Can someone receommend $100 or less headphones for PC and Portable listening
Mar 3, 2014 at 3:05 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 41

Falcon10275

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Hi Guys,
 
My budget is $100.   I only want a pair of headphones.  I do not want to get into DAC's or Amplifiers or any add-ons.
 
I will be listening to High bit rate MP3's or WAV's from CD's.  I will be listening on a computer with a Soundblaster X-Fi Titanium fatality sound card     or  an iPod nano 5th generation.
 
Based on my requirements what headphones would anyone recommend?    Right now I am currently thinking of buying Sony MDR-V6    anyone else agree or can recommend anything better for less than $100?
  1. Driver Type: Dynamic
  2. Sensitivity: 106dB
  3. Headphone Type: Full Size
  4. Connector Type: 1/8
  5. Weight: 8.1 oz. w/o cord
  6. Impedance @ 1kHz: 63 Ohms
  7. Isolation: -10dB ~ 15dB
  8. Detachable Cable: No
  9. Cord Length: 9ft
  10. Cord Type: Coiled Left-Side
  11. Ear Coupler Type: Full-Size
  12. Acoustic Seal: Closed

 
Mar 3, 2014 at 3:09 PM Post #2 of 41
It depends what music you listen to and if it has to be a closed model for portability. One thing to bear in mind about the V6 is that the earcups are very shallow, almost on ear instead of over ear.
 
Mar 3, 2014 at 4:29 PM Post #4 of 41
Hi,
 
You should also consider Gemini HSR-1000 (Takstar Pro 80).
 
You can read and ask about them in this thread:
http://www.head-fi.org/t/585356/the-takstar-technical-pro-gemini-greathon-thread/1560
 
Best Luck!
 
Mar 3, 2014 at 5:02 PM Post #5 of 41
Hi
A couple headphones that you might like are the phillips citiscape uptown or the audio technica ath m40x

Edit: phillips are 90 on amazon, audio technicals are 100 at b&h photo
 
Mar 5, 2014 at 11:19 AM Post #8 of 41
As classic as they are are ...I find Sony's and AT's to be very unpleasant to my ears , mainly because of the grain and lack of fidelity they have 
I had owned the V6 for 3 years , have the ZX700 which is very similar and I hardly use them anymore , I like the Ultrasone HFI-450 it has rolled of highs and a bass skew to it but images surprisingly well for a cheap closed back , I enjoy them quite a lot , still in this price range you can't go wrong with the HM5-NVX XPT100s 
 
Apr 1, 2014 at 5:19 PM Post #10 of 41
Hi MrTechAgent, I am a bit estonished when you say the AT lack of fidelity? I read everywhere that the audio technica ath m40x are balanced flat and accurate? Did you try them or are you speaking about the ath m50? (I am asking because I plan to buy them)
 
Apr 2, 2014 at 4:21 AM Post #12 of 41
  Hi MrTechAgent, I am a bit estonished when you say the AT lack of fidelity? I read everywhere that the audio technica ath m40x are balanced flat and accurate? Did you try them or are you speaking about the ath m50? (I am asking because I plan to buy them)

Frequency response doesn't always equate to fidelity .....a $100 flat headphone does not have the clarity and resolution of a $1000 flat headphone , AT and Sony headphones have a lot of grain in the timbre , another word for that is they lack clarity , a lot of it .....which may bug you down the road , I have owned many Sony headphones like the v6,zx700 and ma900 and although they are good the grain kills them
 
Grain and clarity usually are affected by the membrane materials , damping usually does not help with grain , it might recess it but not eliminate it , this is the place where these Japanese headphones fall short IMO 
I know some people who really like the sound , you might be one of them , its best to try it out and judge yourself 
 
Apr 2, 2014 at 4:50 AM Post #13 of 41
Hi, thanks for the answer. I plan a long listening session in a local shop on Tuesday, but the headphone are often very new so they might sound a bit more "closed" than once they are burned in. Therefore the point of view of experienced users like you is precious. I consider: AT M50, AT M40X, BrainWavz HM5, Sony 7506, Ultrasone HFI-450, Ultrasone HFI-580. I love tight Bass, very clean and "forward" mediums (I hate the cup sound effect) and I am very sensible to piercing treble (the Sony is unbearable here without EQ for me). My budget is arout 200-300$ but I am in Czech republic so the prices can change a lot from on Headphone to another. Would you be so kind and advice what you believe could suit me? (from the list above or not). Thank you for your help.
 
Apr 2, 2014 at 5:05 AM Post #14 of 41
Hi, thanks for the answer. I plan a long listening session in a local shop on Tuesday, but the headphone are often very new so they might sound a bit more "closed" than once they are burned in. Therefore the point of view of experienced users like you is precious. I consider: AT M50, AT M40X, BrainWavz HM5, Sony 7506, Ultrasone HFI-450, Ultrasone HFI-580. I love tight Bass, very clean and "forward" mediums (I hate the cup sound effect) and I am very sensible to piercing treble (the Sony is unbearable here without EQ for me). My budget is arout 200-300$ but I am in Czech republic so the prices can change a lot from on Headphone to another. Would you be so kind and advice what you believe could suit me? (from the list above or not). Thank you for your help.

Your budget is pretty good , Amazon sometime does international shipping for free to certain countries , you might want to spend some time there 
The HFI-450s are dark with a lot of bass , 7506 is very similar to the v6 so I would skip it (It also doesn't match your signature preference) the HM5 is solid but I think you can do much better , they can be harsh at times since they lack clarity , but still they are better than the above , Ultrasones have no grain but they have some problem with sibilance which can be annoying with some badly mastered tracks 
A Beyer DT770/880 if you can find locally might be the best (If you have an amp or a high powered receiver that is) , I was able to find Beyers locally in India at some music stores and saved a bunch on taxes , shoot Beyer a mail and ask them if there are any retailers around your area 
 
Apr 2, 2014 at 5:24 AM Post #15 of 41
Hi, and thanks for the mega fast answer! Indian guys rock :wink:
Beyerdynamic is based (and even manufacture their products) in Germany, which is our neighbour country. So no issue to find their products here. I tried the DT770 (I want closed headphones) but I have glasses and because of this the big ear cups, otherwise very comfortable, become absolutely unbearable, at least for me. But thanks for the shared experience as I forgot about their DT250 that might be a good fit for me. If you have other ideas, don't hesitate.
 

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