[Nachash]

Hi, I want to replace my 4 years old Alessandro Ms1i with something else mainly for Metal since I use my HD598 for pretty much everything else.
I like how they sound but I want to hear more detail, I want to especially hear the bass not just "feeling" it. I'm using a FiiO e10.
 
For a budget I would say 200-250$ top. And it doesn't matter if it's open or closed.
 
Thanks.
 
 
I don't know if it does matter, but here's my EQ 

 

[Nachash]

I forgot an important thing, it's better if I can get an European brand since I can't buy from the US.
So, no Grado or another Alessandro upgrade (they're fine, but I always go back to the HD598 after a while because they're painful)
 
Also, I modded my Alessandro with the punch hole mod 4 years ago. 
 
I always dreamt about the K701 but I don't know, will it be a good choice? They're 280$ here so I need to stay low for a while so they can at least go down to 250

 

[jasonb]

I love my Q701 for rock and metal, mostly prog rock and prog metal actually. They do like a bit power though. They will sound fine out of a Fiio E10, but they scale really well with better/more powerful gear. If you get them and find them bass light there is a simple and free mod for them that increases the bass quantity and impact and extends the bass much deeper. Look a few pages back in the Q701 appreciation thread for more info.

 

[herpderp]

Whew, it's been a while since I've posted anything on Head-Fi. Anyway, I'm quite an avid metalhead although lately I've been listening to a lot more punk-ier stuff (i.e. anything from hardcore, to crust to pop-punk), I still listen to a lot of (generally more-modern metal) like death metal, prog metal, thrash, metalcore etc and I can whole-heartedly recommend the Q701s IF you like the AKG sound signature. I can't say I've had too much experience with headphones but I've listened to a lot of high-end cans and I always keep returning to that good old AKG sound.
 
Again, I'm not an extremely experienced audiophile but what I can say is, I'm currently using the E10 as a DAC and amp (have an O2 and ODAC coming in) for my Q701s and the Q701s have a flat sound (and with the bass-boost on the E10) it turns into a pretty bass-heavy pair of headphones. If you're looking for bass, however, you might want to have a look at what Beyerdynamic has to offer. I've had experiences with their lower end stuff and honestly wasn't too impressed, but check them out anyway.

 

[Nachash]

Unfortunately the Q701s are far from my range (350$ here) so I'm probably gonna opt for a DT990 (pretty cheap too, 176$) so I can compensate for the lacking of the HD598.
 
Grados are so damn painful, I don't know how I was able to use them for 2 years straight!

 

[fateicon]

K701 is great for metal, try cranking the original Painkiller cd. Get an O2 amp for it though because it needs it. You could try a Yamaha Pro 400. It really does a great job making metal drums sound like real drums instead of the kicks sounding like clicks. Takes the edge off some of that harshly recorded stuff. good head-banging bass that metal needs. Ain't the most comfortable thing to wear. Sennheiser Amperior is pretty good too but it has this insidious type of fatigue that slowly builds instead of hitting you right away like a Grado. 701 is the only open phone I'd really use for metal. A good test is to try and play Testament's Dark Roots. See if the headphone can hide the horrible sound of that album. It's unlistenable on every headphone I've tried it on aside from the 701 and 400. 
 
for metal a headphone needs to be able to do the following:
 
-give space for everything
-take the edge off all these hot recordings
-provide head-banging bass
-have enough speed so the music has some life
 
the problem I see with a lot of phones is that they trade bass for clarity and vice versa. The Yamaha is capable of reproducing even subwoofer kinda bass without sacrificing much clarity. The 701 can be cranked really loud because it leaks sound, and thus loses a good amount of the bass. But it doesn't really have a harsh edge either. I haven't found a phone that is comfortable to wear that also makes metal good to listen to on. Domination by Morbid Angel is an album I use to test phones with. It's a bit muddy so it sounds lean and mean when the 701 drops some of the bass. On the 400 the bass drums don't sound like clicks and they vibrate the earcups without mucking up the sound. But it does stay true to the album's muddy production. You can eq the bass down if you don't want the earcups to rumble. And it's not loose, flabby bass. You can distinctly hear the bass guitar well with these as well as individual kicks on the bass drum. Something like Helloween-Keeper part 1 original cd version will sound fuller, but you won't get the subwoofer style bass Domination gives. To bid you farewell from Opeth sounds gorgeous on these because the Yamaha really do string, wood, and brass instruments well. When an acoustic guitar is picked, it really sounds like a string being picked. I thought the 400 did well with Anthems from Emperor but it couldn't really make IX Equilibrium sound awesome. It brought some much needed body and bass to Spider's Lullabye. That album sounds bass anemic on most everything else. If you play the original cd of Somewhere in Time, you can hear the ride cymbal throughout Caught Somewhere In Time. 400 makes that album's production a lot stronger sounding.

 

[Nachash]

Thanks. 

I've ordered the DT990, if I don't like how they sound I'm gonna send them back and pick the 400 (this one, right?: http://www.amazon.it/Yamaha-HPH-PRO400-Cuffie-Nero/dp/B009F8WTKW/) and see how they sound. 

 

[Makiah S]

  Thanks. 

I've ordered the DT990, if I don't like how they sound I'm gonna send them back and pick the 400 (this one, right?: http://www.amazon.it/Yamaha-HPH-PRO400-Cuffie-Nero/dp/B009F8WTKW/) and see how they sound. 

 
Oh man I wish I got here sooner, I don't like the DT 990 for metal [I own them] the mids are far too distint you'll lose some of the sweetness in the guitars, there is a lot of bass though
 
Personally I really enjoyed the Audio Techncia AD900X for metal! They had an amazing Edge to the mids, nice and tactile. And the bass was SUPER tight and textured really wonderful for Metal as well! STILL if you like the way the DT 990 sounds enjoy it, other wise do give the AD900x a try! Also check out my review of them at my blog. 

 

[Nachash]

Unfortunately the Audio Technica AD900X are pretty hard to get where I live, this is why I was asking for an European brand. 

 

[Makiah S]

  Unfortunately the Audio Technica AD900X are pretty hard to get where I live, this is why I was asking for an European brand. 

 
Well I'm sorry to hear it, Yahama though are Japanese are they not 

 

[Nachash]

Yes, but I'm pretty sure that the one that I've linked is not the one that fateicon was talking about.. 

 

[Makiah S]

  Yes, but I'm pretty sure that the one that I've linked is not the one that fateicon was talking about.. 

 
indeed, either way I think the Dt 990 will be enjoyable for rock, the mids have a nice edge and the extra bass does add some HEFT to them, 

 

[fateicon]

that's the right one. DT990 only worked for me when I had it plugged in to my colored cd player and colored amp. It really took the highs down a lot. DT990 600 ohm has gorgeous tonality, but something about the way it arranges stuff makes it fatiguing for me. It's very forward. 
 
if you look at my comments about the 400 right after I got it, it needed a few hours of use to settle down. I sometimes increase the treble by a couple db with rockbox here and there.