I finally came to my senses.

I tried the B&W P5s for three weeks in July but returned them after I tried the HD650s. I couldn't hear all the instruments with the P5s, but with the HD650, the instruments became distinct. The sound was fuller. The P5s hurt my ears after half an hour (wear glasses). No ear pain with the HD650s and I listen for hours at a time. The sound and comfort of the HD650s was much better than the P5s.

 

By the way, my source is my Macbook Pro, Dacport, Matrix M-Stage. The HD650 sound great with this gear. I also have a Nuforce icon HDP but the HD650 don't seem to have good synergy (or as good as) as with the other gear.

 

I am currently auditioning the RS1i. They sound amazing with the HDP but not so good with the Dacport-M-Stage combo. I have no idea why technically, but I trust my ears.

 

I don't know about the astro mixamp, sorry. All I can tell you from experience is that listening to music without my Dac/Amps is very fatiguing after a short amount of time. There's something about the source gear that makes listening easier and more enjoyable over the long term.

 

Congratulations on not wasting your money on the dr dre. I tried them at Best Buy and almost busted my eardrums. They have a ridiculous demo setup.

 

Let me know if you have specific questions.

That's a very uneven shortlist

The B&W are just as trendy, overpriced and cheap sounding as the Beats.

 

Sennheiser HD650 is a great headphone for the money, but without a proper source and amplification it's very much a waste of money.

HD600 is a bit easier to tame, can be bought cheaper, so it may be a better option.

 

Grado RS1i is a 700$ headphone. You do realize that, right?

I haven't heard the new i version, but I own the older RS1.

It's easy to drive in absolute terms, but without a high quality source and amp I don't think you'll be able to really get why you've paid 700$ for them.

 

 

I'm not going to recommend to you any of the headphones mentioned. Instead I'll give you a piece of advice - hang around more on head-fi, do your homework and start small.

There are a lot of headphones under 150-200$ which sound absolutely great, and way way better than what you're used to.

get  a hd 555, take off the sticky foam bit inside, do the soundstage mod  and u get a very decent headphone for the price. pair it up with a good amp like the ibasso t3d. after that if ur not satisfied u can keep the amp but go for a higher senn version :)

I don't think you know what you want. You go from a overly bassy POS to 3 completely different headphones and a mixamp? So confused...
 

X 2.

Right, and the PortaPro sounds just like the HD800.

 

3 different choices with different sound signature...

Could you post your music likes? and what are you expecting from them? Bass, details? 

I'd like to know how much experience you have with headphones, especially with this amount of money being spent. You probably could do better with a mid ranger Headphone like an M50 a good DAC and Amp then you would with just a Set of HD650's.

 

RS1's are decent if you lack and amp, but you're gonna want a good source to be completely honest. Out of your three choices these would be the ones I'd buy, but thats me. I enjoy the Grado sound. It's unique and  not for everyone. I'd suggest you try them out before you buy them.

 

The problem with the HD650's is they are as other have put it. . . Cynical. They basically show every flaw in your sound, so if you source sucks then your experience will. If your Amp is distorting at all, your gonna hear it.  They are made for people who have a well established sound system who have put at least $500 in prior to the purchase of them.

I'm sorry if you find that statement so offending that the best answer you can do is condescending BS.

 

Can you name one similarly priced headphone that sounds worse than P5 (not different, but worse)? Because I don't know any.

Or one quality that P5 has and is fully deserving its 300 euro price tag ?

Again, nothing about this headphone has given me the impression I'm wearing and listening to a 300 euro can. But what do I know ?!

 

There are many headphones that can give P5 a hell of a run for the money, for a lot less. That's my opinion.

Shure SRH840 is the only closed headphone I've owned (in recent years) and to my ears it's a significantly better performer than P5 on just about everything. But then again, that's just my opinion.

 

If you're happy with your set, well then ... good for you! Enjoy them!

Edited by audiofil - 9/13/10 at 10:22am

Rather difficult. How can it be worse than the P5 but not different?
 

 

Have you actually heard the B&W headphones as well as the Beats?

I haven't heard the B&W, so no comment. I don't know if I even saw a pair at CanJam - I would have tried them out. Anyhow, I owned the RS-1 and HD-650 for about three years before I sold them, though.

They're very different headphones. I'd make a choice based on the music you listen to. The RS-1 is great for rock and anything with lots of guitars. Lots of energy. The HD-650 is more balanced and refined, if a little dark. You will probably want to buy a different amp if you go with the HD-650.

I'm not sure I would buy any of the headphones with the sources you mentioned.  I think you would be better off starting somewhere around $100-150 price range.  AD700's would work pretty well with the Mixamp to give you positional audio for games.  I'm not sure why people give the AD700 such a reputation for lack of bass.  The bass is there it's just not obnoxious.  The AD700's is IMO is a great entry level can into the world HiFi headphones.  Easy to power, cheap, and great sounding.  

 

If you crave bass there are several inexpensive closed cans that can give you the head rattling you so desire.