[deadly55]

speakers, what are those? I've never had a decent set of speakers only good headphones, so i gotta say headphones all the way.

 

[RushNerd]

I think most of us even being headphone lovers would prefer a well setup, decent, powerful sound system in an ideal room. It's just so darn hard to get right, and volume is the main concern unless all conditions are perfect.

My main reason going to headphones was volume, I love to blast my music and I love my low-end even more. I got to say though, bass is one hard thing to balance and get right with phones. With a powerful enough system/sub it's more of a matter of "how loud you want it". Still this is what makes headphones a niche and a really fun hobby is how much you can really fine tune them.

The most comfortable perfect headphones will give you bliss, but sometimes it's just too "close" and you feel like you can't relax enough to enjoy things, this is where speakers shine.

Some of my best audio memories by FAR are from 2 huge Mitsubishi 100W tower speakers. Tons of power and bass and as much volume as you could stand. I miss that, but I strive to get as close to that as I can with phones at some point

.

 

[RushNerd]

Bump for conversation.

 

[haloxt]

Something I don't think speakers can do is make you feel like you are as close to the instruments/vocals as the microphone itself. Only OCD audiophiles or people in the studio could appreciate that more than a very expensive speaker system.

 

[mookowz13]

All my rigs are lower-mid fi budget rigs, but I find I enjoy both my headphones and speakers for different reasons. Right now I've been playing with my speaker rig mainly because its a recent addition, but I definitely still enjoy putting on any of my PAIRS of headphones and listening to the same music and finding different layers of the music. For me, as long as I'm enjoying the sound thats all that matters.

 

[RushNerd]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mookowz13 /img/forum/go_quote.gif ...but I definitely still enjoy putting on any of my paris of headphones...

Paris of headphones?

 

[n3rdling]

Speakers by quite a bit

 

[atothex]

It really depends on my mood and location. I don't care, as long as I have music.

 

[ical]

Best to own hifi and headphone. Best of both world.

 

[axle_69]

Headphones are convenient but don't allow the same imaging as a speaker system. However, for much less money it is easier to get good amplification and a good driver, with higher resolution than in a speaker system. Imagine now that you have a flat response headphone and listen to binaural recordings... unfortunately there aren't many binaural recordings out there...

 

[mookowz13]

Oops, I need to spell check more often.

 

[roker]

Speakers, but I'd still like a really headphone setup. It doesn't make sense to listen to speakers at night and it's nice to take your headphones on trips.

 

[JMT391]

The truth is, a good speaker system > a good head fi system.

They make tweeters/midrange/midbass/subwoofer speakers for a reason - they all accurately reproduce a specific range of frequencies. With a headphone, it is impossible to achieve this.

 

[hur1214]

I prefer speaker, but winner is headphone because my room is too small for loud-speaker

 

[sonance]

I think practical concerns make headphones useful and desirable. The isolation, the ability to listen at reference levels at almost any time and any place, the relative cost / value, etc. are all reasons why we pick headphones.

In the ideal case, if cost was no concern, the environment could be molded to suit your whims, and any any equipment you desired was available, speakers would be superior.