Recommendations for Best headphones on the market (new and old) - Page 6

I'VE HEARD NOTHINg about the stax brand phones... i was just a little curious as to why? (not challenging anyone... i'm actually just curious.) man i was looking all over the place for the omega 2 007's or whatever they are... and they sound like they'd probably be the best for detail... the orpheus just had a more plush sound apparently... but the orpheus includes and amp... and what's up with that plug on the stax?

You must try Bang & Olufsen A8 earbud. It has both bite and air, a wide sound stage with a depth to match, sparkling treble, an authentic bass that does not cloud the other tonal ranges.

All my other portable phones are NO match for it, they include: Grado 60 (sounds remote, artificial and muddy), Senn MX500 (restrictive and muddy), Sony MDR-E484G (my first real earbud, an old love, but sounds likewise vague and lacking dynamic range in comparison), Sony MDR-D77 (B & O leaves D77 behind by a very comfortable margin, again lacking in transparency and out of focus).

I am still using Senn HD560 Ovation at home, bought 10 years ago. I believe HD600 will be a big improvement. Likewise also want to try out Sony MDR-3000CD and the little Etymotic. But a Stax will be the ideal phone, the only problem is money.

I use Sony D-777, produced at a time when sound quality matters, not anti-shock seconds or battery usage, which now seem to dominate the ads. What a pity, marketing guys are taking over the show from engineers.

This thread is a recommendation thread for 'phones that go for $500 or less...so Staxs aren't going to make the cut unfortunately. The high pricetag Staxs carry is also why people aren't talking about them like a dime a dozen. They're not readily recommended either even if you have the budget for Staxs, if the rest of your system isn't ready for them.

What about earplugs??

I see everyone talking about headphones, but only one earplugs, the Ety's. I have the Sennhieser MX-300 and am really cnsidering purchasing new ones. Does anyone have any opinions as to which are the best earplugs/phones (other than Ety's, they are too expensive)?

to newrican:

Bang & Olufsen A8 earbud

To be honest, if I remember correctly, the member concensus on the A8 was overwhelmingly negative (at least in terms of value...) perhaps you should do a search.

B & O A8 can be bought on ebay for $100, plus shipping. This is to value. But is there any view as to sound quality?

Do a search and you'll find lots of threads about them like this one:
http://www4.head-fi.org/forums/showt...4&highlight=A8

it definitely depends..

on your taste..

if you can afford to spend money , sure go for the audiotecnica mod. ATH-A1000 . give a listen to them , i can easy say they best out senn. top phones and grado low end serie .they're a step forward for overall concept of musicality , where senn. are somewhat a little anonymous sounding and grado are limited in soundstage and provide a less " deep " experience of listening .

if you can spend few money , go for koss sporta pro . i think they 're the best among porta / sporta pro / ksc 35 , for they can be customized better then the other two . they're portable .
CONS : they 're a little mid-bass driven and monotone , you can easily discover that different type of music and instruments sound somewhat similar out of this headphones..they concentrate attention ( and "sound pressure" ) on mid-low to low freq. for everything ( voice music and all that come out from them ).

if you don't want portable cans and you want good cans for bargain price , go for sennn. 497 or , if you can find them , technics rf400- i've bought a pair of them for 30 $ , they're sound is full in frequency , musical , they're very conf. , deteile is not high as other mon. type cans but they're also detailed , they're neutral with a very good bass layout to support mids and high frq. ( not as the koss ksc 35 which tends somewhat to reduce the whole sound to a short set of mid- low frq ) freq. are well rapresented -go for them if you can find them ( not the rf-500 , they've got harsh high )

and .. what else ?
nothing .

I see the Senn's 580/600 mentioned here a lot. I have an older model Senns HD520. Where would they compare in there? And does anyone know where Philip's HP170 would rate compared to those?? Email is O.K. shkarst@webtv.net

You shouldn't think of getting a pair of Philips headphones they're not high end headphones.

Thanks for that last reply concerning the Philips. Yesterday evening, I decided just to order the replacement pads for my Senn. HD520. They just sound too phenomenal to me. And when I bought them, years ago, I didn't let my Wife know how much they were back then. And their sound hasn't deminished whats so ever.Their clarity, and low to mid frequency response is just totally there.

why are there not mini-reviews for the CD3000, CD1700, DT531, etc.? if you like a certain headphone, why not write a mini-review?

I will try to write a review on CD3000 and AT W1000. Both are similarly priced. I have owned Senn HD560 and MX500. I can well imagine the sound of HD600 now without owning it. HD600 has been called at some quarter the master of compromise. I believe it is an apt description. I also own Grado SR60, and I can also image what sort of sound its higher brothers will produce. In the end, I think if you prefer warm sound, you will either pick up Sony CD3000 or AT W1000. If you prefer analytical sound and dry sound, you would want to try out AKG K501 and its brothers.

Great headphones - AKG 501

Let me be right up front and say that my employer (and therefore I) can derive financial benefit from what I'm about to write. On the other hand, please know that I have been an AKG fan and user for over 25 years and I honestly believe that the AKG K 501 is a class-leading headphone.
The K 501 has audiophile sound--smooth mids, clean highs, accurate low end all very well integrated. There are no annoying colorations in any part of the audio spectrum with the K 501. The K 501 is very comfortable too--it has a genuine leather headband that takes the weight of the heaphone off my ears. The gimbal-suspended ear cups perfectly encircle my ears and I can wear them for hours without feeling like I've been wearing a football helmet. They aren't the most efficient 'phones on the market, but I can plug them into my computer or minidisc player and have enough level to please most anyone except rap/metal fans. As far as side-by-side comparisons I've done, the K 501 is far more detailed than the Sony MDR-7506 and V700DJ phones and has a better balance than the Sennheiser models. I know that good sound is very subjective, but for the music I listen to, what I like to hear, how I use the headphone and how comfortable it is, the K 501 is my pick.