[Poisoner]

Hey guys, I have read and read and done a lot of research.  After being an audio lover for many years I decided to get into hi-fi.  I've currently have what I consider a good setup, but I am looking for more.  I am looking for more because I know there is more out there.  However, I get overwhelmed with the wealth of information that is out there.  I listen to a wide variety of music, from Metal all the way to Spanish Pop and church sermons.  So I really need a headphone that can do a lot.  I do not like a lot of overpowering bass, I've never listened to dubstep, I hear that has a lot of bass. A good tight bass response it sooo much nicer than having my head rattled and the rest of the sound stage drowned out.  Not that I don't like bass, I love bass, if its done properly. 
 
I mostly use the headphones at the computer.  I like closed over the ear headphones that keep the sound contained to me, that way if the wife is asleep I do not disturb her.  I do game, however I don't need a headphone suited for positional audio, music is my priority.  I do not watch very many movies so you can scratch that off as well. 
 
So let me tell you what I am currently using.  My sound card is a Creative Titanium X-Fi Titanium HD.  The current headphones I have are these: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826140099.  They used to be priced higher at 69.99 (I actually bought them on sale for 29.99) but now they are 29.99.  They do a good job, but like I said I know there is better out there. 
 
I recently tried the Sennheiser HD 280 and the HD 380s at Best Buy.  They both sounded amazing and I really couldn't pick between them.  My budget is $200, but if I don't have to spend $200 dollars then I won't.  I will post some links so you guys can kind of see what I listen too and maybe understand why I am overwhelmed.  I hate to be the guy making a recommendation thread with my first post, but you know how it goes. 
 
Belanova - Nino
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwPnlwouGRI
 
Belanova - Baila Mi Corazon
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrvXTGf7BHU
 
Theocracy - I Am
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3TsVaFR870
 
Slayer - Chemical Warfare
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5L7GyZeazM

 

[RevAmped]

TheLogitech UE 6000 is a great option. They are just about the best value you can get, my personal opinion, and will work perfectly for what you are looking for. The bass is good, it might lack a little in power, but it is still very good as compared to most other headphones. Another option would be to go for the Audio Technica ATH-M50s, with a Fiio E11.

Note: A sound card does not mean you no longer need an amplifier; a sound card acts like a separate processor to manage sound; taking load away from the CPU, giving an increase to computer performance, but not a great increase in sound quality. The advantage to your sound processor is that it has a DAC, digital to analog converter giving an even greater increase in performance, and an increase in sound quality.

The second option (ATH-M50 + E11) will give you a complete package with great sound quality, as compared to the UE6000 which will have no amp, but the UE6000 sounds better on its own, while comparing it to the ATH-M50, and will give you the option to purchase an amplifier further down the road, in order to increase your sound quality.

 

[Poisoner]

Quote:

TheLogitech UE 6000 is a great option. They are just about the best value you can get, my personal opinion, and will work perfectly for what you are looking for. The bass is good, it might lack a little in power, but it is still very good as compared to most other headphones. Another option would be to go for the Audio Technica ATH-M50s, with a Fiio E11.

Note: A sound card does not mean you no longer need an amplifier; a sound card acts like a separate processor to manage sound; taking load away from the CPU, giving an increase to computer performance, but not a great increase in sound quality. The advantage to your sound processor is that it has a DAC, digital to analog converter giving an even greater increase in performance, and an increase in sound quality.

The second option (ATH-M50 + E11) will give you a complete package with great sound quality, as compared to the UE6000 which will have no amp, but the UE6000 sounds better on its own, while comparing it to the ATH-M50, and will give you the option to purchase an amplifier further down the road, in order to increase your sound quality.

Do I really need a headphone amp?  I ask because my sound card is capable of driving headphones up to about 300ohms and I thought that the main need for amps was for high impedance headphones, though an amp would be awesome for if I was ever on a road trip and had to suffer through phone music. 

 

[shiorisekine]

A really good headphone for the music you like and for people that are getting into hi-fi is the London Undergrounds by TekNMotion I actually just did a review on them if you want to check it out. Let me know if they sound right for you.

http://www.head-fi.org/t/653458/teknmotion-london-undergrounds-review-the-audiophile-worlds-best-kept-secret-under-60

 

[invalid404]

I don't think that an amp would be necessary for the UE6000 or the M50. Between the two, the UE6000 seems like a step up in sound quality and comfort but I have no complaints regarding my M50's. I would recommend them if your budget was tighter, but with the extra wiggle room, you have opened some other options that I would suspect to be superior.

 

[Poisoner]

Quote:

A really good headphone for the music you like and for people that are getting into hi-fi is the London Undergrounds by TekNMotion I actually just did a review on them if you want to check it out. Let me know if they sound right for you.

http://www.head-fi.org/t/653458/teknmotion-london-undergrounds-review-the-audiophile-worlds-best-kept-secret-under-60

They seem interesting to say the least.

 

[RevAmped]

Do I really need a headphone amp?  I ask because my sound card is capable of driving headphones up to about 300ohms and I thought that the main need for amps was for high impedance headphones, though an amp would be awesome for if I was ever on a road trip and had to suffer through phone music. 

Yes you actually will need the amp because the amplification you will get from your stock sound card will be greatly inferior to that of an amplifier. The Fiio E11 is a relatively cheap amp which will give a great sound boost to low impedance headphones. It is similar as to if you were using the CPU to process sound, as compared to using a dedicated amp, the amp is meant for the task and does it much better; the amp will also give much better power output.

 

[Poisoner]

Quote:

Yes you actually will need the amp because the amplification you will get from your stock sound card will be greatly inferior to that of an amplifier. The Fiio E11 is a relatively cheap amp which will give a great sound boost to low impedance headphones. It is similar as to if you were using the CPU to process sound, as compared to using a dedicated amp, the amp is meant for the task and does it much better; the amp will also give much better power output.

How will the amplification from my sound card be greatly inferior for headphones with less than 40ohms when my sound card can push up to 330ohm headphones.  Why on earth would I need to amplify headphones that an iPhone could drive? 
 
I also think you are under estimating my sound card.  I bought several cards before I ended up being satisfied witht he X-Fi Titanium HD.  And yes, the sound card had greatly improved the sound quality from my computer, there is a huge difference between a quality discrete sound card and cheap on board audio. 
 
Not trying to sound disrespectful, but I think you are giving me more biased opinion than anything.  I know what a sound card is and how it works and what it does. 

 

[MetalHealth30]

Can't give you a recommendation but super props on Theocracy. Amazing band.

 

[chrstnwarrior88]

I can't give you much of a recommendation, but I will comment on the amp discussion. I actually use a portable amp for my Brainwavz b2 iem's. They are only like 30 ohms or something like that, and my iPhone is fully capable of driving them, but the amp makes them sound so much better. The soundstage is expanded and the bass has a lot more weight but still remains tight. Compared to the iPhone it is just a lot more musical. I hope this helps a little. Good luck

 

[RevAmped]

How will the amplification from my sound card be greatly inferior for headphones with less than 40ohms when my sound card can push up to 330ohm headphones.  Why on earth would I need to amplify headphones that an iPhone could drive? 

I also think you are under estimating my sound card.  I bought several cards before I ended up being satisfied witht he X-Fi Titanium HD.  And yes, the sound card had greatly improved the sound quality from my computer, there is a huge difference between a quality discrete sound card and cheap on board audio. 

Not trying to sound disrespectful, but I think you are giving me more biased opinion than anything.  I know what a sound card is and how it works and what it does. 

You see, the card you have is great, but it has no discrete amplifier. I'm guessing you know about computers so think of it in these terms, you can get the fastest, highest quality twelve core Intel xeon CPU, put four of them into a motherboard, but still not get the graphics performance of a hundred dollar video card, on a 480p monitor; in the same way, you can get a high power sound card, like yours, and still not get the best possible sound quality, due to the fact that the card has a standard power headphone port, and uses a sound processor for amplification. If you really don't want to buy an amp, just get the UE6000.

 

[Poisoner]

Quote:

You see, the card you have is great, but it has no discrete amplifier. I'm guessing you know about computers so think of it in these terms, you can get the fastest, highest quality twelve core Intel xeon CPU, put four of them into a motherboard, but still not get the graphics performance of a hundred dollar video card, on a 480p monitor; in the same way, you can get a high power sound card, like yours, and still not get the best possible sound quality, due to the fact that the card has a standard power headphone port, and uses a sound processor for amplification. If you really don't want to buy an amp, just get the UE6000.

 
I don't have a problem buying an amp, you just aren't selling your position at all.  From everything I read, I am understanding that you only need an amp for high impedance headphones.  I haven't had any problem with volume or intensity at all, I can't take my current setup past 50% without it being loud enough to damage my hearing. 

 

[jake120]

Quote:

 
I don't have a problem buying an amp, you just aren't selling your position at all.  From everything I read, I am understanding that you only need an amp for high impedance headphones.  I haven't had any problem with volume or intensity at all, I can't take my current setup past 50% without it being loud enough to damage my hearing. 

For my headphones
 
I use an amp to give myself better control over my volume + it acts as an intermeditary device that limits the volume output in case the computer volume goes up/down weirdly from apps, though thats pretty rare these days.
 
But i do like seeing the volume number straight in front of me and able to lock the amp so i dont inadvertantly press volume up/down, so if my operating sysetem volume was at high the amp keeps the volume at a reasonable level same goes for iphone/other audio players.
 
overall my sound card can more than out do the required impedance and out do the recommended volume per se, but i would not have the convieniance of protection and i think an extra amp doesn't hurt providing its not too expensive... can be handy for a number of things if ya know what you're doing.
 
On the flip side it's not really something to do if you don't want/need an amp and it might be something to consider at a later date, though amps have a lot of uses in all sorts of devices etc... and if looked after they last quite a long time and handy for other devices that might not output enough volume or at least getting the volume you want might be difficult to control.
 
just my 2cs.

 

[RevAmped]

I don't have a problem buying an amp, you just aren't selling your position at all.  From everything I read, I am understanding that you only need an amp for high impedance headphones.  I haven't had any problem with volume or intensity at all, I can't take my current setup past 50% without it being loud enough to damage my hearing. 

It is a misconception that an amp is only good for high impedance headphones. An amplifier's purpose is to provide the most power to the headphone while minimizing impedance. With your sound card impedance will be exactly what the headphones produce, but the amplifier will decrease the impedance to a much lower amount, and provide much higher power to the headphones. The lower the output impedance the better, for impedance is a large cause of distortion.

 

[Poisoner]

Do I really need more power to my headphones?  As I said, I have no problem with volume at all.
 
Also, is it wise to change so much of my audio setup at one time?  The new headphones should be a big change itself without adding an external amplifier, if I decide to get one.