[Fleshless]

My name is Alex, i am from Austria and need your help.
Sorry in advance for my bad english.
 
Currently i´m using a Beyerdynamic DT770Pro 250Ohm with a Asus Xonar Essence STX and i´m looking for an upgrade so i made a list and searched many many reviews but still have no idea which Headphone to buy or even to consider.
 
Here is where i need your help.
 
This is the List that i made:
 

Audeze	LCD2
Audio-Technica	ATH-W1000X
	ATH-AD1000
Beyerdynamic	T1
	T90
	T70
	T70p
	DT880 600 Ohm
Fostex	TH-600
HiFiMan	HE-500
NAD	Viso HP50
Philips	Fidelio X1
Sennheiser	HD800
	HD700
	HD650
Shure	SRH1540
	SRH1840
Ultrasone	Signature DJ
	PRO 2900

 
This list is about half a year old, so the first question is : Is there something new on the market worth considering?
 
This headphones are for homeuse only and my taste in music is mostly in Rock/Metal (Death Metal, Thrash Metal, Grindcore) and Dubstep, sometimes a little bit Classic and Pop.
Also i will use them for gaming a lot.
 
The question is which of them is properly amplified by my Asus Xonar Essence STX because i don´t want to buy another AMP+Headphones.
So please tell me which of the listes HP´s i can discard from the list and maybe which HP´s i am missing on my list?
And also in general, which of the HP´s would you recommend and why?
Which one is the best Bang for the Bucks?
 
Thanks in advance and sorry again for my english.
 
Greetings

 

[Fleshless]

I thought again about my budget and i have set my limit now to about 700€ because I can probably better put the remaining money in one of my other hobbies (new leathers(biking) and new graphics card needed ) 

So this are the remaining Headphones:

 

Audio-Technica	ATH-W1000X
	ATH-AD1000
Beyerdynamic	T90
	T70
	T70p
Fostex	TH-600
HiFiMan	HE-500
NAD	Viso HP50
Philips	Fidelio X1
Sennheiser	HD700
	HD650
Shure	SRH1540
	SRH1840
Ultrasone	PRO 2900

The Fostex is still in the list but i can´t test hear them here in Austria so is there any other HP that sound similar to the Fostex that i can maybe test hear?
 
I've read a lot of good about the NAD and the Philips so i´m looking forward to these also.

I will take a trip to the local HiFi-Stores and see what they have to test-hear most of my list hopefully.
 
Thanks again and sorry for my bad english.
 
Mfg Fleshless

 

[fabio-fi]

Consider the Hifiman HE400, easier to drive with your soundcard/amp and they are pretty fast hp's with good bass impact for such genres. The soundstage is very open, something that gamers appreciate. 

 

[cel4145]

Consider the Hifiman HE400, easier to drive with your soundcard/amp and they are pretty fast hp's with good bass impact for such genres. The soundstage is very open, something that gamers appreciate. 

+1

HE-400s are quite nice. Good value right now, too

 

[cel4145]

Consider the Hifiman HE400, easier to drive with your soundcard/amp and they are pretty fast hp's with good bass impact for such genres. The soundstage is very open, something that gamers appreciate. 

+1

HE-400s are quite nice. Good value right now, too

 

[jackwess]

As for the gaming part, they are not as accurate like other headphone models such as the AD900x or HD598 but they are still good. If on FPS you can buy a Mixamp and they improve nicely.  
 
Nice recommendation by the guys above. 

 

[Fleshless]

I had a chance to listen to some Headphones in the meanwhile.
 
On Friday, the 12th i could listen to Philips Fidelio X1, AKG K702 and JVC HA-SZ2000
Fidelio only for about 5-10 minutes directly from my phone (HTC One)
AKG and JVC from a AMP with some CD´s from myself.
 
Philips and AKG both sounded pretty nice but it wasn´t in the same shop, so not really been able to compare them.
JVC on the other hand was really uncomfortable for me and had to much bass.
 
Last Thursday i could listen to NAD Viso HP50, PSB M4U2 and Focal Spirit Classic.
 
All from the same AMP and with my own Music.
The clear Winner for me between these 3 are the NAD Viso HP50.
Soundstage is pretty even with the PSB but better then the Focal.
Liked the overall sound (SQ, Bass, Mids, Treble) the most of the 3.
Comfortwise it´s also the best for me but still not really comfortable, so they are no longer on my list.
 
Last Friday i listened to Sennheiser HD600, HD650, HD700.
 
First i did A/B testing with HD600 and HD650.
Here the winner, for me at least was the HD650 as i think it´s just more relaxed and "nicer" to listen with the darker sounding and more bass.
 
Then i did the same thing with HD650 and HD700.
In this comparison i found the HD650 a little bit to dark and the HD700 sounded just right.
For me it sounded really spacious with good extended and controlled Bass and not to harsh treble.
Also it´s really comfortable.
Then, just for fun i tested the HD800 a little bit, and with my music, i still preferred the HD700 over the HD800 because i think it´s just more fun to listen to.
 
Today i could audition the K702 a second time and also listened to the Shure SRH1840.
This time i realised that the AKG is too flat for me and doesn´t has enough bass.
The Soundstage on the other hand is very good.
 
The SRH1840 sounded quite good but i had massive comfort issues with this Headphone.
So this Headphone and the SRH1540 won´t do it for me as they share the same design.
 
Didn´t get a chance to listen to the rest of my list just yet, still searching for dealers.
 
I´m also still not sure if the STX is enough to drive, let´s say the HD700 or if i should get a Pro-Ject HeadBox DS or a iFi Micro iDSD or something like that.
 
So thanks again in advance for the help and sorry again for the bad english.
 
Greetings from Austria

 

[Fleshless]

Nobody?

 

[jodgey4]

You could probably do the HD700's and run a new amp connected to your STX to start. Even best would to be to try them straight out of your STX first, and then decide what characteristic you like think you might want to change and pick an amp based on that.

 

[Fleshless]

Quick update.
 
I spontaneously bought an iFi Micro iDSD and i´m very happy with it so far.
 
So i will take it to all Hifi-Shops i know and will audition all Headphones i´m interested in that i can find around.
 
Greetings.
Fleshless

 

[Fleshless]

Posting my newest experiences with headphones:
 
Today i had about 1 hour with the AKG K712 and the Beyerdynamic T90
 
From this 1 hour the Beyer only got about 10 minutes.
The famous Beyerpeak was just to much for my taste.
I also did some A/B with the AKG K712 and K702 and the "+3db in Bass" made the K712 much more enjoyable for me.
It just sounds much "rounder" and more fun to me.
 
Yesterday i had about 2 Hours with the following Headphones:
Sennheiser HD700
HiFiMAN HE-400
HiFiMAN HE-500
 
The first thing i noticed is how comfortable the HD700 is in comparison.
But the 2 HiFiMANs are more comfortable then i thought after reading all the impressions on the web how uncomfortable they are.
 
Also i didn´t like the cable of the HE-500.
It looks and feels rather cheap and produces noise when moved.
 
Now to the important stuff, the Sound.
 
The first Headphone to fall out of the group for me was the HE-500
For me the other 2 just produced a much more fun sounding experience.
 
Between the HD700 and HE-400 i did a lot of A/B testing and now i´m slightly leaning towards the HE-400.
I had the feeling it just had a little more attack and speed, especially with Death Metal.
 
Then i asked the shop about the HE-400i and they will call me when they have it on stock
 
I will give the HE-500 and HD700 another chance when they got the HE-400i.
 
Additional Information:
Both HiFiMAN got the stock Pleather Pads on them
All Headphones were auditioned with this Chain : HTC One (M7) > iFi Micro iDSD
The App that i used is USB Audio Player PRO
 
Sorry once again for the bad english
 
Greetings Fleshless

 

[Fleshless]

Today i could finally audition the HE-400i.

I compared them with HE-400, HE-500 and Senn HD700

After a while of testing the winner of this group was the HE-400i
Also still in the Race are the AKG K712 and the Philips Fidelio X2.
Fostex TH-600 and Sony MDR-Z7 are out for now because there is no place i can audition them.

Here is where i need your help.
I can only audition the K712, Fidelio X2 and HE-400i individual, but no comparison possible.
What are the big differences/plus sides of each Headphone in direct comparison?
Please help me finally buy a headphone after almost 4 months .

Greetings
Fleshless

 

[cel4145]

I can only audition the K712, Fidelio X2 and HE-400i individual, but no comparison possible.
What are the big differences/plus sides of each Headphone in direct comparison?
Please help me finally buy a headphone after almost 4 months .

How about some other advice?

If you have been looking for four months, might just be time to finish giving them all a listen and pull the trigger. It's easy to get too caught up in looking for the perfect choice, even though there is none

Since you aren't buying two of them to compare to each other constantly, then your individual tests should tell you which you like better. Plus, your listening tests are far better evidence than someone else's preferences based upon their experience and personal listening preferences.

The headphone/audio hobby is a journey, not a destination. Partially this is due because our tastes in what sounds good changes. So no matter what you choose, what you like today may not be your favorite next year anyway.

Finally, I would note that for me, there will never be one perfect headphone. Depending on my mood, what I'm listening to (e.g., different music genres, or movies), and what headphones I have been using lately (sometimes I like a different sound to hear other parts of the music more), I may choose one or another headphone to listen to

 

[Fleshless]

So, today was the day.
 
I finally bought a Philips Fidelio X2 and i´m super happy now
 
Now my last question should be pretty simple:
 
V-MODA BoomPro
 
or
 
Beyerdynamic Custom Headset Gear
 
Greetings
Fleshless

 

[jodgey4]

The BoomPro cable has a high impedance which isn't a good thing (at least mine does), so I'd check and see if the Beyer one is any better than 30 ohms per L/R channel.