[Thujone]

Quote:

No it doesn't. It depends on the person and their personal listening preferences. xkonfuzed has already indicated he is not a basshead, and he might be very satisfied with the DT880s without any EQ. But if he wants extra bass, he has his E11 to boost the bass. However, the E11 cannot REDUCE the bass if the M-100s are too bass heavy for him.
I made no claims about superior clarity, so I'm not certain why this is relevant. I've only briefly listened to the M-100s, so I wouldn't try to say which has better clarity.

That being said, the Beyer headphones definitely win out over the M-100s on two factors: comfort and soundstage.

Apparently you didn't see my disclaimer "I'm not the type of person to rely on equalizers" because you go to say how an equalizer can benefit one but not the other. I'm not here to argue with you, I'm just saying that if someone off the street told you they only listened to EDM and gave you that list of 4 headphones, I would be part of the 90% that would automatically go with the M-100's. Obviously this is an agree to disagree situation. I think you're crazy! But, that's neither here nor there.
 
I would also like to mention that my DT770's are by far my LEAST comfortable headphone, but I would say they have pretty great soundstage for a closed can.

 

[Thujone]

Quote:

 
Agreed. If you are claiming to not be a basshead, the M100 makes absolutely no sense for that person.

If you look back, he didn't mention not being a basshead until after I gave the recommendation. I agree, a person who's scared of bass should steer clear of the M-100's.

 

[Virtuosa]

Hey guys,

I am currently searching for a headphone exclusively for listen to thrash metal, mostly from the Big 4 era. I have bought so many pairs and been disappointed in the end and I was wondering which kind of headphones would give a really aggressive "in your face" kind of sound which I can swap to when I am bored of my other headphones. Ideally something with a ton of speed as well.
 
I really love mids, so I can hear the guitar distortion and all the riffs and solos really clearly. My SRH840 is as close I have found to this, its got nice detail, but not enough aggression IMO. Is there a headphone which would suit these needs and costs under £200?

I have tried grados but not a fan of the crazy treble, found it very harsh to my hears. Mids are definitely my focus for the guitar distortion. I have listened to some great cans such as the D2000 which sounded pretty good. The HD25s were also quite aggressive and surprised me although I am not a fan of the supra-aural design. Also I hav e listened to the HFI 780s which from memory were also pretty damn good as well. Ideally something which is different enough from my 840s and under £200 whilst having nice aggressive and forward mids (whilst still having tightish bass for floor drums, dont mind as much about treble as its mostly just cymbals) would be awesome.

Thanks and keep up the great thread!!!

 

[roguegeek]

Quote:

Apparently you didn't see my disclaimer "I'm not the type of person to rely on equalizers" because you go to say how an equalizer can benefit one but not the other. I'm not here to argue with you, I'm just saying that if someone off the street told you they only listened to EDM and gave you that list of 4 headphones, I would be part of the 90% that would automatically go with the M-100's. Obviously this is an agree to disagree situation. I think you're crazy! But, that's neither here nor there.
 
I would also like to mention that my DT770's are by far my LEAST comfortable headphone, but I would say they have pretty great soundstage for a closed can.

 
The OP offered more feedback which included clarity, detail, and that they weren't a basshead. 90% of people wouldn't be saying "M100 all the way." I'm absolutely open to hearing opinions, but you don't speak for everyone.
 
xkonfuzed, I agree with cel4145 in that I think you'll be very satisfied with the DT880.

 

[Thujone]

Quote:

 
The OP offered more feedback which included clarity, detail, and that they weren't a basshead. 90% of people wouldn't be saying "M100 all the way." I'm absolutely open to hearing opinions, but you don't speak for everyone.
 
xkonfuzed, I agree with cel4145 in that I think you'll be very satisfied with the DT880.

*Facepalm*
 
I've been on plenty of forums and I hate this arguing stuff to the max, but please let me enlighten you. Read the first two posts by the OP. Then read my recommendation with "all the way" in it. THEN read his post about not being a basshead.
 
The purpose of this thread is to help people find their own way. I gave him my opinion and I told him why. Just because you have a different opinion, doesn't give you the right to bash mine.
 

 

[cel4145]

I'm just saying that if someone off the street told you they only listened to EDM and gave you that list of 4 headphones, I would be part of the 90% that would automatically go with the M-100's. Obviously this is an agree to disagree situation. I think you're crazy! But, that's neither here nor there.

Well, in this instance we KNOW that the OP is not a basshead. So that is no longer an automatic recommendation. There's a difference between liking good bass/liking to hear the bass that is in the song, and liking overemphasized bass. If the music was meant to have that extra bass boost, the audio engineer would have built it into the music to begin with :rolleyes:

 

[roguegeek]

Quote:

*Facepalm*
 
I've been on plenty of forums and I hate this arguing stuff to the max, but please let me enlighten you. Read the first two posts by the OP. Then read my recommendation with "all the way" in it. THEN read his post about not being a basshead.
 
The purpose of this thread is to help people find their own way. I gave him my opinion and I told him why. Just because you have a different opinion, doesn't give you the right to bash mine.
 

 
Look man, no one is bashing your opinion, so let's calm down a little. You did say...
 
Quote:

If he didn't mention needing them for movies, the M-100's just make the most sense.

 
...afterwards and I'm disagreeing with you there. Even if he didn't mention needing them for that purpose, the M100 is still a poor way to go for his needs, in my opinion. Deal with the fact that people aren't in agreement and contribute to constructive discussion without getting too worked up. This is suppose to be fun.

 

[Thujone]

Quote:

Well, in this instance we KNOW that the OP is not a basshead. So that is no longer an automatic recommendation. There's a difference between liking good bass/liking to hear the bass that is in the song, and liking overemphasized bass. If the music was meant to have that extra bass boost, the audio engineer would have built it into the music to begin with

Oh, man. I wish he had! I'm definitely a fan of bass, but not to the extent of drowning out everything else. Honestly, the DT770's aren't as bassy as I would have expected based on people's reviews and FR curves, and while I've only listened to lower end V Modas, I can't personally comment on the M-100's for having too much or too little. As far as the open neutral cans go, I'm more on the Senns side than Beyer, so I would at least recommend having xkonfuzed consider the HD600's

 
@roguegeek
lol at your hypocrisy.

 

[roguegeek]

Quote:

Oh, man. I wish he had! I'm definitely a fan of bass, but not to the extent of drowning out everything else. Honestly, the DT770's aren't as bassy as I would have expected based on people's reviews and FR curves, and while I've only listened to lower end V Modas, I can't personally comment on the M-100's for having too much or too little. As far as the open neutral cans go, I'm more on the Senns side than Beyer, so I would at least recommend having xkonfuzed consider the HD600's

 
@roguegeek
lol at your hypocrisy.

 
Wait, so you haven't actually heard the cans you adamantly recommended? 

 

[cel4145]

...afterwards and I'm disagreeing with you there. Even if he didn't mention needing them for that purpose, the M100 is still a poor way to go for his needs, in my opinion. Deal with the fact that people aren't in agreement and contribute to constructive discussion without getting too worked up. This is suppose to be fun.

The SRH940 you have listed in your sig might be a good choice, too. I haven't heard them, but don't they have pretty good bass response? That is, for someone that is a non-basshead? And I know that they are well know for clarity and detail.

 

[KG Jag]

Quote:

Hey I've been a silent reader on these forums and am looking for some help as I'm far too confused at this point!

I'm looking for a set of headphones within the $300-400 range.  I have a marantz pm5003, which I'm pretty sure I can use as an amp at home, but I'd need something portable that hopefully would be included in that budget that would work well with my iPod/iPhone.

In terms of how/where I'd be using the headphones, I will use them more on-the-go while on the train, walking to class etc, etc.  That being said I'll also want something great for home listening, particularly for vinyl through my pm5003.

I've had Bose QC3s, QC15s, and a set of Beats Studios, hated the Beats liked the Bose stuff, but still haven't found "the set".  I listen to a pretty diverse set of music from The Beatles, to Metallica, to Radiohead, to Bhangra music, to Daft Punk, to acoustic John Mayer, etc.  Definitely more rock orientated, but I'd like a set that can handle a wide variety of music...this was the main problem with the headphones I've previously owned.  A good soundstage is also important.
 
Thus far, I've gone to some local stores here and got some advice.  I was told a closed pair of headphones would be better if I'm not listening at my house.  Of the headphones I've tried so far (B&W P5, PSB M4U2, Grado 2/325i) I liked the Denon AH-D1100, but wasn't completely sold because they felt a little flimsy to me.  It should also be noted that I tried the Grado headphones without an amp and I felt they needed to be driven, so perhaps I should try them again?  The guy at the store I went to said he'd only recommend them for home listening.
 
Clearly, I still have a lot to learn and try...I've read great things about the Mad Dog headphones and am considering those combined with a DAC and Amp (I've heard the Schiit ones pair well), but alas I can't test any of that stuff before I buy it.  Others I've read good things about are the V-Moda M-100 and Sennheiser HD 598..but I'm really open to anything, any thoughts?  Would really appreciate some suggestions, thanks guys!

The Mad Dogs are a very well regarded mod Fostex, but I believe that they remain semi-open.  So you have to be OK with that.
 
For a closed set, the Sony MDR 7520 is a good fit.  It's very efficient and has a removable headphone cable that can be supplemented (say with a shorter portable cable) with a double male 1/8" mini-cable.
 
Note that the Grado and Senn you referenced are open and leak a great deal.  They also provide virtually no isolation.

 

[Thujone]

Quote:

Wait, so you haven't actually heard the cans you adamantly recommended? 

Never said I did, but I have done plenty of research as well as comparisons to the pair I have tried (M-80's). Would you like a cookie?

 

[bkchurch]

Hey guys, I made a new thread to ask this question a few days ago because apparently I'm blind and completely missed this one. Anyway, since I didn't get a response there I'm hoping I will here.
 
 
I'm in the market for an open full size headphone for home theater and gaming use. I'd love it if it sounded great when listening to music as well but that is a secondary and less important concern (I listen to rock, pop, and electronic stuff mostly). Above all the most important thing I'm looking for here is comfort. I want something that I could have on my head for 8 hours and not be bothered by it should I decide on some lazy Sunday that all I want to do is play videogames and watch movies. I recently sold a pair of Ultrasone cans simply because they started to weigh on my head and hurt my neck after a few hours (they also didn't play terribly well with my glasses (by the way I wear glasses so, take that into consideration I suppose)).
 
My setup isn't terribly sophisticated. I'm running the optical out from my PC's motherboard to my AVR (Pioneer VSX-821k) and just using the headphone out on that for now. Eventually I'm going to invest in a dedicated DAC/amp for my headphones but it's not in the cards in the near future. I've spotted a few Astro Mixamp Pro's on eBay in the $80 range so I MAY grab one of those (for Dolby headphone decoding) and connect it to the PC via TOSLINK and either go to the AVR or straight to the headphones from there, pending on if I need more amping.
 
My budget is set at no more than $200, and the lower the better as I'd really quite like to stay at around $150. Current contenders are Sennheiser's HD 558 (which I'd likely mod to bring them closer to a 598 sound signature) which I can get factory refurbished for about $110, Audio Technica's AD-900 which goes for about $170, and Beyerdynamic's DT 990 Pro 250 ohm which go for $200 (though I'm concerned I can't amp these properly). I am of course open to other suggestions if I've overlooked another solid contender.
 
Appreciate any help you all can give me. (And yes, I've read Envy's gaming headphone guide, it's basically what got me to where I am in my decision)

 

[roguegeek]

Quote:

The SRH940 you have listed in your sig might be a good choice, too. I haven't heard them, but don't they have pretty good bass response? That is, for someone that is a non-basshead? And I know that they are well know for clarity and detail.

 
The SRH940 is kind of a treblehead's delight for closed cans. Plenty of clarity, detail, sparkly, exciting, and a surprisingly good soundstage for closed. No colorization anywhere with low frequencies not accentuated at all and that makes for very accurate and analytical listening. They were exactly what I was looking for when I bought them, but they sound awful when paired with bass heavy media, poorly mastered media, or low quality encoded media. It will find the flaws. It's a hard can to recommend unless someone is looking for that very specific signature, but I love them.

 

[Thujone]

Quote:

Hey guys, I made a new thread to ask this question a few days ago because apparently I'm blind and completely missed this one. Anyway, since I didn't get a response there I'm hoping I will here.
 
 
I'm in the market for an open full size headphone for home theater and gaming use. I'd love it if it sounded great when listening to music as well but that is a secondary and less important concern (I listen to rock, pop, and electronic stuff mostly). Above all the most important thing I'm looking for here is comfort. I want something that I could have on my head for 8 hours and not be bothered by it should I decide on some lazy Sunday that all I want to do is play videogames and watch movies. I recently sold a pair of Ultrasone cans simply because they started to weigh on my head and hurt my neck after a few hours (they also didn't play terribly well with my glasses (by the way I wear glasses so, take that into consideration I suppose)).
 
My setup isn't terribly sophisticated. I'm running the optical out from my PC's motherboard to my AVR (Pioneer VSX-821k) and just using the headphone out on that for now. Eventually I'm going to invest in a dedicated DAC/amp for my headphones but it's not in the cards in the near future. I've spotted a few Astro Mixamp Pro's on eBay in the $80 range so I MAY grab one of those (for Dolby headphone decoding) and connect it to the PC via TOSLINK and either go to the AVR or straight to the headphones from there, pending on if I need more amping.
 
My budget is set at no more than $200, and the lower the better as I'd really quite like to stay at around $150. Current contenders are Sennheiser's HD 558 (which I'd likely mod to bring them closer to a 598 sound signature) which I can get factory refurbished for about $110, Audio Technica's AD-900 which goes for about $170, and Beyerdynamic's DT 990 Pro 250 ohm which go for $200 (though I'm concerned I can't amp these properly). I am of course open to other suggestions if I've overlooked another solid contender.
 
Appreciate any help you all can give me. (And yes, I've read Envy's gaming headphone guide, it's basically what got me to where I am in my decision)

I'm not sure I have a recommendation, but I have some things worth thinking about. I wear glasses as well and I find that the main issue with my personal pair is that the extend too far passed my ears to fit inside the Sennheiser oval cup shape but they fit very well in the Beyerdynamic circular cup. This all depends on your type of glasses and your head shape. I also had issues with the ATH-A900X fitting well with glasses (worse than the Senns) and I think they are similar in fit (if not exactly the same) to the AD900's you mentioned.
 
Also, is there any reason you are looking at the DT990's more than that DT880's?