Hello everyone, I'm very happy I found this forum. It's a great place for gaining knowledge in the area of audio. I'm about to buy my first expensive (at least from my perspective) headphones and as I'm new to this, I will appreciate some help.
Here's how I got to the conclusion it's best to get the Audio Technica ATH-MSR7. My current headphones are Soundmagic E30 and they are my first headphones above 10-15 dollars. It was a big upgrade. Now I want to move to a higher quality headphones.
I had the chance to test Sony MDR7506 from a colleague and I definitely liked them more than my current E30. I'll try to explain the sound using my own language.The MDR7506 sounded more open and clear. Compared to them, E30 were more sterile sounding and muted.
I should mention I'm definitely not a big bass lover.
After reading and watching a lot on the internet I could test the Audio Technica M50X, Momentum I On-Ear and Shure SB840. I tested them using my music, mostly the following two songs:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1J-Us4rINeM (Dead Can Dance - Yulunga (Spirit Dance))
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbaKEt5BtHo (Dead Can Dance - The Ubiquitous Mr. Lovegrove)
Both M50X and Momentum sounded bassy and somewhat muted and closed. From these three I liked the SB840 the most - it was the most clear sounding with more detail and fresher sound. Maybe just a little bit lacking in bass.
Also, I had a chance to try the Sony MDR-1A and they sounded the best out of all I have tried, but they didn't gave me to try them with my sound source. Instead it was a Sony NWZ-A15 player with flac files. I suspect that the better sound source played a part in liking the Sony headphones the most. The sound was very clear, detailed and with good bass.
So, I started reading about the Sony MDR-1A and most people compare them to the ATH-MSR7. They say that the latter are really clear and detailed sounding, with better but less bass, fairly natural and flat, having overall better sound quality compared to the Sony's. The problem is I couldn't find a place to try the ATH-MSR7, but judging from the reviews it seems they will be appropriate for me.
The music I intend to listen is mostly acoustic, ambient, some metal, some classical, but I'm generally open to experimenting with different kinds of music. Also, I intend to buy the Audioquest Dragonfly v1.5 Black as a portable DAC.
TL;DR: I like Sony MDR7506 and Shure SB840, I'm not a basshead and I will listen to acoustic, ambient, some metal and some classical. I want detail, clarity and balance.
So, based on this information would you say the ATH-MSR7 are a good choice for me?
Also, will a Dragonfly DAC be a good pair with them?
Thank you
Here's how I got to the conclusion it's best to get the Audio Technica ATH-MSR7. My current headphones are Soundmagic E30 and they are my first headphones above 10-15 dollars. It was a big upgrade. Now I want to move to a higher quality headphones.
I had the chance to test Sony MDR7506 from a colleague and I definitely liked them more than my current E30. I'll try to explain the sound using my own language.The MDR7506 sounded more open and clear. Compared to them, E30 were more sterile sounding and muted.
I should mention I'm definitely not a big bass lover.
After reading and watching a lot on the internet I could test the Audio Technica M50X, Momentum I On-Ear and Shure SB840. I tested them using my music, mostly the following two songs:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1J-Us4rINeM (Dead Can Dance - Yulunga (Spirit Dance))
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbaKEt5BtHo (Dead Can Dance - The Ubiquitous Mr. Lovegrove)
Both M50X and Momentum sounded bassy and somewhat muted and closed. From these three I liked the SB840 the most - it was the most clear sounding with more detail and fresher sound. Maybe just a little bit lacking in bass.
Also, I had a chance to try the Sony MDR-1A and they sounded the best out of all I have tried, but they didn't gave me to try them with my sound source. Instead it was a Sony NWZ-A15 player with flac files. I suspect that the better sound source played a part in liking the Sony headphones the most. The sound was very clear, detailed and with good bass.
So, I started reading about the Sony MDR-1A and most people compare them to the ATH-MSR7. They say that the latter are really clear and detailed sounding, with better but less bass, fairly natural and flat, having overall better sound quality compared to the Sony's. The problem is I couldn't find a place to try the ATH-MSR7, but judging from the reviews it seems they will be appropriate for me.
The music I intend to listen is mostly acoustic, ambient, some metal, some classical, but I'm generally open to experimenting with different kinds of music. Also, I intend to buy the Audioquest Dragonfly v1.5 Black as a portable DAC.
TL;DR: I like Sony MDR7506 and Shure SB840, I'm not a basshead and I will listen to acoustic, ambient, some metal and some classical. I want detail, clarity and balance.
So, based on this information would you say the ATH-MSR7 are a good choice for me?
Also, will a Dragonfly DAC be a good pair with them?
Thank you
