Sennheiser 598s or Grados?

If you are mainly listening to Rock, Metal, Alternative, and especially classic rock, I would totally go with the Grado SR-225i (also look into the MS-2 possibly as well).  They are not so heavily biased that you cannot listen to anything but rock (I listen to some rap both old and new, and they are fine).  They may not be bass heavy as some other cans, but there is bass, and it is detailed.  Basically, they are great cans that work well with alot of different music types (and I love them for movies as well due to the large soundstage), but where they really excel and sound truly amazing is with rock.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheEvilNarwhal 

Bump. I would like some more input. Even if you agree with previous statements please.

Hi there! Welcome to these forums.

Based on your original post, it seems you might be unsure as to what you are looking for. The grado sr225 are a good starting point, but are not good for listening in public areas where you will hear all outside noise. For that matter the Beyer dt770 don't really 'seal' and block outside noise either. Where are you located? Any chance there's a good headphone store near you? 

I'd give these cans a look over:

Grado Sr225

AKG K5550

Brainwavz HM5

Also you are not going to mod a SR60 into a SR225

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheEvilNarwhal 

I am new to the Head-Fi forums and want to start listening to music on high quality headphones. I have been searching for some high quality, balanced sounding headphones that would fit my budget of less than $250. I would use the headphones for mainly listening to music being mostly Alternative, Metal, and Classic Rock with a little bit of Hip-Hop, Old School Rap, and some House.I would also use these headphones for gaming and watching some movies. I have seen that many head-fiers recommend the Grado sr225i's for Rock and Metal. I feel these would be too much for a headphone that is more biased towards a few genres. I have really been thinking about the Sennheiser hd 598s due to the large soundstage and them excelling in gaming and movies. I feel that these would be somewhat light on the bass for Hip-hop. That brings me to the Beyerdynamic 770s which have been recommended for great bass. They are closed so I could use them in public places but they are also very large. What do you think would be the best route? Any recommendations?

The issue here, and I think the reason you're not getting many responses,

is

you're not going to get everything you're looking for in one set of $250 headphones.

You want balanced sound,

plenty of bass for hip hop,

dimensionality and openness for films and gaming, and

I'm assuming you'll also want some "edge" for metal.

You also seem to be leaning towards closed headphones

so you can use them outside,

but you don't want them to be too large.

Tall order! :)

The 598's are open, kind of big, and won't give you the bass you want

The Beyer DT770's have plenty of bass.

More bass by far than any other headphone you mentioned.

In my view, they have too much bass, tend to therefore sound somewhat muddy

and I don't recommend them (except possibly to bassheads).

The 225i's are an interesting choice; and I think a good one for starters

they're exciting and dynamic

bass doesn't thunder but is very consistent with the rest of their sonic spectrum

The only kind of music that I don't generally listen to on my 225i's is deep 'Berlin School' electronica

for trip hop and related genres, though, they do very well

I'd go for a pair if I were you

and as always, be sure they're returnable

if you decide you really don't like them.

(always a possibility

regardless of which headphones you buy).

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheEvilNarwhal 

Or how about the Allesandro MS1s. How do they compare to the sr225i's? Are they as easily modable as the sr60i's?

They are the same as any other plastic grados when it comes to modding...  My GF has the 60's and I have the MS1s, and I perfer the MS1s, and really feel they are worth the extra $20 or so.  Much more open (probably mostly due to having the 'buttons' already removed, and a much closer tolerance of drivers, along with a few other tweaks.  If I could have afforded the 225s, I would have probably done so (though I would probably save for MS2s at that point), but I am very happy with the MS1s and don't feel like I am missing anything by not going with the 225s.

Also, two friends of mine have gone out and bought MS1s after listening to mine (and my girlfirends SR-60s side by side as well).  Everyone I give them to listen to is impressed with them.  I rarely get that reaction with my other cans in that price range when other people listen to them.

As always it really depends on ones preference. I only listen to Metal and I could not stand Grado 80i. Too annoying in treble region, congested mids , bass shy, and old sounding in general(low resolution).

HD598 is not ideal solution for metal either but everything is better than Grado…IMO of course.