[technica18]

I tried the Ultrasone hfi-2400 and it didn't really have the tightness and impact I was looking for and the highs were a bit on the bright side. Can you guys revise your recommendations based on this? By the way, what is the country of origin for Hifiman?

 

[Bill-P]

Do you have any sample track that you like?
 
I think we can give you better recommendations once we know what it is you are looking to "hear" in a song.

 

[technica18]

Quote:

Do you have any sample track that you like?
 
I think we can give you better recommendations once we know what it is you are looking to "hear" in a song.

 


Here are a few tracks.
 
Pet Shop Boys - Minimal - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=99yu3c8zylY
Saint Etienne - Burnt Out Car - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r61X9SIz9nQ
Weekend Players - Higher Ground - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtCDGOaPZLY
JMJ & Flytronix - In Too Deep - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LF2uBe1VgmU
 
Thanks.

 

[Bill-P]

Based on those songs, I'd say... the Denon D2000 may be a poor fit. Especially with In Too Deep and Higher Ground. It just vibrates too much.
 
ATH-M50 is also a no go.
 
And I wouldn't go for V-Moda M80, since it sounds a bit too boomy with Burnt Out Car. If the M100 is any similar to the M80, then I would say those are out as well.
 
It's funny since this seems like it would be an easy request. But since you ruled out DT880, DT990, and HD600, which more or less are known for good speed under the $300 range, it's... actually quite hard to find something that surpasses those headphones in speed.
 
I have heard the HE-400, though, and I can pretty much agree with what has been said here. It has awesome speed, transparency, and will probably fit your needs well if you can stretch your budget past the $300 price range.
 
Alternatively, if you haven't heard the DT880 600 Ohm yet, then I think it's worth a shot. Treble on the DT880 600 Ohm is smoother and less glaring than the 250 Ohm and 32 Ohm versions in my opinions. Plus it has very good bass quality and texture.

 

[336881]

Quote:

$340 can get you the Ultrasone Pro 900s. Thats brand new. Could get them cheaper second hand. They're great for what you want to use them for.

 +1

 

[technica18]

Quote:

Based on those songs, I'd say... the Denon D2000 may be a poor fit. Especially with In Too Deep and Higher Ground. It just vibrates too much.
 
ATH-M50 is also a no go.
 
And I wouldn't go for V-Moda M80, since it sounds a bit too boomy with Burnt Out Car. If the M100 is any similar to the M80, then I would say those are out as well.
 
It's funny since this seems like it would be an easy request. But since you ruled out DT880, DT990, and HD600, which more or less are known for good speed under the $300 range, it's... actually quite hard to find something that surpasses those headphones in speed.
 
I have heard the HE-400, though, and I can pretty much agree with what has been said here. It has awesome speed, transparency, and will probably fit your needs well if you can stretch your budget past the $300 price range.
 
Alternatively, if you haven't heard the DT880 600 Ohm yet, then I think it's worth a shot. Treble on the DT880 600 Ohm is smoother and less glaring than the 250 Ohm and 32 Ohm versions in my opinions. Plus it has very good bass quality and texture.

 
Thanks for taking the time with sampling the tracks and writing a detailed reply.  I have tried the DT880 600Ohm and it was just too bright.  I have decided to stop beating around the bush and take some of your advice and go with some planar magnetic headphones.  Although, I'm thinking of just going over the cliff and splurging for the LCD-2 since from what I am reading it has the tight controlled and deep bass with lush mids while having the highs under control.  What do you think?

 

[RPGWiZaRD]

I get goosebumps listening to that stuff on my M-Audio Q40, handles the bass nicely, punchy & controlled despite being on the heavier side (especially handles well subbass and keeps it well under control). This headphone needs amping too to get all out of it, otherwise the midrange seems slightly hollow which it isn't if properly amped. 
 
I would still probably go with HE-400 primarily, seems like it would fit perfectly with this kind of music, but Q40 is a much cheaper alternative that scales well amping wise.

 

[zazex]

Quote:

I tried the Ultrasone hfi-2400 and it didn't really have the tightness and impact I was looking for and the highs were a bit on the bright side. Can you guys revise your recommendations based on this? By the way, what is the country of origin for Hifiman?

 
China.
 
 
And yeah, the 2400's were too bright for me too.  Had to return them. 
The hfi780's are even brighter; haven't heard the 580's.
 
The price of the Sony MDR Z1000 / MDR 7520 keeps bouncing around -
based on what you've mentioned I think you'd very much like them.  They've
been as low as $310. or so.  Exceptional headphones that keep flying under
the radar (and will continue to do so if they're only seen at MSRP)
 
but, of the headphones already listed in this thread, I most favor the DT 880
250 ohms; perhaps you could give them another listen. 

 

[Bill-P]

Quote:

 
Thanks for taking the time with sampling the tracks and writing a detailed reply.  I have tried the DT880 600Ohm and it was just too bright.  I have decided to stop beating around the bush and take some of your advice and go with some planar magnetic headphones.  Although, I'm thinking of just going over the cliff and splurging for the LCD-2 since from what I am reading it has the tight controlled and deep bass with lush mids while having the highs under control.  What do you think?

 
I think the LCD-2 would be a poor fit here as well. Last time I gave them a listen (V2), they had a lot more vibration than any other headphone on the market.
 
They aren't slow, of course. But they have a lot of sub bass... which may not be what you want to hear in "In Too Deep" and "Higher Grounds". But in their defense, I'd say... the vibrations are spaced far apart from the rest of the spectrum, so you'll be able to enjoy undistorted mid and treble while hearing rumbles that are part of the environment. Plus they have very good bass impact. If they are not crowned king of bass by now, I really would have a hard time imagining anyone who can listen to a pair of cans that have more slam than the LCD-2.
 
But I'd still recommend the HE-400. They are closer to your budget range, and they are still a very good pair of cans compared to the LCD-2.

Another alternative would be to use and EQ to try to "fix" the sound signature to your preference.

 

[cali_afroman]

some reading ive seen point toward mad dogs being a great choice

 

[TWerk]

Ultrasone's have the best bass impact. You must play around with how you wear them, where you position your ears, etc. But, the ultasones legit slam with impact. They have this large mid-bass hump which creates that impact. They are also a bit bright in the treble, to add even more excitement to stuff like EDM. I think they are THE headphone to own for EDM enjoyment.
 
They are also very fast and can keep up with speedy stuff.
 
The Pro 2500 is excellent, even though it's discontinued. Pro 900 is awesome. Gotta catch em' all.

 

[Beyakusenn]

A headphone that fits your criteria very well is the t51p.
 
- Fast and controlled bass response
  Yes, very fast for a dynamic headphone at it's price range.
 
- Deep and high impact bass but not muddy
  The impact is certainly above average. Extension might be a bit lacking on the lowest tones because of it's on-ear design, but the bass works for many genres.
 
- Smooth and non fatiguing highs
  Even though Beyers usually have more energetic highs, this one is more smooth, while keeping the detail Beyers are known for.
 
- Minimal bass bleed into mids/highs
  Very minimal.
 
- I'd want to be able to use it with the Lyr if possilbe
  You van use it with the Lyr and that will probably improve the sound stage because the soundstage of these headphones is very dependent on source and amplification.
 
- Under $300
  Yup, I got one at $259
 
The only two problems I see are the sub-bass that is less present than with some competitors like the M100 and the on-ear design that is not suited for very long listening sessions (>2 hours).
 
You can find a comparisson I did with other on-ears in this thread:
http://www.head-fi.org/t/733228/bowers-wilkins-p5-series-2/165

 

[2gumby2]

I would also recommend the Beyerdynamic T51p for your interests. It is the most comfortable headphone I have ever owned and it fulfills everything you're looking for. I really enjoy mine for all types of music. A couple of other headphones I have with really tight bass are the Focal Spirit Classic and Beyerdynamic DT150. Any of these would be a great choice.

 

[TheHeadPhoneGuy]

Have you looked into the JVC SZ2000's? I think they might be what your looking for.

 

[Rydell]

  Have you looked into the JVC SZ2000's? I think they might be what your looking for.

 
Not sure I would classify the SZ2000's as fast bass impact. I'm driving mine with Cayin C5 and while they have a lot of bass strength and weight, it's not exactly tight or fast. They are good at giving you the impression you are listening to a home speaker setup with a sub, but I think a lot of that "impact" comes from what would be a fast strong mid-bass driver you'd feel in your chest. And that impact is generally in the frequency range of 50hz-90hz while the quality of speaker response plays a hefty role in the 800-2khz range. Combining the two would create a quality impact from what I understand. The best way I've read to test this out would be the effects of a kickdrum.