[RedSky0]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fjrabon /img/forum/go_quote.gif I like HD580s a lot, in fact, I keep scouring the FS forum for a great deal on them, however given no amp, I think there are better options for less money. Compared head to head, I actually prefer the ATH AD700 to an unamped HD580. HD580s need a lot of voltage to knock off the sennheiser veil and to give their bass a balanced sound. Unamped the HD580s are almost completely lower midrange.

I dunno, I did exactly the opposite. Had the AD700s, got the HD600s and never looked back. I mean sure they do definitely sound a whole lot better with an amp/dac, but even without I thought they had unanimously better detail than the AD700s and considerably more bass extension.

 

[KONAKONA]

Well I would say AD900 if they are just a more detailed version of the AD700, but I don't think they are...

Anyway, in that case another vote for the AD700. I find mine quite balanced, none of that 'not enough bass for techno' stuff, as I'm listening to some hardcore dance with them right now and enjoying the bass quite well. They certainly are not basshead cans, but they have plenty of bass IMO. I do like them much more after I bent the headband to get more clamp though. Even though they are extremely comfortable stock, they were just way too loose for my tastes. I think the extra clamp might have helped the bass a tad, but none the less they are still fantastic cans.

The MS1s are very good as well, but I think I'm starting to like the AD700s more. Might be time for the MS1K mod if this keeps up.

 

[nullstring]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RedSky0 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I dunno, I did exactly the opposite. Had the AD700s, got the HD600s and never looked back. I mean sure they do definitely sound a whole lot better with an amp/dac, but even without I thought they had unanimously better detail than the AD700s and considerably more bass extension.

Weird, I have the HD580's and no amp, and I find that they horrible in comparison to the AD700 and D1001.
I might just not like the HD580's sound, but I am hoping that it's the amp situation.

The plan is to build a SSMH and decide if I still want them afterwards.

EDIT: oh, the recommendation.
I think you should get the D2000. They perform better with an amp, so I'd plan on getting one in the future. A DAC would, in the future, would be a good idea too.

 

[JMT391]

Alright so I'm having trouble deciding on going with an open/closed phone. How bad is the sound leakage with an open phone? I mean it is my money, not my roommate's. On the other hand, however, I do not want to cause problems. If the sound leakage is very apparent, I would rather a closed phone.

Anyways, the repeating suggestions seem to be:
Open:
- AD700 (I will probably get the 900 if i go with the AD series)
- HD580
- MS1i

Closed:
- D2000 (may be a bit out of my price range, but we'll see)
- A friend of mine has the Ultrasone Hfi 700 and recommended the newer 780s which he heard at a head-fi meet and loved. Gonna go listen to his phones soon.
- DT150 (loved the review on this thing written by denl82, while many of you seem to have passed over these)

 

[KONAKONA]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JMT391 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Alright so I'm having trouble deciding on going with an open/closed phone. How bad is the sound leakage with an open phone? I mean it is my money, not my roommate's. On the other hand, however, I do not want to cause problems. If the sound leakage is very apparent, I would rather a closed phone. Anyways, the repeating suggestions seem to be: Open: - AD700 (I will probably get the 900 if i go with the AD series) - HD580 - MS1i Closed: - D2000 (may be a bit out of my price range, but we'll see) - A friend of mine has the Ultrasone Hfi 700 and recommended the newer 780s which he heard at a head-fi meet and loved. Gonna go listen to his phones soon. - DT150 (loved the review on this thing written by denl82, while many of you seem to have passed over these)

Well grados/alessandros leak sound about the same as a waterfall leaks water, and I don't think any other open phones are much behind them. If you keep the volume down you can avoid this, but if you wanna listen to louder volumes you might want to look into some closed ones.

 

[nullstring]

For the dorm, you're probably going to want closed cans.

If you think you're going to want to be up later than your roommate, listening to music... then you'll definitely want closed cans

The leakage isn't that big of a deal unless the person is trying to sleep.

 

[JMT391]

I was just at a local PC richards with my parents (they're looking for washing machines) and I went over to the audio section of the store to see if there were any open cans I could listen to to decide on the leakage problem, but as expected, bose and sony raped the wall.

Either way, I am starting to think closed cans are the better option here. I guess I won't really decide until i click "order" though. Does anybody have any opinions on the Hfi -780s compared to the other closed phones I'm considering?

 

[hifidk]

Yes, it sounds like you really need closed phone. I haven't tried many closed phones but highly regarded closed phones in your price range are D2000, DT770 and HFI780. I really didn't like the HFI780 because it was very uncomfortable. If I were you, I would go with used D2000, which cost about $160-$180.

 

[estreeter]

For the OPs needs, canalphones would solve so many problems. IEMs are insane value for money - depending on the model chosen, you can get the detail of open cans with the bass of a closed design.

 

[charliex]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RedSky0 /img/forum/go_quote.gif HD580s, if you can find them used in the FS forums are great value, seen the go for as little $160 if I recall correctly. They do need an amp in theory, but I think they're still very capable cans without and give you a great upgrade path for a possible amp later on (speaking of my HD600s which are virtually the same except for aesthetics).

x 2

 

[jageur272]

Well, I love the Beyerdynamic DT150's. I dampened mine with dynamat on the drivers and cups and then stuffed it with felt, foam, and cotton. The result is tight bass that goes very low and still hits hard, clear highs and mids. Overall, fantastic for the $120 I paid for them. The MS-1i's are great, but the DT150's are in a different league IMO. The detail alone makes the DT150's stand out.

 

[haveblue]

You could just keep your current sound card and buy a DAC/amp combo like the iBasso d2 boa or something. It'll bypass the sound card and you won't have to buy two separate things. The disadvantages will be that whatever speakers hooked up to the sound card will sound the same, and you won't have a mic input.

 

[dweaver]

I think the leaking sound the ability to not isolate yourself from your room mates noise will be an issue which will be resolved with a closed set of phones or as some have suggested possibly an IEM. For over all comfort though I think you will want a full size can versus an IEM, plus I find IEM's at the same dollar point are not as nice as full headphones.

 

[JMT391]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dweaver /img/forum/go_quote.gif I think the leaking sound the ability to not isolate yourself from your room mates noise will be an issue which will be resolved with a closed set of phones or as some have suggested possibly an IEM. For over all comfort though I think you will want a full size can versus an IEM, plus I find IEM's at the same dollar point are not as nice as full headphones.

Although I have never tried a full sized can, I would agree that price/performance is better for the big guys. Plus, I already have IEMs for the library and other things.

On another note, I have seen a lot of these college threads popping up lately, and each one seems to be split 50/50 on the closed/open issue. I personally have not decided yet. As far as that goes, for open I will probably buy the AD900 because of its soundstage and positive reviews across the board. As for closed, I'll probably buy the D2000 because the HFi780, according to head-fi, does not have the tonal balance I want (and neither does the DT150) - I'm just a bit neurotic and am reluctant to buy used.

And a side note, What would be the benefit of buying a DAC/AMP that passes the signal through the sound card? I thought the sound card is a DAC for a PC setup, and a quality one would suffice just as much as a stand-alone DAC would. Plus, I need the 7.1 abilities of a soundcard for gaming.

 

[Almoxil]

The HFI-780 go very well with rock, metal, hip-hop, rap, r'n'b and related genres. They're not neutral, though. Big punchy bass and clear sound are the thoughts that come to my mind when I listen to music through them.