
Yes

Length  

4.92 ft
4.8 ft

Connection  

1/8" TRRS
1/8" TRS

Wired Latency 
 

0 ms

Analog/USB Audio Latency 
 

0 ms

Show text

PC / PS4 Compatibility 
 

PC/PS4 Analog 
 

Audio + Microphone
Audio Only

PC/PS4 Wired USB 
 

No
No

PC/PS4 Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

Xbox One Compatibility 
 

Xbox One Analog 
 

Audio + Microphone
Audio Only

Xbox One Wired USB 
 

No
No

Xbox One Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

Base/Dock 
 

0.0
0.0

Type 
 

N/A
No Base/Dock

USB Input 
 

N/A
No

Line In 
 

N/A
No

Line Out 
 

N/A
No

Optical Input 
 

N/A
No

RCA Input 
 

N/A
No

Dock Charging 
 

N/A
No

Power Supply 
 

N/A
No Base/Dock

Show text

Check Price

Standard
BackBeat PRO
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
BackBeat Pro 2
Searching
Finding store
 
Gray, SE
BackBeat Pro 2
Searching
Finding store

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014

Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016

Comments

  1. Comparison

Plantronics Backbeat Pro Wireless 2014 vs Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016: Main Discussion

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