AKG, Grato, Sennheiser?

[morose-]

OK, the first pair of cans I bought were a pair of Sennheiser HD650s. As such, all I've ever known is Sennheiser. But people talk about AKG and Grato a lot. Are those the other two big headphone manufacturers?--pardon my ignorance.

I looked at AKG cans. They sure do look cool--look like old Russian Soviet Union relics.

Anyway, that's the question. Are those three names the biggest? Is one known to be the best?

 

[humanflyz]

None of them can be said to be the "best", since each company has their own fans (for good reasons too I might add, since each company makes some truly excellent products) here at Head-Fi.

 

[JMCIII]

Don't forget beyerdynamic and Ultraphone.

This from an AKG man.

 

[joi-ful]

Quote:

Originally Posted by humanflyz None of them can be said to be the "best", since each company has their own fans (for good reasons too I might add, since each company makes some truly excellent products) here at Head-Fi.

I second humanflyz. If there's such a thing as best among the three, the other two companies can jolly well cease to exist.

Btw I believe it's GRADO that you talking about.

 

[bluemac]

Well... which of them is the "best"?

I guess it depends on which "camp" or "team" you're from... ^_^

 

[lmilhan]

Grado, Sennheiser, AKG, BeyerDynamic and AudioTechnica are among the biggest names in Dynamic headphones.

Shure and Ultimate Ears are a couple of the big players in the IEM headphone arena (In Ear Monitors).

STAX seem to be THE definitive Electrostatic headphone manufacturer (there may be a couple of other manufacturers that make electrostats, but STAX is the probably the top dog).

KOSS is the King of budget headphones that sound GREAT!

If all you have heard of 'good' headphones is Sennheisers, I would say it is time to dip your toe into the Grado pool since they are just about the polar opposite of Sennheisers sound wise. You may be shocked and surprised by what you hear (possibly in a good way, possibly in a bad way - it all comes down to your own ears to make the final decision). Over the years I have lost count of how many people were in your situation that tried a pair of Grado headphones and were absolutely amazed with what they were hearing (when compared to the Sennheiser house sound).

Good luck.

 

[lmilhan]

Forgot to mention - none of them are 'the best', although a couple of particular models from a couple of manufacturers comes pretty close. But since that kind of stuff is all subjective, I will not mention my favorites here.

If you ever spell Grado with a 't' again, you may wake up one day with a mutilated pair of Sennheiser HD650s in your bed, and the Grado mafia will probably pay you a visit and break your legs.

[size=xx-small]j/k [/size]

 

[VR6ofpain]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JMCIII Don't forget beyerdynamic and Ultraphone. This from an AKG man.

Do you mean Ultrasone? I don't consider them big enough to list.

AKG owns

 

[Mercuttio]

What, isn't Bose the best?

 

[MaZa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by morose- OK, the first pair of cans I bought were a pair of Sennheiser HD650s. As such, all I've ever known is Sennheiser. But people talk about AKG and Grato a lot. Are those the other two big headphone manufacturers?--pardon my ignorance. I looked at AKG cans. They sure do look cool--look like old Russian Soviet Union relics. Anyway, that's the question. Are those three names the biggest? Is one known to be the best?

Sennheisers make warm and calm, soothing headphones, while Grado makes complete opposite: Aggressive, bit thin and bright, really rocking headphones. Totally different ends.

High-end AKG and Beyerdynamics generally aim for neutrality. This is of course HEAVY generalisation as both makers have a lot of variety to both sides in headphones, especially in lower-end.

There is no best, but different styles to make people to enjoy music.

 

[The Monkey]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mercuttio What, isn't Bose the best?

I think that's just assumed. We're really talking about 2nd best.

 

[Cousin Patty]

I would definitely go Grado next. After that go AKG. The AKG sound seems to be in between Grado and Sennheiser from my experience with all 3. More laid back than a Grado, more aggressive than a Senn...

 

[Gaughtfried]

Quote:

Originally Posted by morose- I looked at AKG cans. They sure do look cool--look like old Russian Soviet Union relics.

I never thought of it that way, but the more I look at the higher end AKGs the more I have to agree with you. I would get something to contrast the HD650s, probably something in the Grado lineup. Everyone else pretty much took the words out of my mouth.

 

[kramer5150]

When I think "big name" I think Koss. Financially they are one of the top 2-3 biggest $$$$ headphone companies, and the name has been around since the 50's.

When I think "big time - high end" I think Stax. IMHO the most high-end (and high $$$), boutique headphone company, not a major lemon in their entire product line.

 

[VR6ofpain]

Grado + cheese grater = Grato