[nate247]

Hi Guy's,
Have lost count of the amount of articles I have read over on these brilliant forums over the years. Having recently had 3 children in quick succession my love for Hi-Fi / Music etc got put on the back burner for a while. But just recently (as the girls are growing up) I am finding I am getting more and more free time on an evening.

As a result I am in the market for a set of headphones, ideally less than £1'000 but the less I spnd the better. I have dabbled many many times in this area with Sennheiser HD 600's, Shure 846's a long while back and more recently Sony WH-1000XM3's / 4's, Shure Aonic 50's, Airpod Pro Max's (more commercial) just to see if wireless is there yet and each had their pro's and then con's as have been well discussed here.

I think I have come to the conclusion that my listening tastes have become somewhat lazy in that I crave an energetic headphone rather than something neutral. I like the bass to thump but sub bass I am not so bothered about and I like a fair amount of treble 'sparkle' I guess would be the word. I mainly listen to Rock, 80's, some Pop, Dance / House Music and Hip Hop... weird taste I am sorry.

Happy to go either wired or wireless, equally mostly listening at a desk so could go headphone and amp. But I have tied myself in knots here reading article after article. So just wondering if any of you kind folk could possibly throw a few suggestions my way to perhaps unearth any gems of headphones I haven't thought of as know it's a fast moving space these days.

Cheers in advance for any help you can offer.
Nathan

 

[msing539]

Welcome... I think everything you've asked for is in the Fostex TH900 brochure. Used pricing should be sub 1,000 but these don't sound like anything else you've owned.

 

[silentraindrop]

On the wireless side, B&W PX8 and Focal Bathys + 2 gets discussed a lot here.

 

[dunring]

For work I've had the chance to use over 165 headphones and headsets. I'd recommend the one I just bought which is the Bowers & Wilkins PX7 Carbon for wireless. It sounds great and the two key features make it better than the Sony or Bose. It can fast charge in 15 minutes for 6 hours of play time, and it automatically turns on and off when you put them on or take them off. We used to have the Bose Quietcomfort II 35 which sounds really nice, but the PX7 is just an upgrade in all areas and the two features really put it over the top.
If you want a wired setup, I'd recommend the Hifiman HE5XX and JDS Atom Amp+ DAC+ which is so much fun for the cost, and competes with much more expensive setups. I have an HE6SE and HE560 behind me, but listening now to my daily driver HE5XX to test some amps and DACs tonight. It's light and comfortable, but not those cavernous cups like the Ananda, and no tight squeeze clamp like the Sundara. Also I like it since it supports balanced cables because I have to test all the connectors when a new amplifier comes in, they sound the same, just convenient. Also with that stack you'll have plenty of power left to do equalizing with a preamp reduction, use replaygain if you want, or have some pre-volume war recordings it wont be an issue.

 

[nate247]

Awesome, thank's so much guys for the suggestions so far. The Fostex TH900 are an interesting shout as I hadn't considered those but they seem very well reviewed. B&W PX8 were on my list to try so that's interesting as well as the Bathys. Thanks also Dunring for the recommendations above. Gives me plenty to move along with and some bedtime reading. Thanks again... will keep you posted of any purchases / progress.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

The HE6SE V2 price has come down and down and it's an amazing pair of headphones, but you need a strong amp to get them rockin'

I think they're better than the Fostex in every way except perhaps perceived slam, since the Fostex is technically semi-open (but looks closed) and controls the air better. The HE6SE V2 has aggressive, sparkly mids while yet never going over the edge and becoming strident or shrill.

The HE400i 2020 is surprisingly good and cheap, and needs less amp-erage.

 

[msing539]

Rock, 80's, some Pop, Dance / House Music and Hip Hop

This is exactly what I listen to--it's not what you asked for in terms of low end punch, but I'll also suggest the Denon D9200 used because it's a great all rounder and the mids aren't scooped out like the TH900 (Red).

 

[nieveulv]

For fun and new set., i liked the hifiman he-r9/r10d
Pure fun listening. You can use it with BT or wired. Pretty versatile

Also zmf Atticus..

 

[gadus]

meze 109pro Very beautiful, comfortable, amazing sound, detailed and fun,

 

[Sebastien Chiu]

The Bathys and 109 Pro would be my suggestion to consider!