[pataburd]

My office moved--to a less "secure" environment, which forced the breaking down, packing and removal of my dedicated "office" headphone gear: EVS-modded Oppo DV-970HD, Bada PH-12, Denon AH-D2000, AKG K501.

Right now, I'm running a pair of $15 Philips SBC-HS5000, behind-the-neck portable headphones straight out of my work computer with only the DakiOm Fm203 between me and the computer. And it sounds great!

Now I'm in the process of modding my Bada PH-12 and restricting it to dedicated home use, selling my Darkvoice 337 to help pay for the Bada mods, and looking for a primo set of portable headphones that can run straight out of the computer at work.

Any suggestions for a portable pair that can beat the Philips? : )

 

[REB]

Hi Pataburd,

I would recommend an Ultrasone HFI 680 (or 780 if you want more bass). I have the 680 and it has very good SQ, good, extended bass, forward mids, crisp highs. It's the kind of phone you'd want at work, I guess, not too laidback... Not everybody likes the Ultrasone HFI sound though. It's pretty forward and quite different from, say, the K501. Little soundstage (S-logic is marketing nonsense), but it has good depth and detail. I have the stock version, but to my mind it beats the Pro(Line) series of Ultrasone. Plus they don't really need an amp to perform. They aren't the cheapest cans around, but I've never regretted the fact that I purchased them. I'm not sure whether you're looking for fully portable phones; if so, the HFI 680 is disqualified, it's a smallish closed can, but nonetheless belongs to the category of full-sized phones. It's circumaural. It folds nicely though. Anyway, it is worth considering, although there is so much to chose from when it comes to portables...

.

 

[pataburd]

Thanks, REB. I'm probably going more in the direction of a portable, though.

 

[ludoo]

A pair of recabled iGrados? I listened to a pair I recabled for a fellow member a couple of days ago, and was surprised by their sound. Especially considering what they cost.

 

[ronnielee54]

I am usig Denon D1001's right now for my portable choice. In the past I have used PX100's, KSC75's, Porta-pros, ES7's, and MS1's. Would have to say that so far I prefer the Denon's slightly (very slightly) over the ES7's and MS1's (I am calling those a tie). I am using an Ipod Classic as a source connected to a Headamp AE2 by a Turbo LOD.

 

[googan]

I'm on my second week with Denon D1000s and I'm beginning to really enjoy them. Portable, comfortable, and though I only have HD555s to compare them to, they sound very good. I'm not sure if it's the ~80 hours of pink noise or my brain adjusting but I clearly preferred the sound of my HD555s at first and now I prefer these.

 

[majkel]

Denon AH-D1001 or Creative Aurvana Live! They're actually the same headphones but to let them really shine, recabling is mandatory. See Tokenganjaclan's thread elaborating this matter.