[PanzerRon]

Hey all, I hope some of you can help me decide what cans a poor college student should get to introduce him to this hobby. Seeing that I am just a poor college student I only have around $80 to spend but I'm not too particularly picky so I'm sure the decision won't be too difficult. I listen to metal primarily (death, symphonic, doom, thrash) and progressive rock/metal as well as some classical (wagner, vivaldi, beethoven). I'm looking for headphones that can provide clarity and details so I can hear individual instruments clearly, without the sound becoming too tiring. I also travel a lot and study in noisy environments so I need a pair that can give me adequate noise-reduction or noise isolation. It should also be quite comfortable and stay firmly on my head as I will be wearing those for long periods of time and moving about constantly (between classes). And one last thing, I have long hair (I'm a metalhead, after all) and I don't intend to brush my hair behind my ears to listen to headphones, so I wonder if the sound will be compromised through my hair.

Right now I'm looking at the Senn HD280 and Sony MDR-V6 but any alternatives (preferrably cheaper) is most welcomed.

 

[MINX3030]

hey, i'm a newbie too, so take this with a grain of salt, but the reason i got on this forum was b/c I purchased the 280s, burned them in well, listened to them on a real system (not the greatest, but not my laptop!) and still thought they totally sucked. I'm sure there are people on here that would disagree with me (and a lot who would agree, as well) but I would say, even as a point of entry, the 280s really stink. I listen to the same kind of music as you too, so I just thought I'd throw my two cents in I am prob. going to get the V6s as my portables though, and I know several people who have the 7506 (same thing as V6) who are not audiophiles, but definitely music lovers (and metalheads to boot) who really like them. feel free to im me- i'm no expert, but i can tell you more about my personal experience with the 280s.

ps- i posted about 4 days ago looking for EXACTLY the same thing you described in your post (incredibly tight detail, ability to hear each individual instrument, etc.) it's called "alright nerds, guide me" and it's about three pages back now. people gave me a LOT of good suggestions which might also be helpful to you. just be warned though, i came on here planning to spend, like, $150 tops and I ended up spending $500, so watch out! hahaha. I decided on the SA5K to start out with, but I may end up returning it if it's not what I'm looking for. Good luck to you, my metal friend!

 

[A<aA?]

Grado SR60

 

[carlosgp]

HD280 are very good cans for monitoring in studio, but not so good listening music, especially hard rock/metal. I'd try new beyers, 770 (closed), beyer 990 (open) or AKG 240s (semi). Grados are worth of trying, but they have too much treble for my taste with metal. They reproduce distorted guitars very well, though.

 

[PanzerRon]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MINX3030 hey, i'm a newbie too, so take this with a grain of salt, but the reason i got on this forum was b/c I purchased the 280s, burned them in well, listened to them on a real system (not the greatest, but not my laptop!) and still thought they totally sucked. I'm sure there are people on here that would disagree with me (and a lot who would agree, as well) but I would say, even as a point of entry, the 280s really stink. I listen to the same kind of music as you too, so I just thought I'd throw my two cents in I am prob. going to get the V6s as my portables though, and I know several people who have the 7506 (same thing as V6) who are not audiophiles, but definitely music lovers (and metalheads to boot) who really like them. feel free to im me- i'm no expert, but i can tell you more about my personal experience with the 280s. ps- i posted about 4 days ago looking for EXACTLY the same thing you described in your post (incredibly tight detail, ability to hear each individual instrument, etc.) it's called "alright nerds, guide me" and it's about three pages back now. people gave me a LOT of good suggestions which might also be helpful to you. just be warned though, i came on here planning to spend, like, $150 tops and I ended up spending $500, so watch out! hahaha. I decided on the SA5K to start out with, but I may end up returning it if it's not what I'm looking for. Good luck to you, my metal friend!

Hey, thanks a lot. You've kinda dissuaded me from the 280. I'm also looking at the Grado SR60 but apparently the highly-detailed sound can get very straining on the ears and it doesn't block out external noise (The reason why I was interested in getting headphones was because I couldn't stand listening to music with cheap earphones on long flights) other than that, the sound quality is apparently top notch. I'm now leaning towards the sony V6 as I've heard nothing but good things about it, except the Senn 280 is superior when it comes to blocking out noise. Any recommendations on the Audio Technicas below $100?

Also, any suggestions as to where I can get the above headphones online for the lowest price? Any more recommendations/comments are welcome, thanks!

 

[MINX3030]

as i said, i have listened to the V7506 which is pretty much exactly the same as the V6 and i found it's noise blocking capabailities satisfactory. however... the new audiotechnica portables are pretty drool enducing right at the moment...
http://www.audiocubes.com/product/Au...eadphones.html

you get the black ones, i'll get the white ones

 

[donunus]

sr60 hands down. There is nothing else good for metal in that price range IMO. Besides, the sr60 is a great can period, enjoy it and get out of head fi before you get the sickness

 

[MINX3030]

Quote:

Originally Posted by donunus enjoy it and get out of head fi before you get the sickness

uhhh *****ing seconded... my bank account is begging for mercy already. but i think, at least for most people, once you're on here, it's already too late, hahaha.

 

[A<aA?]

same here, once i've got my amp, i'm getting the ****** out of here.

 

[MINX3030]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ?ã? same here, once i've got my amp, i'm getting the ****** out of here.

sure, sure! i just bought my amp....WHAT AM I STILL DOING HERE!?!? hahaha. but i'm like, "welllll if the SA5000s don't work out, I need alternatives, soooo I better stay in touch with all my new headfi friends" yeah right! I'll be here until I've got the K1000s instead of rent money, I just know it! hahaha

 

[GuffMorgan]

SR-60's are definitely what I'd recommend, it's highs can be a bit much, but then the forwardness of it seems to be enjoyed by "metalheads." Plus with the comfies the highs probably aren't as bad (never have listened with bowls or comfies, I put flats on them). I let my friend who had never listened to nice headphones before, I guess you could call him a metalhead if you were so inclined, though he would object by saying he's more into grindcore, etc. etc. etc., and he was quite taken by how well they sounded and now he wants a nice little headphone setup when he gets the money.

 

[Shoreman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by PanzerRon Hey, thanks a lot. You've kinda dissuaded me from the 280. I'm also looking at the Grado SR60 but apparently the highly-detailed sound can get very straining on the ears and it doesn't block out external noise (The reason why I was interested in getting headphones was because I couldn't stand listening to music with cheap earphones on long flights) other than that, the sound quality is apparently top notch. I'm now leaning towards the sony V6 as I've heard nothing but good things about it, except the Senn 280 is superior when it comes to blocking out noise. Any recommendations on the Audio Technicas below $100? Also, any suggestions as to where I can get the above headphones online for the lowest price? Any more recommendations/comments are welcome, thanks!

Try Froogle (froogle.google.com). Always start there to get basic price parameters, from which you can derive the "market price" (make sure to factor in shipping). Then, if you like, shoot over to eBay. If you're lucky, you could stumble upon a bargain.

 

[lan]

$20 - Sennheiser HD201
$40 - used CMOY amp
$20 - some mini to mini interconnect

You should be able to pull that off. You can find HD201's less than $20 in some places but with shipping might be a little more in total. It's closed which is what you asked for. It has a bit of a bass emphasis but I think with the CMOY it will be good for um... kickdrums

You can find a used CMOY on the boards here as well as some mini to mini cables.

 

[lmilhan]

Grado SR-60 hands down for the music you listen to.

Keep in mind that there are always tradeoffs in the world of headphones. Although I am pretty confident you will not find a better set of headphones in the price range of SR60s that will sound better with your type of music, the SR-60s leak a lot and don't provide very good isolation - so be sure to consider that.

So my vote is for Grado SR-60s. 3 out of 4 aint bad (they fit your budget, will make your music ROCK, are the most comfortable of all the Grados to most, but they don't isolate well).

As for the hair - I can't comment. I cut my long hair off many years ago, but If I were a betting man, I would bet your hair will not have any significant impact on the sound quality.

 

[PanzerRon]

can anyone tell me more about the sony v6/7506 with regards to the requirements/specs I'm looking for?