[Sareth]

Hello, I've been since the last two months very interested in grabbing a pair of quality headphones and since then have gotten a few, lower end headphones and I definitively want a better pair of cans now. I prefer closed headphones because they block out most (some even all) background noise and it lets me enjoy my music and games properly, I am still considering some open models, mostly due to the better sound stage they offer.

My budget is, at most, ~150€ (~$250) but I am not interested in picking up a really high end model as it would require an amp and a better source than what I currently have, and as of right now, I just don't have the money to invest in those things, but in the future, I will without a doubt invest in a good source and amp.

I mainly listen to Rock and Metal, with some different genres here and there, but those are my main ones. I also enjoy gaming a lot, sometimes I still play competitively though not as much as I did before, but since gaming is a bit more important for me than music, I'd like a set of cans with a good sound stage and good 3d imaging.

Having read countless topics at this site and others, I think the following models would suit my needs, but I would like input from people who have these cans with similar needs as mine. The headphones I'm considering are the following:

Closed:
Ultrasone HFI-780
Ultrasone PRO/Proline 650
Beyerdynamic DT250 / 80 Ohms
Beyerdynamic 770 / 80 Ohms (The 2005 version is sadly out of my price range and I've read the 770 Pro requires a good amp, so I'm in doubt here)
Beyerdynamic DT660
AKG K-271 MKII Studio
Audio Technica M50

Open:
Beyerdynamic DT440
AKG601 (Have read it requires an amp, so I'm again, in doubt here)

From where I am shopping, it's not possible to buy either the A/AD700 or A/AD900.

Those are my main picks for headphones right now, but if you think there's a better model suited for my needs (Gaming, Metal & Rock) please do recommend it. Thank you for your help with this matter.

 

[EugeneK]

pick a grado or an alessandro if you just listen to rock and metal...... they are open headphones that don't require amps.

Be sure to try them out first though, some people might find them really uncomfortable.

Even though a headphone might have good 3d imaging - they are useless in determining directions for gaming - headphones only have 2 channels. So even if it sounds like something is coming from behind you, it is not necessarily true because you do not have rear channels on headphones.

 

[Acix]

The PL/Pro-650 have the bigger sound stage /3D.

 

[Sareth]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Acix /img/forum/go_quote.gif The PL/Pro-650 have the bigger sound stage /3D.

That's what I've been reading around the web, plus they supposedly have very good bass, thank you for your input.

They aren't the most efficient model out there but I think they could be run unamped decently at least. Does anyone have a first hand experience with an unamped PL/Pro-650?

Quote:

Originally Posted by EugeneK /img/forum/go_quote.gif pick a grado or an alessandro if you just listen to rock and metal...... they are open headphones that don't require amps.

I did consider this option, but sadly, both of these phones are not suited too much for gaming, but if music was my only concern, I would have gotten an Alessandro without a doubt, thank you for your input. (Grados are way, way overpriced in Europe!)

 

[EugeneK]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sareth /img/forum/go_quote.gif I did consider this option, but sadly, both of these phones are not suited too much for gaming, but if music was my only concern, I would have gotten an Alessandro without a doubt, thank you for your input. (Grados are way, way overpriced in Europe!)

Ok, you didn't read the second half of my post.

I'm going to assume that you play First Person Shooters and would like to know from what direction you're being shot at.

None of these headphones will perform better than another for gaming. Some might appear to have a 3D quality to them because they have a larger soundstage.

But this 3D information is false, you will not be able to reliably tell whether you are being shot at from any direction with headphones like you could with a 5.1 speaker system. Soundstage just makes it appear like different instruments or frequencies generally sound like they are coming from different directions and distances. Each frequency will always sound like they are coming from the same direction with the same set of headphones.

i.e. you will think you're getting shot at from the same direction all the time with the same set of headphones.