[MarkF786]

I've had my HD580 'phones for many many years, and over the past few years I've got many "better" headphones (HD800S & Elear, for example) - but 90% of the time I still listen to my HD580's. Does anyone else find themselves falling back to their old standbys?

I've been considering buying the Focal Clear - but then I think I'll probably still continue to listen to my HD580's the most!

Some of my current headphones:

Focal Elear
Sennheiser HD800S, HD650, HD600, HD580, HD598, HD239, Amperior, PX100 (I & II)
Beyerdynamic Amiron & DT880
Audio Technica ATH-M50x
Koss Porta-Pro
Shure SE846, SE425, SE215
Etymotic ER4XR
Sony XBA-H1
Klipsch X12

 

[Music Alchemist]

A similar thing happened to me last year. I owned a good number of ultra-high-end headphones (check out the previous inventory section of my profile) but would more often just use the Koss KTXPRO1.

Also: Wow! The STAX SR-30 is your avatar. I had that one too. It's a hidden gem. (Though so uncomfortable.)

 

[MarkF786]

The STAX SR-30 were my first pair of high-end headphones, back in the late 80s when I was high-school.

I haven't head the KTXPRO1 before. I'll have to check them out.

 

[serman005]

I have headphones from AKG, Audio Technica, B&O, Campfire, Focal, HiFiMAN, Philips, Sennheiser, SoundMAGIC, Superlux, ZMF, and 1More, but I most frequently find myself listening to my HD600--interestingly enough. I am not exactly sure why this is, as several of my inventory are significantly 'better' (as well) than my HD600. There is some sort of comfort level with them that I don't experience with my other cans, I guess. I find them pleasant and easy to listen to. I reach for them over the rest, more often than not. Who knew?

 

[Music Alchemist]

The STAX SR-30 were my first pair of high-end headphones, back in the late 80s when I was high-school.

I haven't head the KTXPRO1 before. I'll have to check them out.

That's a great way to start the journey! I had three STAX Lambdas (SR-Lambda, SR-207, SR-L300) which were much better, but the SR-30 has a magical mid-range, and coupled with the fairly linear bass and rolled-off highs, it makes for a pleasing listen. It was interesting that it had a more solid and physical sound than many dynamic driver headphones.

I'm also a fan of the Elear.

When I first got the KTXPRO1, I wasn't expecting much, since it costs less than $20. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Gorgeous tone, phenomenal impact and dynamics, surprisingly open-sounding (it's a semi-open on-ear), retrieves most of the detail from recordings... It scaled substantially with the Chord Mojo as well. Out of the six Koss headphone models I owned, the KTX is my favorite aside from the ESP950.

Oddly, I didn't like the Porta Pro much despite it having nearly the same drivers as the KTX. (Except not coated with titanium and maybe a slightly different shape.) I confirmed that the main difference in sound is due to the enclosures by swapping the drivers.

I got rid of all my headphones except for the KTX (I own three pairs) and only use speakers at the moment.