[Connectz]

Okay, I just bought the BOSE QC2 (pictured below) earphones cause I wanted some great sounding (open or closed doesn't matter to me, neither does noise cancellation) earphones. Now, I am an audiophile that has been out of touch with the new technology for the past 8 years (got married, had children). So lately I have been going through the music store sites looking for some good headphones with excellent sound quality. (I used to own a pair of TANNOY REAL-ACTIVE monitors for my stereo.)

And let me tell you, I would be the first to tell you that I do not like BOSE products. I think they sound like garbage. And against my better judgement and because I was no where near a SAM ASH store, I went ahead and purchased these headphones. Now I am thinking that BOSE put more into the noise deadening than into the actual sound quality.

I love listening to all types of music from hip hop to alt/classical rock, to salsa, to classical. And the source that I use for music is mostly my iPod and PC (my most favorite songs are all in "wav" format. I just want a audiophile quality headphone for $300 bucks (I am returning these BOSE ones).

My question is, what other headphones should I look into? I only have 30 days to get my full refund and I plan on going back out to the store in a few days.

This is my first post but I really need you all's help. Thanx in advance.

 

[uzziah]

there is not one single bose product that any self respecting audio lover would ever in their right mind reccommend, sorry. get that refund.

as far as closed phones, it will first come down to whether you want iem's or not (canalphones), and then you can go from there

 

[johan851]

Quote:

there is not one single bose product that any self respecting audio lover would ever in their right mind reccommend, sorry.

Good thing he's not asking for a Bose recommendation, yeah?

 

[jagorev]

Congratulations! You've come to your senses! Welcome to head-fi, and sorry about your wallet.

I would recommend the Sennheiser HD 595 as an excellent all-in-one all-rounder.

 

[saturnine]

Agreed, Bose headphones are horrible for the MSRP. If you are going unamped (which I assume), I would recommend the Grado 325i (a bit bright/fatiguing, but very good & clear sound), the Beyerdynamic DT-880 (less bright than the 325i, and has more soundstage), the Audio Technica A-900 (closed, great soundstage, and quite comfy), the Sennheiser HD-595 (Very different from most of the Senn line, be sure to demo) or the Alessandro MS-2 (a Grado headphone that is highly reguarded here, and is quite neutral IMO)

Be sure to look at reviews @ headroom.com & headphonereviews.org

Good luck

 

[Connectz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by johan851 Good thing he's not asking for a Bose recommendation, yeah?

Lol yeah I know. I do not like BOSE products. The thing is, I was waaaayyyy out at the KING OF PRUSSIA MALL (about 20 minutes west of Philly on RT. 76 West) and I know I needed some new headphones. Since I didn't know of any SAM ASH's in the area, I bit the bullet and got the CQ2's. My old el-cheapo's fell apart on me.

I really really really am kicking myself for buying these. I don't like the sound quality. The highs kinda stink and their is no seperation of the midrange from the high and lows (more so the lows). It all sounds jumbled together except for some parts of songs.

I remember the first pair of headphones I had that I thought were good were Realistics from Radio Shack for $50 bucks (open ear) and they had better sound quality than these BOSE QC2's.

I have had my eye on some of the Seihn.'s, AKG's, GRADO's, and Sony's.

Sound quality is my NUMBER ONE PRIORITY. I need clear bass, crisp/clear/NON-harsh highs, and a solid and noticeable midrange.

For reference of the sound I like, I used to have MB Quarts (car speakers) in my car and they sounded like sex to the ear. Perfect spatial seperation, crisp everything from the lowest of lows to the highest of highs (they were quite expensive for a pair too).

I really want some headphones that will blow me away like the MB Quarts and Tannoys did.

 

[003]

Will you be using an amp? Will you require active noise canceling?

 

[nabwong]

Man..even my girl told me the ksc35 sounded "nicer" than the QC2....proud of her.

 

[Connectz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by 003 Will you be using an amp? Will you require active noise canceling?

No. Not unless I go to demo some headphones and they sound that good to the point of where I had to have them and they require an amp. But otherwise, I want non amped heaphones. And no, active noise cancelling is not a priority and will not affect my choice one way or another.

I am looking for the best sounding headphone for $300.

 

[Meifa]

Get it outtttttt...!

Return those things and get yourself a pair of Sennheiser 595s...

That was sort of knee-jerk. As has been touched on, do you need noise-cancelling? Sound isolation? Do you care about portability?

 

[003]

No, he just wants the absolute best sounding headphones for $300. We'll need some more info, like what you will be using them for, what type of music you listen to, etc...

 

[Connectz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by 003 No, he just wants the absolute best sounding headphones for $300. We'll need some more info, like what you will be using them for, what type of music you listen to, etc...

Okay, I will mainly be using them for Hip Hop (probably the least), R&B (I definatley want my R&B to sound good), Classical (I listen to this at work on my breaks and when I want to relax to music without words), dance/trance/techno (like dirty vegas, opera trance, Alice Deejay), classic rock (Jimi Hendrix has to sound good on these headphones), alt rock (I love my alt rock, has to sound good).

I will also use them to watch DVD's and ON DEMAND movies (If anything, they absolutely MUST sound good for my movies. I am a serious movie buff).

I also will use them for gaming. I play a lot of shooters and sports but I need to hear the my enemies footsteps, location, and shooting in my shooters.

I really don't care about an amp as long as the phones and amp don't cost over $300 combined.

I am lookingover some revies of the headphones saturnine recommended. So please keep the recomendations and comments coming in.

 

[Connectz]

According to reviews so far, the "Sennheiser HD595's" look like they may be a serious contender for my dollar.

What do ya'll think of these?

 

[Connectz]

And what about these? The Ultrasone HFI-2200 ULE Professional Headphones?

 

[manchau]

Take a look at reviews by professionals by clicking here.