[flamingantichimp]

I've decided that I'm going to make a major headphone purchase, which, for my 16 year-old budget, means about $100.

The most important aspect in my purchase is that it be easy to drive, seeing as how I will be using it with an unamped iPod. Second is, of course, sound quality; I listen to things across the spectrum, from Hip-Hop to Classical music, so I'm not sure I'm going to find a perfect fit. However I listen to Dave Matthews Band the most, so the guitar sound is absolutely essential. Finally, durability is important, as I'm pretty much a kid.

Given the criteria of ease-to-drive and sound quality, it sounds like the MS-1's are reccomended at that price range around here.

How ugly are they, in real-life? Would I dare wear them around my friends? And is there anything else besides the MS-1 I should be considering?

 

[PinchyCM]

why not a set of er6is? they're great for the money, and they're portable.

 

[smoka]

My opinion is anything with lots of acoustics sounds better on Sennheisers. Grado and Sony seem to be punchier for bass, whereas Senns give cleaner more dynamic sound. Haven't really tried AudioTechnica, Beyer, etc, to comment on those.

You can get a mid-high HD500 series under $100 if you look around for deals. HD580/600/650 are no good without an amp. The HD515/555 or 570/590 should be fine. You might want to check out Shure or Etymotics in-ear canals or some Sony MDR-V6s which are also great bargain phones under $100.

 

[fr4c]

A500 works really well unamped. appearance and build looks pretty nice too.

 

[smoka]

Oh ya, Senns are pretty hard to beat for comfort too.. I haven't tried Alessandros, but the Grado SR80 can't even come close to my Sennheiser HD555s in comfort.

 

[james3shin]

man, any senns, grados, beyer's, alessandro's and co. are much too large for mobility. Im guessing you take the ipod around because you asked if the alessandros would look funny around your friends, right? If thats the case, i'd recommend going with ear buds, such as the er6i's, or the shure e3c's for like $129.99, or since your budget minded, how about the shure e2c's for like $60 shipped from buy.com!!! I myself am looking at the e2c's, not sure about the jump to the e3c's.

 

[fr4c]

or invest that 100 bucks in a md33 and a amp and step into the world of head-fi

 

[apnk]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fr4c or invest that 100 bucks in a md33 and a amp and step into the world of head-fi

Yes, what he said (you beat me!)

 

[kramer5150]

IMHO the V6 will fit that bill. You may have to tweek with your ipod EQ to tame the mids. Many find the V6 mids harsh. The bass impact is the sweetspot of the V6 IMHO. Studly bass unamped. IMHO theyre a little shy below 35Hz, but the sheer impact from 35-100Hz makes up for it.

IMHO you should try and demo them before buying. Some times best buy has sonys on display. You can bring your ipod into the store and plug in. I demo'd some koss cans @ radio shack with my creative nomad before selecting my KSC75.

Garrett

 

[catscratch]

Even amped KSC-75's will sound good, even more so if you thow an Etymotic ER-4 P/S adapter into the mix. The price of all this is probably over $100, with the amp obviously being the biggest expense, but you can assemble the system piecemeal and pace your spending.

I'd stay away from most of the Senn 5xx line with regard to portables. The 580 naturally is a wolf in sheep's clothing, but it will be a sheep, not a wolf, unless you give it the amplification it demands. The 590 also needs amplification, though not as much, as does the 595; the 570 isn't worth the price; the 515 is pretty good but not more than that, and the 500 should be banned from most industrialized countries except as a rare form of cruel and unusial punishment.

It goes without saying that most of these are far too big, and will leak sound everywhere. For portables, the HD25 and HD280 Pro are probably the best that Sennheiser has to offer, and admittedly, they're good at their price.

I'd say cry once and get the best, instead of slowly working your way up the food chain. For portability with next to no hassles, and great sound on top of that, the ER-4P and Senn HD25 gets my vote. If not, go for the ER-6, but be prepared to want to upgrade afterwards

Alternatively, the Sony MDR-V6 and Senn HD280 Pro are probably pretty good too, and are both well within your limits.

But, if you want big, then the A500 is what I would suggest.

 

[flamingantichimp]

Thanks for the answers. A lot.

And interesting replies, because no one has come out for the MS-1's yet. Oh well, I'll be patient with my decision process. To address some stuff though:

1. Amp-wise, wouldn't that severly cut down on the portability? I just have serious misgivings about an amp, considering my rather strict price range and I walk around my house with the iPod a lot. Looks aren't much of a concern around the house, but hassle is.

2. For the unamped group, the A-500's, er6i's, MS-1's, and 280's - has anyone used more than one in this group? (Asking for way too much there, I'm certain).

3. The iPod EQ has presets, but you can't edit them. So, I don't know if serious EQ alterations are available here, though there are like, 20 presets.

4. The budget situation is very strange, because it's static. My income/spending is very equalized, but I have money saved from my summer job that I still haven't touched since the beggining of the school year. But the staticness means I can avoid the upgrade bug; and also explains my durability concern.

 

[kramer5150]

Hey... I just noticed in your sig that you already have KSC35s. IMHO the KSC35/75 sounds better than the V6 in just about every way except bass output. Where there is a slight (but noticeable) edge to the V6.

What the KSC lacks in bass output it makes up for with soundstage, spectral balance, comfort, portability and subtle-ness ... IMHO. The KSC images very well. Vocals seem to be placed in front of rhythm guitar, and guitar solos take front center stage when need-be. The V6 takes all midrange tones and places them in front. Overwhelming at times.

IMHO if you get V6's expecting them to blow away KSC35s, you might be underwhelmed. IMHO solo violin is piercing through V6s... they really need some EQ help.

 

[flamingantichimp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kramer5150 Hey... I just noticed in your sig that you already have KSC35s. IMHO the KSC35/75 sounds better than the V6 in just about every way except bass output. Where there is a slight (but noticeable) edge to the V6. IMHO if you get V6's expecting them to blow away KSC35s, you might be underwhelmed. IMHO solo violin is piercing through V6s... they really need some EQ help.

Yeah, I had a pair of KSC-35's. And I'm looking for an obvious upgrade, and willing to spend three times the cost.

And I do listen to quite a bit of classical music; more so than Hip Hop or hard rock.

 

[ucbEE]

I listen to mostly classical music. I really like the sound that grado/alessandro put out. I guess I'm not that concerned with soundstage since soundstage from any headphone compared to that of live performance is pitifully miniscule. Grado offers seperation, detail and a bit of anger to really make those passionate violin lines and brilliant brass fanfares speak. There are many kinds of classical music and the late romantic stuff I listen to (Tchaik, Wagner, Mahler, Dvorak) probably benifits from a different sort of presentation as the more popular neo-classical/baroque era music (Mozart, Beethoven, Haydn, Handel, Bach, Vivaldi). I just got MS-1s and I dig them. They can drive out of anything and echo Indigo makes them sound great.

 

[flamingantichimp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ucbEE I listen to mostly classical music. I really like the sound that grado/alessandro put out. I guess I'm not that concerned with soundstage since soundstage from any headphone compared to that of live performance is pitifully miniscule. Grado offers seperation, detail and a bit of anger to really make those passionate violin lines and brilliant brass fanfares speak. There are many kinds of classical music and the late romantic stuff I listen to (Tchaik, Wagner, Mahler, Dvorak) probably benifits from a different sort of presentation as the more popular neo-classical/baroque era music (Mozart, Beethoven, Haydn, Handel, Bach, Vivaldi). I just got MS-1s and I dig them. They can drive out of anything and echo Indigo makes them sound great.

Yeah, I mainly listen to Beethoven, Handel, Rachmaninoff, and Chopin. What type of sound do they give you on these guys?