[2rooi123]

Im planning to upgrade to full size from now on since im not satisfied with portable headphones.
 
my question is will an akg k272hd or 242hd sound noticeably better than an es10?
Are there any other cans which plays does any kind of genre well and are way better than the at's?
i listen mostly to chill out,house,techno,hip hop,classical,jazz,electronic, and rnb
im not willing to spend more than $350

 

[Ypoknons]

Save up for a full rig including amp/DAC. The K272 and K271 are more neutral than the ES10 but from my experience you'll have a lot more fun going up a class. 

 

[2rooi123]

Quote:

Save up for a full rig including amp/DAC. The K272 and K271 are more neutral than the ES10 but from my experience you'll have a lot more fun going up a class. 

 
you meant save for t1 hd800 stax and the like?
as much as possible, it would be better if there are no amps/dac included
s:flo2 is my source

 

[Ypoknons]

hmm.... You don't need to go to T1, HD800 or Stax.... K701/HD650/DT880 are noticeably a step up from K242 and K271. Or you could grab one of those HF2's, maybe you'll like those and there's lots of comments about how good they sound without pricey sources. 

 

[2rooi123]

i got a feeling when i buy k701/hd650/dt880 etc, after few months of using them i would want to upgrade again. Its my disease. The craving of another upgrade. and i blame head-fi for this. so have you tried those that are a step up from the ones you listed?
i might wanna jump straight to ultra high end

 

[Ypoknons]

I've heard the T1... I wouldn't jump off the deep end right away to be honest, I think T1 is more about perfecting the DT880 more than anything else. Live with the mid-fi cans for a year at least to really understand their strengths and flaws, and upgrade then. 

 

[2rooi123]

does the dt880 need a good expensive amp to sound excellent?
or will i be satisfied with sflo as the source?
but ive been eyeing my eyes on k272 for a long time now

 

[Ypoknons]

I've never tried the DT880 without an amp so I can't tell you. If you want the K272 then go for it, I think it improves with an amp (the shop had a SPL Phonitor, so I was like, why not?) but it's not crap without one. I can't really tell you if the K272 is 'better' than the ES10, it's probably going to be a battle of trade-offs. 

 

[2rooi123]

this is really hard. my golly so many choices to choose. hmm lets wait for another AT flagship

 

[wind016]

From what I have heard about the ES10s (I was incredibly interested in them before I decided to purchase the ESW10JPNs), they should be really difficult to beat, if the quality is on par with my ESW10JPN. I sometimes prefer my ESW10s to my AKG K701 and Denon D7000.
 
I think you should live with them for now. It will be difficult to find something that is a significant upgrade to the ES10 at that price. You could try mid-level full-size and see if there is anything you like. I do not believe there will be a significant upgrade and it will simply start becoming just differences in sound character.

 

[Ypoknons]

The main difference is that the reports note the ES10 has a V shaped FR and the ESW10JPN has a gentle downward slope, being just a bit rolled off in the highs. I think a large part of the ESW10JPN's charm lies in its in wonderful FR, so whether the ES10 is as 'good' is in a large sense subjective... I do think it's worthwhile for  the OP to play around with different sound signatures. 

 

[2rooi123]

yes i think the es10 sounds excellent but i want something better in all aspects
bass,mids,highs,soundstage,instrument separation,etc
also just recently sold them
so if k701 d7000 isnt a significant upgrade then im better off with another step up headphone you think?

 

[Ypoknons]

D7000 and K701 are significantly better in many respects, especially soundstage, but the 10JPN FR is very addictive. Forgiving and punchy, with just enough technical ability. It's a love affair, not a technical analysis. Some people don't like the 10JPN, and I can see why. 

 

[wind016]

No, I agree that D7000 and K701 are better. That is why I have kept them. Actually, I am thinking of selling the D7000 for Ultrasone Pro 900, but I'm not quite sure.
 
Back to the point. I would think the Denon D7000 would be an overall improvement on everything. The K701 would be a further improvement on soundstage and detail, but bass... arguably a downgrade

 

[Azathoth]

For the genres you specified, either the Senn HD600 or HD650 will make you happy. You do need sufficient amplification (tube amps are a good match for them, the Audio-GD FUN as well) to hear them at their full potential though.
 
I agree with sentiments posted about the K701 - they sounded too flat and boring to me.