I'm in NZ, stuff is WAY more expensive down here :(

[MadMax]

Hey

Well I've been reading for the last week or so, and am about to make my first headphone purchase but am hoping for some final clarification and advice, if you can do that for me

I need some headphones for my computer, that will primarily be for gaming (Quake1, Quake 3 is basically all I play), and they'll be plugged straight into my Soundcard when I LAN, and into the front of some Logitech Z-560's when I'm at home.

The rest of the time I'll be listening to Indie style music (Radiohead, Elliot Smith, The Posies, Jeff Buckley etc...) so it's not all rock stuff, as well as my Amelie, LoTR and Nightmare before Christmas soundtracks, and a smattering of Classical CD's and mp3s. I'll be doing this while studying, and doing my general internet stuff when it's too late to have the speakers cranking. I don't mine about Open/Closed - just want something comfortable that sounds as nice as possible.

I've basically narrowed it down to the Sennhesier 497's and the Sony 7506. Best price I can get here is (Yes, a lot more than in th US, but ah well):

497 - $200 (US100)
7506 - $300 (US150)

If I want to think about something like the 280Pros or better, then it's an extra 80+ which is out of my budget. I've tried the Grado 60's and they were too flimsy for my liking, so I scratched them.

I'm wondering - for the things I'll be doing with them, is it worth spending the extra cash on the Sony ones, or will the 497's work nearly as well as them?

Cheers for your help

 

[TMC]

I you go on LAN a lot I bet the 497 won't do since they're open and you'll be hearing lots of outside noise that is around you. You'll need something closed and even though the V6 would do pretty well they really sound rather expensive. Don't you have some other brand of headphones where you live that doesn't cost so much? As long as they have rather low impedance and high sensitivity though unless you're willing to pay the extra $$$ for an amp.

 

[00940]

Are the Audio Technica also so ridiculously overpriced in NZ ?

 

[MadMax]

I've found some AKG K141 M's online for $NZ239... and the AKG K240 M for $299... can't find Audio Technica anywhere.

And nope, everything costs about that much over here

You should see what it's like upgrading your computer

I was thinking about the open/close problem for LAN's, and I don't really see it as the hugest issue for myself. Half the fun of a LAN is the atmosphere, so if a bit of outside noise is getting in I'm not going to be *too* annoyed...

 

[Snufkin]

It might be worth tracking down some Beyerdynamics, they're not terribly overpriced here in Oz like Sennheiser is, so I wouldn't be surprised if they're not that bad in NZ either.

 

[MadMax]

Well, I've found a *few* Audio Technica phones... the ATH910's for $250 appear to be the only ones that I could possibly consider though.

 

[MadMax]

Can't find any Beyer headphones anywhere.

As a point of reference, the HD600's cost $NZ900 over here

 

[Snufkin]

Try this number for Beyer stuff in NZ (they should be able to tell you who to call);
(64) 9479 6410
I've been told that Chris is the person you need to talk to

Otherwise, I don't know what freight from AU to NZ is, plus import duty, gst etc

 

[Watchdog]

Just a thought, why don't you fire an email to Koss and find out how much they'll charge to ship to NZ?

I live in Canada and while we're right beside the US, sometimes it can be quite a hassle getting product from the US. Koss sends their headphones via the US Postal Service which is fairly cheap. Perhaps you could order headphones from them and have them mailed.

While headphones are expensive where you are, at least you have access to more MD options that I'd love to have.

 

[myself, aka me]

Well, I managed to get my MDS-PC1 worth AU$400 over here without customs interfering with anything (yes, the correct value was declared), so they may not be too fussy about headphones. (although when they saw 'MD deck' on the side, they may have just passed it off as CD..)

We may have more MD's, but check out the prices:\

NZ$1099 for an N1
NZ$999
NZ$899 for an MZ-G750
NZ$799 for an N707
NZ$699 for an N505CK
and NZ$349 for the useless E300.

Even with the shmancy remotes we get, it's still overpriced more than a bit!

 

[wallijonn]

me,

why not take a ferry over to snufkin's place? and japan is probably just as far from NZ as California, so you can always check them out (audiocubes.com). and there's got to be an ebay.au or ebay.nz. meier-audio.com ships so long as you exchange your currency to marks or euros and send him the money order.

so it looks like you're looking for a low impedance set of closed headphones. hmmm...

why is always the same dilemma? closed, computer sound card...
where is that faq, Duncan?

 

[Snufkin]

Heh, my place is more than a ferry ride away, but if any NZ head-fiers are in Perth I'm happy to do demos of stuff

I've been told that the problem with shippng stuff to NZ from Oz is that it's hit+miss with customs, most of the time they'll let it through but other times they'll whack a charge on it.

Before that though it's not too much to get stuff shipped; I just worked out a quick calculation and it's around $30AU via Aus Post Air freight, with $300 insurance and delivery confirmation on a 750g - 1K parcel, after that you've got your customs roulette

 

[Watchdog]

Quote:

Originally posted by myself, aka me Well, I managed to get my MDS-PC1 worth AU$400 over here without customs interfering with anything (yes, the correct value was declared), so they may not be too fussy about headphones. (although when they saw 'MD deck' on the side, they may have just passed it off as CD..) We may have more MD's, but check out the prices:\ NZ$1099 for an N1 NZ$999 NZ$899 for an MZ-G750 NZ$799 for an N707 NZ$699 for an N505CK and NZ$349 for the useless E300. Even with the shmancy remotes we get, it's still overpriced more than a bit!

My jaw nearly hit the floor when I saw those prices! OMG those are unbelievably high! When MD was first introduced to North America prices were that high. When I first saw the format, I knew I wanted one, but wrote if off because of cost. Now that they've finally dropped the price down, I've taken the plunge into MD and think it's a fantastic format.

 

[MadMax]

Unfortunately, I'll be back in Adelaide as of February 11 to continue with my Engineering degree, but I need the headphones for the weekend of the 24th because of the LAN i'm going to up in Auckland.

If I had more time I would seriously think about getting some from overseas...

 

[bioxeed]

Quote:

Originally posted by wallijonn why not take a ferry over to snufkin's place?

Hehe.. it's closer to a 5hr flight to perth.. from brisbane anyway.. probably about the same from over in NZ. it's actually almost cheaper to go to singapore than perth