[Gallardo147]

Quote:

 
Are you OK with open cans (they leak sound)?
 
What equipment will be powering these cans?  Will you be using an amp?
 
 
If the answer to these guestions allows a go, the Ultrasone HiFi 2400 (currently $185 at Amazon) may be your ticket.

Well I think that I would rather have closed cans for use in the bus, and I will use my laptop and my iPod touch, or LG G2x for music, and for the amp, Im not sure, Im open to suggestions though, Im still new to this high end audio thing haha, and am not ready to drop too much cash

 

[KG Jag]

Quote:

Well I think that I would rather have closed cans for use in the bus, and I will use my laptop and my iPod touch, or LG G2x for music, and for the amp, Im not sure, Im open to suggestions though, Im still new to this high end audio thing haha, and am not ready to drop too much cash

 
The 2400 doesn't leak very much, but probably too much for the bus.  The closed Ultrasone Pro 750 is over your budget.  That points to the Ultrasone HiFi 780, Shure SRH 840 and KRK KNS 8400 as leading choices. 

 

[devhen]

Quote:

 
Unless you really need it, stay away from active noise cancellation.  You will pay a great deal of money and the quality of your sound will be reduced by noise cancellation.

 
+1. Its a waste of money IMO unless the majority of your listening is done in VERY noisy environments (like a manufacturing plant or something crazy like that). A good closed can with good isolation will block out noise pretty much just as well, costs a lot less, and sounds better. Its a no-brainer as far as I'm concerned. Don't let the ANC hype steal away all your monies.

 

[Rockman X]

Hi there. Cool forum.
I'm looking for a pair of new headphones (and DAC), but am abit lost in the jungle. DAC looks like going to be a audiolab M-DAC wich only weakness being is it havnet got IEC power plug so i cant take full advantage my grounded screened schuko main block MD06-EU/SP. But after long time trying i cant find a amp/dac as good as the M-DAC WITH IEC plug + simmilar configuration(or with more inputs) around that pricerange, so i guess ill settle on M-DAC(unless anyone on the forum have a suggestion?)
I currently own a Beyerdynamic DT770 but it is so shrill and sharp sounding at higher vol that it is hurting my ears. I have a slight tendency to hypersensetive hearing, which is helping in my working with music but a killer with bad sounding equiptment. So Headphone must not be overly exaggerating in the high registers. Ill settle for precise and then focus on feeding it good quality material
And if forced to chose between mostly analytical or musical ill give slight nod to musical(40-60), but it must still be precise in reproduction.
 
Music genres: I'm mostly into ambient/chillout/electronica, jazzy/hiphop/instrumental/breaks, classical music, some rock, early electro and exotica including:
(in "most listened to artist" order top 20)Kraftwerk, M83, Trentemøller, Frank Sinatra, Gotan Project, The Knife, Flying Lotus, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Blue Foundation, Prefuse 73, Amon Tobin, Depeche Mode, Johann Sebastian Bach, Gang Starr, The Herbaliser, J.J. Cale, Jean-Michel Jarre, Walter Wanderley, The Comas, The Three Suns
Portable: nope
Price range: Around 300 usd or below
Amped: 85% Audiolab M-DAC(or if i find someting better), 10% ESI Pro DAW soundcard, 5% Soundcraft/Mackie mixer. But mostly AMP/M-DAC listening to music genres mentioned above.
Closed/Open: Doesn't matter. Whatever is best.
Headphone preference: Doesn't matter. Whatever is best.
 
Could you guys maybe give me like a top 3 headphones or so that fit my requirements and musical tastes and perhaps a few words on why you recommend those particular models?
 
Thanks in advance.

 

[Oderi]

Quote:

Hi there. Cool forum.
I'm looking for a pair of new headphones (and DAC), but am abit lost in the jungle. DAC looks like going to be a audiolab M-DAC wich only weakness being is it havnet got IEC power plug so i cant take full advantage my grounded screened schuko main block MD06-EU/SP. But after long time trying i cant find a amp/dac as good as the M-DAC WITH IEC plug + simmilar configuration(or with more inputs) around that pricerange, so i guess ill settle on M-DAC(unless anyone on the forum have a suggestion?)
I currently own a Beyerdynamic DT770 but it is so shrill and sharp sounding at higher vol that it is hurting my ears. I have a slight tendency to hypersensetive hearing, which is helping in my working with music but a killer with bad sounding equiptment. So Headphone must not be overly exaggerating in the high registers. Ill settle for precise and then focus on feeding it good quality material
And if forced to chose between mostly analytical or musical ill give slight nod to musical(40-60), but it must still be precise in reproduction.
 
Music genres: I'm mostly into ambient/chillout/electronica, jazzy/hiphop/instrumental/breaks, classical music, some rock, early electro and exotica including:
(in "most listened to artist" order top 20)Kraftwerk, M83, Trentemøller, Frank Sinatra, Gotan Project, The Knife, Flying Lotus, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Blue Foundation, Prefuse 73, Amon Tobin, Depeche Mode, Johann Sebastian Bach, Gang Starr, The Herbaliser, J.J. Cale, Jean-Michel Jarre, Walter Wanderley, The Comas, The Three Suns
Portable: nope
Price range: Around 300 usd or below
Amped: 85% Audiolab M-DAC(or if i find someting better), 10% ESI Pro DAW soundcard, 5% Soundcraft/Mackie mixer. But mostly AMP/M-DAC listening to music genres mentioned above.
Closed/Open: Doesn't matter. Whatever is best.
Headphone preference: Doesn't matter. Whatever is best.
 
Could you guys maybe give me like a top 3 headphones or so that fit my requirements and musical tastes and perhaps a few words on why you recommend those particular models?
 
Thanks in advance.

 
A modded T50RP seems like a check for all of your needs. I received my Mad Dogs by MrSpeakers yesterday and they're even less fatiguing than my Denon AH-D5000. The clarity and tonal balance are also great for the price. Some people have stated that they even prefer them to some flagships like the LCD-2. Personally I haven't heard the LCD-2 but I don't feel like I'm really missing anything when listening with the Mad Dogs instead of the D5000's. If I'd have to say something bad about them, some lo-fi stuff might not sound wonderful due to the detail of the Mad Dogs.
 
If you don't want modded headphones I'd recommend doing some reading on different Shures in your price range, from what I've read they have a pretty balanced presentation. FWIR the Senn HD600/650 are good for the price, but generally only really shine with great amplification.
 
EDIT: Oh and in case you haven't heard him, Blazo makes great jazzy chillout beats. One of my personal favorites for that kind of stuff.

 

[Jan Roman]

Trying to decide what headphones to buy. I am reading loads of stuff, but I think every opinion matters (and people at HeadFi know a lot).
 
Current setup: Laptop Asus K53U as a source, then Fiio E17 Alpen (USB 24bit/96kHz) as a DAC/amp and Sennheiser HD429.
What I want: I am looking for headphones around 300$ (more or less, doesn't matter). I am thinking about DT880, K701/702 or HD598. I will use the same source and DAC/amp (Asus+E17), but I might get a better audio source in the future (standalone one). 
 
I prefer rock and metal music, sometimes classical or experimental (but rock is 90% of my listening). I am using my CDs or lossless rips (FLAC/APE/WAV). I am listenng at home so headphones don't have to be portable. I also think E17 is capable of driving 250 or even 300 ohm headphones. Are open headphones better in terms of possible ear damage? Headphones can be open, closed, isolating, I don't really care.
 
Any tips? Thank you very much.
 
EDIT: I could go with DT990 as well. My favourites are DT880/DT990. I am not sure which are better for rock music.

 

[devhen]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jan Roman /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
Are open headphones better in terms of possible ear damage? Headphones can be open, closed, isolating, I don't really care.

 
AFAIK hearing damage is only caused by one thing-- excessive volume for extended periods of time. That said, I don't think open/closed would make a difference unless you find yourself running one at lower volumes than the other.

 

[SonicScientist]

As this thread seem to have more traffic than the one on portable forum, I'm pretty much copying my text here (as I don't know how long will certain sales last):
 
 
I'm looking for closed cans for portable use. I need sufficient isolation for listening to them on bus/train/car without killing my ears. Is there a clear winner sound quality wise between these 5: Sony MDR-V6, MDR-ZX700, Koss Pro DJ100, CAL!, Philips Downtown. I can grab these for 40-60e each. I've also considered Philips Uptown (70e) and KRK KNS6400 (100e) but I don't know if I want spend that much for abuse-prone portables (if they weren't considerably better, that is.)
 
I'm leaning on Downtown for it's sweet looks and 45e price tag, but the others seem to be equally promising too. I don't think CAL's provide enough isolation tho. Also I'm not sure about seemingly power hungry Pro DJ as I'd mostly power them straight from my phone or iPod Nano.

 

[steelgtr]

Is DAKMART a reputable site?  They want you to call or email for Paypal. The have a good price on Sennheisers that I'm interested in. Doesn't say refurb or B stock.   Seems TGTBT?
 
thx

 

[devhen]

Quote:

Is DAKMART a reputable site?  They want you to call or email for Paypal. The have a good price on Sennheisers that I'm interested in. Doesn't say refurb or B stock.   Seems TGTBT?
 
thx

 
If its less than MSRP its refurbished. Which headphone are you looking at? I don't have any recent experience ordering from Dakmart and I'm wondering the same thing. Seems some people are happy with them and others say their customer service is bad. Anyone with experience ordering refurbished Sennheisers off Dakmart care to comment?

 

[steelgtr]

Quote:

 
If its less than MSRP its refurbished. Which headphone are you looking at? I don't have any recent experience ordering from Dakmart and I'm wondering the same thing. Seems some people are happy with them and others say their customer service is bad. Anyone with experience ordering refurbished Sennheisers off Dakmart care to comment?

558's for $99.95. Doesn't say refurb or b stock.  Lots of bad reviews here:
 
http://www.resellerratings.com/store/Dakmart

 

[Firdelore]

Hi, I just joined the site and I did so in order to find out what I should purchase...
 
What I'm looking for in a pair of headphones by priority is comfort. The most expensive headphones I have bought (which are over ear headphones) is the Steelseries Siberia v2, which are comfortable for 2-3 hours before they became extremely uncomfortable to wear. So with this next purchase, I want to make sure I end up with a comfortable on ear pair of headphones. Secondly, I want closed headphones, as I will be taking them out publicly, and I don't want the cable length to be long... 1-1.5M is probably the kind of length I'm looking for, as I will be using these with my iPod as well as on the laptop... they don't sit that far away from me, so a short cable length should be good
 
So yeah, I've listed the following qualities so far:
Comfort (I can wear for more than 5 hours without feeling any clamping)
Closed (No leakage means no angry people on the train)
Short cable length (I don't want to trip over wires and have to bind additional cables with a rubber band)
 
Lastly, I want an overall good sound experience - I'm no audiophile, so what sounds mediocre to some audiophiles will probably sound amazing for me. I listen to pretty much any genre, though being honest, I mainly listen to rock.
 
Also, just to show that I haven't done any research myself, I've found some headphones I'm interested in and they are:
Sennheiser HD 215, 429, 439, 449
AKG K550
 
I'm most interested in the Sennheiser HD 449's though... The reviews I've found say they sound great with classical music, acoustic type music and particularly... rock is good But I'm not sure if they are comfortable or not. If anyone has these pair of headphones and would care to tell me their experiences with them, I'd greatly appreciate it. 
 
Anyway, I hope you guys have recommendations for me with all these requirements in mind... Plus, I am willing to spend up to £200, which I think is appropriate for what I'm looking for. So yeah, recommendations would be nice as well as your own opinions on the headsets I've listed down.
 
Thank you and hopefully, I'll come home from work tonight with some replies. Later!
 
Eddie

 

[Jan Roman]

Quote:

Also, just to show that I haven't done any research myself, I've found some headphones I'm interested in and they are:
Sennheiser HD 215, 429, 439, 449
AKG K550
 
 
Eddie

 
I can't tell you exactly what to choose, but here is my experience with HD 429. It's a good set of headphones, they don't need amping, but I reckon they need a bit of equalization (it's up to you really). I am a rock/metal listener as well and if you raise the bass and treble slightly, 429s provide great sound at a reasonable price. My only concerns are a very thin cable - I am always afraid i rip it appart - and that they are a bit "plastic" as all low-to-mid Sennheisers are. The noise isolation is quite nice as well (up to 15 dB).

 

[Rockman X]

Quote:

 
A modded T50RP seems like a check for all of your needs. I received my Mad Dogs by MrSpeakers yesterday and they're even less fatiguing than my Denon AH-D5000. The clarity and tonal balance are also great for the price. Some people have stated that they even prefer them to some flagships like the LCD-2. Personally I haven't heard the LCD-2 but I don't feel like I'm really missing anything when listening with the Mad Dogs instead of the D5000's. If I'd have to say something bad about them, some lo-fi stuff might not sound wonderful due to the detail of the Mad Dogs.
 
If you don't want modded headphones I'd recommend doing some reading on different Shures in your price range, from what I've read they have a pretty balanced presentation. FWIR the Senn HD600/650 are good for the price, but generally only really shine with great amplification.
 
EDIT: Oh and in case you haven't heard him, Blazo makes great jazzy chillout beats. One of my personal favorites for that kind of stuff.

Thanks for the good info.
Senn HD650 looks interesting.
Are the Sennheiser HD650 + Audiolab M-DAC a killer combination for the money?

 

[turkletont]

Quote:

 
See post #64 here:
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/618255/check-out-the-head-fi-summer-2012-buying-guide/60#post_8532784
 
{edit added}
 
And see this:
 
http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/comparative-review-high-end-noise-canceling-headphones-page-3

 
Thanks man! just what I was looking for