[sfgiants2010]

What are the best full sized headphones for under $250? My listening habits are about 30% hip hop (primarily Dr Dre, Kid Cudi, and Kendrick Lamar), 20% spoken-word leaning rap (primarily Atmosphere), 20% ska (Sublime), and about 30% Alternative, Reggae, and occasionally other genres (Bob Marley, Dirty Heads, Iration, and Pink Floyd). I would prefer it to have a removable cable and be fairly comfortable, preferably more so than my Hfi-580. I currently have Klipsch x10 and Uktrasone HFI-580's, and well I like the sound of the HFi-580's, I would like better, more natural mids. The only amp i would be willing to consider is the Fiio e6, or a similarly small and inexpensive amp. All help would be appreciated!

 

[sfgiants2010]

Also, being open or closed doesn't matter that much, but all other factors being equal, I would prefer them to be closed.

 

[sfgiants2010]

Bump

 

[Ashade]

I'm in the same than you. Impossible to get any answer.. . I just got one and I'm deeply thankful. Only thing I have clearer the more I read is I'm getting the fiio e11. Still thinking on the headphones though. I'm in between these at this moment:
- Audio Technica ATH-M50WH
- Sennheiser HD 598
- BRAINWAVZ HM5 or any of its variants.

Still researching...

 

[sfgiants2010]

If you're seriously considering the HD598 there are some great deals on them right now, 250 with a $100 gift card at crutchfield, 200 at amazon, and 250 and "Make an offer" at eBay, with a $25 eBay gift card.

 

[Mani ATH 87]

I've never understood the recommendations for the hd598, I hated them, but that's just me and I'm not a Sennheiser fan in general. 

Anyways, there are a million different headphones in this price range, many of them are very good. You will probably get 100 different recommendations here honestly, my favorite being the A900X. I'm sure you will get the opinions about the Beyer DT's, ultrasone's, Denon's, Senn's, Grado's. This is honestly a very common question as many people like to look at headphones in this range, probably could find a hundred opinions without another thread 

, no offense intended of course.

BTW: Atmosphere isn't even close to being considered spoken word, just sayin' 

 

[sfgiants2010]

Ya, I was just having trouble finding recent ones with similar music tastes and amping capabilities. And ya I know they aren't, but I needed some way to differentiate them from the more beats focused hip hop I mentioned before, for those less familiar with them

 

[sfgiants2010]

Does anyone who has the he300, d600, MTPG, or other headphones in this price range have an opinion?

 

[sfgiants2010]

bump

 

[XxDobermanxX]

You say you want natural mids ?
HD 598 or HD 600

 

[sfgiants2010]

But would the 598 have the bass for hip hop? And the HD600 require too much amping

 

[officialtlong]

Quote:

But would the 598 have the bass for hip hop? And the HD600 require too much amping

The 598's will be pretty dry in the bass region of that genre. You may think about throwing the Beyerdynamic DT770 Limited Edition (32 ohm) into the mix and also, take a look at the Logitech UE6000 thread.

 

[sfgiants2010]

I usually don't care how headphones look, but I really dislike the Dt770 in that department. I'll definitely take a closer look at the Logitechs though! Any one know how they compare to the headphones I've mentioned?

 

[oblique63]

Quote:

I usually don't care how headphones look, but I really dislike the Dt770 in that department. I'll definitely take a closer look at the Logitechs though! Any one know how they compare to the headphones I've mentioned?

I've owned both the UE's and the D600, but I kept the D600. The UE 6000 is nice, and a good deal for the price, but it was just too dark for me in passive mode (it sounded like everything had a veil over it). For hip-hop, the D600's are a good choice. The bass on them is top notch (better than the original D5000's even when modded, and rivaling LCD-2 quality), but the mids and highs are all funky. A lot of people like them, and a lot of others don't. I personally don't really love the mids/highs on them, but I would hate for that to influence your opinion, they're really cans that you need to try out for yourself to see if you like them.

On that note, I'm assuming from your name that you're in SF? If so, the best buys around here tend to have them on display in the fancy 'Magnolia' section of their stores so you can try them out (and they also have the UE 6000's on display with the other 'cheaper' headphones too). So you can just go there and try them both out in one go. The Best Buy on geary I believe had both in stock and on display last I recall, I only mention it cause I'm not sure if the one on harrison has the D600's.

Anyways, I just ordered a pair of M100's too, so I'll see how they stack up once they get here later this week. No idea about the other phones though.

 

[sfgiants2010]

I actually live about 30 minutes south of the city, sons Best Buy with a Magnolia section is a little out of the way. But I look forward to your comparison! I think my final decision will be between the better of those two, the HE 300, and Mr Speaker Mad Dogs (If an e6 can power them, anyway).