[Eagle_Driver]

Which set of headphones or earphones is the best choice for everyday commuting on a bus or train? Also, I walk quite a while from the nearest bus or train stop in order to get to work, so isolating canalphones are out of the question - I have to hear some car traffic whenever I cross the street while I can still hear some of whatever I am listening to.

Feel free to suggest cans - and don't just limit your choices to those already in my profile.

 

[gorgon_123]

.... being able to hear traffic... an interesting idea.....

naw.. that's just silly

(I just jynxed myself. Tomorrow, I get hit by a train

)

 

[beni]

I've never heard these myself, but I think the Beyerdynamic DT250-80 come pretty highly recommended for portable use. They're supposed to be easy to drive and sound very good, plus they provide some isolation for the ride to work but not so much that they'd become dangerous while you're walking, as would something like Etys. I would have suggested the Sony V6 since they also fold, but I see you already have those.

 

[thomas]

spotapro... dynamic, bassy sound is good in noisy places because its much easier to hear. At least you'll still hear the beat...doesn't block out outside sound, and is very portable...

 

[Eagle_Driver]

Thanks for some suggestions... But I will carry over this thread onto another thread with a poll...

 

[Eagle_Driver]

This is a continuation of a thread I had started a few hours ago...


The poll expires in two weeks. Make your decision by then.

 

[Neruda]

I merged the two threads eagle_driver. They're obviously the same subject, so there's no use having two of them.

 

[MacDEF]

These should be two different polls

1) Best for noisy commute. Closed/plug phones better.

2) Best for portable use (walking, running, etc.). Others better.

 

[Steril]

You don't mention the Sennheiser HD 25 in the poll.

IMO, it's the best headphone to use in the bus, train.

It's closed and has a very decent sound isolation, it is very sensitive = easily powered by portables, and it sounds very very good.

So IMO, it is the best choice for train/bus/airplane headphone listening.

 

[Deuce_Bigalow]

I live near a small town and no one around walks around with any headphones on other than those crappy earbuds and vertical in ear phones. I have yet to see someone listening to any headphones that are considered good. If I walked around with big bulky headphones on (or just ugly ones like the sportapro) then people would look at me funny and think I'm weird and I actually do have a problem with that. I think the Sony EX70's are really good portable earphones. They don't stand out, they're small and they sound good. The isolation isn't good enough to block out a car horn behind you or someone yelling your name, but it's good enough to make it a lot easier to listen to music on the bus. I did the mods to mine too, so they sound better than when I got them.

 

[chych]

Yeah, I'll have to second the EX70... if you are on the sidewalk, fine... if you are crossing, it isn't that much of a problem, I mean you can pause it temporarily. I've found open phones to be huge pains in noisy areas, isolation is the way to go.

 

[Neruda]

And ever since the tape mod I've been really pleased with the ex70's performance. I use them even more now, since they sound so much better with more types of music.

 

[fiddler]

Quote:

If I walked around with big bulky headphones on (or just ugly ones like the sportapro) then people would look at me funny and think I'm weird and I actually do have a problem with that.

Deuce, I really don't think you should be so self-conscious... Only about 0.01 % of the GENERAL public give a damn about headphones! People will never judge YOU based on your headphones! The only way to attact negative attention to your headphone is to play music through open cans at full blast in a public place..

 

[Trap]

The ER4 are missing, IMHO they are the best headphones for commuting. There was no pricelimit, so go ER4 go!

Well for walking around i would recommend to remove one of the plugs, with custom molds it's no problem

I don't walk around with music playing, i want to pay full attention to the music or have no music at all. But thats my just opinion...

With nonisolating headphones you have to sacrifice a lot of quality in noisy environments like busses(sp?) or trains with same listening levels.

 

[aos]

I've seen once a guy on a street wearing HD-580 and I gave him a funny look, even though I knew full well what he had on his ears. It looks REALLY weird walking on the street like that.

On the other hand, lately I do see people wearing larger headphones on public transit all the time. Not the Senns and Beyers or Grados, and it is just a few people, but still. So it shouldn't be a problem in cities.

I'd vote for SportaPros or their cousins. They're small, foldable and inconspicuous, sound good and you won't cry if they brek (unlikely) or get lost/stolen. Besides, a lot of benefits of high end phones dissapear in noisy environment. So I always thought that pushing for ultra-fi amp and headphones on the go is an overkill. My CMOY does just fine, while some other peple use very sophisticated portable amps. I save that for listening at home.

That's for walking around. For exclusive noisy rides like buses or planes, something like Ety's are probably the best. For walking, something cheap, light and small like sporta pro.