[dallas]

I know it's been months since you posted, but I wanted to say that I just bought some SJ5's from warehouse123.com for only $45US, and they're great. I love the look of them, and the sound is great. I listen to a wide range of music (from trance/progressive to rock to acoustic) and they seem to handle every type really well. But, they really shine when listening to bass-driven music like trance/progressive/house like Markus Schulz, Above & Beyond, Tiesto, etc. The bass really thumps but there is no distortion. And the highs are sharp. I personally have not tried the K81DJs, but after trying these out, I don't need to. These will be my home and portable phones from here on out. Ok, that's my $.02.

 

[chuckading]

On an educators income with a liking for high fidelity, I find myself searching for the best bang for my buck. I've recently purchased the SR-80s for home use, PortaPros for walking the streets, and I've been looking for a budget pair of closed cans to get me home in a few months on the boring 16+ hour flight.

I was weary of purchasing another low-budget pair of Audio Technica headphones as the last pair I purchased, ATH-RE3, were complete garbage. I decided to get the ATH-SJ5 as they are affordable, look cool, and I can easily get my hands on them here in Korea.

I picked them up for 54,000 KRW ($37.00 USD) at the local headphone shop. The guy there must think I'm a dork as I've been three weeks in a row now buying relatively cheep headphones. After the purchase, I made my way to the nearest bench outside the electronics market (part of my routine, done it 3 times now) and opened her up.

I cannot speak for the K81djs as they were not easily accessible to try out, but I can for my new SJ5s. I am happy with the amount of bass and midrange these cans produce, nothing feels fake or forced like some headphones with bass boosters do. I've listened to some Simian Mobile Disco, Cut Copy and other current electronic artist with some heavy bass lines and the headphones did not wimp out on me, I got the fat bass synth sounds I'm familiar with. With that said, recordings with minimal bass sounded to have minimal bass through these headphones, which I personally prefer. They are not as detailed as the more expensive cans I've heard, but overall, I feel I got another pair that are worth more than the money I paid. I feel these will be enjoyable for the long flight home come June.

 

[Zax19]

Hi, I'll add my 2 cents about SJ5s, which I own for about 8 months. Bought for cca 65USD x) (the Czech Republic).
I wanted closed, portable phones for commuting. I somehow missed Senns cx300, which are for 60USD here, and for some reason, I overlooked other available IEMs. Plus I was afraid that they wouldn't fit.

They fit my ear perfectly, I can wear them for several hours (depends on my mood), I didn't manage to break them or something, but there are 2 problems:
Jack is straight and cable will break pretty soon (without any external sign).
Headband can create pressure on your head.

I was satisfied with the noise reduction, but how time passes, clamping is weaker and thus less isolation, far to little, I would say.

I don't have many phones for SQ comparison, but what I noticed is that mids are dominant, which is contraproductive for commuting and noisy enviroment. When I increase volume to hear the lows, the mids are far too loud. Vocals and guitars sharp and even unpleasant. But not all the time...

Here in the CR they are good for their local price tag, but now I don't consider portable closed phones good for noise canceling. I expect IEM to be more effective and still comfortable...? I don't know

.

 

[hasos]

i want buy or sj5 or akg k518 dj. what is better for my sony nwz 443 and ipod touch 2g player? i like good bass and celar high, i want good separation and clarity.