How We Research
We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
If you want a replacement cable built specifically for Beats headphones — with a straight and an L-shaped plug, inline mic and remote, and a tangle-free TPU jacket — choose Asobilor Replacement Audio Cable; if you need a 2.5mm-to-3.5mm cable for Bose or JBL headphones with a 135-degree angled jack and a longer 5-foot run, choose Mr Rex 2.5mm.
• Asobilor's biggest strength: it is a true Beats replacement cable — 3.5mm to 3.5mm, two male plugs (one straight, one L-shaped), inline mic and control, and a 1.4m tangle-free TPU cord.
• Asobilor's biggest trade-off: it is a 3.5mm-to-3.5mm cable, so it will not fit headphones that use a 2.5mm jack, and it does not ship with a cable tie.
• Mr Rex's biggest strength: it converts a 2.5mm headphone jack to a standard 3.5mm source, with an inline mic and volume control, a 5-foot length, a Velcro strap, and a 135-degree angled 3.5mm plug to reduce wear.
• Mr Rex's biggest trade-off: it is not built for Beats headphones, and it explicitly does not fit Sennheiser or Audio-Technica models.
• Pick Asobilor for Beats Studio, Solo, Pro, Mixr, Executive, Wireless or Pill+ gear.
• Pick Mr Rex for Bose 700 / QC45 / QC35II / QC35 / QC25, JBL E-series and Everest/Tune/Live models, or AKG Y-series headphones.
This is a Beats-specific replacement cable, and it knows it. The two ends are both 3.5mm male jacks — one straight, one L-shaped — which is exactly the layout Beats headphones expect. The L-shaped end is the one that goes into the headphone cup, where a straight plug would stick out awkwardly and take more abuse. The straight end goes into your phone, laptop or controller.
What it does best is stand in for a lost or damaged factory cable. The build is oxygen-free copper with 24K gold-plated contacts, wrapped in a soft TPU jacket that the listing describes as tangle-free and durable. Practically speaking, that jacket matters more than the marketing: a cable that resists kinking is a cable that survives being stuffed in a bag every day. The 1.4m length is the sweet spot for pocket-and-phone use — long enough to move your head, short enough not to snag on door handles.
The inline mic and control are the reason most people buy this. On a wired Beats headphone, that little pod on the cable is what turns a listening device into a calling device — hands-free calls, plus play/pause and track control without touching your phone. If you take calls on the train or in a shared office, that is the whole point.
Who should buy it: anyone with Beats Studio, Solo, Solo HD, Solo 2, Solo 3, Wireless, Mixr, Pro, Detox, Executive or Studio 2.0/3.0 headphones who has lost or frayed the original cable, and who wants the inline remote back. It also lists compatibility with the Beats Pill+ speaker and a long list of older phones — iPhone 3GS through 6 Plus, Galaxy Note 2/3, S3 through S6, and LG models — via the 3.5mm jack.
Who should skip it: anyone whose headphones have a 2.5mm port. This cable will not fit them, and no adapter is included. Also skip it if you want a cable tie in the box — there isn't one. And if you own Sennheiser or Audio-Technica headphones, this is not aimed at you at all.
Mr Rex solves a different problem. A lot of premium headphones — Bose's noise-cancelling line especially, plus much of JBL's and AKG's — use a 2.5mm jack in the ear cup instead of the standard 3.5mm. That is a smaller plug, and a normal aux cable physically will not fit. This cable's 2.5mm end goes into the headphone; the 3.5mm end goes into whatever you're listening from.
What it does best is make a 2.5mm headphone behave like a normal wired headphone. The 3.5mm end carries the inline mic and volume control, and Mr Rex lists it as working with a wide spread of sources: Samsung Galaxy S20/S10/S9/S8 and Note 10/9/8/7, iPhone XR/XS/X/8/7 and older, Motorola, LG, TCL phones, PS4 and Xbox controllers, computers and laptops. Note the obvious caveat in the listing itself: if your phone has no 3.5mm port, you'll need a Lightning or USB-C to 3.5mm adapter.
The design details are where this cable earns its keep. The 5-foot (1.5m) length is noticeably longer than a typical stock cable, which is genuinely useful when your source is a laptop on a desk or a console across the room. There's a Velcro strap for cable management — a small thing that stops the cable from becoming a knot in your bag. The connectors and the mic control box are wrapped in zinc alloy, which reads as more substantial than plain plastic. The 3.5mm plug sits at a 135-degree angle, which the listing frames as reducing tear and wear in heavy daily use — the logic being that an angled plug takes stress off the joint instead of levering against it. The 2.5mm plug is described as snug.
Who should buy it: Bose 700, QuietComfort QC45, QC35II, QC35 and QC25 owners; JBL E45BT, E50BT, E55BT, E65BTNC, Everest, Tune, Live and Synchros owners; AKG Y400/Y500/Y50BT/Y45BT/Y600NC owners. Basically, anyone with a 2.5mm jack who wants a longer cable with a mic.
Side-by-Side: Which Should You Choose?
• Best for Beats headphones → Asobilor. It's built around the Beats 3.5mm-to-3.5mm layout, including the L-shaped cup-side plug.
• Best for Bose / JBL / AKG with a 2.5mm port → Mr Rex. A 3.5mm cable physically cannot do this job.
• Best for cable length → Mr Rex. 5 feet versus Asobilor's 1.4m (roughly 4.6 feet) — a real difference if your source sits across a desk.
• Best for durability hardware → Mr Rex, on paper: zinc alloy casing on the connectors and mic box, a 135-degree angled 3.5mm jack, and a Velcro strap included.
• Best for a spare-plug layout → Asobilor, which gives you one straight and one L-shaped 3.5mm jack so the cup-side connection sits flush.
• Best for gaming controllers and laptops → Mr Rex, which explicitly lists PS4, Xbox controllers, computers and laptops among compatible sources.
• Best for hands-free calls → both. Each has an inline mic and control; the difference is which headphone jack they fit, not whether they can take a call.
• Best warranty terms → Asobilor, which states a 12-month warranty and after-sales support by email.
In my opinion, this decision comes down to one number, and it isn't a price: the size of the jack in your headphone. If your headphones use a 3.5mm port and they're Beats, I'd buy the Asobilor — it's the correct part, the dual-plug layout matches the original, and the 12-month warranty gives you something to fall back on. If your headphones use a 2.5mm port, the Mr Rex is the one I'd buy, and I'd take it over a generic aux cable because of the angled 3.5mm plug, the zinc alloy housing and the extra length. Don't overthink it: match the jack, and the rest follows.
It's a small microphone built into a pod on the headphone cable itself, rather than into the ear cup. Both cables here have one, along with a control button, so you can take calls and control playback without reaching for your phone. It only works while the cable is plugged in.
Plug the 3.5mm end into your PC's headphone or combo jack, and the other end into your headphones. Mr Rex specifically lists computers and laptops among compatible sources, and Asobilor's 3.5mm jack is a standard auxiliary connection. If your PC has separate mic and headphone sockets, you may need a splitter, since these are single-plug cables.
No. Asobilor is a 3.5mm-to-3.5mm cable aimed at Beats models, while Bose QC25, QC35, QC35II and QC45 use a 2.5mm jack in the ear cup. For those, the Mr Rex 2.5mm-to-3.5mm cable is the correct match.
It isn't designed for them. Mr Rex is built for 2.5mm-jack headphones such as Bose QuietComfort and 700, JBL E-series and AKG Y-series, and its listing notes it does not fit Sennheiser or Audio-Technica. For Beats, go with the Asobilor instead.
Whichever one matches your headphones, check the current price on Amazon before you commit — the button on this page will take you there.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.
When you buy through links on this page, we may earn a commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.
Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon or its affiliates. This site is an independent third-party review and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Amazon or the product brands mentioned.
See also: SUYUZREY Headphones vs URBAN SWING W2-LITE: Durable Wired, Philips Pro vs vibeadio Upgrade Pro‑level Hybrid, StitchGreen M41 vs Hello Kitty Light Up Headphones, SIMOLIO Manyshare vs APETOO USB C Headphones