[hawkeye3110]

Hi I'm new here and new to the audio world so I'm thinking about getting a good starter pair of good sounding headphones for around 100 USD. The two I have been looking at are the massdrop exclusive hifiman he350 and the fidelio l2. Both are currently $100. My source is a pc with no amp. I'm considering getting an amp in the future like the SMSL sapp ii. I don't have a flac library or anything like that. I will mainly be using these headphones at home for music and gaming. The music I listen to is EDM, classical, soul, and classic rock. I would just like some thoughts on the 2 headphones and any other recommendations would be great. Also recommendations for amps under 100 USD would be great too. Thanks to all that help me out. I'm looking forward to getting my foot into the audio world. 

 

[Monsterzero]

  Hi I'm new here and new to the audio world so I'm thinking about getting a good starter pair of good sounding headphones for around 100 USD. The two I have been looking at are the massdrop exclusive hifiman he350 and the fidelio l2. Both are currently $100. My source is a pc with no amp. I'm considering getting an amp in the future like the SMSL sapp ii. I don't have a flac library or anything like that. I will mainly be using these headphones at home for music and gaming. The music I listen to is EDM, classical, soul, and classic rock. I would just like some thoughts on the 2 headphones and any other recommendations would be great. Also recommendations for amps under 100 USD would be great too. Thanks to all that help me out. I'm looking forward to getting my foot into the audio world. 

Welcome to Head-Fi,

first I would recommend not worrying about an amp right now....get one when you need to get one,and instead put your $ into headphones first.

Unfortunately your taste in music is quite diverse...what will sound good for classical(for example) probably wont sound good for EDM.
What sounds good for EDM,wont necessarily sound good for classic rock.

I can go into specifics as to why that is if need be,but for now I wont,,and take my word for it.

You have a couple options....

Narrow down your listening tendencies and concentrate on what you listen to the most....Or
Try to find an "all-arounder" headphone in your price range........Or
Buy several headphones...like most of us around here have done.

Its the dilemma that comes with headphones.One headphone(especially at your price range)rarely,if ever,excels at all types of music.

 

[hawkeye3110]

Thanks for getting back to me so soon. I would say that for sound signature I would prefer neutral. I don't mind a little warm sounding, but some of these bass focused headphones like V-Modas are just too much for me.

 

[Monsterzero]

neutral headphones are what i mentioned above as an "all arounder"....they will do most genres decently,but they wont be great for hardly anything,IMO.

I had an HD600 for a couple years,and those are a highly respected,neutral headphones.They didnt sound bad for anything really,but they lacked bass punch for EDM,lacked forward mids for giving rock an edge,they lacked expansive soundstage for classical....and that headphone is more than twice your budget,and requires an amp too.

I honestly dont have any experience with new headphones in your price range,so my input is more about trying to inform on headphone capabilities,rather than suggesting a specific pair.

I do own a Fidelio X1,which has good bass impact and soundstage,but the mids do not lend themselves well to classic rock.Great for gaming though.
I also own an HE-500,but from my understanding of the HE-350 they share almost nothing in common.

 

[hawkeye3110]

Thanks for your help and teaching me a thing or too. It's obvious you have quite a bit of experience. Thanks for making this community a great place to learn!

 

[Monsterzero]

Actually I retract my prior statement about having no experience with sub-100.00 headphones.....

My son has a pair of Grado 80e.Those would work great for classic rock.....however they lack sub bass for EDM,but still have decent mid bass punch.
Theyre also not very comfortable.
Theyre also quite polarizing,the whole Grado line.....many love them,many hate them.

they do not need an amp,and for 99.00 theyre a great bang for the buck headphone for rock music...for other types of music,theyre are certainly better options out there.

 

[Cruelhand Luke]

I recently was making a similar decision and wound up getting the Fidelio L2. IN terms of build quality and quality of materials it's better and it has a more even sound, flat to slightly Vshaped ....
part of what pushed me away from the 350 was this review:
http://www.thesoundapprentice.com/2016/09/hifiman-he-350-review.html

and what pushed me towards the Fidelio was this one:
http://www.headfonia.com/the-phenomenal-philips-fidelio-l2-feat-fidelio-m1bt-review/

 

[hawkeye3110]

Thanks, I've decided to go for the fidelio L2 and just got them. Some far I am liking the build quality and sound. Perhaps I will do a review here on head-fi and amazon. Thanks for helping me out!

 

[Monsterzero]

  Thanks for your help and teaching me a thing or too. It's obvious you have quite a bit of experience. Thanks for making this community a great place to learn!

No problem...

Glad you found something youre enjoying too!

 

[scruppynuppers]

Hey man! I'm so glad I wasn't the only one going through this decision as well. I saw this sale and immediately searched on here haha I just purchased them as well, let me know what you think when you get them and after how it is after a few days of usage. For the rest of you guys, I also have a little Fiio A1 from a while back, would that make any difference at all or is an amp really not necessary with an Android phone?

Thanks a bunch!

 

[ahmadfaizadnan]

  Hey man! I'm so glad I wasn't the only one going through this decision as well. I saw this sale and immediately searched on here haha I just purchased them as well, let me know what you think when you get them and after how it is after a few days of usage. For the rest of you guys, I also have a little Fiio A1 from a while back, would that make any difference at all or is an amp really not necessary with an Android phone?

Thanks a bunch!

did you get the HE350 or philips fidelio I2?

 

[scruppynuppers]

Quote:

  did you get the HE350 or philips fidelio I2?

 
 
Ended up going with the Phillips Fidelio L2 after reading numerous good reviews.

 

[ahmadfaizadnan]

Quote:


Ended up going with the Phillips Fidelio L2 after reading numerous good reviews.

Yeah. Fidelio would probably a safer choice because I would say the HE 350 is a love hate headphone. I start to like the way it sounds after I change the pad.

 

[Cruelhand Luke]

I have been burning the headphones in whenever possible (and I remember) so they have probably around 40 hours of combined listening and burn in. I think it does sound better with time. The treble was a little harsh at first, I had to eq it down a little and even then I couldn't listen for very long. I am playing them through a ZTE Axon W/Dolby Atmos.
Now I have the eq set at nearly flat, just a tiny little bump in bass.

 

[scruppynuppers]

  I have been burning the headphones in whenever possible (and I remember) so they have probably around 40 hours of combined listening and burn in. I think it does sound better with time. The treble was a little harsh at first, I had to eq it down a little and even then I couldn't listen for very long. I am playing them through a ZTE Axon W/Dolby Atmos.
Now I have the eq set at nearly flat, just a tiny little bump in bass.

Yeah I feel you on the treble for sure but it's been adjusting the more I listen to certain artists/songs. Did you burn-in with pink noise?