[PurpleAngel]

Quote:

Hey,
Looking to buy a new pair of headphones in the £100-£200 price range. If the diminishing returns in quality is extreme past £150 I wouldn't want something for £200, but I really don't know whether that's the case.
I don't have an amplifier and my sound card is terrible (X-Fi Xtreme Gamer I bought half a millenia ago), so preferably wouldn't want to pay a lot of extra £ if I lose 50% of the potential due to that. No idea if that's relevant at all but yeah.
Anyhow, I don't care much about leakage and I don't want them isolated. I do want them to be able to work with anything though, I listen to everything from metal to classical to dubstep and I'll use them for movies and gaming as well. Guess I'm looking for some jack-of-all-trades, so to speak. I looked at the AD700's but the bass is supposedly quite weak, which I know would annoy me. Had a quick glance at the AKG-K702's as well, which seemed all right but any phones in that price range has unanimous reviews proclaiming X to be the "best headphones I ever used". Amazon is a fantastic source!
In short
-£100-£200 budget
-Use for music, movies, games
-Don't have an amp, have a X-Fi Xtreme Gamer sound card
Any suggestions?

Save a few dollars
Superlux HD-668B
Samson SR850
 
 

 

[vyyye]

Quote:

Save a few dollars
Superlux HD-668B
Samson SR850
 
 

I'm getting an amp down the line though, for that pricing I might as well stick with my PortaPro.

 

[Cassiopeia]

Hi, I am currently in the market for a new pair of full sized headphones
 
It has to be
- Bassy
- Comfortable
- Present mid range
- Decent for gaming
- Sub 175 dollars
- Good for the money
 
Right now I a torn between ATH M50 an the Denon AH-D1100
 
Thanks

 

[SolidSnail]

 
Hi all, I'm looking for a pair of light, over the ear headphones under $150. I'm at the library a lot, and so I'm looking for closed back headphones. My main concerns are comfort, and a balanced sound. 
 
 
Music genres: Mostly rock, pop
Portable: Yes, but over the ear and extremely comfortable for long listening sessions
Price range: up to $150 or a little more if difference is substantial
Amped: No, I will be using this with my zune hd
Closed/Open: Closed
 
Thank you for any input!

 

[Cassiopeia]

Quote:

Hi, I am currently in the market for a new pair of full sized headphones
 
It has to be
- Bassy
- Comfortable
- Present mid range
- Decent for gaming
- Sub 175 dollars
- Good for the money
 
Right now I a torn between ATH M50 an the Denon AH-D1100
 
Thanks

Also been looking at the ATH-A700

 

[12345142]

From my limited experience with those headphones, I believe the D1100s have a more present midrange.

 

[SolidSnail]

D1100s or M50s? I don't have the means to demo the m50s; how is the comfort compared to say the d1100s or bose ae2?

 

[Armaegis]

Quote:

Hey,
 
Looking to buy a new pair of headphones in the £100-£200 price range. If the diminishing returns in quality is extreme past £150 I wouldn't want something for £200, but I really don't know whether that's the case.I don't have an amplifier and my sound card is terrible (X-Fi Xtreme Gamer I bought half a millenia ago), so preferably wouldn't want to pay a lot of extra £ if I lose 50% of the potential due to that. No idea if that's relevant at all but yeah.
 
Anyhow, I don't care much about leakage and I don't want them isolated. I do want them to be able to work with anything though, I listen to everything from metal to classical to dubstep and I'll use them for movies and gaming as well. Guess I'm looking for some jack-of-all-trades, so to speak. I looked at the AD700's but the bass is supposedly quite weak, which I know would annoy me. Had a quick glance at the AKG-K702's as well, which seemed all right but any phones in that price range has unanimous reviews proclaiming X to be the "best headphones I ever used". Amazon is a fantastic source!
 
In short-£100-£200 budget-Use for music, movies, games-Don't have an amp, have a X-Fi Xtreme Gamer sound card
 
Any suggestions?

For a lot of headphones, the importance of amping is grossly overstated. Stick to something with a moderate impedance and good sensitivity and you'll be fine. That said, the full sized AKGs as a family tend to like having a bit more power behind them. For a good open all-rounder, the Sennheiser offer good value. Something along the likes of HD555/558/595/598. 
 


Quote:

i have AD700. have just bought asuck xonar u3. which is just on 16bit/48khz. and i see that is not better than my onboard Realtek ALC269. is soundcard with 24bit/96khz better than 16bit/48khz ? because i'm going to buy another usb soundcard. can you guy suggest for me? under 100$. And does it worth the money. or i better save money to upgrade headphone ? .
thanks very much. ( sorry my poor En)

No, the higher bitrates make very little difference for most people. Do you even have music recorded at 24/96? The majority of commercially available music is all 16/44.1 anyways.
 
Spend money on headphones instead; don't worry about the numbers, it's a lot of hype and huge diminishing returns. 
 
 
 


Quote:

Hi, I am currently in the market for a new pair of full sized headphones
 
It has to be
- Bassy
- Comfortable
- Present mid range
- Decent for gaming
- Sub 175 dollars
- Good for the money
 
Right now I a torn between ATH M50 an the Denon AH-D1100
 
Thanks

Are we talking competitive FPS gaming here, because bassy doesn't mix with FPS due to obscured positional details. 
 
It doesn't get mentioned very often here compared to its siblings, but the Beyer DT250 is a good headphone. 

 
Quote:

 
Hi all, I'm looking for a pair of light, over the ear headphones under $150. I'm at the library a lot, and so I'm looking for closed back headphones. My main concerns are comfort, and a balanced sound. 
 
 
Music genres: Mostly rock, pop
Portable: Yes, but over the ear and extremely comfortable for long listening sessions
Price range: up to $150 or a little more if difference is substantial
Amped: No, I will be using this with my zune hd
Closed/Open: Closed
 
Thank you for any input!

Sony V6/7506 - good isolation, folds up compactly, durable, the pads are sort of an inbetween on-ear over-ear. 
Senn HD280 - king of isolation, a bit bigger
 

 

[imahawki]

Quote:

 
Hmm, deep cups... Phiaton PS 500
Beyer DT770
Denon D2000
 

 


Quote:

Hey guys.  I purchased my first set of cans in over a decade recently and after the initial shine wore off I find myself not listening to them too much... not because they don't sound good but because they're not terribly comfortable.  I bought the AKG K271 Mkii and I find the cups to be both too small (they still sit either on top of the top or bottom of my ear) and too shallow (i.e. even if the holes were big enough the tops of my ears would still touch the padding over the drivers.
 
As a counter-example, even though they don't have "hi-fidelity" sound, my Bose QC15s go completely around my ears and have a deep cup.  I need a closed can so I can listen in the family room without disturbing my family.  I'll be driving them from a Fii0 E7 for the most part.  Budget is $200 or under.

Thanks, any other recommendations from the gallery?

 

[debug96]

Quote:

So, M50 is the way to go if I can't find anything better.
I'll try to find an Alessandro retailer or distributor in Spain. Thank you for that.
About the ZX700 and the MDR-7510, I asked a local retailer about them and they are extremely expensive here. The brochure the retailer (licensed SONY retailer) gave me has the ZX700 listed for 130€ ($175) and the MDR-7510 for 150€ (200$). And it's the only place I found here that sells those models. Googling them I can see that they're way cheaper in the US. So it's a rip-off here.
 
Thank you everyone. :3

Ok. I have discarded the Alessandro. I need closed cans with little sound leakage so I can listen to them without disturbing my family. They just don't like metal. D8
 
So, ZX700 for ~120€ or M50s for ~140€.
 

 

[ChorniyVolk]

Hey so been looking around for where to buy the HD598 for a good price and at the moment, doesn't seem to really be happening for me. Everywhere I look, they're in the mid 200's.
 
So just to reiterate: What other headphones are good unamped for all around usage (games, music of various genres, movies) the way the HD598 is? I can get some good deals through Electronics Expo and that techbargain coupon code (asked about the HD598, seems it'll be 2-3 weeks before they get it in stock).
 
And what about the HD558? The only differences between them and the 598's are just the tape and grills? Someone mentioned getting the 598 grills later on and modding them, and then you'll basically have a pair of 598's, no? Not as simple as turning the 555's into 595's, but hey. The 558's seem to be, both modded and unmodded, better than the HD555's so I'd still be getting an upgrade. To a non-audiophile, is the difference between a 558 and a 598, both unamped, even all that noticeable? At this point I just want a decent pair of headphones with no hassle, when I have a decent amount of cashflow, I fully intend to just blow it all on the highest end of equipment, which is why I'm shying away from buying an intro amp and all that right now.
 
So I feel like buying the HD558's is the best option for me at this point, but before I do I'm curious about other headphones like the shure 840's for example. What do you guys think? And uh, hopefully I'm not crapping up the thread by making multiple posts about the same thing. Thanks again.

 

[MorbidToaster]

Hands down the most comfortable headphones out there and the Beyers and Denons.
 
I prefer the D2000 to the DT700 (especially un-amped), but either is a good choice.
 
If you sweat easily the Beyer Velours are better than the Denon Leathers. If you're sensitive to pressure on the sides of your head the Denon clamps lighter than the Beyer (which also results in worse isolation from the Denons). Denon has the better headband hands down (IMO). Beyers have the step on on durability.
 
Largest ear openings goes to the Beyer as the Denons ear pads aren't one big hole. Both are quite large though, so I don't see that as a big turning point.
 
Honestly, either would be a solid choice.
 
Quote:

Thanks, any other recommendations from the gallery?

 
 

 

[kalkain]

Quote:

 
 
Ahhh, i see. Thanks a lot for all the advice. I was thinking of the D7000 because i already have a Shure SE535 that is almost perfect for travel usage. The only problem is that they become quite uncomfortable with prolonged use.
 
The D7000 are mostly for home movie, music and gaming use, and i was thinking of perhaps bringing it to the library. At least now i know that they aren't practical for that. Could you all please advice if i should get this can or a HD650 + Something more rugged or if i were to stick with the D7000, what amp/dac should i use?
 
I also saw a thread saying that the LCD 2 is way better in every way. Should i save up for another month or two and get that instead?
 
Thank you!!

 
Any help on this please?

 

[Armaegis]

Quote:

Ok. I have discarded the Alessandro. I need closed cans with little sound leakage so I can listen to them without disturbing my family. They just don't like metal. D8
 
So, ZX700 for ~120€ or M50s for ~140€.
 

I'll say ZX700, just because I want to take some wind out of the M50 sails 

 


Quote:

Hey so been looking around for where to buy the HD598 for a good price and at the moment, doesn't seem to really be happening for me. Everywhere I look, they're in the mid 200's.
 
So just to reiterate: What other headphones are good unamped for all around usage (games, music of various genres, movies) the way the HD598 is? I can get some good deals through Electronics Expo and that techbargain coupon code (asked about the HD598, seems it'll be 2-3 weeks before they get it in stock).
 
And what about the HD558? The only differences between them and the 598's are just the tape and grills? Someone mentioned getting the 598 grills later on and modding them, and then you'll basically have a pair of 598's, no? Not as simple as turning the 555's into 595's, but hey. The 558's seem to be, both modded and unmodded, better than the HD555's so I'd still be getting an upgrade. To a non-audiophile, is the difference between a 558 and a 598, both unamped, even all that noticeable? At this point I just want a decent pair of headphones with no hassle, when I have a decent amount of cashflow, I fully intend to just blow it all on the highest end of equipment, which is why I'm shying away from buying an intro amp and all that right now.
 
So I feel like buying the HD558's is the best option for me at this point, but before I do I'm curious about other headphones like the shure 840's for example. What do you guys think? And uh, hopefully I'm not crapping up the thread by making multiple posts about the same thing. Thanks again.

 
While the 555/595 conversion is well known, reportedly there's a bit more to the 598 than just tape and grills. Check out the review on headfonia for a comparison of the modded 558 with the 598. In general though, differences between the Sennheiser within each family are not huge. I say go with the 558 and be happy. Spend the rest of the money on women and other vices. 
 
I liked the 840, and they can be found on sale for $130 sometimes. Comfort is an issue though. Being closed headphones, they also offer a very different sound from the open Senns. 


Quote:

 
 
Ahhh, i see. Thanks a lot for all the advice. I was thinking of the D7000 because i already have a Shure SE535 that is almost perfect for travel usage. The only problem is that they become quite uncomfortable with prolonged use.
 
The D7000 are mostly for home movie, music and gaming use, and i was thinking of perhaps bringing it to the library. At least now i know that they aren't practical for that. Could you all please advice if i should get this can or a HD650 + Something more rugged or if i were to stick with the D7000, what amp/dac should i use?
 
I also saw a thread saying that the LCD 2 is way better in every way. Should i save up for another month or two and get that instead?
 
Thank you!!

The Senns are not really portable either, and furthermore are open backed which is not suitable for public (especially a library). If you have the money for it, I say get a nice rig for home and a cheaper one for library use. 
 
I'll toss these random suggestions out for you...
home: Sennheiser HD600 + Bottlehead Crack + dac of your choice
portable: Audio Technica ATH-ESW9a, no amp needed
 

 

[eucariote]

Sorry to hear about the discomfort of the SE535- I have SE530 and love them dearly, and had those in mind when recommending good iems for outdoor & library use.  Can't recommend HD650 one way or the other since I haven't heard them- but people do mention that you have to be more careful about finding a compatible amp vs. the HD600 which would sound great plugged into a dead chicken.  About skipping over the D7000 for LCD-2- I think that would be a very wise move and what I did ultimately.  The Denons are great, but I could never get past their recessed mids, excessive bass & sharp peaks- which made some of my favorite bands unlistenable (Radiohead, Trans Am).  And for their price they really shouldn't have these shortcomings.  HE-500 and LCD-2 absolutely blew the D7000 away, which is really something considering they cost only a little bit more and I have paid much more for far lesser improvements in sound (upgrading from SR225 to RS-1, D5000 to D7000, etc.).  LCD-2 are honestly not terribly exciting, they are just transparent to the recorded music and they do nothing wrong, which is something I cannot say about any other headphone I've heard.  HE-500 had much more of a 'wow' factor, but did have very small flaws that might get less tolerable over time.  But I absolutely preferred them to RS-1, D7000, HD-600 & Edition 8.  So yes, get LCD-2 or HE-500 (particularly the former if you want bass)- they are leaps better than most other headphone, can be amplified by almost anything and are true bargains for the sound quality.
 
Quote:

 
 
Ahhh, i see. Thanks a lot for the advice. I was thinking of the D7000 because i already have a Shure SE535 that is almost perfect for travel usage. The only problem is that they become quite uncomfortable with prolonged use. The D7000 are mostly for home movie, music and gaming use, and i was thinking of perhaps bringing it to the library. At least now i know that they aren't practical for that. Could you all please advice if i should get this can or a HD650 + Something more rugged or if i were to stick with the D7000, what amp/dac should i use?
 
Thank you!!