Headroom has skullcandy headphones... and is singing their praises? - Page 3

How precocious.

Hey man, drop the ma'am. So all your frustration is for the greater good of mankind? How noble

Thanks. I'll try to keep those salutations in mind.

Also, I don't think it's noble. I don't know, just a weird attitude of mine.

The first time I saw the new site I was not happy, but I quickly changed my mind. I hope headroom makes a lot more money and becomes really successful so they have greater buying power and can give better deals on the gear I actually want to buy. The only thing I would be mad about is if they stopped selling high-end stuff.

Well ... when comparing apples to oranges, one number doesn't really do the issue justice.

For starters, the KSC 75 is a clip-on and the G75LW is a behind the neck.

Secondly, let's imagine we're recommending headphones for a skateboarder and a lady executive.

The KSC-75is somewhat better sounding, but the Sony is surprisingly good. Look how closely they measure:




Now, for the sk8er, there's no doubt the KSC75 is the somewhat better value: sounds better, fits better under a helmet or beenie, half the price.

But what about our lady executive? The Sony is way better looking; the price is a non-issue; it's got a retractable cord and folds neatly so it stores in her purse without tangle; and she just uses it to listen to Oprah's podcast when she goes powerwalking during her lunch break. She would 'value' the Sony far more than the Koss.

So ... YES ... for the right customer, the Sony is just as good a value as the Koss.

Remember, not everybody has the values of a headphone enthusiast.

One thing everyone (including me) is going to have to come to terms with here, is the it's NOT all about sound quality for everybody. And that's what we're trying to figure out: how to portray the value of headphones to the wide variety of people out there --- it's not easy.




That's a tougher one.

I think they suck.

But, Jorge tells me when you walk around campus up at MSU, lots of folks have them. So they're popular; lots of kids want them should we avoid the money we might make if we offer them? Obviously, that would be dumb. The question becomes, how hard are we gonna try to discourage people from pushing the buy button on what they came to buy to try to convince them to buy something else?

Over time we'll develop subtle ways to "damn with feint praise" and steer people to better performing cans; that's gong to take time to figure out. Until then I guess you're just going to have to forgive us for trying to survive and thrive as we advocate for good headphone listening for the broader buying public.

Or not.

I guaranty you though:

1. We've not forgotten what got us here.
2. Change is hard.

I agree, practicality is a factor many ignore when talking about cans. My Grado SR80s (over $100CAD and my usual walking around town cans) often get left behind for JVC Marshmallows ($much lessCAD)for bus use - simply due to size, more flexible cord and internal isolation (folks won't hear what I'm playing). External isolation I can care less about. If someone made a set of non-plug-type earbuds that were readily available (the only headphones I really tend to break, plug issues aside are buds/iems) and sounded good I'd go that route instead as they are much easier to insert/remove.

In other words, not worth anywhere near the $70 price premium over the cheaper model.

We'll be watching.

Well put. Certainly something I get reminded of when I hear: "you bought another pair of headphones?!?"

Believe it or not, it's that question coming from many angles and mouths that makes me think twice before getting another one. Perhaps, it's that voice of reason?

My experience is that the price of a pair of headphones dosen't have too much to do with how good it sounds.

That gotten a lot better over the last 20 years, but it's still true sometimes.

This has been my expeience for the most part. Sometimes, a pricier pair of headphones sounded worse than some less-expensive sets.

Yeah my wife uses that line alot too! Sometimes when she's putting on one pair of her 40 pairs of shoes