[Blze001]

Hey folks. First time posting here, but I've been lurking here for quite awhile as I get started with hi-fi. I've been researching this question for ages and I can't quite get a straight answer, so I decided to break down and ask the experts (you) before I start putting money down.
 
Basically, I'm looking for something to replace my Turtle Beach X12 headphones in my home listening setup. They sound okay with the Brainwavz pads I got for them, but now that I've been spoiled by my cMoyBB + AKG-550 setup I use to block people out in the office, they don't sound so stellar anymore.
 
I'm going to be getting a ModMic for this headset, I'm just doing Mumble chat and similar, so a desktop mic like a Yeti would not only be overkill, but I'd probably lose my mind trying to game with a big mic/pop filter in front of my face.
 
Easy part taken care of, now the hard part: the headphones themselves. This is where I'm getting a little demanding, I feel, because I want a set that'll run decently off the DSS2 DAC I use for surround, but will still let me upgrade to a nice tube amp later on. I'm looking to keep the headphone cost around $150 and an open/semi-open design, so far I've come up with the following players:
 
- AKG K240 Studio/MkII - I get the feeling these are mid-road headphones. Not stellar, but not offensive either. I have heard allusions to odd sound due to being intended for studio mixing.
- Audio Technical ATH-AD500X/700X - I can't really find much about these, anyone have experience with them?
- Sennheiser 558 - These seem to be the darling of the ~$150 world, are they really that good? I've heard comfort is an issue with them, however, and I have large-ish ears.
- AKG K612 Pro - Probably the best sounding of the group, but I hear they're a real pain to please in terms of amp/power requirements.
- Grado SR-80i - Seems like a real love-or-loathe headset. The ear cups look small, which might be an issue with my ears, but supposedly the large pads from the top-line Grados fit?
 
Of course another option would be to just get another pair of 550s since I love them, but I get the feeling there's no point in getting closed-back headphones if you aren't in a noisy environment. Is there one I don't have on my list? One I should scratch from my list? Or am I at the stage where I just need to bite the bullet and buy one?
 
My musical tastes are mostly rock, with some jazz and classical mixed in. These will be used for gaming and movie watching as well, but I feel if it does music well, it'll do games just fine.
 
Thank you in advance!

 

[Blze001]

I hate to bump my own thread, but it took awhile to get mod approval and by then it had been shuffled back a page or two.

 

[superjawes]

Are you budgeting for an amp now, or is that a planned addition in the future?

 

[Blze001]

I'll be using my cMoyBB as the amp for a month or two, then I'll probably be getting an O2 amp kit to be the permanent home amp.
 
Eventually I want to build a Bottlehead Crack, but I need a paycheck or two to pad the bank account before spending $270. Stupid car/student loans.

 

[cel4145]

Not sure how well a CMOY would run them, but the K612 Pros should work fine with the Objective 2 amp.

If your budget were a little higher, I would recommend the AKG K7XX. Massdrop has them available again for the next week or until they sell out. Here's the discussion thread for them: http://www.head-fi.org/t/743280/the-akg-k7xx-massdrop-first-edition-thread

 

[Blze001]

The 7XX does look pretty nice, but aren't they basically Q701s with improved bass response? I'm kind of confused as to the differencess between the Q701, K701, K702, K712 and K7XX... some reviews say they're largely the same, some say they're remarkably different. Another concern is quite a few reviews saying the 612 and 7XX are really hard to find an amp for, but oddly enough I haven't seen that complaint about the Q701... maybe I just haven't looked in the right places.
 
I keep coming back to the HD598/HD558 or AD500/700, but I'm worried they won't reflect an improved amp when I do get the nice one. I do like how the AKGs all seem to scale upwards along with the amp really well.

 

[Badfish5446]

K7XX is a Mass Drop influenced, Chinese (instead of Austrian) made K702 Anniversary Edition.  In the end they are all just tweaks/tunes on the same driver 

 

[PurpleAngel]

  The 7XX does look pretty nice, but aren't they basically Q701s with improved bass response? I'm kind of confused as to the differences between the Q701, K701, K702, K712 and K7XX... some reviews say they're largely the same, some say they're remarkably different. Another concern is quite a few reviews saying the 612 and 7XX are really hard to find an amp for, but oddly enough I haven't seen that complaint about the Q701... maybe I just haven't looked in the right places.
 
I keep coming back to the HD598/HD558 or AD500/700, but I'm worried they won't reflect an improved amp when I do get the nice one. I do like how the AKGs all seem to scale upwards along with the amp really well.

 
The ATH-AD700(X) will sound good without an amplifier, but they are not something that really changes with an amplifier.
The AD700(X) are great headphones, but way too bass light for me.
The HD558/HD598 do improve with an amplifier (and have a little more bass then the AD700).
 
You might check out the AKG K553 (Massdrop) headphones, I believe they are considered an improvement on the K550.
Right now you can't get new ones until Massdrop does another group buy.
But there should be used ones in good shape floating around.
 
If you already had a decent headphone amplifier, the K7XX would be worth it.

 

[Blze001]

   
The ATH-AD700(X) will sound good without an amplifier, but they are not something that really changes with an amplifier.
The AD700(X) are great headphones, but way too bass light for me.
The HD558/HD598 do improve with an amplifier (and have a little more bass then the AD700).
 
You might check out the AKG K553 (Massdrop) headphones, I believe they are considered an improvement on the K550.
Right now you can't get new ones until Massdrop does another group buy.
But there should be used ones in good shape floating around.
 
If you already had a decent headphone amplifier, the K7XX would be worth it.

 
I'm still toying with the idea, since an amplifier won't be too terribly far behind once this purchase is made.
 
Although $200 puts used HiFiMAN HE-400s on the radar, and supposedly planar headphones are way better than non-planar? How would they compare to the 7XX?

 

[superjawes]

I'm still toying with the idea, since an amplifier won't be too terribly far behind once this purchase is made.

Although $200 puts used HiFiMAN HE-400s on the radar, and supposedly planar headphones are way better than non-planar? How would they compare to the 7XX?

Careful with the naming on those HiFiMan's...do you mean the older HE-400, or the new and improved (allegedly) HE-400S? There's also a "higher end" model in the HE-400i. Clear as mud?

As for planar, it depends. In general, planars are less efficient than dynamic drivers, but the design often allows for bigger diaphragms, which generally offers more bass, and the design controls the diaphram for extra details. Of course, bigger drivers and heavier components mean that some models can be quite heavy.

It's also worth noting that we are in a sort of rennaissance when it comes to planar drivers. Several different brands are iterating designs and coming up with excellent improvements (HiFiMan, Oppo, Audeze, to example), and those improvements are specifically addressing the complaints about older planar models.

 

[PurpleAngel]

   
I'm still toying with the idea, since an amplifier won't be too terribly far behind once this purchase is made.
 
Although $200 puts used HiFiMAN HE-400s on the radar, and supposedly planar headphones are way better than non-planar? How would they compare to the 7XX?

 
Really not sure how they would compare.

 

[Japheel]

   
I'm still toying with the idea, since an amplifier won't be too terribly far behind once this purchase is made.
 
Although $200 puts used HiFiMAN HE-400s on the radar, and supposedly planar headphones are way better than non-planar? How would they compare to the 7XX?

Personally, I have fallen in love with the planar sound. No matter how they are voiced, I have loved every planar I have tried, The oppo PM2, modded t50rp, LCD 2.1,2.2,3,x, and they have all been outstanding choices in their respective categories. I would not choose any dynamic flagship over the LCD 3. The lcd 3 has such a linear bass and black background. I would not choose any other budget-mid fi headphone besides the t50rp; it just has such superior transients and such a polite sound signature compared to every dynamic in its technical price bracket. Once you start going to the 300-400 usd dynamics, I might choose the hd600, but even then, the t50rp is less veiled. I am a planar fanatic, so my opinions are skewed in favor of them, but they have an unbeatable wow factor regarding their speed of decay. In the 200 usd range, I don't know if I would go with the he400, though. It fairs well with rock, but may be outshined by the k7xx in its accurate and spacious presentation of large orchestral pieces, as well as comfort. I recommend auditioning the he400 and a variation of the k7xx if possible. the ad 900x is also a strong contender here as it does not need an amp in the slightest sense.