A700 worth the price diff between the a500

[DoNotBugMe]

I am looking into buying the A500, but ran across the A700 and noticed they are not that big of a difference in price. Would the price justification be worth the increase? I am looking for the best price/performance ratio. I am not a full fledged audiophile, but like the ways nice things sound. I just want to buy a quality set of cans as I have never owned any. I was considering the HD280's , but the quality of these Audio-Technica cans look to be much better. Which cans would you recommend in this price range of 100-150?

 

[Azure]

I've only tried the A500s, but based off of what I've read it wouldn't be worth it, especially since these would be your first "real" headphones. The differences would probably be too minute to the untrained ear. So, for your first pair of headphones, I'd recommend just sticking with the A500s since they'll most likely sound very similar (I read somewhere that the A500s are 80-90% of the A900s, so it'd be even closer with A700s).

 

[DoNotBugMe]

Best place to buy them from? Best price? I live in the U.S.. Thanks for the post.

 

[Azure]

Best (And pretty much only place without paying a ridiculous amount) would be audiocubes. Be sure to use the coupon code mentioned in this thread to save yourself $16.

 

[DoNotBugMe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Azure Best (And pretty much only place without paying a ridiculous amount) would be audiocubes. Be sure to use the coupon code mentioned in this thread to save yourself $16.

Are these cans comfortable if you wear them for extended periods? They look to be a foreign company. What is the average shipping time it takes to get to the states?

 

[Azure]

I find them to be VERY comfortable due to the 3D-Wings (They kind of float on your head). However, they can be cause pressure on your head if you wear them at certain angles (Shouldn't really be a problem, just adjust where they are on the top of your head until they are comfortable). The biggest problem would be how hot they can make your ears, particularly in a warm environment. If you'll be listening in a relatively hot environment, I'd suggest to either get a desktop fan and have it blowing in your face at all times, or to consider getting open cans (Or IEMs, if that's your thing). I find that after listening for at least 2 hours, my ears get hot and to a very slight extent sweaty, so I just life the ear pads out to the side and give my ears a few seconds to breathe. After about ~30 seconds or so, I'm good to go again. Comfort really shouldn't be a problem.

Yes, they are Japanese headphones and so they can primarily only be bought from audiocubes, a Japanese retailer. To get to California from Japan, it took exactly 8 days (Starting from the day I placed my order).