[Brood_Star]

I'm trying to find a good pair of headphones to use for school and home use mainly. This means I want a decent portable phone (that I can put around my neck or carry). My budget is around ~$100. I also live in Canada (Grado's are out of the option... the cheapest I can find is from Moon-Audio and SR80's are roughly the same price as MS-1s)

So, I have my eye on three phones:
1) The MS-1s
2) The D1001s
3) The ATH-ES7s

Four questions: how much do Grado's leak? Could someone give me a rough percentage for someone next to me?

Also, are the MS-1's/D1001s slim enough in profile to put around my neck or to carry around with me? What about the AD700 or the HARX700/900? Too big?

Next, I've found a couple pairs of ES7's on EBay within my price range. The only thing is they look fake. Could someone offer an opinion on this and this?

My last question would be should I just not bother with full sized cans at all and go the route of Earbuds/IEMs?

 

[.coco]

The MS1 or SR80 should be light enough to take around with you, they are pretty light as headphones. Really the only heavy ones I have felt from them are the SR325i's and the MS2's due to the metal construction in them.

They do tend to leak a lot. The sound on the outside is about 90% as loud as the sound inside. If you keep the music to levels that would make your parents happy ("you are destroying your ears!"), they are fine. However, if you like to listen relatively loud, you will not be the only one enjoying the music.

 

[wayward91]

how can you wear headphones at school? i cant concentrate. and i cant listen with one so nobody can talk to u.

 

[earthpeople]

Both of those ES7s are fakes. You can tell from the pouch. It should not have the AT logo right in the middle, instead it should be a little tag on the side. I bought mine from buydig.com for $110 after shipping. I haven't heard the other headphones you're comparing to, but the ES7s are pretty easy to carry around, have a solid feel, and I think they sound pretty good. They don't leak much either.

About your last question; I personally dislike earbuds because I don't feel like they're secure in my ear and will fall out. Not sure how you feel about them, but also IEMs will usually give better sound just because they're in ear. IEMs are infinitely easier to carry around, and you can probably find a pretty nice pair for around $100. I think the Denon C751s are just a little over $100, and they're what I'm looking to get in a month or two.

 

[moonboy403]

First thing I would take off the list is the MS1 since it's an open headphone so it leaks like no tomorrow.

I would personally pick iem for portable since that's what they're made for. However, given the same price, you can probably do better in sq if you go for full size.

 

[charliex]

GET the MS 1's directly from Alessandro - ONLY $99.00 and INCLUDES shipping anywhere in the world. Not only a good deal cost wise - but the MS 1's are equivalent to the Grado 125s.

 

[Brood_Star]

Quote:

Originally Posted by squid+ /img/forum/go_quote.gif About your last question; I personally dislike earbuds because I don't feel like they're secure in my ear and will fall out. Not sure how you feel about them, but also IEMs will usually give better sound just because they're in ear. IEMs are infinitely easier to carry around, and you can probably find a pretty nice pair for around $100. I think the Denon C751s are just a little over $100, and they're what I'm looking to get in a month or two.

I see used C751's in FS for $70 but if I go the route of the IEM's I'm probably picking the NuForce 8's since the 7's are reviewed better than the 751s
Quote:

Originally Posted by wayward91 /img/forum/go_quote.gif how can you wear headphones at school? i cant concentrate. and i cant listen with one so nobody can talk to u.

Still good for Bussing/Walking to and from school, as well I have approx 25 minutes of free time to listen to them in school every day

Again different opinions on how much the sound leaks on open cans :<. Moonboy, in your opinion, is the SQ tradeoff worth it for portability? I mean if I buy IEM's there'd be no point using them at home would there?

 

[moonboy403]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brood_Star /img/forum/go_quote.gif I see used C751's in FS for $70 but if I go the route of the IEM's I'm probably picking the NuForce 8's since the 7's are reviewed better than the 751s Still good for Bussing/Walking to and from school, as well I have approx 25 minutes of free time to listen to them in school every day Again different opinions on how much the sound leaks on open cans :<. Moonboy, in your opinion, is the SQ tradeoff worth it for portability? I mean if I buy IEM's there'd be no point using them at home would there?

If you're gonna use the headphone at home more than on the go, then go for full size and get a dirt cheap iem for portable use.

Here's my reasoning for that: it's a different story if you're gonna use them in the library, but while you're on the street/bus, you wouldn't be able to fully enjoy music with a full size headphone as isolation isn't that great on them which results in loss of details. I personally don't concentrate on my music when I'm on the street since I wanna know what's going on around me.

 

[Brood_Star]

Well I have decent quality headphones for now... some "Tonear CD-600" headphones; they serve their purpose for home. I don't usually encounter too much noise on the streets as I usually am not walking on main roads and city busses are usually quiet (school busses are a nightmare though... isolation would be needed there?) I guess I'll just buy an IEM?

Only thing I'm iffy on is that: yeah I want to hear cars around me when I'm walking. I guess it's not a big deal?

 

[shellylh]

I have the Denon D1001k and they are a great little "portable" cans. I can hang them around my neck without a problem. They don't leek sound but don't isolate that much. The Denon's are circumaural (around the ears) to me but if you have really large ears, they may be supraural (on top of the ears). They are quite comfortable and light and have a very pleasing sound. I use them in my office which means that I wear them several hours a day. The ES7's I had were pretty uncomfortable and I couldn't wear them very long so I got rid of them. I also have a pair of Grado 225s in my office. I prefer to use the Denon's because I can't wear the Grado's without my ears hurting after a while. Also, the ES7's and Grado 225's are a little too forward/aggressive sounding to wear for long periods of time, in my opinion. I have not heard the MS1's though.

So my vote would be for the Denon's. They are a good home/portable solution that are comfortable and don't make you look that weird. Also, I like the Denon sound signature. They have a nice full bass that is very pleasant to my ears. They also don't sound as closed/congested as many closed cans.

I bought a pair on ebay from yogi-comp and I would highly recommend buying from them if they ship to Canada. You can also get them from headphone.com for $99.00 and they ship to Canada.

 

[captian73]

i have to say that the alessandro headphones are a good bargain if you are considering the es7 buy from an official dealer (audiocubes) or direct from amazon and pony up the cash and don't cut corners or you'll end up with an exspensive pair of fakes

fakeheadphones.com » Audio Technica ATH-ES7, New To The Counterfeit Market

for comfort the denon's would be the best, however don't bother with the d1001 the d1000 are the same.the change is cosmetic.

 

[shellylh]

Quote:

Originally Posted by captian73 /img/forum/go_quote.gif for comfort the denon's would be the best, however don't bother with the d1001 the d1000 are the same.the change is cosmetic.

Sometimes, you may be able to get the D1001 for cheaper than the D1000 though. Yes, they are the same headphone. Also, s=silver and k=black I believe.

 

[Brood_Star]

Thanks for the input on those ES7. I didn't/don't want to buy from Audiocubes because the $212 price and then shipping... There's a chance I may get them off a friend for $120-140. If so, I'll probably pull the trigger on those

Ye, the D1001 are miles cheaper than the D1000.

If I were to choose between full-size cans, out of the D1001 and the MS-1, can someone tell me which benefits from which type of music? From what I've read, Rock and Metal go to MS-1... what kind of rock? Classic only?

I'm mainly an indie/alternative listener (ex Radiohead/Modest Mouse), experimental electronica (house and IDM... just assume that's "techno") like Justice/Aphex Twin, instrumentals/ambient (post rock like Explosions in the Sky or trip-hop like Portishead), rap (Wu-Tang Clan or Atmosphere), prog (Muse/King Crimson) and jazz (Miles Davis/John Coltrane big two) are some other stuff. What about pop and folk (like Fleet Foxes/Bon Iver) and female vocalists (Imogen Heap/Paramore)? Punk, classic rock and metal are rare listens but still there. I've read both take dumps on orchestral classical, but I can cope with that. Judging from that list of genres, only a few need bass quantity

Hope I didn't make that too long so that no one will read it

 

[Brood_Star]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brood_Star /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hope I didn't make that too long so that no one will read it

Guess I did. To shortform, out of the MS1 and D1001, which is more of an "all-rounder"?

EDIT: I'm almost certain it's the D1001.

How is SQ Tradeoff between full cans/iems/earbuds? The models I have in mind are the D1001, the Nuforce 8 and the PK3s

 

[pizlo]

I needed the same thing, cans for downtime at school, and I went with the d1001's, got em from amazon for 80 then recabled for another 12, and they sound great. Best headphones in my school by far. One thing might be they aren't verry tough. they have plenty of scuffs from being with me 8 hours a day, and I would not advise throwing them in a backpack, I usually leave them on top of my bag, or around my neck. If you can solder the recable is great.

And by the way I like almost all of the music you do minus the rap. Glad to find another modest mouse/post rock listener.