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Thanks, I want to know is there any other headphone that is excellent in classical but not bad in electronic music?
Or is the Ultrasone Pro 900 the perfect candidate for me?
Also, my friend highly recommends these: Audio Technica ATH-A700
May I know how it fairs against the two? I understand it is cheaper but I want to know anyway.
Thanks anyone!
Edit: I guess my deciding factor would be whether the xb1000 can deliver reasonable in classical music. Otherwise I'll just go with the Pro 900. Or am I just worrying too much?
Heya,
I would likely not get the PRO900 for your needs, its mids are rather recessed, so it will not sound right for a lot of classical and all of Elvis Presley is a bunch of mids, so you definitely want something capable there. PRO900 is more for pure electronic music lovers who just want pulsing bass in their face, but are willing to give up a lot the frequency spectrum to get it. The AD700 is the absolute
wrong headphone for you, it has
anemic shy bass. Your friend recommended it because the internet recommends it for anyone sitting at a computer screen
unfortunately. If you'd like to know more about the AD700 without the fan-ism of is, please click it's model number in my sig for a review with pictures. The AD700 would actually be good for a lot of classical music and be
ok for something like Elvis, but it's absolutely
bad for electronic music where you want that thumping pulsing bass to fill your body, it cannot do that, at all, even equalized. It's not a bassy headphone in the slightest.
The Denon D2000 is the headphone for you, at that budget level you're describing. It can handle classical just fine and has a decent sound stage and a good portion of mids and highs and is not laid back with it. It's also great for things like Elvis, and rock in general, any genre really, because it's signature is more flattish. It's bass is flat all the way down. This headphone will play 30hz just as loud as some mid bass. It's lovely for electronic music because it can play all that bass and sub bass with authority, but it won't cost you mids to get it. So if you're looking for something that can play classical, Elvis and then turn around and slam some 0:55s drops in some Dub, the Denon D2000 would be a headphone that could do that for you. And look good doing it. The D2000 benefits from amplification, but doesn't need it to be good, but it really does tighten up the bass and help out, so I would use it in conjunction with a portable amplifier if possible, otherwise, again, see inexpensive options like the Xonar DG/DS for a PC. For a desktop amp, look at the Fiio E9 for it's cost, or consider a simple E7 or equivalent.
Another excellent headphone for these purposes would be the
Fischer Audio FA-011 which is less expensive and
vastly superior to the aforementioned AD700 in
all areas and is in the same price tier as it is. It has great lovely bass, does well with mids and highs too. It's an open air headphone that can do classical with a good sound stage and imaging and sweet sounds for strings and horns, can play some Elvis, and then also turn around and pulse bass with electronic or do fantastic sound scapes in ambient or trance. Definitely check it out if you're ok with an open-air headphone. It benefits from amplification, so having a soundcard other than onboard would be suggested, or something desktop/portable oriented if being used with a portable player of any kind. If on a computer, the Xonar DG is inexpensive ($30) and will do the job. Otherwise, a portable such as the FiiO E7 would be a good place to start too for an overall handling. And again, the Fiio E9 would be another good route to go for non-portable.
Another option, from the Ultrasone line, would be the Ultrasone HFI 2400. It's actually quite similar to the PRO900, but it's an open-air headphone with pretty smooth highs that roll off, but you retain good detail, and it's bass is a
little less crazy, so it doesn't quite sap into the mids the way the PRO900 does. It still does bleed into the mids a little, which is expected of nearly any bassy headphone, but it's a little less pronounced. With open-air and S-logic you've got a neat sound stage too. Great for classical symphonies for example. Does great for rock like Elvis. And of course does electronic with authority. For cost, I would still likely just recommend going with the FA-011 overall if looking at a bassy open-air headphone though. Again, benefits from minor amplification, same examples for that as above.
Lastly, let's talk about a crazy option that might get sneered at, but I'm dead serious about, and that's the
Panasonic RP-HTF600. I'm listening to Bach Cello Suites on it and it's gorgeous. The bass throbs and pulses, just like the heralded XB500, but it also has it's mids and highs in place unlike that Sony, so it sounds like an equalized Sony, which is pretty impressive. This headphone has angled 50mm drivers and vented backs, yet is closed. It's sound stage is pretty impressive, not quite your average for a closed phone. It's also built pretty well, sturdy, and looks decent. It's extremely easy to drive, no amplifier needed. It does rock really well with smooth rolled off highs that do not fatigue, and the mids are pretty lush. The bass however is out of control good, it slams, punches, impacts, and reverbs. It's excellent for electronic and it just hums with a Cello. I'm completely enthralled with this headphone because it just sounds so warm and musical for
everything I'm throwing through it and it's comfortable to wear. Yet it's completely inexpensive and sounds like it should have another zero behind it's cost. Go this route if you want to save a lot of money in general but want a really big sound that is impressive.
Welcome to Head-Fi.
Very best,
