I've seen plenty of threads on this subject, but none that quite answered my questions. I'm a newbie to the headphone world as I need a decent pair now that I'm going to college. I will be using them primarily to watch DVD's on my laptop (I'll be upgrading the soundcard soon to an M-Audio USB one), I'll also be listening to many different genre's of music. My main priority is movie sound though, but music comes in a close second. I am planning on buying a Xin super mini amp (I need something small), so I don't need to worry about running it ampless. The four cans I'm considering at the moment all in the same general price range are:

Sennheiser HD580
Sennheiser HD590
Beyer DT770
Beyer DT990

Which of these do you think would fit my needs best? Or are there any other suggestions in the same general price range?

for college and for movies i have to highly reccomend the sony v6/7506. just the right amount of isolation i think plus i love the detail and imaging i get with them while watching movies. plus i have a m-audio sonica theatre and i know that a v6 runs directly out of it just fine. (even though the supermini will help plenty)

Thanks goose. Are the MDR-V6 and MDR-7506 both the same headphone? Are these the same as the MDRV600's? I demoed those in the store next to Senn HD590's and I prefered the HD590's over the those ones, the 590's seemed to "disappear" easier when I closed my eyes. Comfort is also a pretty big issue with me too, and the HD590's won hands down.

no they are not the same as the v600s. i don't know too much about the 590s but i do know they're more comfortable than the v6/7506. i still find my v6s comfy even if some people don't. if there's a guitar center near you that's probably the best place to try the 7506.

good luck with the search.

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V6 and 7506 are the same. And I guess V6 is one of the best choice!!!

The HD590 is my choice for movies, because of their natural soundstage. Also prefer their richer, less "spotlit" sound over that of the V6. I use the V6 for traveling, since it's smaller, closed and much more portable.

If you need isolation, the 590 won't work for you. But for isolation at the same price or less, you could find the Ultrasone HFI-650, Sennheiser HD280 Pro, and quite a few others; the cheapest good one is probably the V6, but it will have less soundstage for movies than almost any of these others.

Sony MDR-CD1700s... hands down

I'll echo the V6/7506 simply because they combine good sound quality with ease of driving, isolation, folding practicality, cost/performance and roadable robustness. You could not get a more perfect "first good phone".

I'd go with one of these three, if you're in a dorm with a roommate.
A-T A900
AKG K271
Ultrasone HFI-650
For closed cans, they're in the general price range of the 590's and offer isolation and they're all easy to drive.

The A900's are comfortable, like big pillows on your head, they're a pretty good all-rounder. Punchy and a lot of impact, though not as much as Grados. They have a big soundstage, a plus for movies or gaming. They don't offer as much isolation as the others, but it's enough to keep a roomie from wanting to kill you at 3am.

The K271's are more neutral than the a900 and have a LOT of isolation, they're made for studio use. They have a more laid back sound and reserved presentation, the soundstage is smaller than the AT's too. They have a very non fatiguing sound, you could wear these all day and your ears wouldn't mind. They're not as comfortable as the AT's, but they're not bad at all.

I haven't actually heard the HFI-650, but a lot of people here like them. Some say they're very detailed and compare them favorably withother good cans. Others complain about comfort and listening fatiuge.

If you want a true immersion experience, that is to say, that you want to be surrounded by sound effects and such, seal off some of the outside noises, and have a pair of cans that are easy to drive: look no further than the Sony CD3000. They make listnening to movies an incredible experience. They can place sound effects above, below, and behind you like no other can can. The V6s, which I also own, aren't super comfortable, don't come close to the soundstage of their bigger brother, and the bass is a bit overdone.

If the budget doesn't include enough money for the CD3K, then the V6 is a good option at well under $100. Another good option are the Audio Technica A900s that psyco1 mentioned.

I'll toss in votes for the Ultrasone HFI-650 or the Sony CD1700s. The CD3000s are certainly well above the aforementioned price range, but both of the ones I listed are in the price range. The CD1700s are hard to find, though, so you'd have to do a WTB on the gear board or perhaps get in contact with someone in the UK. I have the 3000s, and they are indeed excellent. I've heard similar, favorable things about the 1700s. Most of the HFI-650 reviews I've read have been favorable for this type of use.

I might not recommend the Senns because isolation is generally helpful for movie listening.

Hey first off, thanks all for your help, I'm so happy I found this forum. After lots more reading and looking into all the suggestions, I think I've narrowed it down to about 3 choices:

Beyer DT770
A-T A900
AKG K271

I don't want to go with any Sony's because I've never been satified with any Sony product they've made within the past 10 years or so for the money I put into it (please don't start debating this in this thread now!) I do think that the closed back is a good idea for the dorm though, thanks for the suggestion on that. And I think I'll miss the Senn's clarity for classical, there's nothing wrong with picking up another set of 'phones down the road now is there?

I'm probably leaning more towards the DT770's because they seem to fit all my needs the best. Comfort, overall good sound, bass that will be closer to my home Paradigm PS-1000 sub, all for a little shy of $100 on eBay or here. Would the super-mini be sufficient to power these though? Or would you all recommend a Meta42 for <$140 to be a better option? Thanks again for all your help already!

From what I understand with the 770's, the more power, the better.

skywalker,

If you get the Beyer 770s make sure to get the right pair. I fyou have a big head, get the non-pro version. If you have a normal sized head go for the pro version. To my recollection that is the only difference between the two cans.


Sorry about the bum steer with the CD3K reco. They aren't that much higher and I wanted to throw them out since you wanted some additional inputs.

I use my HD590's HD280Pro and PX100's for movies depending on my mood and what I'm watching... But all of the above work very well