Outdoor Technology DJ Slims

Not unlike many of the headphones offered by, say, Skullcandy, Outdoor Technology's designs have a certain extreme sports aesthetic. The company's logo is a silhouette of a Yeti-like creature, and it appears prominently on the thick headband for the eye-catching DJ Slims. At $69.95 (direct), I admittedly didn't have super-high expectations for the DJ Slims' audio performance, but the Bluetooth-streaming headphones offer surprising quality in this price range. Ease-of-use (as both headphones and a headset for wireless phone calls), an outdoor-friendly design, and comfort are all added bonuses. But the flashy design?which even features a flashing indicator light when paired?won't appeal if you want to blend in, whether outdoors or on, say, public transportation.

Design
Like the SOL Republic Tracks ($99.99, 4 stars), the DJ Slims' most obvious design trait is its wide, flat headband. Offered in black, white, or blue, the DJ Slims' headband has a matte rubberized finish, and the same twistable, but seemingly unbreakable build. As the company name suggests, these headphones are designed to be worn outdoors, so they can take a little bit of a beating and some dirt, but they're not waterproof. The rectangular foam earpads look a little flimsy, but the DJ Slims are not exactly priced like a luxury headphone, and when you put them on, you won't care?they're extremely comfortable, and the supra-aural (on-ear) design doesn't cause fatigue over long listening sessions. A significant level of audio will bleed out, however, since the earpads create no seal around the ears.

On the right ear, there is a control pad, with a multi-function button in the middle that serves as the Power button, as well as the control for pairing and call-answering and -ending. Four controls surrounding it raise or lower the volume, or skip tracks forward or backward. It's easy to operate these buttons blindly, but at first, you might find yourself skipping when you intend to raise the volume. The microphone is located on the underside edge of the right ear, next to the jack for the power cable. A USB charging cable is included, but no AC adapter, which means you can't charge the DJ Slims without a computer or USB charger handy.

The blinking blue light on the right ear, an indicator that the DJ Slims are properly paired, is a bit annoying, but not to you, since you will rarely see it. And if you happen to be in the great outdoors using the DJ Slims at dusk or later, the blinking light strikes me as a fine announcement to the natural world of your presence. Other than smitten fireflies coming over to investigate, I doubt it would cause any real issues?it just seems like an unnecessary design element.

Performance
From an audio performance standpoint, the DJ Slims offer far better sound than I expected for its modest price. There's a nice low frequency response that doesn't distort, even on deep bass tracks, at least until you reach maximum volume on both your sound source and the headphones?and even then, this distortion is subtle enough that it isn't very noticeable. Plenty of headphones can't handle the deep bass of The Knife's "Silent Shout" at high volumes, but this was not an issue for the DJ Slims. Only at a completely maxed-out volume did we encounter a hint of distortion. You shouldn't be listening at this volume anyway, so it's not a huge problem, particularly when you factor in the budget price.

On classical tracks, like John Adams' "The Chairman Dances," the bass response adds a bit of depth to the lower register strings and percussion, while the overall frequency response provides an articulate listening experience?not overly bright, never muddy, and generally fairly clear. Bill Callahan's vocals on his most recent record, Apocalypse, are both crisp and resonant here. Those familiar with higher-end headphones won't mistake the DJ Slims for a flat-response pair, but for $70, they sound fantastic?and it's easy to forget that you're listening to a Bluetooth stream.

The pairing process is a piece of cake?I hooked up an iPhone 4S in a matter of seconds. Like most Bluetooth headsets, the range is about 30 feet, but it's possible to encounter some dropout before then. If the phone is in your pocket or backpack, however, this seems very unlikely?we didn't have any dropout issues within 20 feet. Call clarity is not magnificent, but cell phone calls rarely are, and the microphone is placed well enough so that your call partner can understand you?though outdoors, the wind can wreak a bit of havoc. Outdoor Technology claims the DJ Slims should get 8-9 hours of audio playback on a full charge, and the headphones take about three hours to fully charge.

It's a rare thing for such an affordable pair to offer such quality audio, Bluetooth or wired. Still, if you want better audio performance, the wireless Phiaton PS 20 BT ($149, 4 stars) sounds great, adding a bit more clarity and low-end presence than the DJ Slims possess. This comes at a higher price, however, and with a slightly annoying shirt clip compartment. Very few in-ear stereo Bluetooth headsets offer quality audio without a shirt-clip compartment to house the Bluetooth receiver, but Sony's XBA-BT75 ($299.99, 3.5 stars) do. Of course, that's a lot to pay for a Bluetooth pair when there are perfectly serviceable options like the DJ Slims out there. If you're on a budget, want quality audio performance, and don't mind the design, the DJ Slims are a great value.

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