[keepitsimple]

I've found I like warmer headphones. I had Grado SR325is, but they are very fatiguing due to the upper mids and highs. I mainly use Sennheiser HD600, AKG K712 (newly purchased and I'm liking them so far), and Sennheiser PX 100-ii. The HD600 are at the top of my list, they are great. I'm pretty much done buying headphones, although I will most likely pick up a Project Ember when I get back from my deployment.

another px 100 fan  

 

[keepitsimple]

playing the ass off this classic

 

[keepitsimple]

old skool carcass worship

 

[Navybsn]

Damn. I feel like the kid on the bus with Kmart shoes on! Just kidding. I have HD-428's running straight off my iStuff. They are my first set of cans in forever after about 20 sets of IEMs. Still debating open or closed for my big dollar phones. I like the closed ones I have, but I am curious about how open sound. Currently debating Beyer Ad700's vs HE300 vs HD598/600. No real chance to hear them, so it will be a leap of faith either way.

Oh, and the Sleepers Awake disc mentioned earlier is pretty good. I don't see the Opeth comparison I keep reading about, but still good.

 

[129207]

Damn. I feel like the kid on the bus with Kmart shoes on! Just kidding. I have HD-428's running straight off my iStuff. They are my first set of cans in forever after about 20 sets of IEMs. Still debating open or closed for my big dollar phones. I like the closed ones I have, but I am curious about how open sound. Currently debating Beyer Ad700's vs HE300 vs HD598/600. No real chance to hear them, so it will be a leap of faith either way.

Oh, and the Sleepers Awake disc mentioned earlier is pretty good. I don't see the Opeth comparison I keep reading about, but still good.

AD700 for metal? You sure about that? I've owned them for a long time, but only used them for gaming, because of their great positioning and wide soundstage. They're very bass light though and make most metal sound a bit thin and washed out. They are fantastic for light classical and ambient music though. 

 

[Navybsn]

You're right. I meant Dt770's. Was thinking about something else.

 

[SoupRKnowva]

yeah, its not really fair to anything else, but the 009s are spectacular for metal, as MorbidToaster said...though, then again...they are excellent for everything

 

[Redcarmoose]

That is so true about finding something that will not start to bug you with ear fatigue after a while. I don't know of any other form of music that has so much scathing upper ends going on most of the time. As listeners and demo subjects of rigs and headphones, we are balancing the fine line of finding a combo that actually has authority for the music, along with responsive detail to actually hear into that midrange maelstrom that is and will always be heavy metal.

We have lived with great sounding combos that only allow us 30 minutes of presence inside the sonic hell that metal is. But we have to take a breather just for the sake of ear comport.

The truth is what is super detailed for the first 5 minutes can end up being a device of torture after 10 minutes if we are not carefully aware before the purchase.

I have always loved finding a balance between detail and warmth, even at the sake of total resolution.


I remember once trying out DACs at a friends house. The one he liked was just like his old DAC only fed though an EQ that took out a section of the warm mids, and bass.

I probably could have played a trick on him and re EQed his old DAC then had him listen to it telling him it was this new brighter unit.

So at times just having the lower mids stripped away by default gets us hearing more high end detail. The problem is though, we couldn't or wouldn't want to live with that sound year in and year out.

 

[Angelbelow]

  yeah, its not really fair to anything else, but the 009s are spectacular for metal, as MorbidToaster said...though, then again...they are excellent for everything

 
Haha yeah.. maybe one day. I remember I watched a little bit of Dark Knight Rises with those on and it was amazing.

 

[wrathzombie]

Damn. I feel like the kid on the bus with Kmart shoes on! Just kidding. I have HD-428's running straight off my iStuff. They are my first set of cans in forever after about 20 sets of IEMs. Still debating open or closed for my big dollar phones. I like the closed ones I have, but I am curious about how open sound. Currently debating Beyer Ad700's vs HE300 vs HD598/600. No real chance to hear them, so it will be a leap of faith either way.

Oh, and the Sleepers Awake disc mentioned earlier is pretty good. I don't see the Opeth comparison I keep reading about, but still good.

Regarding Sleepers Awake, do you see Ed Vedder Comparison??

 

[Tom Yum Goong]

Definetely my favorite "Best of 2013" list.

http://www.nocleansinging.com/2014/01/05/the-best-of-2013-year-end-lists-from-austin-weber/

So so many great bands I never heard of!

 

[Trogdor]

Definetely my favorite "Best of 2013" list.

http://www.nocleansinging.com/2014/01/05/the-best-of-2013-year-end-lists-from-austin-weber/


So so many great bands I never heard of!

And that's why he did...its not really a best of list...its a you should check this out list....that Felix Martin record was OK, more gimmicky because of the crazy guitar he uses.

 

[Trogdor]

Haha yeah.. maybe one day. I remember I watched a little bit of Dark Knight Rises with those on and it was amazing.

I so wished amp'ing the 9's were more reasonable with respect to budget. Statics are a pain in the butt.

 

[Redcarmoose]

Definetely my favorite "Best of 2013" list.

http://www.nocleansinging.com/2014/01/05/the-best-of-2013-year-end-lists-from-austin-weber/


So so many great bands I never heard of!

I have heard that Unhuman album and Gigans mudtidementional blah blah blah. If I wanted to listen to a band like Gigan I would just listen to Blut Aus Nord's Liber 111 2013. Or a multitude of bands that play fancy tech-death like Unhuman. I really never heard of most of those bands. That just goes to show you how much metal came out in 2013. So that list is really a list of bands who are creative unknowns maybe climbing the ladder to be high profile.

And he states that the bands on my list are going to be the ones who you may have never heard of. I still wonder if some lists are made by true industry insiders who are on the future cutting edge, or folks that just try too hard to be cool because they have knowledge of 2nd level semi cool bands who are just listed in an end of the year list because they are obscure.

I also heard the Serocs album, and I really want to get away from year end lists like this one. I want to find a list of gems I missed not just more 2nd rate stuff to waist my time on.

I have spent a good deal of my life searching, finding and enjoying underground music. Sometimes though, the music is underground because it's never going to be popular and right on the edge of falling between the cracks and rightfully lost forever.


On a positive note, if there really is soo much metal out there, maybe we will see more of these interesting release lists at year end. I guess I could post a list too, filling it with 25 obscure underground releases that were somewhat entertaining to listen too, but never heard of. Also on a positive note, it looks like we are not ever going to get to a place where there is not enough to listen to.

Now that anyone can record an album, the fact that there's millions and millions of metal heads that can all play, makes the only hassel, finding the great releases in an ocean of music.

 

[campj]

You're right. I meant Dt770's. Was thinking about something else.

 


Don't get DT770 unless you really need closed phones. They don't sound too great and there are a lot better options out there. HD-25ii or Amerior sound a lot better if you can stand the on-ear deal. I couldn't even though they sound great. I've been digging AKG K712 more and more... they are really full sounding and very detailed without being fatiguing. They are giving me a newfound appreciation for really fast tremolo picking.

Redcarmoose, sorry you're so wrong about Gigan. My sympathies.