[Goh]

Hi all,

I'm newbie poster on these forums, though I've been browsing on-and-off for the past couple of years. My question is this: what would you all recommend for a mid to hi-fi headphone for pure musical enjoyment? Not monitoring, not analyzing, just a comfy headphone that "disappears" as you become lost in the music...
I currently own a set of Senn PX100s and Senn HD280s, and I just got a CMOY amp off ebay to drive my future upgrade (or upgrades? yikes, my wallet is shaking!). I think the HD280 sounds great with the amp, but being a sealed headphone, it traps the music too much in my head and is a bit too analytic with its sound...I find myself listening to the headphone, not the music.
So far, I've narrowed the choices down to two headphones: the discontinued HD580s and the AKG K601s. If I get the 580s, I'll probably mod 'em with HD650 cables and some HD600 grilles. Price-wise it comes out to be approximately a $20 difference: the 580s with mods will cost around $160 (recertified pair at newegg.com) and the K601 will cost around $180 (northernsound).
So what does the head-fi community think? Which is the better headphone for my purposes? Oh, I'll be listening primarily on my computer with a Transit usb thingamajig attached to a cmoy amp, and I listen to all genres of music. Oh, and lots of DVD's too, also on my computer.
Any and all opinions/suggests is much appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Redo]

My guess is the HD580 will be a great choice for you

 

[Tyler J]

I have not heard the 580s, but I have the HD595s and the K601s. I like the 601s alot better (clarity, bass, and especially soundstage).

 

[edisonwu]

Make your own judgement on which is better for youself. I personally prefer 580 to 701 "for pure musical enjoyment", but this may be just me.

 

[billinkansas]

Quote:

Originally Posted by edisonwu /img/forum/go_quote.gif Make your own judgement on which is better for youself. I personally prefer 580 to 701 "for pure musical enjoyment", but this may be just me.

My experience is similar with the K701, but the K601 is a little different - more euphonic and less analytical to my ears.

I have heard the HD580, and own both the HD600 and K601. They get about equal time with me. To recommend one over the other would depend on your music. The bigger the music, the more I like the Sennheisers. With smaller and more intimate music, I tend to prefer the K601's, and the K501's sometimes as well.

The K601 and HD580 are more similar to each other than if compared to a Grado or an Audio Technica phone. I believe that if someone likes the K601, they'd probably like the HD580 as well. I don't think you can go wrong here.

Good luck.