CES 2017

As you might know, Blue Microphones makes microphones. Really good microphones, actually. The company also makes some darn nice headphones. The newest members of the family are Ella and Sadie, along with Satellite.

The Ella headphone uses premium planar magnetic drivers along with an onboard custom, built-in amplifier rated at 250mW. The drivers measure an impressive 50mm x 50mm. Ella is handmade in small quantities to ensure quality and retails for $700; it will be available in January.

Sadie uses a somewhat more conventional design that improves on the company's Mo-Fi technology, and also includes a custom, built-in amplifier; it retails for $400 and will be available in January. Both headphones feature a four-point, multi-jointed headband with pivoting arms for a more comfortable fit. Somewhat uniquely, the earcups are shaped like ears; this is said to provide a superior seal for improved isolation and more accurate bass reproduction.

Blue also showed its new Satellite headphone; it is a wireless model with a built-in amplifier and two separate pairs of drivers. One driver set is dedicated to noise-cancelling functionality; most competitors' models use the same drivers for both music playback and cancellation. The independent music drivers measure 44mm. The headphone also offers foldable construction, Bluetooth 4.1 and Apt-X connectivity. Pricing for the Satellite has not been announced; the headphone will be available later in 2017.