In need of help to decide what headphones to buy

[Posidonas]

Hello boys and grills(if there are any in here )
This is my first time writting to a forum and i am not so good with english so please dont be too harsh on me.For the past i dont know like 5 months i have been searching to find my next headphones that will likely be the best i can buy with the budget i have.The only "good" headphones i have used were steelseries siberia v2 usb edition which for me was like the king of headphones 3 years ago.After 2 years i realised i wanted more out of my headphones since i started playing csgo, so yeah i need a good soundstage if i am saying it correct since thats what i read i really need for fps games and if am not wrong i also need pin point sound accuracy or smthing like that.
   So for starters i dont have a dac and the amplifier is kinda old it is a technics stereo integrated amplifier su-z22 ( http://www.radiomuseum.org/r/technics_su_z22_suz22.html ) but i might be able to get either schiits modi or magni , i really dont know what is more worth taking or if u have any better sugestions i would like to hear them.
   And now for the headphones part i really dont know what to buy but what i have in mind are those:
          -HD 598
          -HD 650
          -AKG k712 Pro
          -ATH - AG1
          -ATH - ADG1
          -DT 990 PRO
I have never been so indicisive before in life. I think i have made it too complicated but i really dont know why it seems so difficult to pick one. I have spent thousands of hour reading reviews to make up my mind but it is always gonna be 50%-50% on how good a specific headphone is and they never helped me so i thought yeah i should make a post so someone can help me maybe cross out some of them at least . My music taste is an easy one, since i listen to all kinds of music except heavy metal, rock but i do listen some specific alternative and soft rock songs.I dont know what else to type so i can help you out guys I really dont know how it sounds to be warm and all that crazy terms you people use in here just because i dont have experience with many headphones and because of that i cant really tell what specific signature type of headphones i am into . My budget will probably be at max 280 euros but if it happens to go around 300 i will make it happen if it is worth it !
Thanks a lot guys and i appreciate your time and effort to help me!

 

[NA Blur]

What music do you listen to?
 
Will you use them for gaming?
 
Be sure to take a look at Tyll Hertsens' Wall of Fame
 
http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/innerfidelitys-wall-fame

 

[Beyakusenn]

Most of the headphones you put there as candidates are very likely to profit from an amp. I do not know how good your sound card is or whether it has a line-out option or not (bypassing of the internal amp), but if you are using a stock sound card, you are also very likely to profit from an USB-DAC.
 
For a good soundstage and overall performance, the HD600/HD650 are very good. It depends a bit on what kind of sound you prefer. The HD600 is warm but still fairly neutral, while the HD650 is warm, a bit darker and it has a treble dip.

 

[Posidonas]

First of all thx for quick responses
Quote:

  What music do you listen to?
 
Will you use them for gaming?
 
Be sure to take a look at Tyll Hertsens' Wall of Fame
 
http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/innerfidelitys-wall-fame

 
I listen to literally everything except hard rock metal but i do listen to some specific alternative and soft rock tracks! Other than that i do like to head to high piched vocals and i dont thing i can be called a basshead. Yeah as i said i play csgo and many other games that i dont really care how they sound.And i read that wall of fame thx for the info plus they dont have to be sealed i dont care about open headphones i am alone in my room when i use them

  Most of the headphones you put there as candidates are very likely to profit from an amp. I do not know how good your sound card is or whether it has a line-out option or not (bypassing of the internal amp), but if you are using a stock sound card, you are also very likely to profit from an USB-DAC.
 
For a good soundstage and overall performance, the HD600/HD650 are very good. It depends a bit on what kind of sound you prefer. The HD600 is warm but still fairly neutral, while the HD650 is warm, a bit darker and it has a treble dip.

 
Yeah as i said i will most likely get a new amp and i would like if you can to suggest me some good ones but for now i will use the technics i wrote about that i have right now. I am using the onboard sound card of my mother board.What do you mean by treble dip?And what i more worth for my pocket by your opinion?

 

[NA Blur]

  Most of the headphones you put there as candidates are very likely to profit from an amp. I do not know how good your sound card is or whether it has a line-out option or not (bypassing of the internal amp), but if you are using a stock sound card, you are also very likely to profit from an USB-DAC.
 
For a good soundstage and overall performance, the HD600/HD650 are very good. It depends a bit on what kind of sound you prefer. The HD600 is warm but still fairly neutral, while the HD650 is warm, a bit darker and it has a treble dip.

The HD600 is an awesome headphone and driven by a decent amp like the O2 or Schiit Magni they really become a top tier headphone. I own the AKG K712 Pro and really like them as well, but the AKG K7xx is on Massdrop again and sounds virtually the same but costs less. I really cannot recommend the DT 990. It sounds good at first especially as a gaming headphone, but the V-shaped frequency response really makes it sound artificial with music.
 
Unfortunately I have not heard the other headphones you have listed.

 

[Beyakusenn]

 
Yeah as i said i will most likely get a new amp and i would like if you can to suggest me some good ones but for now i will use the technics i wrote about that i have right now. I am using the onboard sound card of my mother board.What do you mean by treble dip?And what i more worth for my pocket by your opinion?

The suggestions made by NA Blur are two of the best. The Aune T1 is also a great option. It is an amp-DAC combiantion.
 
A treble dip is a recessed segment in the treble. It means that you'll have less sibilance, but cymbals might sound more in the background.
 
The best bang for buck are second hand headphones. Something like the Sennheiser HD580. It is sonically nearly identical to the HD600, but depending on where you live you might get one for very little money.
 
If you are only looking for new products, the HD600 is usually the safest bet. Some prefer the HiFiMan HE-400/400i/400s because of the more v-shaped sound signature (accentuated bass and treble).

 

[Posidonas]

 
The HD600 is an awesome headphone and driven by a decent amp like the O2 or Schiit Magni they really become a top tier headphone. I own the AKG K712 Pro and really like them as well, but the AKG K7xx is on Massdrop again and sounds virtually the same but costs less. I really cannot recommend the DT 990. It sounds good at first especially as a gaming headphone, but the V-shaped frequency response really makes it sound artificial with music.
 
Unfortunately I have not heard the other headphones you have listed.

Hi man sorry for taking so long to answer . First of all thx for helping me cross out the dt 990 as fora the akg i think it will either be them or one the hd-s(HD600 or HD598 after a while i realised to also cross out HD650 bcz they say that are more of a V-shaped and many didnt like them while others prefered it from HD600 but i think i should start with either one of those the go straight to HD650.) As for the o2 and schiit magni i have heard that they are one of the best amps for the 100 budget but i was also thinking about starting with like a Fiio E10k , E11, E6 or E12 but i have not gonne into a deep search yet to find good amps and dacs and i would like ur advice if u have any to offer. Thanks again!
 

  The suggestions made by NA Blur are two of the best. The Aune T1 is also a great option. It is an amp-DAC combiantion.
 
A treble dip is a recessed segment in the treble. It means that you'll have less sibilance, but cymbals might sound more in the background.
 
The best bang for buck are second hand headphones. Something like the Sennheiser HD580. It is sonically nearly identical to the HD600, but depending on where you live you might get one for very little money.
 
If you are only looking for new products, the HD600 is usually the safest bet. Some prefer the HiFiMan HE-400/400i/400s because of the more v-shaped sound signature (accentuated bass and treble).

Big thx for the explanation for the treble dip i understand it totally now but i still dont know what is better and like i said to NA Blur i dont know if HD650 is really worth it while HD600 might be the best for me due to what i am usually listening at the moment which is house music and either dubstep vocals and some greek songs i have found that i really like and they use a lot of string instruments like bouzouki if u have heard of it.As for the Aune T1 i will search for it and thx for everything!

 

[Posidonas]

Any other sugestions guys? someone out there? also i would like to ask if mangi 2 or o2 is better to buy

 

[DangerClose]

   First of all thx for helping me cross out the dt 990 as fora the akg

 
I have a variant of the ones you listed and rotate through them fairly often.  
 
The HD600 is the safest choice since it doesn't really do anything wrong.  But, it has less bass than the DT990, less soundstage size than everything else mentioned, and some say it sounds boring.  
 
The DT990 is my overall favorite among them, but I do use EQ to make them more balanced, and I use them for movies and TV shows a lot, so the big soundstage comes into play more than it would with most music.  Watching movies with my HD580's smaller soundstage can be disappointing relative to the DT990.  It's still enjoyable overall, and it's not like the soundstage is small, but the DT990 or similar is more like you're in a movie theater.  DT880 is a more balanced DT990.
 
Swap "movie watching" for "gaming," and you might come to the same conclusion when you're gaming.
 
The AKG 712 and similar probably deserve the most caution.  I've only heard the K701 and Q701, but I've spent time EQ'ing them, bass modding them, and trying various mods to make them sound thicker, (like how the 712 and K7xx are usually described), and they're good, but they still sound overly analytical and dry compared to the DT990 and 580/600.  
 
It's not like they're bad, all of these are good in their own way, but some people might think since the AKG 701 has the widest soundstage of everything listed that it would be the easy choice for movie watching, but I don't enjoy the overall sound like I do the others.  That includes when people are simply talking.  
 
Or for music, if I wanted to pick apart a song and better hear separation of instruments, I'd choose the AKG.  But for enjoying music, I'd pick something else.

 

[Posidonas]

   
I have a variant of the ones you listed and rotate through them fairly often.  
 
The HD600 is the safest choice since it doesn't really do anything wrong.  But, it has less bass than the DT990, less soundstage size than everything else mentioned, and some say it sounds boring.  
 
The DT990 is my overall favorite among them, but I do use EQ to make them more balanced, and I use them for movies and TV shows a lot, so the big soundstage comes into play more than it would with most music.  Watching movies with my HD580's smaller soundstage can be disappointing relative to the DT990.  It's still enjoyable overall, and it's not like the soundstage is small, but the DT990 or similar is more like you're in a movie theater.  DT880 is a more balanced DT990.
 
Swap "movie watching" for "gaming," and you might come to the same conclusion when you're gaming.
 
The AKG 712 and similar probably deserve the most caution.  I've only heard the K701 and Q701, but I've spent time EQ'ing them, bass modding them, and trying various mods to make them sound thicker, (like how the 712 and K7xx are usually described), and they're good, but they still sound overly analytical and dry compared to the DT990 and 580/600.  
 
It's not like they're bad, all of these are good in their own way, but some people might think since the AKG 701 has the widest soundstage of everything listed that it would be the easy choice for movie watching, but I don't enjoy the overall sound like I do the others.  That includes when people are simply talking.  
 
Or for music, if I wanted to pick apart a song and better hear separation of instruments, I'd choose the AKG.  But for enjoying music, I'd pick something else.

 
First of all thx for your time.So about the dt990 i dont know how good will they be for me i really dont know i have heard many bad reviews about them either about how bad they performance at gaming levels or at how bad they are for their money value so really i am ******* confused right now! i was thinking of just going with HD 598/600 and then maybe hit either ath-adg 1 or the K712 Pro but i am so confused . Btw what amp/dac are u using i will probably get the o2 that is on massdrop right now or the schiit magni. Do u think these are good options?

 

[DangerClose]

 
First of all thx for your time.So about the dt990 i dont know how good will they be for me i really dont know i have heard many bad reviews about them either about how bad they performance at gaming levels or at how bad they are for their money value so really i am ******* confused right now! i was thinking of just going with HD 598/600 and then maybe hit either ath-adg 1 or the K712 Pro but i am so confused . Btw what amp/dac are u using i will probably get the o2 that is on massdrop right now or the schiit magni. Do u think these are good options?

 
I don't know where you're hearing any of those major negatives from since the big headphone gaming guide thread here rates DT990 very highly.  It's ranked slightly below a couple other ones like AKG 701 for competition, but it is ranked highly overall.  "it does it well enough for me that I happily sold the killer K701s as I saw no need to own anything for gaming after the 990s at the time."
 
That sounds like something I'd say about them for movies.  They're not quite as wide in soundstage as the 701, but the soundstage is more global and sounds more natural. Though for me the bigger thing is I enjoy their sound more.  I was doing some A-B'ing the other day between amps and could make a case that the 701 sounds more enjoyable when it's underpowered.  They're so analytical and "matter of fact."  The DT990 and HD580/600 have lots of detail too, so it's not even that when I say "analytical."  It's that "dry," "disconnected" sound.  I can thicken up their sound a lot with EQ and other mods, but it's obvious they still come from the 701 family.  
 
And for value, what beats the DT990 250 Pro?  Not a lot.  (Among the ones we're talking about anyway.)  Depending on the sales at the time, the HD600 costs around 50% more to 100% more.  That's a big difference.  That's the price of a nice amp. 
 
Remember, I do EQ my DT990 though, mainly to bring out the mids and lower the treble.  Stock, the bass and treble are strong.  This is probably a bigger "problem" for music than it is games or movies.  Some people love the DT990 stock with it's V-shape, so a lot of this is up to you and your preference.  And remember the DT880 is the more balanced version of the DT990.  
 
I like my HD580 a lot too, but the smaller soundstage and inferior build quality and smaller ear pads are negatives.  If I only used them for music, the smaller soundstage would be less of a negative, and might even be a positive.  
 
If you're not willing to use EQ if necessary, I'd probably say to just get the HD600 since that's the safest (and most expensive!) choice.  It's hard for people to recommend headphones if you don't know what sound you want.
 
For amping, I have some old stereo receivers, with an old Yamaha being a stand-out among them.  Your receiver might power any of these just fine.  The headphone outputs on receivers do have ratings from their manufacturers, but it's hard to go by that, and instead you just have to plug the headphones in and see if they sound good or not. Now I mainly use a Monoprice Desktop Amp since it's small and uses less watts.  My Xonar DG sound card is very good for the price, but the Monoprice is more powerful. 
 
Any amp with mostly positive comments around here should be a good amp to most people.  Everyone has their criticisms, of course, such as saying the Magni is overly bright.  The Summit-Fi people are in their own world with the big $$$ stuff.  If they say a $100 amp is bad but then only give you a $1000 amp as an alternative, that's not overly helpful. 
 
The sound presentations of the various headphones are described on here, so at some point you just have to buy what you think will match your tastes the best.  And if you don't like it, sell it and buy something else.  If you're that indecisive and not sure what you want, maybe get something like a Superlux EVO or 668b, (assuming they are inexpensive in your country), and then figure out what you want from there.  And then sell the Superlux for a small loss or give it to a friend or family.  Those aren't as good as the other headphones mentioned, but they're pretty darn good.

 

[Posidonas]

   
I don't know where you're hearing any of those major negatives from since the big headphone gaming guide thread here rates DT990 very highly.  It's ranked slightly below a couple other ones like AKG 701 for competition, but it is ranked highly overall.  "it does it well enough for me that I happily sold the killer K701s as I saw no need to own anything for gaming after the 990s at the time."
 
That sounds like something I'd say about them for movies.  They're not quite as wide in soundstage as the 701, but the soundstage is more global and sounds more natural. Though for me the bigger thing is I enjoy their sound more.  I was doing some A-B'ing the other day between amps and could make a case that the 701 sounds more enjoyable when it's underpowered.  They're so analytical and "matter of fact."  The DT990 and HD580/600 have lots of detail too, so it's not even that when I say "analytical."  It's that "dry," "disconnected" sound.  I can thicken up their sound a lot with EQ and other mods, but it's obvious they still come from the 701 family.  
 
And for value, what beats the DT990 250 Pro?  Not a lot.  (Among the ones we're talking about anyway.)  Depending on the sales at the time, the HD600 costs around 50% more to 100% more.  That's a big difference.  That's the price of a nice amp. 
 
Remember, I do EQ my DT990 though, mainly to bring out the mids and lower the treble.  Stock, the bass and treble are strong.  This is probably a bigger "problem" for music than it is games or movies.  Some people love the DT990 stock with it's V-shape, so a lot of this is up to you and your preference.  And remember the DT880 is the more balanced version of the DT990.  
 
I like my HD580 a lot too, but the smaller soundstage and inferior build quality and smaller ear pads are negatives.  If I only used them for music, the smaller soundstage would be less of a negative, and might even be a positive.  
 
If you're not willing to use EQ if necessary, I'd probably say to just get the HD600 since that's the safest (and most expensive!) choice.  It's hard for people to recommend headphones if you don't know what sound you want.
 
For amping, I have some old stereo receivers, with an old Yamaha being a stand-out among them.  Your receiver might power any of these just fine.  The headphone outputs on receivers do have ratings from their manufacturers, but it's hard to go by that, and instead you just have to plug the headphones in and see if they sound good or not. Now I mainly use a Monoprice Desktop Amp since it's small and uses less watts.  My Xonar DG sound card is very good for the price, but the Monoprice is more powerful. 
 
Any amp with mostly positive comments around here should be a good amp to most people.  Everyone has their criticisms, of course, such as saying the Magni is overly bright.  The Summit-Fi people are in their own world with the big $$$ stuff.  If they say a $100 amp is bad but then only give you a $1000 amp as an alternative, that's not overly helpful. 
 
The sound presentations of the various headphones are described on here, so at some point you just have to buy what you think will match your tastes the best.  And if you don't like it, sell it and buy something else.  If you're that indecisive and not sure what you want, maybe get something like a Superlux EVO or 668b, (assuming they are inexpensive in your country), and then figure out what you want from there.  And then sell the Superlux for a small loss or give it to a friend or family.  Those aren't as good as the other headphones mentioned, but they're pretty darn good.

Ok thx for everything and you made me think i have to search a bit more.

 

[innerstaff12]

Hey there,  I was in the market to buy some headphones recently.  I wanted to buy some on ear headphones and did not wanna spend more than $100.  (I'm cheap.) I came across this link and it helped me in deciding which headphones to buy.  Here is the link http://www.headphonecharts.com/best-on-ear-headphones-under-100.php
 
Hope this helps!