Shure SRH440 - Impressions - Page 3

 

Shure SRH 440 DJ headphones

Current Price:  99$ Headphone.com

 

Specifications:

• Cord Length: 10 ft. (3 m)
• Detachable Cable: Yes
• Driver Type: Dynamic
• Impedance @ 1kHz: 44
• Weight: 272 grams w/o cable
• Isolation: -12dB ~ -16dB
• Ear Coupler Type: Full-Size
• Headphone Type: Full Size
• Acoustic Seal: Closed
• Cord Type: Coiled Left-Side
• Coupler Size: Large
• Manufacturer Warranty: 2 years
• Sensitivity: 105 dB/mW

 

Curves (this sounds cheeky J)

 

Equipment used:

Computer FLAC ----> DAC (AMB Gamma 1) ----> DOZ class A headphone driver

Comparisons Sony MDR v7506, HD280 Pro, Borrowed DT100 Beyer dynamic

Burn-in: Sine sweep 0Hz--36Khz 1.06 V peak-to-peak 20 Hours + 10 hours random music 

 

Comfort:

1.) Pad pressure is quite comfortable not to strong and neither to lose.

2.) Ear cushions nice and comfortable however not quite sweat resistant does get a little hot in there.

3.) Headband prevents them to feel heavy although they are 272 grams.

 

Build and Durability:

1.) Detachable cable with lock, quite a nice feature considering the price. Locks well and is quite sturdy.

2.) Headband needs a cushion; it would help for long hours of use.

3.) Flexible and rugged although I don’t like cables to be exposed (it’s happened with my Sony MDR’s the                             cable got stuck in the clamps and almost broke.)

4.) Coiled cable with strain relief and is surprisingly quite springy not in a good way.

 

Sound quality:

                AMPED

1. High’s could be better but considering the price as for other competitors they are quite crisp with detail and a bit harsh for me.

2.) Mid’s is where this can shines, clear accurate and with great impact the HD280 pro has a stronger focus on the bass and clearly the SRH440 is clear winner considering the Mid’s

3.) Low’s good with clarity but as for impact and delay the cans could do better. HD280 has a better base response with more punch and energy.

 

                UN-AMPED

At an impedance of 44 Ohms and with a sensitivity of 105dB/mW these work well with portable players however don’t expect Boombastic base as they somewhat die out on the lower side of the spectrum. Other than that mid range is good and highs are crisp and lose out a little on detail.

 

Sound stage:

1.) Imaging: considering these are closed back they suffer on imaging with classical and instrumental music.

2.) Accuracy: Quite good, Mid’s and High’s are clear but as for the bass, the need little more juice is always felt.

3.) Localization: for closed back design, localization is somewhat poor but for techno and dubstep genre music these would perform great with each beat precise and well localized.

 

Isolation: Good but against the MDR7506 the isolation could be better but its more of balance of isolation and comfort the MDR's have a much higher clamping force and not so good ear pads.

 

Verdict: At 99$ I consider them a steal for their price.

 

Pros: Price, functionally, clear mids and clear but not punchy bass

Cons: Headband could use a cushion, a little harsh for me on the High’s and needs more impactful bass.

 

Who should buy: Someone looking for a closed back all-round performer and functionality with more emphasis on new age electronic style music.

 

Who should not buy: someone looking for cans with good sound stage and a more colorful performance. (Most probably an open back design will be good for them)

 

Hope this is helpful.

 

Rohan

 

 

 

My Xmas present to myself last year was a new pair of phones. I auditioned a number of different cans (we're a bit limited here in Australia) and at one shop I got a chance to A/B the 440s and 840s alongside the Senn HD380s. The 380s sounded great with rock music but their unnatural presentation of strings left a lot to be desired and the piano sound was just unlistenable. For someone whose music includes more than 50% of piano music this was a major factor. I then did the 440/840 comparo. Some here have commented on the Shure family sound signature and while this is a valid point the two sets of cans have some significant differences (to my ears anyway. The 440s have a slightly coarser sound that lends it self to rock music a bit better than the 840s and the bass presentation seems to have just a little bit more oomph but this is minor. When I listened to the likes of Level 42, Peter Gabriel's "So" and 'Yello' I marginally preferred the 440s. However, where the music required more clarity and a wider soundstage the 840s were a no brainer and I went for them despite them being more than double the price. That aside, if my budget had been limited even further I would have been reasonably happy with the 440s.

Hi, looking for a pair to use in my college dorm...

 

Do these leak/bleed out sound? I don't want my room mate to hear what I'm listening to.

Are they better than the Beats Solo HD in terms of comfort, build quality, and sound?

 

Thanks

Yes, yes and definitely yes.  The SRH440 isolate pretty well and more importantly do not leak sound,  The only thing to note in regards to the Shures is that they are not bass heavy.  The bass response is well controlled and textured no bloom or bloat.

comfort vs beats i would have some issues but anyways for the money the SRH440 are great!

a friend of mine brought these over and i've been listening for a couple of hours, i dont have much experience with cans, but compared to my ue tf10's there is more soundstage, but i think i agree with the others that the mids and highs were not as tight. thanks for everyone's thoughts!

Hi,

I also bought a srh440 a couple of weeks ago, really great headphone; nothing bad to say about it.

Right now I'm using it directly with my Ipod Touch (4G), should I better use it with a amp? And will a Fiio e5 be suffuciant or should I go for a stronger one?

Thanks
Inertia

Hi all

I recently got this headphones after searching what suits for me quite some time... I compare it side by side with Audio Technica M50, Shure SRH840, Marshall Major FX. The first out from the competition is the Marshall. They are too aggresive and too forward for me, perfect for rock and heavy metal though. But since I like clear and clarity sound better, this pretty headphone got to go...

Three remaining contender are competing hard... But then again Audio Technical has to be left out, although I admit it delivers excelent sound. But somehow I prefer the Shure's sound signature better. Now, only 2 remains and all of them are Shure.
In my opinion the sound difference is not that great between two of them, which justify the price different. With price almost half of its big brother, Shure SRH 440ended up in my shopping bag...after 2 hours of listening music, almost 20 songs from various genre screaming from my iPod touch finally I went home happy....

Burned it for almost 30 hours now, and let me tell you that I'm very satisfied with it...

Thanks,
Andri J

I mainly use 440s on my PC for games, hooked up to a FiiO E7 / E9 combo.  My computer is kind of loud, so I really appreciate the sealed / closed design on the Shure headphones.  I'm really happy with the sound.  Detail and positioning are great. 

 

I've spent tons of time with Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl and Stalker: Clear Sky.  In both cases I use the Complete mod, which does change the audio.  The ambience and atmospher are just top notch.  And the bass, wow.  Like others have said, the 440s might not boost the bass, but what is there is deep and strong.  There is a background bass rumble in this game that I haven't heard with my other headphones.  

 

edit

 

rohan575- that is the exact review that convinced me to try the 440s :)

Edited by Penarin - 5/15/12 at 7:13am

I just put extra padding on my SRH440 to make them more comfortable. I use these at work with an Ipod Classic & HiFiman 101. I also did the "Foam Plug" mod, http://www.head-fi.org/t/456493/shure-srh440-foam-plug-mod . That seem to open the soundstage wider and add a little more bass. These are very good stock headphones, but I feel these mods are definite improvements. I'm thinking of replacing the earpads with the SRH840 pads.