[aChair]

Hi, I just started looking at headphones for the first time and i'm interested in buying some higher quality headphones than the usual in ears I use. I listen to a lot of edm, techno, trance house type of music, probably my most listened to genre, but I also enjoy listening to classical music depending on what i'm doing and country music. I'm looking at a price range of about 100$ or less for headphones and these 3 are the ones I've been looking at. 
 
The problem i find with the Koss is i'm not a big fan of the cord i'd prefer something that's not coiled. For the CAL i've seen a few people mention that it's not as portable because it doesn't fold in. Seeing that i'll be wearing them in the house and on my daily commutes how inconvenient is it that they can't fold in. All three headphones sound pretty good for the price they are selling at. 
 
Like i said i like a lot of edm techno what not so i like a good bass but i also listen to other genres (a fair amount of other genres excluding like heavy metal).
 
So yeah which out of the three would you guys recommend. And if you have other suggestions within the price range (<100) or around there I would very much appreciate it. 

 

[McPatD]

The CAL is one of the best bang for buck out there for under $100. I bring mine to and from work every day. They don't fold but they're not huge and are quite light. Very comfortable. Bass is satisfying and they sound good with any genre. I don't care for the Koss phones and the Shures are great but a bit bulky. I have had all three and I still have the CALs.

 

[blessedangel]

Shures are some of the bass- less headphones you could buy. But the details...man the details are amazing with the 440's. The Cal's have a nice thump, you may be happy with those the most.

 

[aChair]

Quote:

The CAL is one of the best bang for buck out there for under $100. I bring mine to and from work every day. They don't fold but they're not huge and are quite light. Very comfortable. Bass is satisfying and they sound good with any genre. I don't care for the Koss phones and the Shures are great but a bit bulky. I have had all three and I still have the CALs.

 
 
Quote:

Shures are some of the bass- less headphones you could buy. But the details...man the details are amazing with the 440's. The Cal's have a nice thump, you may be happy with those the most.

 
Thanks for the input. So the CALs are probably the best option out of the three. Now I'm wondering if you guys have any other suggestions for <100$ that maybe better or up to par with the CALs

 

[semicoln]

The ProDJ200 or the TBSE can be had for not much more than the DJ100s but have a removable cord. Price/performance the Koss are hard to beat.

 

[rhiga]

Quote:

Shures are some of the bass- less headphones you could buy. But the details...man the details are amazing with the 440's. The Cal's have a nice thump, you may be happy with those the most.

In stock they're bass light, but i did a very simple mod closing almost all the bass vents with a tape (except the two dots on the top), and man they sound very nice and balanced now, i also have the srh840 pads installed. But if you are a treble head, i don't recommend this mod, heh.

 

[tdockweiler]

If you can locate a Tuesday Morning store in your area they often have the Tony Bennett version for just $50.
It includes a free album, case, removable coiled cable etc. You can easily buy a $2-$3 cable from Monoprice that's straight if you don't want a coiled one.
 
The CAL! probably has more bass emphasis and less treble than the DJ100/TBSE. The bass is all there on the DJ100, but just slightly above neutral (IMO).
 
The CAL! will also be easier to drive based on my experience. In 3 years i've rarely used my DJ100 without an external amp. Just not the same to me without one.
 
I have found some older Ipods to do quite well with it. A iphone or Ipod Touch should be OK.
 
If you want accurate bass and not slightly bloated bass, get the DJ100

The DJ100 also improves with a good desktop amp and DAC if you get more headphones later.
 
BTW I clearly remember having the CAL! and SRH-840 at the same time. Returned the CAL! and kept the SRH-840. From there I side-graded to the M50 and then have been with the DJ100 ever since.

 

[aChair]

Quote:

If you can locate a Tuesday Morning store in your area they often have the Tony Bennett version for just $50.
It includes a free album, case, removable coiled cable etc. You can easily buy a $2-$3 cable from Monoprice that's straight if you don't want a coiled one.
 
The CAL! probably has more bass emphasis and less treble than the DJ100/TBSE. The bass is all there on the DJ100, but just slightly above neutral (IMO).
 
The CAL! will also be easier to drive based on my experience. In 3 years i've rarely used my DJ100 without an external amp. Just not the same to me without one.
 
I have found some older Ipods to do quite well with it. A iphone or Ipod Touch should be OK.
 
If you want accurate bass and not slightly bloated bass, get the DJ100

The DJ100 also improves with a good desktop amp and DAC if you get more headphones later.
 
BTW I clearly remember having the CAL! and SRH-840 at the same time. Returned the CAL! and kept the SRH-840. From there I side-graded to the M50 and then have been with the DJ100 ever since.

So are the DJ100 the same thing as the TBSE just different cable? the TBSE has a detachable cable if i understood correctly?

 

[blessedangel]

Explain this mod a bit more...... (interested)

 

[rhiga]

OK, just remove the pads and u will see 12 grey dots like the picture below:
 

 
 
 
 
What u need to do here is close all the vents with a tape, except the 2 others ones at the top, it's that simple, just look at the picture and it's easy to understand. The overall sound is fuller with more bass and less treble.
 
If u think the srh440 is too bright in the upper mids and treble, i highly recommend this mod, but it will not turn then into bass monsters.
 
 

 

[blessedangel]

I will totally try that out thanks 
 
I do notice a bit more bass. Ohhh its pretty nice!

 

[Koolpep]

Hi!!
 
Just equipped my 440's with 840 ear pads. That already makes a nice and welcomed difference.
 
However after doing this mod with duct tape the bass became very boomy. I can see that you used a tape that is much more "breathing" than duct tape. So I left a few more vents open. 
 
I really feel like I have Beyerdynamic Custom One Pros LOL just takes a bit longer to open and close the bass ports.
 
Anyhow, I only closed 3 holes on each side of the driver, six per ear pad and I think for me it's still a bit too much bass. I am running the 440s through my Schiit Valhalla at work and both combined seems to be a bit too much
 
 
Many thanks for this mod, it's the first time I start modding my headphones, oh what have I started....
 
Cheers,
K
 
UPDATE:
Ok I ended up opening back up these small vent holes and have now 4 holes per ear closed with duct tape. Sound is so rich and full without being bloated. Punchy and lovely without loosing the clarity in the highs. Awesome. Didn't know that headphone modding is so much fun