Alternatives to Sennheiser HD 25 II
Jun 1, 2011 at 5:08 PM Post #61 of 82

Quote:
How about adding your XD-53 into the table with some opinions on it?
 
Surprised the B&W P5 hasn't been mentioned yet.



 
I guess I should, huh? Not 100% sure about how they compare to HD-25 since I have not used Sennheiser's for extended amount of time. 
 
But XD's do have some good qualities. Well they are made for heavy duty DJ use which means they can take a punch or two without breaking. So AWESOME build quality would be one thing. 
 
IMO they make music sound live and not in some cheesy methaphorical way. I mean it feels like you are at the gig. Instead of comming from a distant corner sound is bouncing all around the room. But since the the instrument seperation and imaging is good you don't loose track of what is going on. You can easily pick out guitars, drums, bass and everything else that is going on.
 
I don't really listen to electronic (or dance... whatever it is called) music. But I do have a techno remix of a song by The Postal Service on my htc that I somehow still haven't deleted. And the song has like bass thump and uses all those trics with sound positioning etc. And when I listen to that song I feel like I'm missing out in that although I like them for stuff I listen to if you like hip-hop,techo (and everything in between) you probably would like these headphones even more.
 
Also I don't think they really need an amp if you have a decent mp3 player but since I use my whiny htc as a mp3 player I have a PA2V2 which adds just enough kick and makes everything sound... fuller?
 
Jun 1, 2011 at 5:19 PM Post #62 of 82

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So ein Bloedsinn. They sound and measure just great. But as they may not be recommended here, you might want to have a shot at the Shure SRH840. While I replaced that set with the DT1350 I did like it much better that the MDR-Z1000. 


If you really like them I guess it's ok to recommend them. I just want to avoid recommendations from people who haven't tried them :)
 
 
Jun 2, 2011 at 4:36 AM Post #63 of 82
DT1350, overpriced and hyped up, leave it alone until its magic has settled down. 
 
Sorry but did u have a chance to try them??I own both the hd25 and Beyer DT1350 plus a lot of other portable and non headphones (and i have tried many others) and no one has the isolation and the details of the DT1350.
At the moment they are my reference headphones for portable use,fantastic sound quality,best isolation for portable headphones and they even look good although still sturdy.
The hd25 have a more fun signature and i still like them but i'm sorry,if i have to choose the DT1350 are better in many ways (sorry if i repeated the same words of Jude but i agree with him,it happens)
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Jun 2, 2011 at 5:32 AM Post #64 of 82

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DT1350, overpriced and hyped up, leave it alone until its magic has settled down. 
 
Sorry but did u have a chance to try them??I own both the hd25 and Beyer DT1350 plus a lot of other portable and non headphones (and i have tried many others) and no one has the isolation and the details of the DT1350.
At the moment they are my reference headphones for portable use,fantastic sound quality,best isolation for portable headphones and they even look good although still sturdy.
The hd25 have a more fun signature and i still like them but i'm sorry,if i have to choose the DT1350 are better in many ways (sorry if i repeated the same words of Jude but i agree with him,it happens)
normal_smile .gif


I see you also have a pair of "Monster Beats Solo HD". Are they better or much better than hd25? :) 
 
Jun 2, 2011 at 5:48 AM Post #65 of 82
 
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I owned TMA-1, although it looks decent and nice, awful sound, really awful. Dark, unlively and without detail.
 
I'd even prefer B&W P5 over it


 
Sorry to bring up an older post, but I still stand by my opinion about the TMA-1s. This by no means is this an attack toward you, I just want to clarify some things to the OP. Ofcourse you're entitled to have your own opinions as well, and I can understand how you would consider them as a dark sounding earphone.
 
It's sound signature is different than what most headphones sound like. For example; The HD25's bass is a bit more full, and bold; while the TMA-1s is more punchy and tighter. I also like that fact the highs on the TMA-1 are a bit toned down since I'm not a big fan of highs, but that varies from user to user. The mids are very clear on the TMa-1s and I like that very much.
 
Headphones as well as audio equipment is general is rather subjective to the person using it. I myself prefer a dark sound signature, therefore prefer the TMA-1 over the HD25. That doesn't mean that the HD25 isn't a good headphone; it is a great headphone, however doesn't fit my preferred sound signature.
 
Rather than all of us suggesting various headphones with completely different sound signatures, the OP should state his preference of music, and sound signature that he would like. eg. bassy, dark, bright, etc. That way it would be easier to pinpoint a good option for the OP.
 
Jun 2, 2011 at 5:51 AM Post #66 of 82
Quote:
DT1350, overpriced and hyped up, leave it alone until its magic has settled down. 
 
Sorry but did u have a chance to try them??I own both the hd25 and Beyer DT1350 plus a lot of other portable and non headphones (and i have tried many others) and no one has the isolation and the details of the DT1350.
At the moment they are my reference headphones for portable use,fantastic sound quality,best isolation for portable headphones and they even look good although still sturdy.
The hd25 have a more fun signature and i still like them but i'm sorry,if i have to choose the DT1350 are better in many ways (sorry if i repeated the same words of Jude but i agree with him,it happens)
normal_smile .gif

I will try them but paying close to 300 euros for a headphone that directly rivals with the stock HD25-I II that retails for about 150 euros is too much. If it would cost about 200 euros I could consider buying it. For now the price is too high to take a gamble. 
 
Seriously, the price for the DT1350 right now and the cable is not detachable, no...
 
Any idea what 269 euros can buy you in audio gear?
 
 
 
Jun 2, 2011 at 7:19 AM Post #67 of 82

 
Quote:
It's sound signature is different than what most headphones sound like. For example; The HD25's bass is a bit more full, and bold; while the TMA-1s is more punchy and tighter. I also like that fact the highs on the TMA-1 are a bit toned down since I'm not a big fan of highs, but that varies from user to user. The mids are very clear on the TMa-1s and I like that very much.


Noted.
 

Quote:
Rather than all of us suggesting various headphones with completely different sound signatures, the OP should state his preference of music, and sound signature that he would like. eg. bassy, dark, bright, etc. That way it would be easier to pinpoint a good option for the OP.


To be honest i really haven't defined my "preference of .. sound signature ". So far I have soundwise enjoyed pretty much every hi-fi heaphones I have. I do hate Grados but that's because I can't stand their build quality. And my AD700 make my ears hurt after a while but appart from that I like them :)
 
As far as music goes I listen mostly to punk rock (Pennywise, NOFX, Descendents, PND etc.), English country (Frank Turner), Indie rock (The Kills). Also on special occasions I do enjoy acoustic rock and pop (Kate Nash) or Norah Jones (I guess that would be Jazz/Blues). I wanna to say everything except hiphop, electronic music and Lady Gaga and only because I don't see the point.
 
 
If anything I just want to become more familiar with options that are out there.
 
 
Jun 2, 2011 at 12:00 PM Post #68 of 82
I agree it's overpriced, but it's new. Everyone compares it to the HD25 and that still has an MSRP listing of over $300, but has been out so long that it's come down in price. Hopefully the DT1350 starts coming down soon, though I guess the interest would have to die down a bit first.
 
Quote:
Quote:
I will try them but paying close to 300 euros for a headphone that directly rivals with the stock HD25-I II that retails for about 150 euros is too much. If it would cost about 200 euros I could consider buying it. For now the price is too high to take a gamble. 
 
Seriously, the price for the DT1350 right now and the cable is not detachable, no...
 
Any idea what 269 euros can buy you in audio gear?
 
 



 
 
Jun 2, 2011 at 12:32 PM Post #69 of 82
New does not have to mean a thing. New this, new that etcetera I do not buy it. The Shure SRH440 is cheaper and includes detachable cable and you can still add a decent amplifier or DAC/amp for less than 269 euros. HD25-I II, K181, K81/518 the same so in short: I know better ways to spend 269 euros and I am only addressing the price/product (bang for your buck/euro) ratio in relation with what the competition has to offer. 
 
If you still want to have a DT1350, enjoy it and I sincerely hope it is money well spent. 
 
 
 
Jun 2, 2011 at 3:13 PM Post #70 of 82
I'll just wait for a good deal for a 2nd handed one. I have time and patience to wait for the right moment...
 
Jun 3, 2011 at 1:28 AM Post #71 of 82


Quote:
Quote:
DT1350, overpriced and hyped up, leave it alone until its magic has settled down. 
 
Sorry but did u have a chance to try them??I own both the hd25 and Beyer DT1350 plus a lot of other portable and non headphones (and i have tried many others) and no one has the isolation and the details of the DT1350.
At the moment they are my reference headphones for portable use,fantastic sound quality,best isolation for portable headphones and they even look good although still sturdy.
The hd25 have a more fun signature and i still like them but i'm sorry,if i have to choose the DT1350 are better in many ways (sorry if i repeated the same words of Jude but i agree with him,it happens)
normal_smile .gif


I see you also have a pair of "Monster Beats Solo HD". Are they better or much better than hd25? :) 


Monster Beats Solo Hd are not good headphones at all,maybe someone can say they are ok for Hip Hop but IMHO they are just too bassy and lack details for any other kind of music. In fact i  gave them to my girlfriend
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I use just the HD25 and the Beyer DT1350 as my portable cans,sometimes the Grado SR80i at home
dt880smile.png

 
 
Jun 13, 2011 at 9:28 AM Post #72 of 82
I used to own the ESW9, ESW10, ES10, P5, SRH840, T50p, and I've practically owned the HD-25 as well (well, technically, they weren't mine but...). I recently received a pair of DT 1350. Sorry, we're gonna talk of the latter quite a lot in that post, but there's a reason for that.
 
All of them are interesting alternatives to the HD-25. The latter seems to be recommended all the time on these forums and I guess there's a reason why : they're cheap, well built and sound at least OK with most genres and good with others.
 
You seem to listen to rock first and then other genres second. 
 
The HD-25 are then a really good choice. Actually they're probably the best of the ones I tried for those genres as long as we're not talking about VERY well recorded rock.
But IMHO they're not very well suited to other genres. The question is therefore how much do you stray away rock and for what genres, and which headphones will give you a stronger performance with those genres than the HD-25 while retaining its qualities with rock.
 
So we can already dump a few of them which just don't work IMHO for rock : ESW9, P5, and to a lesser extent SRH840, and to an even lesser extent the T50p (that one would be dumped IMHO if it weren't for its class-leading speed).
 
The ESW10, ES10, DT 1350 are all good with rock. For dirty rock (Nirvana, punk, etc.), I still prefer the HD-25 to the ESW10 and ES10, but not to the DT 1350. The latter might not have the drive and fun factor of the HD-25, at least unamped (amped, that's another story), but they're much less tiring to listen to and that's a plus point for those genres that often display harsh trebles. I find them equal in that regard. However, for well recorded rock then I'd choose the DT 1350 over the HD-25 most of the time. Reason explained later below.
 
If you want to listen to jazz (Norah Jones it seems), then the ESW10 and DT 1350 are much more better than the HD-25. The latter is just dry and just doesn't convey the sense of ambiance / soul well. The ESW10 has fantastic female vocals, the DT 1350 is more balanced and doesn't do anything wrong. As the recording quality increases, I prefer the DT 1350 over the ESW10.
 
If you want to listen to electro, then the ES10 is IMHO better than the HD-25 because of its more rounded and fatter bass. For more experimental / well recorded electro the DT 1350 is IMHO the best. 
 
For classical music, well it's very simple. The HD-25, ESW10, ES10 are all inferior to the DT 1350 by a light year shot.
 
In fact you seem to see a pattern : the ESW10, ES10, and DT 1350 are usually better at other genres than the HD-25, and as recording quality increases I prefer more and more the DT 1350 to the others in pretty much all genres.
 
That's because IMHO the DT 1350 is actually a slight technical leap above the others. While I think the HD-25, ESW10 and ES10 are technically on par (if you graded their technical abilities such as bass extension or soundstage and averaged them they'd be IMHO in the same category), the DT 1350 is superior to them. It is not a night and day difference and I don't think it is that noticeable with average recordings (75 % of what's around here). But as recording quality increases, I think they pull ahead and show their technical abilities well.
 
So to sum it up :
 
HD-25 is IMHO the best for rock. If you have a large proportion of well-recorded rock, the DT 1350 takes over.
The ESW10 and DT 1350 are better than the HD-25 for jazz and acoustic, while still good for rock. If you listen to a large minority of jazz / acoustic it can be interesting to pick them over the HD-25 (which I really dislike with that genre). As recording quality increases the DT 1350 takes over.
I prefer the ES10 to the HD-25 for electronic music, except for very high quality recordings or experimental / ambient electronica where the DT 1350 is in my opinion a better value.
For classical music it is very easy, the DT 1350 trumps them all by a long shot.
For world music, DT 1350 and ESW10.
 
BUT as you said you don't listen to electronic and only occasionally to jazzy / acoustic stuff, so the HD-25 remains one of your best bets. The DT 1350 will be even better, but only if you have a decent portion of your rock interests well-recorded and accoustic rock and pop constitute a big minority of your listening time.
 
As you can see 25 years after their introduction they're still very competitive :).
 
Jun 13, 2011 at 1:30 PM Post #73 of 82
Quote:
Seriously, the price for the DT1350 right now and the cable is not detachable, no...
 


The usd/euro discrepancy is unfortunate, but I seen nothing wrong with a HP manufacturer deciding that it is not going to endorse or encourage the replacement cable trend on a $300 headphone.  Perhaps someone at Beyer has been reading the sound science forum and actually believes in the results of DBT's /gasp.
 
Jun 13, 2011 at 3:08 PM Post #74 of 82
     Quote:
 
I prefer the ES10 to the HD-25 for electronic music, except for very high quality recordings or experimental / ambient electronica where the DT 1350 is in my opinion a better value.


Nice post!
 
Have you tried bass boosting the DT1350? Would that make you prefer it to the ES10 for any electronic music rather than just high quality recordings?
 
 
Jun 13, 2011 at 3:19 PM Post #75 of 82
@MayaTlab quite an informative post, how would rate from your memory all those headphones on comfort alone, something that should be also considered for the creator of the topic when deciding what to get.
 

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