[zelph]

I've searched through countless threads and have went through many choices, but i finally narrowed it down to the these two phones

JVC HARX900 ($60)

and ATH A700 ($120)

CAL ($100)


My budget was around 100, but i saw the good reviews on the ATH700 and it was selling for only 20 dollars over my budget on amazon so i decided to add that on.

 
The only experience I've had with high quality headphones is with the SENN HD280 my friend had, so i don't have much experience with this stuff.
I need headphones for next year because I'm going to be rooming another person. So i figured this would would go into what I wanted from a headphone.
The main things are
 
Comfort (Gonna have these on hours at a time probably)
Decent Sound
Unamped source (Ipod, crappy laptop souncard)
Good sound isolation (in and out)
Portableness is not an issue (but it would be a plus)
 
I've looked through the reviews and impressions on the ATH A700 and I was about to finally decide when, someone recommended the JVC HARX900 and the CAL. (funny story, i intially was just planning to get the SENNS HD280 because i thought they were alright, but then i stumbled onto head-fi through google and saw all these options. This happened again and again for many phones until i finally narrowed it down to these three.)

From jokers guide the CAL got a 9.5 in comfyness and that sounds awesome, but the isolation suffers.
 
The JVC's seem to be the best bang for the buck and because of my budget would probably buy these.

I know I can't go wrong with any of these phones but i wanted to hear your guys opinions on which one you find the most comfortable. and whether the price jump from the JVC to the ATH700 and CAL is worth it. (I'm on a tight budget but if it's worth it, I would get it)

 
 

 

[MalVeauX]

Heya,
 
So... what do you listen to?
 
If you're willing to do $120, you're willing to do $130, and that opens up a whole new world possibilities of selection.
 
We need to know what you listen to. What you look for in a headphone. If you're a basshead or not. If you favor bright forward mids/highs or you like a laidback sound. Lots of things. Tell us what you're looking for. The headphone is just... well, a headphone, until we know what you want. Otherwise, whatever fits your budget since we know nothing about your taste.
 
Very best,

 

[zelph]

For music type, I pretty much listen to everything, but I listen to a lot or RnB, Hip Hop, Asian Pop, and some classical. I'm aiming for a headphone that is the ok at every genre.
 
Haha I think my wallet has the set line at the 120 mark , college student budget for the win.
 
I do like my bass booming, but if comfort calls, bass has to take a break haha, and If there's much bass it might be fatiguing for my ears over extended use.
 
 
Thanks for the fast response.

 

[MalVeauX]

Heya,
 
Ultrasone HFI 580.
 
You can afford it.
 
Very best,

 

[zelph]

Oh man those look nice haha,
 
I'm gonna have to add this on the list and look into it now. 
 
Thanks for the Suggestion! 

 

[zelph]

I think I'll be getting the HFI 580's soon, but before I get them I want to know how comfortable these actually are. There are a lot of mixed reviews ranging frompretty comfortable but could use some work and not comfortable at all.

 

[MalVeauX]

Quote:

I think I'll be getting the HFI 580's soon, but before I get them I want to know how comfortable these actually are. There are a lot of mixed reviews ranging frompretty comfortable but could use some work and not comfortable at all.

Heya,
 
No headphone is going to be 100% heralded as comfortable. I have some headphones that I find incredibly comfortable. Someone else completely disagrees because their ear touches something because they have wombat ears. Know what I mean? I have PRO900's, they're the same size/build as all the Pro/HFI line. I find them quite comfortable. They don't clamp hard, they're rugged and tough. Very sleek looking. Comes with detachable cables, carry case, etc. You can swap pads too if you want to go velour, or if you prefer the leather pads that's fine too. Whatever floats your boat. I find them comfortable. I do not find the AudioTechnica M50's comfortable, they clamp too much for me and they get sweaty. I prefer looser fit headphones with cloth pads. That's my preference. Someone else will say they're super comfy to them. So again, comfort is completely relative. Even some people think Grados are immediately comfortable, even though a lot of people will say otherwise. So again, relative. I will say that you are pretty safe with the HFI 580's. They're comfortable enough for most people. If you have exceptionally huge ears or really sweat prone skin, maybe you'll need to look at some abnormally large headphones with cloth pads. Otherwise, if you're at least normal, you should be ok.
 
Very best,
 

 

[zelph]

I just took the plunge and got these off amazon for 130. You were right haha, I was willing to go another 10 dollars over over budget for these. Thanks for introducing these headphones to me MalVeauX

Now to eagerly wait for the headphones to arrive so I can try them on.

 

[MalVeauX]

Quote:

I just took the plunge and got these off amazon for 130. You were right haha, I was willing to go another 10 dollars over over budget for these. Thanks for introducing these headphones to me MalVeauX

Now to eagerly wait for the headphones to arrive so I can try them on.

Heya,

Listen to them for a few days before you form an opinion. Make sure your sources are 100% lossless, or at least 320kbps MP3 or equivalent. You want a clean source. Then let us know what you think about how they sound, how they feel and overall if you think they were worth their price tag and in general your opinion of them.
 
Very best,