[harry truman]

Hi.  I finally decided to make an account after ~1 year of browsing/reading as I foster my growing audiophile obsession...
 
Anyway, in an attempt to [temporarily] curb spending, I'm trying to find a specific headphone (as opposed to buying everything interesting that I find).  My two go-to headphones are my Sennheiser HD555 and HD25-1 II.  I'd love to find something that offers the best of both of those.  What I like about both:

1. The HD555 is open, over-ear circumaural, and has a great soundstage.
2. The HD25-1 II is overall neutral with strong, punchy bass.
3. Neither require amping, though with my Fiio e11 they both improve even more.
4. Neither are terribly expensive.

​
I worry that I won't be able to find what I'm looking for without having to look at something that's more expensive and needs more power.

 

[PanicAudio]

Well if you didnt have the HD25's I would be rather inclined to suggest the Grado Sr80s or something like that. Audio Technica could offer a nice change from your Senn headphones and they of course generally dont need to particularly amped or anything (in many cases). 

 

[harry truman]

I've looked at Grado but it seems that there's not much of an improvement over what I have now until it gets up to the SR225i and beyond.  And just today I was reading some reviews about the ATH AD700X since they're on sale from BuyDig but it seems like they have even weaker bass than the 555...

 

[cel4145]

I've looked at Grado but it seems that there's not much of an improvement over what I have now until it gets up to the SR225i and beyond.  

That's very debatable. For all kinds of rock, I either like as much or prefer the SR80i over any other headphone I've heard in the <$200 range. If it turns out you like the Grado sound, the same could easily be true for you.

You can also buy the L-Cush pads to put on the SR80i for $20 and get 80% of the way to the SR225i sound. The pads will (a) open up the mids and highs a little, increasing detail resolution and (b) improve the midbass response a little.

In fact, if I'm not mistaken, the drivers in the SR80i are pretty much the same as the SR225i, only the SR225i are a little better matched. That's why switching out to use the same pads can make such a big difference.

 

[harry truman]

Do the L-Cush pads completely cover the ear?  Or is it possible to mod the SR80s to use a bigger pad?  I've so far avoided them because I read a lot about them being uncomfortable.
 
-- Landon

 

[cel4145]

No. The L-Cush do not completely cover the ears. The Grados are definitely on ear headphones. Whether or not they are comfortable enough depends on you more than anything else.

 

[anetode]

Forget Grado. If you want something reasonably priced with a strong punchy bass, great comfort and a good soundstage go for the Beyerdynamic DT990. Alternately you could step on up to the Hifiman HE400.