[Collide]

Hey everyone, I'm a college student and a huuuuge audiophile. I own a pair of Sennheiser HD497s and am pretty happy with them (bass is a little weak for my tastes), however, they leak too much and my 2 roomies don't appreciate that. I'm looking for a kickass pair of closed headphones that isolate and don't leak much. I really don't know where to look. I have no brand preferences. The only thing I ask is to keep the price below $150.

Thanks

 

[jagorev]

Sennheiser HD 280. Good isolation, no leakage, sounds good.

 

[jjcha]

I don't know if they're going to release them internationally, but audio-technica's ATH-ES7 strikes me as perfect for your application. They've just been released in Japan and a few of us are trying them out now. I'm very pleased with my pair though I haven't done extensive comparisons with the competition yet.

http://www.audio-technica.co.jp/prod...p/ath-es7.html

Anyway, I'm sure others will come in with other good recommendations. There probably will be difficulties getting this (and it may be too pricey if you have to pay a big mark-up to an international retailer) but keep an eye out for these.

There's already a thread with some photos and thoughts - run a search for ES7.

Best regards,

-Jason

Postscript: Heh, I knew someone would chime in HD280. I haven't heard it yet - how does the HD280 compare to the HD25-1? I think the ES7 is on about the same (actually I like it more) level with the HD25-1.

 

[jagorev]

Haven't heard the HD 25. It has more isolation than the HD 25 SP, FWIW. But people hold the HD 25 in such high esteem I'd expect it to be even better.

 

[Oridan]

Go for a pair of used audio technica ATH-A900s the sound quality is amazing and 2nd hand they're usually around 130 dollars.

 

[jagorev]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oridan Go for a pair of used audio technica ATH-A900s the sound quality is amazing and 2nd hand they're usually around 130 dollars.

I've heard the A900 doesn't isolate much. Is this true?

 

[humanflyz]

It isolates well when you have music playing, but if you are just putting them on without music, then of course it doesn't isolate well. (BTW I'm talking about the A900).

 

[Dr.Sade]

SONY: MDR-710
Audio-Technica: ES-7
Sennheiser: PX200, HD205, EH250, HD201, HD280Pro, HD25SP, HD25-1
AKG: K26P, K27i, K181, K81,
Ultrasone: iCans
Beyerdynamic: DT250-80, DT231Pro

 

[Arainach]

Get Better Roomies. I use my HD580s and HD570s and while my Roommate occasionally tried to guess what I'm listening to, he never seems to mind. Fantastic guy.

 

[deathBOB]

Get closed headphones. I made the mistake of getting open phones and I really regret it.

 

[K2Grey]

What about IEMs?

 

[MrXpress]

I love my DT770-250's for late night student apartment listening. I like my HD-280's and all, but they don't sound anywhere NEAR as good as the beyers.

 

[jagorev]

Yeah, honestly, I can't imagine my roommates being bothered by my open headphones, or them being loud and inconsiderate enough that I wouldn't be able to hear my HD 600s. Maybe the Sony v6/7506 is another option?

 

[Patu]

Quote:

Originally Posted by humanflyz It isolates well when you have music playing, but if you are just putting them on without music, then of course it doesn't isolate well. (BTW I'm talking about the A900).

Well even open cans isolate well when you play music with them. But closed cans should isolate even without music. I've only tried DT770 from Beyerdynamic and it isolated pretty well.

 

[fewtch]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patu Well even open cans isolate well when you play music with them.

Not really, the music just overwhelms background noise. Not at all the same as isolation, and an invitation to hearing damage.