Beyer DTX700/800/900 vs Senn HD25SP HD280PRO HD515 vs Sony XD400

[episiarch]

Really good phones at that price. They do get better (not stellar, but better) with an amp, by the way.

 

[PDream]

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Originally Posted by jruser My HD-25SP will be coming in tomorrow, and I will post my thoughts on it. I ended up choosing it over the HD280 due to the cracking headband issue. I wanted something that would last a while and the parts on the HD-25SP are completely replaceable (cheaply). Headroom seemed to have a decent impression of the HD25-SP, and for $50 on ebay, it can't hurt anything...

Cracking headband issue? Why have I not heard of this? Does this have to do with the headroom review? (Here)
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Originally Posted by episiarch It just isn't. I own both. There really is a lot of difference between the SP and the regular 25 (easily worth the price difference in my opinion). If you're expecting HD25-1 quality and impact from the HD25-SP, you're going to be disappointed. That said, I do like the HD25-SP. I actually like it more than the HD280, though I suspect that to be a minority opinion. The HD25-SP is a little on the dark side, but it has a balanced and accurate-sounding presentation, good isolation, and none of the ugly breakups or resonances that I hear in a lot of lower-end closed phones. jruser, I hope you like the SP. At $50 I think you've gotten a real bargain. Is yours the Sennheiser-labeled SP, or one of the Concorde versions? (My impressions above are based on the Senn version.)

Why do you like the HD25sp more than the 280 PRO? Does it sound better than the 280 PRO, fit better? I am scared of the 85 Ohm, since my player can BARELy support the HD25-1 my dad owns, and I feel going ove3r that limit will not be enjoyable. I am not as audiophile as some of you here, I have troubles finding big differences between the HD-25 and the PX200, thus the sound is less of an issue than you'd might think. I still prefer good sound. It feels just right, but I cant realy easily find bad sound. Now, the HD-25 sometimes just dont feel right to me, and I sometimes prefer the PX200s...Ah, Im going on and on...

I like isolation, its something that I just about NEED.

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Originally Posted by jruser Compared to other earphones I tried in my great search (and remember, I owned the 280s first... for quite some time), the HD 280s are the musical equivalent of listening to Ben Stein do commentary at a very exciting Basketball game. The awesome source (your music) is there, but the HD 280s treat it analytically and make it quite boring.

(I dont know this Ben Stein, nor do I find basketball extremely exciting, but thats a different subject)

What would you compare the HD280 with? and why haven't I heard of this before? Youre the first to say this that I know of. I have heard from a very expreienced person here that they sound very alike the HD25, and these are not known to be analytical.

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Originally Posted by episiarch Really good phones at that price. They do get better (not stellar, but better) with an amp, by the way.

Are you talking about the HD25SP or the HD280? I think the HD25SP, but I could be wrong. Realy, I am scared of the high Ohm, that might make it unusable for me.

It seems that I will be going for a Senn, and leave Beyer for what they are right now. I think the Senns will make me feel better, and that I can purchase Beyers later on. However, nothing is certain yet, because I might still go with that DTX900.

Phew...Long post.

 

[episiarch]

To me the HD25SP sounds a good deal better than the HD280. The "Ben Stein" comment about the HD280 cracked me up -- it's a little exaggerated, but kind of describes my experience: it's not a pleasure for me to listen to, so I usually don't. The HD25SP is dark and can be a little dull at times, but it pleases me a lot more than the HD280. (Maybe it is like Dan Rather delivering the sports instead of Ben Stein?)

As for who Ben Stein is, he's the hugely boring teacher in Ferris Bueller, the one with the slow-talking monotone. The point being: the opposite of dynamic and interesting. Your own impressions may vary, of course.

If you have trouble hearing differences between the PX200 and the HD25, then you'll find the differences between the PX200 and the HD25-SP still harder to discern. They're there, but much less dramatic than PX200 vs. HD25. I don't enjoy the PX200 at all, and enjoyed the HD25SP enough to make it my main office headphone for a year -- that's a lot of hours of listening -- before I moved up to the HD25.

The HD25-SP will give you a lot of isolation, FAR more than the PX200 and nearly as much as the HD25-1. The HD280 isolates a bit more than either flavor of HD25. If isolation is your key requirement, the HD280 delivers.

Over in another thread, Tyll Hertzens mentions that the new Sennheiser HD201 he heard at the Stereophile show is the best-sounding $25 closed headphone he's ever heard. That's a very interesting recommendation. If you want a closed headphone, don't want to pay a lot, and don't hear a ton of difference between the $50 flavor and the $200 flavor, then perhaps it might make sense for you to try the $25 flavor?

Maybe you already mentioned this, but why aren't you considering canal phones? For not much money you can get, say, Shure E2C's and have pretty nice sound, and isolation that is the same as or better than that of the HD280, in a much more compact package.

Back to the HD25-SP, it is not exactly hard to drive, but it's not all that sensitive either. If your source has trouble driving an HD25, then I can't recommend the HD25-SP. (As for the HD280 I don't recall, and would have to check when I get back to work tomorrow, if you'd like me to.)

My "really good phones at the price" remark was about the HD25SP. But if you found HD280's at $50-$60 I'd have to say the same thing. I prefer the 25SP, but many other people prefer the 280.

 

[PDream]

Quote:

Originally Posted by episiarch To me the HD25SP sounds a good deal better than the HD280. The "Ben Stein" comment about the HD280 cracked me up -- it's a little exaggerated, but kind of describes my experience: it's not a pleasure for me to listen to, so I usually don't. The HD25SP is dark and can be a little dull at times, but it pleases me a lot more than the HD280. (Maybe it is like Dan Rather delivering the sports instead of Ben Stein?) As for who Ben Stein is, he's the hugely boring teacher in Ferris Bueller, the one with the slow-talking monotone. The point being: the opposite of dynamic and interesting. Your own impressions may vary, of course. If you have trouble hearing differences between the PX200 and the HD25, then you'll find the differences between the PX200 and the HD25-SP still harder to discern. They're there, but much less dramatic than PX200 vs. HD25. I don't enjoy the PX200 at all, and enjoyed the HD25SP enough to make it my main office headphone for a year -- that's a lot of hours of listening -- before I moved up to the HD25. The HD25-SP will give you a lot of isolation, FAR more than the PX200 and nearly as much as the HD25-1. The HD280 isolates a bit more than either flavor of HD25. If isolation is your key requirement, the HD280 delivers. Over in another thread, Tyll Hertzens mentions that the new Sennheiser HD201 he heard at the Stereophile show is the best-sounding $25 closed headphone he's ever heard. That's a very interesting recommendation. If you want a closed headphone, don't want to pay a lot, and don't hear a ton of difference between the $50 flavor and the $200 flavor, then perhaps it might make sense for you to try the $25 flavor? Maybe you already mentioned this, but why aren't you considering canal phones? For not much money you can get, say, Shure E2C's and have pretty nice sound, and isolation that is the same as or better than that of the HD280, in a much more compact package. Back to the HD25-SP, it is not exactly hard to drive, but it's not all that sensitive either. If your source has trouble driving an HD25, then I can't recommend the HD25-SP. (As for the HD280 I don't recall, and would have to check when I get back to work tomorrow, if you'd like me to.) My "really good phones at the price" remark was about the HD25SP. But if you found HD280's at $50-$60 I'd have to say the same thing. I prefer the 25SP, but many other people prefer the 280.

The reason why I dont hear huge differences is because I pay too much attention to the music. Its annoying that I cant tune out the music and listen to the quality of it.

Canalphones have a large drawback for me, that is that my ears dont like them. I have the EX71's, and although they fit great (and have way, way, way boomy bass, my ears are not that bad), something in my ears kind of has a problem right now because of them sucking them vacuum.

The HD25sp seems pretty close to the normal HD25, which is a plus for me since I know how it works then. Simply put, I like the HD25 a lot. It fits me a little bit irritatingly, but it does give me a good comfortable rest, so to speak. Ill be finding some tunes I dont like that much to compare the sound from both of them. Dont forget, I can get a nice seal with the PX200.

Isolation is a very nice factor, Its something I quite desperatly need most of the time. The isolation of the HD25 is enough, it is the best Ive ever heard from a normal headphone. (Maybe the same as the EX71), so I dont think this is a problem. What annoys me, is that my ears cant take the HD25 for very long, I cant keep them on for hours. Nor can I with the PX200, but at least longer than the HD25.

I do admit that the Shure E2C's interest me a lot, Id love to try them, but feel that they will give me hearing problems again.

You are the only person Ive heard, who does not enjoy the HD280 PRO. Do you have some review, maybe, that could tell me more about it? The Headroom review is alla bout how great they are supposed to be. Ive also heard that the HD25 and the HD280 PRO sound nearly fully the same. And, are yours very well burned in? (I am not doubting your hearing, just that I like the HD280 PRO, and wuld rather hear positive things about them, unless they are untrue.)

Edit: Ive been comparing the PX200 and the HD25 I own. The differences are not at subtle as I thoguht, and, thoguh I can not describe it veyr wlel, the PX200 is less lively, makes the voice of Sheryl Crow (the sole song I needed to hear the difference) sounds like shes six years younger. Also, the amount of sound coming from the HD25 with my portable player is more than enough, its almost as much as the PX200 O.O Id say that the HD25 sounds more lively, more musical as well. But, like I said, I cannot describe it very well.