[MusicAficionado]

I'm looking to purchase my first set of solid headphones. Since I don't have any others, I'm in need of some headphones that would be able to play all genres of music and sound good. I'll try to be a bit more specific and provide some information that might be useful for determining which headphones would be best. I have a $200 budget and am looking to get a set of closed back headphones. The type of music I listen to varies. It includes relaxing/atmospheric/ambient music such as Kind of Blue by Miles Davis and even something heavy and exciting like Bitches Brew or Hip-Hop. I enjoy bass but seeing as these would be my only set of headphones, I don't want something overpowering that would only cater to Hip-Hop. I'd love to get into Jazz even more with these new headphones. If there were headphones with a decent amount of bass but still able to play all types of music and sound crisp and alive, that'd be great. 90% of my music is lossless (FLAC/ALAC/etc) so I'd like to be able to hear that. I heard the problem with headphones that have good bass and crisp highs is that they lack mids. I understand I have to pick either or and I'm fine with that, but I'd prefer something that wouldn't be too unbalanced. Thanks for reading and any advice is appreciated.

 

[Youth]

I would recommend DT150 though they need an amplifier, do you have that?

 

[MusicAficionado]

Thanks for the reply Youth. For my first headphones I'm not looking for an amp. I do plan on getting even better headphone with an amp sometime in the future but for now I want something simpler that'll help me dive into the world of high quality audio. The DT150 look good but I have a budget of $200 and I'd want them to be new, not used. So far I've looked into ATH-M50x and SRH840, and I'm leaning more towards the Audio Technicas. They seem like they sort of fit my criteria. What are your thoughts on either of them?

 

[Youth]

From what I see they sell for $215 on amazon, but again you'd need an amp so never mind. I haven't heard the SRH840 so I can't comment on those but the M50x, sorry for the expression , is garbage. For some reason they are hyped but I still haven't figured out why that is. I don't know many closed headphones in that pricerange so I'm afraid I can't be of further help. Good luck.

 

[bavinck]

The NAD HP50 is very nice without an amp. SRH840 is good, but does lack subbass. Focus Spirit Professional are supposed to sound good without amping, but I have not heard them. If you want an open can consider Philips X2, which sounds great without amping, or even AKG K7XX (massdrop only) sounds ok without amping, and does get better if you decide to add an amp later (Jazz is very nice on these for the price).

 

[MusicAficionado]

Sorry for being clueless but what exactly does an amp do? Does it allow you to tune the lows, mids, highs?

 

[DangerClose]

  Sorry for being clueless but what exactly does an amp do? Does it allow you to tune the lows, mids, highs?

Some can.  Some headphones will be too quiet without an amp, so that's a thing.  Though an amp is more about having enough power for the headphone to sound like it's supposed to.  With not enough power, a headphone may still be loud enough, but it might sound "thin," "tinny," "shouty," the bass might sound muddy and bloaty.  etc.

 

[bavinck]

Sorry for being clueless but what exactly does an amp do? Does it allow you to tune the lows, mids, highs?

No worries friend, we all had to learn this stuff somewhere. What you are referring to (I suspect) is an equalizer. Some amplifiers had equalizers build in, mostly today equalizers are done by software (such as foobar or the music playing app on your phone) . This is somewhat contested, but in general mist headfier try and avoid software tuned equalizers.

Amplifiers amplify the signal coming out of your source (like your phone or the headphone jack of your computer) as some headphones take a lot of energy to make loud enough to hear - just like speakers. Amplifiers can change sound into a profile you like. Some amps are described as darker/warm (emphasis on lower frequencies and maybe even tame higher frequencies), bright (emphasis on higher frequencies and maybe tame lower) and some are closer to neutral (attempting to reproduce the source material as accurately as possible) . With a headphone like akg k7xx it will sound very quiet coming out of a computer or phone and a small amp can make it louder.

Another piece to add is a dac (digital to analogue converter). Anything with a headphone out or that plays sound has one. It take the digital file (mp3,flac,etc) and converts it to analogue (which is what headphone use to make sound) and then send the analogue signal to an amplifier to it is loud enough. Most dacs on a phone or computer are not very good and you can easily get the best put of your new headphones with a relatively inexpensive amp/dac combo that connects to the usb on your computer or phone. Generally, ipod dacs are considered fine for most portable use.

Just starting out, focus on a good headphone solution as that will have, by far, the biggest affect on sound. My comment about the akg k7xx needing an amp is it would be a great headphone for jazz to use at home (it is open back) and a $50-$100 dac/amp could be added into the mix later to really impr9ve the sound without needing to buy a new headphone. The other headphones I listed are find just using the headphone jack on your computer or phone, and they are closed back so they will suite you anywhere. All these headphones will benefit from adding a cheaper dac/amp, just the akg might really be required to get it sounded to its full extent.

There us a Lot more than this to everything, but the above should give you a decent overview to get started.

 

[DangerClose]

  I have a $200 budget and am looking to get a set of closed back headphones.
If there were headphones with a decent amount of bass but still able to play all types of music and sound crisp and alive, that'd be great.

Well, you could just get a Takstar Pro 80 or its usually cheaper clone the HSR-1000, put $15-$20 in bigger pads on it, and save yourself around $125.
 
And by "well, you could just get a," I mean, "No, really, these are good."  

 

[rhymer2k]

Hi Youth. 2 questions if i may as i see that you recommended the Beyer DT150. I've been running these out of my pc soundboard for 2+ years and as you can appreciate SQ is good but a bit on the low side. Looking an amp/dac combo for years but very indicisive. What would you suggest? I'm in the uk but I'll consider options up to $500 but the cheaper the better.

Secondly i just recently bought the Dt770s 80ohm in the hope they would be easier to drive. I'm having second thoughts about my headphones being too similar and maybe returning for a fidelo x2 as I'd prefer some variety. What is your experience with both and which woukd you keep out of all 3? Also have a vmoda m100. Thanks!

 

[MusicAficionado]

I purchased the ATH M50x. I was initially excited and enjoyed them, thinking that I need to break them in. I must say I'm actually very disappointed. The bass is extremely underpowered, I don't understand how anyone would say that the bass is too much. On these headphones the bass only comes through as sound, they don't produce any "vibration". They sound slightly muffled to me because of the vocals. They just seem like standard (basic) headphones, good sounding but nothing special. As for the comfort, they actually hurt quite a bit after not too long. Do I need to buy an amplifier or do I need to step up my budget to get what I'm looking for? I think that these headphones would actually be quite decent if the bass was deeper. They sound clear for the most part besides the vocals. How do the beyerdynamic 770s compare to these? Is the bass on those much deeper or just slightly?

 

[Youth]

M50x is poor value so it doesn't suprise me you don't like them. Actually, I think you might like the new Fostex TH-X00 from Massdrop. It's $200 over your budget but if they hit the mark then why not? There's only about 500 pairs left in the drop and I'm not sure if they will make another run. 
 
https://www.massdrop.com/buy/fostex-x-massdrop-th-x00
 
Here's some links where you can read some impressions and stuff:
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/788776/fostex-x-massdrop-th-x00-review

 

[Music Path]

If i where you, i would went for dt770.

And yes, the TH-X00 is quite well priced. Check that too.

 

[Youth]

If i where you, i would went for dt770.

And yes, the TH-X00 is quite well priced. Check that too.

 
He wants mids as well. DT770 has recessed mids

 

[bavinck]

He wants mids as well. DT770 has recessed mids

The 250 ohm version I would say does not have recessed mids to my ears

He us looking for rumble, which is going to be tough from a cheaper headphone. I would say try and get used to the 50x as it is what I would call an intro to properly balanced sound.