[KG Jag]

Quote:

I want to buy my first full sized headphones and I don't really know which one I should buy. I've already had a Earsonics SM2 iem that I liked a lot but found it to be a little too dark sometimes, although it may give a little "something" on jazz sometimes. I listen to a lot of jazz, blues, rock, country and classical through my unamped Sansa Fuze and would like to keep a low budget. Thinking about Superlux 668b, what you guys think? 
Thanks!

It's a good budget can, but it may not be loud enough unamped on some portables and computers.  I do not know how it will work with yours.

 

[Astrodreamer]

Audio technica ath-a700 vs brainwavz hm5 vs Ultrasone pro 550 vs creative aurvana live

Which headphones out of these 3 should I get?

I'm getting one of these + Samson sr850 ( 1 open, 1 closed)

My uses will be as follows:

80% gaming 20% music

Music such as ed sheeran, the script, mumphord and sons, eminem, b.o.b and others like this.

Games will be all types eg, Syrim, BF3, NFS, Mw3, Diablo 3, crysis.

I only want closed cans because I am getting this As well as the samson's.

I will be using this in a room with a tv and family 30-40% of the time so need isolation.

I really want to be immersed in the games eg. skyrim and sound clear, have great positional audio for fps and have good bass ( not to fussed about bass)

For music I want everything to be clear and crisp, guitar to sound amazing and natural as well as vocals to sound beautiful.

The brainwavz come with the fiio e6 at a total of $140

Ultrasone 550 around $150

Ath-a700 $140

CAL $99

I have looked at the beyerdynamic dt770 but just that with an amp will be the same price as one of these and the samson's, if you think this would be better for what I need let me know.

Ps. for the 550's and a700 I don't want to have to buy an amp for them. And don't suggest any other headphones please because I've decided on one of these after much research and my mind will go crazy if I have to do any more .

Any input or opinions would be muchly appreciated. Thanks

Let me know if you need anymore info.

 

[audio snob]

I bought a pair of HM5 about a month ago to see what they would be like. I think they sound really good for their price range (I have been using them with a Fiio E7) The bass is clear and thumpy but not overpowering and the highs and mids sound pretty good. They are very neutral phones so they might be better for what you're looking for. As for the others I have not heard any of them. Hope this helps.

 

[hipster2010]

Quote:

Audio technica ath-a700 vs brainwavz hm5 vs Ultrasone pro 550 vs creative aurvana live
Which headphones out of these 3 should I get?
I'm getting one of these + Samson sr850 ( 1 open, 1 closed)
My uses will be as follows:
80% gaming 20% music
Music such as ed sheeran, the script, mumphord and sons, eminem, b.o.b and others like this.
Games will be all types eg, Syrim, BF3, NFS, Mw3, Diablo 3, crysis.
I only want closed cans because I am getting this As well as the samson's.
I will be using this in a room with a tv and family 30-40% of the time so need isolation.
I really want to be immersed in the games eg. skyrim and sound clear, have great positional audio for fps and have good bass ( not to fussed about bass)
For music I want everything to be clear and crisp, guitar to sound amazing and natural as well as vocals to sound beautiful.
The brainwavz come with the fiio e6 at a total of $140
Ultrasone 550 around $150
Ath-a700 $140
CAL $99
I have looked at the beyerdynamic dt770 but just that with an amp will be the same price as one of these and the samson's, if you think this would be better for what I need let me know.
Ps. for the 550's and a700 I don't want to have to buy an amp for them. And don't suggest any other headphones please because I've decided on one of these after much research and my mind will go crazy if I have to do any more .
Any input or opinions would be muchly appreciated. Thanks
Let me know if you need anymore info.

I have only tried the Pro550 of your listed choices and think that they are great for their price. However, for gmaing I don't know how they do, and may steer you towards the Creative Aurvana Live or HM5 instead. I've heard great things about each, though it may be better if someone with actual experience can chime in.
 
The DT770s are also nice and have great isolation, though you may find them lacking in some music genres with heavy focus on vocals and guitars.
 
The Samsons are wonderful as well and will be probably your best bet for gaming if there aren't other people in the room.

 

[4thEDITION]

I listen to most genres of music but lean a little towards rock and want a nice relatively cheap closed headphones that sounds good amp-less for college to not bother my dormmate while I'm on my computer. What I'm considering right now are the: ATH M-50, AKG K271MKII, Creative Aurvana Live!, and BRAINWAVZ HM5. I'd love opinions on which one would be good in my situation. Two things that are very important to me are comfort, durability, and the ability to wear for long periods of time. My ears are around 3 inches by 1 inch and width of my head is around 6 inches if that helps :x. Btw I did ask earlier but didn't get an answer so asking again cause I have nothing to lose (unless I buy ones I don't like haha)

 

[KG Jag]

Quote:

I listen to most genres of music but lean a little towards rock and want a nice relatively cheap closed headphones that sounds good amp-less for college to not bother my dormmate while I'm on my computer. What I'm considering right now are the: ATH M-50, AKG K271MKII, Creative Aurvana Live!, and BRAINWAVZ HM5. I'd love opinions on which one would be good in my situation. Two things that are very important to me are comfort, durability, and the ability to wear for long periods of time. My ears are around 3 inches by 1 inch and width of my head is around 6 inches if that helps :x. Btw I did ask earlier but didn't get an answer so asking again cause I have nothing to lose (unless I buy ones I don't like haha)

I don't get into custom fits, but good closed cans in the same general price range of those that you have listed that will work at least reasonably well unamped include, the Shure SRH 840, Sony MDR 7510,  KRK KNS 8400 and Ultrasone HiFi 780.

 

[4thEDITION]

Quote:

I don't get into custom fits, but good closed cans in the same general price range of those that you have listed that will work at least reasonably well unamped include, the Shure SRH 840, Sony MDR 7510,  KRK KNS 8400 and Ultrasone HiFi 780.

As an experienced audiophile, which one would you personally buy in the 100-140 price range? The amount of headphones to choose from is staggering and researching all of these headphones, for me at least, might be in vain because I don't know anything about headphones and what to look for because I haven't physically heard a "audiophile-grade" (don't know correct term) headphone before. And sorry for that run-on sentence

 

[KG Jag]

Quote:

As an experienced audiophile, which one would you personally buy in the 100-140 price range? The amount of headphones to choose from is staggering and researching all of these headphones, for me at least, might be in vain because I don't know anything about headphones and what to look for because I haven't physically heard a "audiophile-grade" (don't know correct term) headphone before. And sorry for that run-on sentence

To make a recommendation, I need you to tell me the following:
 
What equipment will be powering these cans? 
 
What is the format of your music and other sounds you will putting into these cans?
 
Describe the sound signature that you are seeking? (e.g. balanced, neutral, bass heavy, etc.)
 
What music genres (including the type of rock/artists) do you plan run through these cans?

 

[4thEDITION]

Quote:

To make a recommendation, I need you to tell me the following:
 
What equipment will be powering these cans? Just the audio jack on my iphone I believe. I DO have a monitor I could take to college for my desktop but I don't know if you can even use that on headphones.
 
What is the format of your music and other sounds you will putting into these cans? I'll be playing music off my itunes library soo... mp3. I also play a lot of PC games and often skype with friends while doing so. I considered getting a gaming headset but I felt like getting good headphones and buying a cheap mic would give me more bang for the buck.
 
Describe the sound signature that you are seeking? (e.g. balanced, neutral, bass heavy, etc.) I'm really not too sure because I'm inexperienced with high-grade headphones, but my music usually contains a lot of electric guitars. But I since I do play electric, when I listen to it, it feels like the guitar is dancing. I don't listen to bass heavy rap songs and dubstep (not that I don't enjoy bass). This part about the ATH m-50's is what worries me (and the supposed soundstage) because they say it has a suppressed midrange which I feel like most of my music is on majority of the time.
 
What music genres (including the type of rock/artists) do you plan run through these cans? Assortment of Classic Rock, Beatles, Daft Punk, Dio, Gamma Ray, Helloween, Justice, Kamelot, Scorpions, Stan Getz, Assortment of Pop Songs, Aqua... uh. I'm also always open to new music and I'm sure I'll look for new music to complement the new headphones.
 
I also want to get out a word of appreciation for you to responding to my question

 

[KG Jag]

Quote:

 

I'm glad to help.
 
You need a neutral-ish can to match the genres of music you enjoy.  Because you will be primarily using it with your iPhone, you would be benefited by a removable cable and/or a can that comes with a short cable and an extender.  The CAL! has all of this out of the box, but it is not built to stand up to rugged use and the sound quality, although good, falls a notch below the Shure SRH 840 and KRK KNS 8400. 
 
The Shure and KRK are very equal in sound quality.  Further you could probably find OEM short cables for both.  However, the KRK offers a short cord, albeit for a price.  So I think the KRK, which is currently just a touch cheaper than the Shure, will best match your needs.
 
Link:
 
http://www.krksys.com/krk-headphones/kns-8400.html

 

[stevenlongs]

online dating; the headphone version.

Alternatively if you are looking to explore other options, a search for neutral, closed headphones under 200$ should bring up quite a few threads worth exploring. As you can imagine, many others are looking for the same thing.

The two recommendations KG Jag has left you seem excellent, it may just come down to availability/pricing and little details about differences in comfort, durability, reliability, sound (of course).

I'm sort of looking for the same thing although I'm in no hurry at all.

 

[altefnegy]

Hello everyone!
 
I'm looking to buy my first quality over-ear headphones for college. I'll mostly use them in a dorm room, so good isolation is a must. I don't have an amp, my laptop will be the audio source, so I'd prefer phones that are easy to drive.

I mostly listen to electronic music(Siriusmo, The Glitch Mob), post-rock(Mogwai, GY!BE, Sigur Ros) and ambient(Helios, Tycho). But occasionally I tend to listen to other genres as well. Also I'm going to be using them for TV shows and movies, not for gaming though.

After looking through the buying guides I'm currently looking at the Audio Technica ATH M50. But I figured I'd ask you guys first.

Keep in mind that I don't have access to all brands in my country (e.g. No fischer audio, brainwavz, ultrasone, Fostex), and I don't want to buy from abroad, because the shipping costs and extra taxes make it way too expensive. Also there's some ridiculous markup on some models in addition to the 27% VAT. For example the AKG K271 MKII costs $220 here, instead of the $140 I read in the buying guides.
 
I can afford to spend around $150-$160, but I'm willing to go lower for better value.
 
Thanks in advance.
 

 

[4thEDITION]

Quote:

I'm glad to help.
 
You need a neutral-ish can to match the genres of music you enjoy.  Because you will be primarily using it with your iPhone, you would be benefited by a removable cable and/or a can that comes with a short cable and an extender.  The CAL! has all of this out of the box, but it is not built to stand up to rugged use and the sound quality, although good, falls a notch below the Shure SRH 840 and KRK KNS 8400. 
 
The Shure and KRK are very equal in sound quality.  Further you could probably find OEM short cables for both.  However, the KRK offers a short cord, albeit for a price.  So I think the KRK, which is currently just a touch cheaper than the Shure, will best match your needs.
 
Link:
 
http://www.krksys.com/krk-headphones/kns-8400.html

Ugh, I'm sorry for bombarding you with questions but I'm extremely nitpicky with things I'll use for a long time. I'm leaning heavily towards the KRK's right now for it's mids/highs, comfort, adjustable cable, but how does it compare with the Brainwavez HM5/FA-003? Although I'm not a bass-heavy person, I've been reading a lot of people saying that the 8400 is not just moderate in bass, but lacks in it.

 

[crossjeremiah]

Quote:

Hello everyone!
 
I'm looking to buy my first quality over-ear headphones for college. I'll mostly use them in a dorm room, so good isolation is a must. I don't have an amp, my laptop will be the audio source, so I'd prefer phones that are easy to drive.

I mostly listen to electronic music(Siriusmo, The Glitch Mob), post-rock(Mogwai, GY!BE, Sigur Ros) and ambient(Helios, Tycho). But occasionally I tend to listen to other genres as well. Also I'm going to be using them for TV shows and movies, not for gaming though.

After looking through the buying guides I'm currently looking at the Audio Technica ATH M50. But I figured I'd ask you guys first.

Keep in mind that I don't have access to all brands in my country (e.g. No fischer audio, brainwavz, ultrasone, Fostex), and I don't want to buy from abroad, because the shipping costs and extra taxes make it way too expensive. Also there's some ridiculous markup on some models in addition to the 27% VAT. For example the AKG K271 MKII costs $220 here, instead of the $140 I read in the buying guides.
 
I can afford to spend around $150-$160, but I'm willing to go lower for better value.
 
Thanks in advance.
 

 


Maybe some Creative Aurana live headphones ? Vmoda m80s and ATH-M50s are currently the best headphones for sub par < $200 headphones. ATH-M50s are cheaper, but m80s are built like a tank. I hear that m80s have a funner more creative sounding headphone, thats why all audiophiles rave about it.

 

[altefnegy]

Quote:

 


Maybe some Creative Aurana live headphones ? Vmoda m80s and ATH-M50s are currently the best headphones for sub par < $200 headphones. ATH-M50s are cheaper, but m80s are built like a tank. I hear that m80s have a funner more creative sounding headphone, thats why all audiophiles rave about it.

The CAL seems really nice, but I've read that it doesn't isolate that well, nor is it that durable. Those Vmoda m80s cost around $230 here, so that's not good either. Thanks though!