I’ve never bought headphones more than $20. My brother bought Sennheiser 201s and I can hear details I didn’t know were there, so I’m hoping if I spend more money, I can get an even more revealing, detailed, clear set. I want to fall into love with my music collection anew! Haha.
These are my basic wants:
-Can be used at PC unamped, but would benefit from one in future. Would that mean something below 100 ohms?
-Can get the most from FLACs and 320bit, without making 128bit unlistenable. (its ok if 128bits sound a little rough)
-Gentle, easy listening, natural, balanced, etc.. I like Folk & 80s Rock, some Electronica, Classical. Don’t want something that adds extra bass for hip-hop err whatever… I am 45 y/o and try to keep the volume lower to avoid fatigue / conserve my hearing.
-I think I prefer open cans for some added imaging / soundstage, versus closed cans for the isolation. I have privacy.
-I’m looking in the $50-150 range.
Right now I have my eye on Sennheiser 518 ($100), Samson SR800 ($50) ….this changes all the time though, haha. I don’t like in the ear. On-the-ear would be ok, but prefer around ear for a little isolation / comfort.
Also, my mobo is 5 year old Asus P5B with a ADI AD1988B 8-channel High Definition Audio CODEC chip. Do I need the Asus Xonar DG, or an inexpensive X-fi sound card? I don’t want to spend more than $30-50 on a card. Could do an external amp if it were inexpensive. (<$50ish)
Thanks in advance!
