Hello people! Bose Triport, Ultrasone DJ1 Pro, other recommendations?

[keysersoze311]

Hi guys, I'm brand new to the forum, a pleasure to be here, it seems surprisingly busy!

First of all, let me start by saying that I am definitely not an "audiophile". I am in the market for a new pair of headphones, primarily for listening to my iPod. I might store my music as lossless FLAC files, or I might use MP3, not too sure yet.

Now, I had a pair of Bose Triport headphones a few years ago, not the noise-cancelling ones, the more light-weight ones, they were blue in colour. Now they seem to be marketed as the "Bose around-ear headphones" on Bose's website.

I understand that Bose are actually pretty badly regarded, and seen as being over priced, but I've gotta say, I thought the sound quality on those headphones was sensational. Anyway they broke, and I haven't had a decent pair of cans for a few years now.

One headphone that has caught my eye is the Ultrasone DJ1 Pro - visually I just think they're very attractive. Would these be a better bet than buying Bose again? Any experience with the DJ1 Pros? I don't think I can find anywhere to demo them.

Even better, do you have any other suggestions? I'm from the UK, and I guess my budget is around £250, though if I really felt it was worth it, I could spend more.

I don't see the need for a headphone amp or anything - as I say, I thought the sound quality on my original Bose Triports with iPod was outstanding.

Any input very much appreciated,

Cheers, Jake

[sadhanaputra]

Not to be rude, but I'd choose KSC75 over Bose anytime..

At the top of the Fullsize Headphone forum you'll find a stickied headphone recommendations thread. I suggest you start from there, and scour the internet for reviews on the headphone that catches your eyes the most

Oh.. And welcome to Head-Fi!
Sorry about your wallet..

Heck, I'm still sorry about mine..

[Maxvla]

Many people are going to have a hard time taking you seriously, but I'll give you some input.

Bose headphones generally do sound better than standard consumer junk, but they really are the Monster Cable of headphones, just barely better than Radio Shack, and with a marketing department to match (MC and Bose).

Another problem is picking out headphones by looks. Looks might be slightly important if you are wearing these out in public, but I would suggest not wearing £250 headphones in public, not only for the threat of theft/mugging, but general carelessness of others potentially causing damage to your headphones. Now everyone wants the best sound and if it looks cool that's great, but really looks need to take a back seat. We have people on this site using Stax headphones from the 70s that look like they are from a vintage sci fi show with huge plastic cabinets and pleather ear pads. They look horrible, but according to many (I haven't heard them) the sound is great and that is what is important.

If you like the look of the Ultrasone headphones I'd recommend researching the models in your price range: HFI 2200, PRO 650, PRO 750. As to other headphones, there are dozens of them in your price range and we'd need to know more about the type of sound or genre of music you like, also if you prefer closed/open regarding isolation/sound leakage, before we could suggest others.

If you are running this from an iPod I'd probably stay away from an amp also, but this is just personal preference. If you went with a better source like a laptop or cd player an amp would make more sense. In that thought, using an iPod, you'll want to stick with headphones that have lower impedance (ohms). Shoot for headphones that are less than 100 ohms, preferably 50 or less or you will have to turn up the volume near max and reduce your battery life significantly. My Zune needs to be at 18 of 20 to be normal volume for my 300ohm Sennheiser HD600, but the included earbuds need only 5-6 of 20. There are other factors, but a large portion is the impedance.

Take a minute to think about what exactly you are looking for as far as sound signature (big bass or tight bass, smooth highs or brighter revealing highs, more relaxed or more intimate forward sound) and also list the genres you listen to mostly like rock, classical, metal, etc.