[GanChan]

Another thing to keep in mind, if he's going to be carrying these phones around with him: Both the Sony V6 and the Sennheiser HD280 Pro can be folded up, which can make portable life considerably easier. Both are good monitering phones, so they could prove very useful to a musician.

Do NOT confuse the Sony V6 (full name MDR-V6) with the horrid Sony MDR-V600.

The V6 is also available as the Sony 7506 -- same headphone, only with a gold-plated plug (shrugs) and more expensive because it's aimed at the audio-video industry instead of consumers.

 

[a1leyez0nm3]

i would have to say hd280pro, audio technica ahd50? i cant remember the model, koss ksc-35, er6, beyer 250-80
im not sure i would recommend the v6 for jazz, it has a tendancy to sound unnatural with such music, in my experiecnes

 

[elnero]

Personally I would say unless you want to be cruel don't get the 280's. This sounds vain and awful but as much as I like my 280's they make anyone who puts them on look like the biggest geek ever. Fine for home use or like me at work where I don't give a darn but I wouldn't go walking around outside with them.

I haven't heard the Grado's but if your son specifically mentioned them then maybe you might want to stick with that. If you want to do a little better move up the line, or get the Alessandro Music Series One which may be a better value. Alternatively you could go for the SR60's and maybe add an Airhead amplifier from headroom but that might be a bit more than your budget.

 

[kelly]

Is there a place selling the Beyerdynamic DT250-80 for $100 now? It is the best phone mentioned in this thread as far as I'm concerned, but I've not seen it for under $100 which I think is a requirement.

For under $100, I'd pick the Sony MDR-V6.

 

[ooheadsoo]

Quote:

Originally posted by bill_98765 thanks all for the input - i should clarify - i'm willing to spend $50 more than the SR80s, whcih I understand are about $100.

I believe this = ~$150
The Beyer 250-80 and 770 are both just within reach

 

[kerelybonto]

ooheadsoo, akar had a very good suggestion that somehow got overlooked. Get the Alessandro-Grado Music Series One for $99 shipped. It uses the same driver and almost the same casing as the SR-80 but is slightly tweaked to present a more neutral sound to appeal to the professional market.

Grados are generally a better option than Sennheiser 'phones running straight out of a portable. I own the SR-80 and it sounds great out of my Panasonic SL-CT570. The Grado comfort issue is overstated, in my opinion -- the Prestige Series headphones are very light and do not exert much pressure on the ears.

I don't have any experience with the Beyerdynamic DT250-80, but I understand that it's a good headphone. If your son only mentioned Grado and Sennheiser, that may imply that he wants an open headphone. Try to find out. The other closed headphone mentioned here, the Sony MDR-V6, is not as listenable for long periods as any of the Grado headphones, in my opinion. It is comfortable, but it has a somewhat grating treble (in comparison to high-end 'phones, of course -- it's still very good in absolute terms) that can be fatiguing over a period of hours.

Anyway, my advice is to get the Alessandro-Grado Music Series One.

kerely

[Edit: Got confused -- the above was addressed to the original poster's concerns, not specifically to ooheadsoo. But anyway...]

 

[ooheadsoo]

That's true, the senns are difficult to drive. I am not familiar at all with Alessando's cans so I didn't think to mention them. From what I'm hearing they do indeed sound like a great choice.

 

[DarkWolf]

If you want to go with Sennhieser, you might consider the HD590. They are newer than the 580/600, but not exactly better. Just different, and they take less power. I thought they sounded ok out of a discman. People say that they are very close in some ways to the HD600 and 580, but are more agressive and forward. I didn't get to hear them for too long, but everything I listened to was mine and it sounded about the way I would expect, so I think they would be flat enough for him to use for his stuff. I don't how well they would work for portable use. They will run fine, but they are open, so they won't block any noise going in or out. The grados are open too though, so I guess he's cool with open phones.

Here's an idea, and a whole new can of worms...

Instead of getting him headphones for christmas, you could get him a portable headphone amp. Something like a portable meta42 or a Porta Corda ( www.meier-audio.com ) would do well for him. He could then chose his own phones, and they would sound a lot better and he would have more options as to what he could buy and then drive well. He may also be quite impressed with you. But I don't know, like I said, it's a hole new can of worms.. Have fun.

 

[kelly]

A headphone amp without headphones for Christmas. That's about as much fun as when Grandma forgot batteries for the Mr. Microphones. I'd get him a GameCube controller. Skip the console and cartridges, just the controller. Have you ever heard of a wish sandwich?

 

[plainsong]

Or better yet, get him the sr80s that he asked for and if you're willing to spend a little more money, then throw in one of the portable amps from the Headroom (they ship pretty quick and Christmas is soon).

That leaves the amped/unamped choice completely up to him.

And also thinking back to my first post on this thread, I didn't mean to say the er6s sucked. Hardly. The sound is good and correct, and they're definately small.

I guess I just let my lust for the ety 4ps get in the way of objectivity. If he wants those more expensive 4ps later on, then he can well pay for them himself.

But any of the suggestions here would be fine, except for the amp minus phones. Yeah, that's a wish sandwhich.

 

[DarkWolf]

Quote:

Originally posted by kelly A headphone amp without headphones for Christmas. That's about as much fun as when Grandma forgot batteries for the Mr. Microphones. I'd get him a GameCube controller. Skip the console and cartridges, just the controller. Have you ever heard of a wish sandwich?

Meh. I think you missed my point, and it wasn't even much of a point to miss, I was just throwing out an idea. Anyway, there are many phones that will sound fine unamped. The SR-60s are apparently one, the 590s are one, (and they will give quite an upgrade path too.) and their are many others not mentioned.

 

[bobzemuda]

Quote:

Originally posted by gloco he may find the Grado's annoying then. They definitely make your ears hot after extended listening and the cord is very thick and heavy, i think the cord on the Grado SR80's are of a softer material, so their easier to bend. If he really wants the Grado's, go for them.

I've worn my Grados for hours over the past few days and I haven't had a single heat problem.

The v6s and 7506s that several mentioned make your head a hell of a lot hotter and sweatier that the SR60s ever would.

There open design alone keeps them from making you as warm as the closed phones.

Bill