[bindibadgi]

OK so I'm a newbie. I've never listened to anything but cheapo phones really, and my most audiophile experience is the home rig of Denon CD player and receiver with Paradigm speakers.

Well yesterday I borrowed a pair of Senn HD-280 Pros from a friend (these are probably the best headphones I have access to). And I was not all that impressed. I've been listening to them all the time since (barring 6 hours of sleeping last night).

The isolation is great (except that it made my wife angry last night). My only comparison in headphones are little Sony behind the neck things (MDR-G61) which have nearly completely disintegrated physically but still work perfectly (and must be thoroughly burned in by now lol), and JVC HA-FX55 canalphones. Well I definitely prefer the sound of the 280 Pros to those things, but is it a sin that I was still not too impressed? It seemed that they extended far further, but the bass kind of feels like a pillow fight.

I have this sinking feeling that they should sound more impressive. Probably I am only not enjoying them because I have untrained ears, but I despair of ever training them to be honest. This may be as good as it gets.

So should I be depressed? Will my music never sound better, or is there hope for me yet? I want to buy some proper phones, but can't decide between all the compromises. I nearly bought the Audio Technica a900 but there is no way those can be hung around the neck as far as I can see and that could be annoying at times (I could live with it). Then I thought I should buy the ES7 but I'd probably have buyer's remorse and wish for the a900s when I was listening at home, and the cable looks so flimsy! And there's no way I can spring for two sets of phones right now. Should I go all out and buy the huge a900s, or would I honestly never tell the difference if I got the es7 instead?

OK so this is turning into a rant, but is there hope for me? Are there ten easy steps to refining my listening ability? I don't hold out much hope.

 

[cylanes]

Step 1. Get good music
Step 2. Get in a good listening position (Very comfortable chair)
Step 3. Get some liquids to keep system fluent
Step 4. Dim the lights in the room
Step 5. Start the music
Step 6. Listen to it like you never listen before.
Step 7. Relax
Step 8. Enjoy
Step 9. Enjoy
Step 10. Do NOT fall asleep

 

[Assorted]

Naturally, you shouldn't be "impressed" by budget stuff, even with trained ears.

Your music will sound better once you upgrade your equipment. I assume you will be using your Denon CD player as a source, and now you need a headphone amplifier, and a decent headphone. Mind you that the A900 Art are considered budget, and the ES7 are portable (not that they sound bad or anything).

Now what's your budget?

 

[wnmnkh]

A900 are 170$ cans. I'd not consider them as 'budget' cans, but rather consider as a entry of HiFi cans.

A900 are worth for try; if you don't like it, you can always sell them here.

 

[bindibadgi]

Well my ears are not trained, so I'm worried that my non-impression is not a function of the phones but rather of my inability to enjoy it. That sounds slightly more depressing than it probably ought to though. But it does mean that perhaps I would not be any more impressed with R-10s than I am with the 280 Pros. I just don't know.

Budget's the hard bit. For now it's say $200 (and bear in mind that I've stretched that a lot from what I was "allowed"

). In a year maybe I'll splash some more around, but I wouldn't expect it would be any more than this "round."

I'll be listening at home yes, but I'm not always near the home system (it's nowhere near the computer for instance). Also I spend about two hours a weekday on the bus so that's a consideration. I can live with the a900 definitely-not-portable if that means simply that they can't be stashed away or worn around the neck easily, because I usually put them on before I leave and don't take them off until I get to my destination. If it means that they will fall off my head when the bus turns a corner or I nod my head or something, then I'd better not get them. All in all I think the a900s would suit me better than the ES7 except that I'm not sure how they'd go on the bus.

Oh, and I don't care what I look like. I'm ugly enough as it is so huge cans ain't gonna make it any worse.

 

[DSlayerZX]

for me, I am not impressed at all when I upgrade my equipments, but only when I went back to what I had, then realized how bad my old set up is

 

[nin3th]

If you don't want to drop $170 on your first pair of real cans, try the ATH-A700s, about $130 on amazon and still have great sound. Especially good when you are starting out because they're driven pretty easily, and it's debatable whether or not they even need a dedicated amp.

 

[Sovkiller]

The music should sound natural rather than impress you, the best the system the more natural you will feel it....

 

[java]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DSlayerZX /img/forum/go_quote.gif for me, I am not impressed at all when I upgrade my equipments, but only when I went back to what I had, then realized how bad my old set up is

Oh, man, that is the truth .... , very few upgrades have been immediately apparent, but after listening to it for a few days - a week, then going back to the old setup shows where the differences are ... , and don't doubt your ears, your attitude/preferances maybe, if you need to doubt something, but not your ears ...

 

[Thelonious Monk]

the hd280 doesn't impress me either.

 

[RasmusseN]

Quote:

Originally Posted by java /img/forum/go_quote.gif Oh, man, that is the truth .... , very few upgrades have been immediately apparent, but after listening to it for a few days - a week, then going back to the old setup shows where the differences are ... , and don't doubt your ears, your attitude/preferances maybe, if you need to doubt something, but not your ears ...

running my HD580 out of my AV-710 than going to optical out of the AV-710 to the DAC1 lets just say it was pretty nice.

going single ended to balanced out of my DAC1 I want to say more obvious as it changed the phones a lot.

so far I haven't got a piece of gear that I wasn't able to tell guess that is a good thing. If I can't tell I honestly don't want to waste money on it at my age / amount I make.

 

[funkadelic]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cylanes /img/forum/go_quote.gif Step 1. Get good music Step 2. Get in a good listening position (Very comfortable chair) Step 3. Get some liquids to keep system fluent Step 4. Dim the lights in the room Step 5. Start the music Step 6. Listen to it like you never listen before. Step 7. Relax Step 8. Enjoy Step 9. Enjoy Step 10. Do NOT fall asleep

I am brilliant at 1-9, but number 10 is a bit of a challenge at times!

Simon

 

[MaZa]

Remember, HD280 is designed to be monitoring headphones, so its no wonder they are not "impressive" sounding. They arent headphones that would be designed to grab you from the balls and drag you thru the music. There are other brands and models for that stuff.

 

[facelvega]

don't worry about not liking the HD280, about half of us here feel the same. It sounds to me like what you need now is a decent sub $100 closed portable to get into the game, maybe a K81dj or ATH-SJ5 or ES5. I'd stay away from the es7 or other expensive portables until you know that headphones are for you at all. And by the way, wearing an a900 around town is absurd! These other options will fill your needs much better.

 

[ex0du5]

2 hours a weekday on the bus?

C'MON GUYS! This is a no brainer! Sennheiser HD25-1.