Shure 940 and alternatives

Hi all!  I'm a long time lurker but decided to post today :)

I own a Shure SRH 940 that I absolutely love in terms of sound.  However, today, the plastic gave out and the headphones are cracked .  I'm looking into getting them repaired but I think I might want to purchase a different set of headphones since I took care of the headphones and they still broke.

What would you all recommend as something that is fairly portable and sounds similar to the Shure 940?  I prefer more neutral sounding headphones and occasionally use them for recording (though I usually use my monitors).  I also use them for listening to a wide variety of music.  I usually tend to listen to folk, classical, alternative rock, and indie rock though.

I'd prefer it to be under $200 if possible (budget is a little tight right now), something that would sound decent both with and without an amp, and would want something with good build quality. Oh and I'd prefer a closed back headphones as I'd be using these at work, library, etc...  Thanks!

Quote:

Originally Posted by MalVeauX 

Heya,

 

Based on the SRH940, it's kind of a hard headphone to replace, as it really has it's own little niche. The Beyer T70 is the closest thing I've listened to that shares a lot of similarity with the SRH940 with their almost too good for a closed headphone sound stages, very detailed, very mids-focused, bright treble, very polite bass, with great isolation and comfort. The SRH940 is a cheaply made headphone and feels flimsy, when I got my first pair, my biggest complaint was the build quality. The Beyer T70 however is built like a rugged tank, but is more expensive but quite a margin ($300ish used/sale at best, retails much higher unfortunately).

 

So based on what you're looking for, here's some potential headphones to consider:

 

AudioTechnica A700X

AKG K271 MKII

AKG K272 HD

KRK KNS 8400

 

Very best,

 

Thanks for the reply!  Yeah... I don't know why Shure makes the 940s so flimsy... the 440 I used to own felt more robust IMO.  And I'd easily pay extra for a sturdier 940... I'm very gentle with my possessions so I was surprised to see the Shure 940s die so quickly.

Thanks for the recs as well... I'll be sure to look into them and research them.  Also, I've heard a lot of the Audio-Technica M50 on this forum but I've been reading seemingly contradictory statements regarding it being flat-responsed vs V-shape, Bassy vs not too bassy, etc...  Would that be another viable alternative?

They're still under warranty, but the customer rep I was in contact with was saying I'd still have to pay around $100 for a replacement.  Which is still cheaper than buying the 940 (or its abovementioned alternatives) so we'll see.  Might just buy the replacement and a new set of headphones