[spacemanspliff]

What I am asking is, what is the better bang for the buck at a $200 price point? I have a very decent receiver. Boston Acoustics AVR7200. It was a $4000+ receiver in 2005 and does most current dolby headphone modes. I have some basic TSC (The Speaker Company) speakers. Their entry models. Not bad but nowhere near capable of what the receiver can do. I do have their nice little 10" sub. It is actually very good. Not the base model. Goes down to 28HZ strongly. I also have a decent pair of their headphones. They sound somewhat like a Beyer 880 with Grado punch? Not as resolving as the 880 though. Soundstage lacks the air of the 880.
 
So would you get a pair of decent speakers or headphones? This is for nearfield use only. About 2ft away and 28" apart with tweets at ear level. 5 ft from the wall.
 
I want to spend around $200 btw. Not working atm so money is tight but not terribly so.

 

[beeman458]

I have a very decent receiver. Boston Acoustics AVR7200.
 
I'm in love with headphones so my opinion is biased to that point.
 
I am very disappointed with home theater gear as the manufactures pushed so hard and so fast, the wallet couldn't keep up.  What was happening in 2005 ain't what's happening today in 2010 and stating the obvious, sadly for our wallets, what's happening today in regard to computers and home theater electronics, won't be what's happening in 2015.
 
My opinion, technology is maturing but only to the point that manufactures will allow so as to keep the money draining away from our wallets and into theirs.  Separates and headphones are the answer to the question: "What do we do?"
 
What I am asking is, what is the better bang for the buck at a $200 price point?
 
Headphones.  Maybe a set of ADH-AD900's.  A few dollars more than your DT-880's.  And then again the likes of a pair of Sen HD555's might work for you and later add the likes of an Audio-gd "Sparrow."
 
The point of the above, by going with the above you future proof yourself and in my book, that's a good thing.
 
Hope the above gives you some ideas.
 

 

 

[spacemanspliff]

Well, in terms of being a stereo source, the receiver is excellent. The headphone amp makes my lowly $25 headphones sound acceptable. It has also driven some Darth V4s extremely well. I would guess it is something along the lines of a $200 headphone amp coupled with a higher end dac. The dac is really clean for stereo. The speaker amplification is extraordinary. I hooked it up to my Rocket 550s and was blown away. Unfortunately, my wife rather likes those speakers so downstairs they stay. This system is for my PC.

 

[jellojoe]

go for a vintage stax energizer/earspeaker combo. Maybe you'll get lucky and get a lambda combo at $200.

 

[spacemanspliff]

Quote:

go for a vintage stax energizer/earspeaker combo. Maybe you'll get lucky and get a lambda combo at $200.

Been trying for that ever since I sold mine STUPIDLY. Good idea. I am not in a hurry. I should make a WTB I guess.

 

[beeman458]

Well, in terms of being a stereo source, the receiver is excellent. The headphone amp makes my lowly $25 headphones sound acceptable.
 
You're coupling $25.00 headphones to a $4,000.00 home theater receiver?
 
???
 
This is for nearfield use only. About 2ft away and 28" apart with tweets at ear level.
 
And you're listening to your speakers from approximately two feet away?
 
???
 
From your OP:
 
So would you get a pair of decent speakers or headphones?
 
Based upon your above information, definitely headphones.
 

 

[spacemanspliff]

I paid $400 for the receiver so yeah lol. Before I bought the receiver I actually had a decent pair of headphones which I sold to go for speakers. I bought the receiver then promptly got laid off so I had to get speakers on the cheap. Still not working so I still have to be cheap lol.
 
Headphones make the most sense to me too. I posted a WTB for Stax.

 

[beeman458]

I paid $400 for the receiver so yeah lol.
 
Nothing like a killer deal to put a spring in your step.
 
Still not working so I still have to be cheap lol.
 
Cheap?  Cheap is not letting a child get a second cola when eating out.  Nothing cheap about being fiscally conservative when unemployed.  Life without party, even when unemployed, is life without life.  The best to you regarding your unemployment.
 
There's a lot of quality headsets to be had in the two hundred and under class of headphones.
 

 

[9pintube]

Keep what you have until you're employed!!!  Don't waste your money on "Stuff" now.....JMO, good luck with the job hunting!!!

 

[spacemanspliff]

Thanks but I am getting unemployment so I have an income thank goodness. I will sell some of my speakers to pay for this so really I am just swapping gear out. I have been humping the job search leg since May. Decent jobs around here are about as rare as everywhere else these days. In good spirits though thanks!