[swiftus]

Ok, so I'm looking for a pair of headphones to use with my iPod on which I alomst exclusively listen to hip hop music. I travel on the London Underground a lot, and use my headphones whenever I'm walking in Central London. My question is which headphones would suit me best?

I recently ordered the Sennheiser PXC 450's, but found that:

(1) They look way too big on my head
(2) They don't block sound as I thought they would.

I recently spoke to a guy in my local electronics shop, who advised me to buy a pair of IEM's (Shure E2C), as the active noise cancelling on-ear headphones are suitable for air and (long-distance) rail travel, and will not block out noise on the streets (Considering I went into the shop asking for the Audio Technica ATH-ANC7's, and he didn't have them, it may be that he just wanted to make a sale). So can anybody who has a pair of Audio Technica ATH-ANC7's help me out as to whether these headphones are useful in blocking sound in busy streets / underground trains?

If these AT's do not indeed block out the noise, can you guys suggest a pair of IEM's (with a range of $200 or less) which will effectively do the job for me?

I'm quite new to the headphone world, and would appreciate any input on this matter.

Thanks!

 

[jinx20001]

yeh IEM's are amazing for on the go listening, depends on your budget tho, the e3c are nowhere near the best, although they are a huge step up from standard buds, i love my shure se530 they are just amazing, perfect for hip hop with 3 armature speakers in each earphone 2 of which are for serious kickin bass, they will set you back about £290 on amazon.co.uk.

for cheaper bass thrills how about some ultimate ears super fi 5, much cheaper on amazon and are dual driver (2 speakers per earphone)

there are cheaper and decent IEM's out there that are great for bass and bass built music such as hip hop/rap, but in general the higher you pay the cleaner and clearer the music and bass gets.

feel free to send me a message if you have any questions about all IEM's i have extensive experience and im from UK

 

[jinx20001]

i see your looking for something around £100 so id advise buying off amazon and maybe stretching for the super fi 5 pro, if they are a little too expensive go for the super fi eb which give even more bass impact for cheaper, although they are pretty hefty for iems

 

[jinx20001]

heck what am i thinking!! sorry to multi post but this is worth a mention! the shure e2c which were previously around £80 can be got new for £25 on amazon.co.uk, now they are a bargain at that price believe me, but be fast they will bump that price up soon

 

[LaBreaHead]

The current low price of the E2's is quite a bargain ... but thinking more in the long term, really do your ears a favor and look into the Future Sonics Atrio M5s (in-ear earphones). We Atrio owners tend to be like a broken record (uh, for those old enough to remember records, LOL), but for the price, you get good isolation and excellent, smooth, non-bloated bass. These things sound about as close to "real" headphones as you can get with in-ears, and they have a rich, full sound (which makes my 2nd generation iPod nano sound richer and fuller, in turn). I like to listen unamped; for the players that EQ well, I have to turn the bass EQ down with the M5s ... for the iPod, set "flat," the M5s are a big improvement over the E3's (and tend to cost less) ... the E3s would not be a good hip-hop 'phone.

In my opinion, London tube + iPod = a need for isolation. Since you like bassy music, check out the M5s.


__________________________
Phones (in order of purchase):
Sony MDR71, Sony MDR51, Etymotic ER6, Panasonic RP-HJ50, Shure E3C, Koss PortaPro 2, Creative EP630, Etymotic ER6i, Sennheiser PX-100, Sennheiser HD555, Future Sonics Atrio M5

 

[swiftus]

Thanks for the input guys.

@ LaBreaHead...I can't find those headphones on amazon!

@jinx20001...is there a big difference in quality to justify the price difference between the e2c (£28) and the UE Super.fi 5 Pro (£99) ?

Thanks

 

[swiftus]

I had a look at the UE official website, and it recommends the Super.fi 5 EB according to my music tastes.

 

[swiftus]

Also, how good are the UE's at blocking out background noise?

 

[swiftus]

Ok, I think I've made a quick shortlist now...

UE Super.fi 5 EB (£99)
Shure E2c (£28) / E3c (£59)
Etymotic ER-6i Isolator (£72)

Considering isolation, price and SQ, which should I go for?

 

[LaBreaHead]

"LaBreaHead...I can't find those headphones on amazon!"

eBay -- Road Dog ... or just Road Dog online, if you want to bypass ebay. They're also sold on a U.K. web site ... can't remember just now (at the office and distracted from Head-Fi issues).

Edit: handheldaudio.co.uk (4 pounds less than the super.fi EBs)

 

[jinx20001]

first things first, the er6i are good but absolutely backwards to what you need. they have no bass at all compared to the others.

the ultimate ears super fi 5 are a big improvement on the e2c but the e2c are amazing for that price.

the reason i recommended the super fi 5 pro over the EB is because yes you will enjoy the bass on the EB but the 5 pro cleans the bass up and is overall tighter and finer which you may be thankful of in the end but as i said both are great for your music preference. but as you can see the pro are that bit more money but you get cleaner bass.

the atrio m5 are a decent set but ive only listened very briefly so cant comment, they are butt ugly and i think you may get a clearer sound from dual drivers

 

[jinx20001]

out of your shortlist i think the eb will shock you the most with amazingly powerful bass, the shure e2 are also bassy but the single dynamic driver is a little pressed with powerful music giving a muddy sound (but £28 is astonishing nothing at that price goes close), the er6i are less bass more treble.

 

[swiftus]

cool, any news on whether the AT's will do the job? I really prefer on-ear headphones as opposed to IEM's...

 

[jinx20001]

i cant really comment, dont really do on ears soz

 

[LaBreaHead]

I believe the AKG 81DJs have more bass than the Audio Technicas ... but that's just based on my reading of various Head-Fi threads. Better investigate, to confirm. Also note that on-ear headphones have to clamp fairly hard on the ear, to provide isolation ... an in-ear with a comfortable tip, such as foamies, can be a lot more comfortable.

Oh, and the M5's are not stylish, but they're by no means ugly with foam tips on ... besides, when you're listening to the rich, non-fatiguing sound, they're in your ears, and you're not looking at them!