[louiseharatt]

Hello again folks!
 
I have decided to give up on my initial want for the Sennheiser HD-215s. I saw some in the real world and feel they are just too big for my usage.
 
I have done a little more digging and heard generally very good things about the Creative Aurvana Lives. Only complaint normally brought up is the isolation. Could you guys give me your insight on it? Is it really not that great? or is it just okay? I used to have a **** £10 pair of Sony MDR-V150s and I know the sound quality wasn't outstanding but I could still clearly hear audio when on a commercial airliner.
 
Talking of Sony, what are they MDR-V55s like?
 
I'm struggling to find a pair of Creative Aurvana Lives for less than £55. Were they discontinued? Amazon has gone from £60 on Sunday up £2 each day to over £68 today.
 
I've sadly now got a budget of £55 max incl. VAT + Delivery.
 
If you guys have some spare time and would happily spend some of it providing me with your insight into what I should go for...then I would really appreciate it!
 
 
All the best,
Louise x

 

[NA Blur]

The Creative Aurvana Live! will not work well on an airplane and will most likely damage your hearing due to masking.  For travel use a pair of Bose QC 15 or a good in ear.  Anything else is going to put your hearing at risk.
 
Some great sounding headphones in that price range are the CAL!, and the Philips Cityscape Downtown.  Both can be found for under $100 new and sound excellent for that price.
 
Are you looking for something specifically for travel?
 
Would you consider an IEM like the Brainwavz M2?

 

[louiseharatt]

Thanks for getting in touch NA Blur. In reply to your question. Not specifically for travel no, but it bugs me during the morning commute when I've got my Apple earphones in and can't really hear anything even with the sound on max.
 
£55 is my max budget though. So it does limit me I understand that.
 
I do not want to consider earphones or in-ears.
 
Over ear preference/on ear if not.

 

[ChavaC]

Ditto to CAL poor isolation, I recently got rid of a pair because of this. They couldn't even block out my computer's fan noise.

 

[louiseharatt]

@ChavaC is it that it just doesn't completely block it out or that it just not very well?

 

[Sleep Mode zZ]

Quote:

@ChavaC is it that it just doesn't completely block it out or that it just not very well?

You could check Inner Fidelity's measurements and compare the isolation to other full-size sealed headphones: http://www.innerfidelity.com/headphone-data-sheet-downloads.

 

[louiseharatt]

@Sleep Mode zZ Thanks for the link. Massively helpful stuff!
 
If anybody does come up with any solutions to finding the CAL!s for less than £55 I'd really appreciate a link.
 
 
Thanks guys,
Louise x

 

[NA Blur]

I really like the Philips Cityscape Downtown.  They come in some decent colors, have a pretty short cable, and are on-ear.  They seal tremendously well for an on-ear and are quite comfortable.  You can find the charts here:
 
http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/philips-citiscape-downtown
 
They can be found for $65 US or less and sound amazing for that price.  I had to pick up a pair to see what the fuss was about and they truly sound great for a headphone under $150.
 
My two caveats about the Downtown are:
1.)  Sometimes they can irritate the outside of your ear if not properly placed
2.)  The highs are definitely rolled off, but for a headphone that costs less than $65 most of the time they sound darn good.

 

[louiseharatt]

@NA Blur, I checked them out but not a massive fan of the 3 colour options available, and the short cable does limit me a bit. If anybody somehow knows of a perfect product in between the Philips Cityscape Downtown and the CAL!s then please let me know.
 
Thanks,
Louise x

 

[sinnottj]

Quote:

@Sleep Mode zZ Thanks for the link. Massively helpful stuff!
 
If anybody does come up with any solutions to finding the CAL!s for less than £55 I'd really appreciate a link.
 
 
Thanks guys,
Louise x

 
CAL! currently going for £54.49 on amazon.co.uk

 

[louiseharatt]

Thanks @sinnottj. They dropped down to that price on the 24th. I just took the plunge straight away and went for them!

 

[dakanao]

Does the CAL! fit completely around my ears? (I have small ears)

 

[GaryPham]

CAL should have no problem fitting completely around your ears.  I have small/medium sized ears and found them extremely comfortable and one of the best sounding headphones in its price range

 

[dakanao]

Quote:

CAL should have no problem fitting completely around your ears.  I have small/medium sized ears and found them extremely comfortable and one of the best sounding headphones in its price range

I heard they have rolled of treble and bass and recessed vocals, is that true? Also, how do they perform with vocals only? Like if you listen to someone talk with a high quality mic? Is it any realistic?