Exclusive Interview: First Look at Beats by Dr.Dre

One of the most exciting announcements earlier this week came from Monster Cable as they released Beats by Dr. Dre. I was lucky enough to be the first person to attend a private listening session at the Monster Suite Sunday night where I got spend some time with the only pair of Beats available right now. This is the first product ever endorsed by Dr. Dre, who originally conceived the idea along with Jimmy Iovine, chairman of Interscope Greffen A&M Records. Both producers later teamed up with Monster to execute their vision.

Robert Brunner, who designed the iPhone Station displayed at CES, is also responsible for the sleek design of Beats, all the way from the wide glossy headband to the sleek carrying case. The look and sound of Beats is like nothing you've ever seen or heard before. One of my favorite features and one I haven't seen in other headphones, was a button that allows you to mute the sound so that you don't have to take them off when someone's talking to you. I was really blown away by the sound produced by these high-end headphones, and absolutely love the way they completely cover your ears to block out ambient noise.

I got the inside scoop from Little Monster Kevin Lee, in an exclusive interview where he tells me it took them two years to perfect the rich, clear sound produced by Beats because they wanted the consumer to experience music they way it was meant to be heard. As a matter of fact, Dr. Dre himself is quoted as saying, "I spend a lot of time in the studio listening to my music through headphones...with Beats, people are finally going to hear it the way they should: the way I do."

Check out my exclusive interview with Kevin Lee here, to get a first look at Beats by Dr. Dre. They'll be available in the spring 2008, and retail for $399.95.