[geremy]

I'm looking to get my third real set of phones. I want them somewhat bassy, punchy and clear. I would prefer them to be portable. They must have a detachable cable. They must also be able to be fitted with velour earpads. I can't take leatherette. A key requirement is that they be speedy.

They will be used to listen to mostly electronic music at low to medium volume. They will be worn for hours at a time. House style. I call it happy music. Usually a medium beat with a soft vocal overlay. Bass bloat will not do, this music has like zero decay in the bass usually. Occasionally will listen to normal classic rock and very occasionally metal (325i is for that genre).

I'm having the hardest time deciding. Please for the love of god help me. I have narrowed it down to several contenders:

HD-25-1-II
Most of the DJs creating this music have these. I know they are excellent quality and offer good 'do everything' all around sound. I'm not quite sold on the bass because the other contenders feature larger drivers (I believe). Also not sure how these sound at low volume. Ugly.

Ultrasone DJ1 Pro
I have heard great things but only a few own/have listened to them. Meet all the requirements, stylish, but I wonder about the quality of sound aside from the bass. Will they be quick enough? They are also the cheapest.

K 181 DJ (that's ONE-EIGHTY-ONE)
Yeah I know this is overkill. However the bass boost switch is nice, they are attractive, portable and have the detachable phone. The few threads that I have read around here also stated they have a decent midrange. Better than the HD-25? Doubtful. Love the form factor though.

K 240 Mk II
Hey how'd these get here. They aren't portable, they aren't thought of as Bass phones! Well I dunno. These seem to be the bassiest non-DJ AKGs and to be honest I'd like to try AKG sound on for a bit. Seems like they would do everything well. Not many ppl say bad things about the 240s, but then the different models get confusing. Also tied for cheapest, and almost assuredly the most comfortable of the lot.

Yes. I eliminated the DT-770s. Thanks. Please don't suggest them.

If you have listened to these phones, pls chime in. I realize most (except the senns) are oddball niche phones. That is kind of what I am going for.

 

[what?]

might help if you think about the sound of your other phones and get the new ones to sound as different as possible?

imo, a good phone should do all genres of music equally well,

like a good set of speakers.

im not about this mix n match your phones to your music.

senn 600?

 

[themanbeast]

If what I've read is true, and the K240 MkII is pretty much just a rehash of the older model, I wouldn't suggest it if you want bass. I had the K240S for a while, and it was a good headphone, but bass was definitely not what I remember from it. definitely comfortable though, you cant go wrong with them for wearing hours on end.

I might want to point out that you should take my opinions with a grain of salt though - I have weird enough taste that I sold my 325i, got a pair of K701, and actually prefer them for rock music.

 

[REB]

For decent mids, don't go with the 181djs. They have slightly recessed mids. Bass and treble are fabulous though and they are nearly indestructible.

 

[Acix]

For punchy bass, clear + Sound stage...Go Ultrasone DJ1PRO.

 

[geremy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by what? /img/forum/go_quote.gif might help if you think about the sound of your other phones and get the new ones to sound as different as possible? senn 600?

I don't like the senn veil and that would require a strong amp. I have 1 weak amp currently and will probably get the total bithead at the same time as this new purchase. HD-600s aren't really that portable either (then neither are the K 240 Mk II).

If I make the sound as different as possible, that would eliminate the K 240. I want to see what other ppl say about the mkII though before it is 100% eliminated. Just as curiousity more than anything.

So 1 recommendation for the K181 and 1 for the DJ1p. Neither mentions mids favorably, which is probably OK for the listening I plan on doing.

 

[m0ofassa]

whats with the flurry of weird-titled threads oO

 

[geremy]

Nobody reads normally titled threads anymore. There are 9 'please help' threads everyday. Made you look! Made you look!

 

[maanster]

The Beyerdynamic DT150 fits your description perfectly. I listen to a lot of electronic music at the moment, like Extrawelt, Deadmau5, Lindström, Aril Brikha.. and it works great. I am sure there are other cans that do as well; I don't have that much experience with denons or ATH's(just to mention some), but you won't be disappointed. Search around and see what you find.

cheers

 

[paaj]

Tried the HD25-II not too long ago on the local meet, it had great bass, tight and deep. Better then I expected from what I've read here. Very good isolation too and they feel indestructible. Almost bought it

 

[BigTony]

btw its a myth that ulcers are caused by stress. They are caused by lack of power to your HD650s!

 

[Apple254]

I don't know if it is just me but I cannot wear HD-25's for more than half an hour at a time without taking them off. They clamp my ears into my head and I constantly need to take them off to rub my ears. Sound quality however is great, a little lacking in the 'punch' department however IMHO.

 

[geremy]

Well, unfortunately a consensus is not forming. I appreciate all the help. I guess right now I'm leaning towards one of DJ phones, and to be honest I trust AKG more than Ultrasone. I know the HD-25s are used more, but I'm still really concerned about how they will sound at low volume.

maanster: DT-150s have 250 Ohm impedance which makes them a complete no-go for me. They look uber though, and I appreciate the suggestion.

 

[geremy]

Hmm. I had thought it would be trivial to get some velour pads to fit the K181 DJ from another of AKG's models. Apparently (according to AKG us tech support) it is not possible. That pretty much eliminates them from competition.

 

[Filburt]

Why K181 instead of 81? I haven't tried the 181 enough to really tell but they sounded kind of odd to me compared to the 81.

The 240S, at least the few pairs I've used (and particularly the pair I used for a good four weeks or so) had quite a lot of bass, though I'm not a huge basshead. I kind of prefer the K271 for low-to-medium listening level for electronica, but they definitely don't bring the 240S bass, although I didn't find them to be less than the 25-1 (felt fuller, really). The 271 are more detailed and have better highs, as well as sound less..stuffy. 271 MK II has the velour pads standard, but you can get them for the MK I from Headroom or AKG directly. That said, the 240S bring the punch and are a pretty fun headphone, to me at least, overall. kramer5150 modified his pair some time ago and removed some foam in the center area to make his clearer; it seemed to work fairly well to me.