Headphone Buyer's Guide

[jgonino]

I just added the Alessando MS-1's and the AKG 271s to the list. I also corrected the spelling of Alessandro.

[Zephyron]

T^T^T^

Shin-SHORYUKEN!

Good thread, very helpful =3

[soundfreq]

been searching for this thread for the last 2 weeks. can we make this a sticky? newbies like me really find this thread very helpful. kudos to jgonino

[jgonino]

Thanks! I try to keep this thing updated. I am going to PM a Mod to see if we can get a sticky.

[soundfreq]

finally a sticky! thanks to jgonino and the mods!

[jgonino]

I finally realized something: If you want a sticky, ask! If a majority of the mods agree, it gets done.

Thanks guys!


Also: Any more additions or requests?

[Henryhk]

A couple of questions from a newbie. First do closed type phones leak less music out? In other words, if I want a headphone that will not disturb my significant other in bed, is closed type the way to go? I know IEMs work and I do have the Shure 500 but over time they can become a tad uncomfortable. Secondly if so, which ones generally fit easily and more comfortable? I know this is an individual thing, but is the one with a general rep for this? Should I look into the Ultrasone Edition 9 for example?

[soundfreq]

Originally Posted by Henryhk

A couple of questions from a newbie. First do closed type phones leak less music out? In other words, if I want a headphone that will not disturb my significant other in bed, is closed type the way to go? I know IEMs work and I do have the Shure 500 but over time they can become a tad uncomfortable. Secondly if so, which ones generally fit easily and more comfortable? I know this is an individual thing, but is the one with a general rep for this? Should I look into the Ultrasone Edition 9 for example?

i think that generally speaking, closed headphones leak less sound than their open counterparts, with all things being equal. this is because of the "housing" of the headphones. but don't be mislead, headphones leak, whether they be closed or open., but closed leak less. ymmv. i noticed it for myself. i chose a closed headphone as a complement to my open. yes, they leaked music outside, but to a lesser degree. but not completely so.

as for your other question, i for myself like to have circumaural headphones. they completely enclose your external ear (supposedly) and "rest" on the bony part of skull. depending on the size of your external ear, this for me provide greater comfort as there's no pressure on the ear, just on the skull. but after some time, people notice warmth, either from inside the cup if closed, or from prolonged pressure on the surrounding areas.

i've read a lot of posts regarding the ed9s, but i haven't seen one in real life, haven't heard one, and can't afford one at this time

[soundfreq]

another thing to consider about comfort is the tightness of the headband vs headsize. usually you can adjust the tightness as well as the size via the sliding mechanism at both ends of the headphones. but some have a general "tightness," take this as an example:

i have a senn hd650. at the smallest setting, i can actually put it on my head snugly on top but the pressure on my head coming from the sides is very uncomfortable. i have to adjust 3 clicks at the sides so that the pressure is not that great. with my d5k, with the smallest setting, it's still not tight for my comfort. so i have to bend the headband towards each other a little bit to adjust it to my liking.

[Henryhk]

thanks!

[gunbunnysoulja]

I noticed the Denon D2000 has it noted an amp is "recommended", and the Denon D5000 has it noted an amp is "required".

I am just curious as to why this may be, especially with both having an impedance of 25 ohms. I apologize to being a noob in the HP world. I asked for recommendations on AVS forum, in which it got narrowed to the D2000, D5000, and Sennheiser 650.

I want a good set of "all around" headphones, meaning very comfortable, great sound quality, and easy to drive. Would they D2000's be better off if I wanted to use the occasional portable device? Thanks in advance, and I hope I am not hijacking this thread.

[jgonino]

Skylab did a review on the D5000, and he said they really needed an amp. Plus, when you are spending that much on headphones, why would you want to use them outside? Most high end headphones are really better suited to home use with a full "rig" of sorts.

As for the impedance thing, low impedance does not always mean that the headphones are easy to drive. The biggest example is then AKG K701: It has a relatively low impedance, but is one of the hardest dynamic headphones to drive.

Also, the HD650 has a really high impedance, and needs an amp.



I think the d2000 would be a good choice, however it will sound better with an amp, even a portable one.

[gunbunnysoulja]

Thanks for the reply...

I do alot of traveling, especially on trains and such, so I would like to use the HP's while "on the go" as well as ALOT of home listening, when I feel like relaxing late at night and don't want speakers blasting.

My transport is the marantz SA8001, and my receiver is the Onkyo 805. I would like to completely bypass the 805 and connect directly to the 8001. I haven't done much research on HP amps, so I should probably start looking.

If the D2000's would be more capable with the ipod when traveling, I suppose that is the route I will take.

[jgonino]

I think you should post a thread looking for recommendations in the headphone forum. You will get a lot of other opinions there.

Based on the gear you listed, I think the D5000 might be a good choice after all. Again, you will get more opinions in a separate thread.

[gunbunnysoulja]

Will do, Thanks again!