[Julk]

So I'm looking to purchase an entry level headphones
Budget = 80$
I've been reading around, and right now I'm thinking I might get the SR60's, I would like to ask around for some advice though.
I'm also wondering how much sound will be leaked out on the open design? I play my music relatively loud and don't really like the thought of everyone hearing it.

Also am not sure where to purchase it (online, ship to US). Headroom looks good, with discounts on most things, but what are some other sites that deal in similar things?

 

[tosehee]

Both low end grado and senn are great choice, and you can find the great used ones here in sales forum.

 

[Julk]

Well, I personally wouldn't mind buying a slightly used one for a much lower price, but it'll actually be my sister making the purchase (I don't live in US. My sister studies there and will be coming back for christmas), and I think she'd feel more comfortable purchasing from a store type thing.

 

[Jaawa]

Hello,

well then, take a look at our Headphone Buyer's Guide for a range of recommended headphones.

If you want more specific recommendations, please tell us what you're looking for in headphones..

1. open/closed?
2. what kind of music do you listen to? (and/or do you play games or watch movies using headphones?)
3. where do you use them? (outdoors/indoors/activities?)

About the sound leakage, yes open headphones tend to leak everything out at high listening volumes, so yeah if you want to keep your privacy even when there are others in the room, you need closed cans.

 

[Shoreman]

As far as the SR60's go, which I can't recommend highly enough (and I'm certainly not alone) it won't matter much where your sister buys them, price-wise. They're $69, as stipulated by Grado, everywhere. So, your concern should be shipping cost, return policy, throw-ins, etc...that kind of thing. At that price, you'd be silly to buy used to save a few dollars.

And, by the way, you may want to re-think your habit of "playing my music relatively loud." I don't know how old you are, but once you lose hearing capacity (which you certainly will over time), it's gone forever, and you will surely regret that choice. Grados sound great at reasonable or even low listening levels (especially, and ironically, when used with an amp). As you progress through the world of higher end headphones, it would be a shame if you couldn't fully appreciate all they have to offer.

Just sayin'.

 

[yashicaman]

Grado SR-60. Best bang for the buck. I use 'em at home and on the go. They work well unamped. Are comfortable. Cool retro look and fold flat in a briefcase.

 

[Julk]

Well, I don't play my music that loud, but loud enough that you could hear it a few feet off if nothing was blocking, and a soft buzz across the room, so I was worried that people would hear it

 

[Jules]

I had just gotten the interpol album turn on the bright lights, I had grado SR60's, I played it fairly loud, but not at levels that would damage my hearing, and I shared a fairly small office with another guy and he could clearly hear it. Point is if you are listening to an album you like, and you put it up a bit, the guy next to you is going to hear it a bit. Be careful with the cables to those phones if you get them, after a lot of lugging around they can break and they are not easy to replace. They are not detachable and the entire assembly is glued together plastic. My second pair of headphones had detachable cables for this very reason, and i've already replaced them once and I've had them for about 3 years.

 

[yukihiro]

Yeah, open headphones leak out a lot of music especially Grado's. I can always hear the music when someone walks by me wearing Grado's. If you can hear the music from a few feet away outside on a noisy street, then just imagine how clearly people can hear you indoors. Put it this way, I was listening to my Grado's at a moderate level at my girlfriend's house and she heard what song I was playing. Even her sister across the hall in another room heard what song I was playing.

But yeah, you might want to look into some closed headphones. If you're going to use it as a portable, you probably want to find something supra-aural as circumaural headphones are usually quite big and chunky (fine for home use though).

 

[Julk]

Right now I'm thinking either these (closed), or the SR60's

 

[Jaawa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Julk /img/forum/go_quote.gif Right now I'm thinking either these (closed), or the SR60's

Okay, so you've made the decision that the noise leakage doesn't matter, both open and closed can recommendations are good?

We really need to know the other two important points I mentioned earlier, if we're going to make any educated recommendations, otherwise we will just say: "go with the SR60"

because overall they're the better headphones out of those two.

The two points were:

2. what kind of music do you listen to? (and/or do you play games or watch movies using headphones?)
3. where do you use them? (outdoors/indoors/activities?)

 

[Julk]

It's mostly at home, though I will be outside occasionally with them
Tastes? Mostly alternative rock/indie type music

 

[Jaawa]

Okay, the Grado SR60 is a very good headphone for you, but if you want more options, well the Sennheiser HD 555 is another open can to think about, the price is somewhere around $80-100, it's a great entry-level rock headphone, circumaural, nice soundstage, comfy, and later on it will benefit nicely from a small amp if you wish to upgrade

 

[Julk]

Amp will definitely come later, but before that, I should probably get a better source (soundcard or external DAC).
I'm currently on an X-Fi extreme audio

 

[Jaawa]

Well, I don't think that the source is as important a component as the amp or the headphones, especially in an entry-level rig. A source that feeds your music to the amp without altering the signal (without causing any distortions) is enough, the Creative SoundBlaster X-Fi family are good soundcards, I've been using the Xmod as the source for my main rig for a long time, I feel it's better sounding than the M-Audio Audiophile USB. Although my best source would be a portable one, my iRiver H320, the sound quality it produces is several notches higher than any M-Audio or Creative card that I've heard.

So I would need to start looking for an external DAC or a good source now, but this is because I've got the audiophile-level amp and headphones. Maybe I also need to start looking for cable upgrades for improvement