Shure SRH440 Impression - Page 2

So, I'll be posting another impression, but this time of the Sony MDR-XB700. The reason why I included this graph is that I got the chance to listen to the Bose Quiet Comfort 15 and was very impressed by the quality of sound. "My Will" by Dream sounded much better to my ears than on the Shure SRH440. The bass was full and warm and suffered no distortion. The high trebles and highs were not elevated but not recessed at the same time, which lent itself to an amazing listening experience.

The Bose had exactly the sound I was looking for, after I equalized it a little (and I really mean just a little, a 31, 62, and 125 Hz boost and it was perfect). Comparing the frequency response of the Bose to the XB700, I can't wait for them to arrive because the XB700 has even more bass than the Bose. Although, you can see that the frequency response of the XB700 dips below the competition around 1 KHz, but that's perfect for me because I end up lowering that portion when listening to music through the Shure SRH440.

As for the DT 770, it's included in there for all you BD fans, which I've never tried but I have heard that it's bass is superior to the XB700 (most reviews and impressions use amps, I want to know how they sound from an unamped, unequalized source). Frequency response is only 1 part of the whole picture of sound quality. Headphones can have identical frequency response, but completely different sound. So, I'm just hoping for the best.

Well, my source isn't the best but I checked to make sure the music I was listening to was recorded decently. I'm listening to my music unamped though. Also I like a lot more bass than most people XD, and these headphones can't come close to that amount without distortion (I might be a basshead, I won't really know until I try the MDR-XB700).

He has a point though. A lot of J-Pop, regardless of how high the sound quality, is brick walled. In my next review, I will make sure not to compare the three headphones (MDR-XD200, MDR-XB700, and SRH440) on any of my brick walled songs. But most of my songs, and I think all of my favorites, aren't brick walled. Susumu Hirasawa's songs are of high quality, and the MDR-XD200 sounded much better to my ears than the SRH440 in terms of bass presence and clarity. Even in "Tank!" the MDR-XD200 did a better job handling the bass (by bass, I mean both the sound and instrument) notes in the beginning.

So, it varies from the recording quality of the song, but overall, the Shure SRH440's can't handle a large amount of bass without distortion regardless of the quality of the song.

I don't know if it's faulty or not, mainly because I don't know if they are supposed to sound any different. They don't crackle or pop or anything, they just don't have the "boom" bass (as opposed to "pop" bass) that I find enjoyable, like my MDR-XD200's did.

Recieved my MDR-XB700 . Right out of the box, the bass is in your face and controlled. The reviewers were right, there is no distortion at high volumes. I'm hoping it will loosen up a little a bit with some burn-in. They beat the pants of the Bose QuietComfort 15 so far.