[Riisalat]

Hi ! 
I'm looking to buy my first 200 dollar range headphone !
any suggestions? i listen all genres and actually want the bass.

I do NOT want to spend more than 200 dollar. The k7xx's are on for 200 dollar, my other options are fidelio x2 or the senny hd650 which are quite a lot more So should i wait like a year for those and save up or just get a K7XX and be happy !

 

[Riisalat]

Bump !

 

[PurpleAngel]

The Philips Fidelio series is only 30-Ohm and works fine without a dedicated headphone amplifier.
Where as the K7XX and HD650 really need to be used with at least a decent headphone amplifier.
What sources do you plug the headphones into?

 

[Me x3]

  The Philips Fidelio series is only 30-Ohm and works fine without a dedicated headphone amplifier.
Where as the K7XX and HD650 really need to be used with at least a decent headphone amplifier.
 

+1
 
Assuming you don't have an external amplifier, I think you could pick a Soundmagic HP-200, and call it a day.
They sell for 199 dollars (amazon), original price was 299 dollars.
 
You can read about them here:
http://noblehifi.blogspot.com.ar/2013/05/soundmagic-hp200-review.html
 
Best Luck!

 

[ProtegeManiac]

Originally Posted by Riisalat /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
I do NOT want to spend more than 200 dollar. The k7xx's are on for 200 dollar, my other options are fidelio x2 or the senny hd650 which are quite a lot more So should i wait like a year for those and save up or just get a K7XX and be happy !

 

Just be aware this early on that headphones like that tend to have steep prices for earpads. Last I checked the angled AKG earpads for the K7-- series were around $70 (used to be $90) for the pair, but depends on the color (ie K701 has white, the rest have black); Sennheiser's HD580/6x0 earpads were around $55.

 

Third party earpads don't always have the best sound (in some cases people only like them because they only have the worn out earpads to compare them to), but while you can get away with doing that on the Sennheisers, Beyers, and some AKGs, the K7-- series uses an angled earpad that is thicker to the rear, which when worn positions the drivers forward and at an angle relative to the ear canal - just like speakers at toe-in angles. None of the third party cheap pads have that.

 

Just putting it out there now so you don't get shocked by earpad prices later.

 

[Riisalat]

Thank you for the input, i currently use a fiio e10k. Im planning on getting a schiit vali or the other solid state amp soon ! I have other low imp cans, i should have mentioned.

I currently own a m50x,vmoda m80,philips shp9500,shure se215,westone adv,klipsch s4i, ipod 5th gen touch, fiio x1 and a fiio e10k. Ill buy an amp, so what would be best with amp no concern. The sennys are expensive! The fidelio is too but has the fun low end and then the k7xx

 

[Riisalat]

The soundmagic looks promising but the others are tried and tested, i cant test before i buy

 

[Riisalat]

I was just checking out amazon warehouse deals for the x2, used very good for 200 dollars. Any opinions ?

 

[Riisalat]

The Philips Fidelio series is only 30-Ohm and works fine without a dedicated headphone amplifier.
Where as the K7XX and HD650 really need to be used with at least a decent headphone amplifier.
What sources do you plug the headphones into?

using a fiio e10k and x1. Planning on getting a schiit stack ! Sorry to tag, needed replies

 

[Me x3]

Personal preferences play an important role here. Both (K7xx and Fidelio X2) are very good headphones.
Fidelio X2 is more 'fun' sounding while thee AKG is more of a reference headphone by comparison. Different flavours, you know.

 

[Riisalat]

Personal preferences play an important role here. Both (K7xx and Fidelio X2) are very good headphones.
Fidelio X2 is more 'fun' sounding while thee AKG is more of a reference headphone by comparison. Different flavours, you know.

how borinh are the akgs ? Isnt the k7xx more fun than the other akgs ?

 

[ProtegeManiac]

Thank you for the input, i currently use a fiio e10k. Im planning on getting a schiit vali or the other solid state amp soon ! I have other low imp cans, i should have mentioned.

 

You might be better off saving up and getting an amp that is more clearly an upgrade over the E10K in terms of allowing you to drive more headphones cleanly. The Vali or any tube amp at that price range will just sound different due to the tubes, but not necessarily an improvement, as they tend to have weaknesses in other areas. The Vali's power output is considerably lower and at a slightly higher THD than where the Magni is rated or example, and OTL tube designs tend to have problems with lower impedance headphones. At the very least, save up for the Asgard, if not the Lyr.

 

[Riisalat]

Its going to be years before i

You might be better off saving up and getting an amp that is more clearly an upgrade over the E10K in terms of allowing you to drive more headphones cleanly. The Vali or any tube amp at that price range will just sound different due to the tubes, but not necessarily an improvement, as they tend to have weaknesses in other areas. The Vali's power output is considerably lower and at a slightly higher THD than where the Magni is rated or example, and OTL tube designs tend to have problems with lower impedance headphones. At the very least, save up for the Asgard, if not the Lyr.

its going to be years before i can get a nice amp. I am looking for an open back headphone. I really wont be able to spend anytjing over 150 for dac/amp for a while. What would you suggest? I am getting a headphone for now and an amp later this year or early next. Suggestions?

 

[Riisalat]

Suggest both headphones and an amp. I live in bangladesh so having stuff shiped from usa is a LOT of work

 

[ProtegeManiac]

its going to be years before i can get a nice amp. I am looking for an open back headphone. I really wont be able to spend anytjing over 150 for dac/amp for a while. What would you suggest? I am getting a headphone for now and an amp later this year or early next. Suggestions?

Suggest both headphones and an amp. I live in bangladesh so having stuff shiped from usa is a LOT of work

 

Spending $150 or so on an amp that isnt that much of an improvement over your $70 DAC-HPamp isn't going to make those years pass any faster, but not spending that $150 or so now will, since you get to keep the $150 for later and you're already $150 towards an Asgard for example.

 

Also, if you're somewhere that would make it very cost-prohibitive to acquire earpads, you might want to check what's available in your area. Or buy at least one pair along with the headphones. 

 

Given the spending strategy that I'm suggesting, what I would do instead is not rush into things.