[gunbunnysoulja]

So far, I have been looking at the following...

AKG k701
Alessandro Music Series Pro
Audio Technica ad2000
Audio Technica w1000
Audio Technica w5000
Audio Technica ATH-A900
Beyerdynamic dt880
Beyerdynamic dt990
Denon D2000
Denon D5000
Grado GS1000
Grado Rs1
Grado Rs2
Sennhesier HD650
Stax SR404

My budget is under 1k, preferably closer to $500 street.

My transport is the Marantz SA8001, and my receiver is the Onkyo 805 (which I would like to completely bypass).

I listen to every music genre, so I would like a great ALL around HP.

I would also prefer something rather comfortable for extended periods of time.

Also, which ones absolutely require an external amp for best sound instead of just connecting directly to the SA8001. Also, which ones would be capable of iPod listening without an amp (I travel alot, especially on trains).
I don't want to have to get 2 separate HP's (one for home and one for travel), but I will if its not possible to get great sq from home and still be capability of travel without a travel amp.

Thanks!!

P.S.- I posted this earlier over at AVS Forum, and it got narrowed down to the Denon D2000, Denon D5000 and Sennheiser 650. Any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
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[synaesthetic]

DT880s are pretty amazing, but they do require amplification.

They sound so good though, and are ridiculously comfortable.

 

[Rednamalas1]

AD2000 gets my vote - great all-rounder without any faults. They do benefit from an amp, but can be driven rather easily.

 

[nutkicker]

out of those, you can't go wrong with the grado rs1

 

[Uncle Erik]

The SA8001's amp is pretty decent. It has a nice, clean solid state sound and I like listening to it when it's too hot out to run tubes (grrr). If that's your only amp, you could do a lot worse. Big props to Marantz for putting a decent circuit in there.

As for the headphones, the only one you listed that I'm familiar with that does well with a plain iPod is the RS-1. The RS-1 is always a good time and you can get a used pair around $500.

 

[krmathis]

Out of those I would pick the Stax SR-404.
Its a great sounding headphone, and comfortable for multiple hours listening sessions.

 

[fdhfdy]

K701s

 

[Cankin]

This is not on your list, but I think it's good for home and on-the-go listening

HD595

 

[veloaudio]

Back from the dead...


Anyone comments on running the AT W5000's straight out of the SA8001?

 

[EugeneK]

K701s are really comfortable, I can keep them on my head for 6+ hours.

They're really picky with amplification though.

All the open headphones (HD650, K701, Alessandro MSpro) on your list do not work well with travel, they'll leak in noise from the environment, I travel with Shure SE530s and use the K701 at home.

 

[artears]

I listened to most of them, except Stax. My vote goes to W5000s, they are easy to drive, sound is very airy and detailed, if the fit is good, the lows are very much there with lots of detail. I was really sad when I sold mine.

 

[Rednamalas1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by artears /img/forum/go_quote.gif I listened to most of them, except Stax. My vote goes to W5000s, they are easy to drive, sound is very airy and detailed, if the fit is good, the lows are very much there with lots of detail. I was really sad when I sold mine.

um. I find W5000 to be really tricky to amp as much as HD650s (if not more).

They can be driven easily, sure, but they don't sound as good when used with a wrong amp.

what was your setup for W5000s?

 

[pwrusr]

Honestly if you travel a lot you'd likely be better off getting some good IEM's for use with the ipod and a good set of cans with amp for home use.
Personally, my next step is a good set of IEM's so I can travel with them much easier.
Then for home use I'm likely going to grab a decent amp to power my 880's.

 

[artears]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rednamalas1 /img/forum/go_quote.gif um. I find W5000 to be really tricky to amp as much as HD650s (if not more). They can be driven easily, sure, but they don't sound as good when used with a wrong amp. what was your setup for W5000s?

That's correct, they need a good matching amp to unleash their potential, however I only said they are easy to drive

. They are certainly easier to drive compared to HD650s. I was using them with the internal amp from my Apogee Mini DAC and they were good...

However I agree with the last poster's comments. You better get a high quality iem, maybe a custom one?

 

[Tornado]

HD650 sounds better.
Travel? none of them is fit