When Blue, a company known for modern takes on retro microphones, released its first pair of headphones last year - the Blue Mo-Fi ) - it raised a few eyebrows. The Mo-Fi are unlike any other headphones on the market, with a steampunk-inspired design, hinges where you wouldn't expect them, and a...

Excellent audio performance with plenty of bass depth and solid articulation throughout the frequency range; Unique, comfortable, secure-fitting design; Ships with two removable cables, one with inline remote and mic

Very bulky; Headphones can feel heavy over long listening periods; Not ideal for on-the-go listening

When Blue, a company known for modern takes on retro microphones, released its first pair of headphones last year—the Blue Mo-Fi )—it raised a few eyebrows. The Mo-Fi are unlike any other headphones on the market, with a steampunk-inspired design, hinges where you wouldn't expect them, and a built-in amplifier for powerful, sculpted sound. With the $249.99 Lola, Blue is offering a relatively streamlined take on the Mo-Fi for $100 less. The headband here is (ever-so-slightly) redesigned, and there's no internal amp. The Lola sounds almost much exactly like the Mo-Fi in passive mode, which is a good thing. Good enough, in fact, to earn our Editor's Choice award, just like its predecessor. DesignYou would be forgiven for taking one look at the Lola—which is available in black or white—and thinking it is the Mo-Fi. The headphones differ only slightly on the visual front. The Mo-Fi has a knob you can turn to adjust the tension of the headband. It's an interesting touch, but one the Bl...

The Blue Lola headphones offer excellent audio performance and a supremely secure fit wrapped up in a unique design.

Excellent audio performance with plenty of bass depth and solid articulation throughout the frequency range; Unique, comfortable, secure-fitting design; Ships with two removable cables, one with inline remote and mic

Very bulky; Headphones can feel heavy over long listening periods; Not ideal for on-the-go listening

If the white is a bit much for you, the Lola is also available in black. We optimized every aspect of Lola's design for performance-from large 50mm premium drivers, to huge enclosures that maximize the volume of air around the drivers.

Same comfortable style as the more expensive Blue Mo-Fi Headphones (but lighter); Exquisite and rich sound; Extremely comfortable ear cups; Distinctive design; Comfortable headband; Ear cups fold down to comfortably fit on your shoulders when you aren't using them

Not really portable enough for travel; but that hasn't stopped me

The new Blue Lola headphones do a lot of things right, but it's still hard to say who exactly they're for.

Good sound; Really comfortable; Great noise isolation

Big and bulky

The Good Outstanding, well-balanced sound Perfect fit for any head Long, flat cords Great noise isolation The Bad Weighty No Bluetooth option A little over a year ago, I wrote a rave review of Blue Microphones' first-ever headphones, called the Mo-Fi . A year later, I am still loving them.

Outstanding; well-balanced sound; Perfect fit for any head; Long; flat cords; Great noise isolation

Weighty; No Bluetooth option

I reviewed Blue Microphones ' first entry into the headphone market, the $349 Mo-Fi, in November 2014. Since then the Mo-Fi has continued to garner favorable press, but there were several areas where I felt the Mo-Fi could have been improved.

Bu-bump … Bu-bump … Bu-bump … The album opened with a heartbeat-a speaker tester of a heartbeat. If I cranked the volume high enough, all kinds of distortion could happen. But it didn't.

Comfortable; Powerful; yet accurate bass; Unusual looking; Complicated head-tensioner gone; Lack of amp not as big of a deal as expected

Unusual looking; Not ideal for commuting; No amp included

Blue traditionally is known for their quality microphones, but last year, they introduced the Mo-Fi headphones to much acclaim for their sound quality, comfort, and clarity. While the Mo-Fi were active headsets using integrated powered amplifiers, Blue has come out with an unpowered version called...

Sometimes it makes sense to reinvent the wheel. Some things should be reworked, reimagined, or rebooted. Blue, a company known for their excellent microphones, believed that headphones were one of those things ready for a reinvention.…

Paring down a product to its essentials can result in either a sleek, refined look or a missing critical component (or both). The Blue Lola headphones ($250) are a bit of both.

Offbeat design; Excellent treble sound; Reasonably comfortable

So-so bass and percussion; Subpar microphone; iOS focus leaves out many machines