[FunkyMonkey]

Hello, I am new to these forums and just spent the last few hours searching other threads for headphone recommendations, but many of the threads were years old, or not asking quite what I was looking for, so I decided to make my own thread. Here goes
 
The short version:
I'm looking for some good headphones (less than $120) to listen to trance music mostly. Over ear closed, no amp.
 
The long version: 
I've been mostly into gaming, and as such haven't given headphones too much consideration before. My current computer system I built has
Sound Card: Creative SB X-Fi Fatal1ty Professional Series
Headphones: Creative Fatal1ty Gaming Headset
I've been getting more and more into trance music over the years, and now am a huge fan of Armin Van Buuren, Paul Van Dyk, Ferry Corsten, etc. My current headset just isn't cutting it for delivering this music the way it should be enjoyed, so I need to get a set just for music listening. I mostly want it to let me hear the vocals and good bass at the same time, as my current headphones are practically bassless. Most importantly though, I don't want bass that will drown out any of the melodic parts of the music, especially the vocals. I do listen to other types of music as well, such as classic rock, so good all around headphones should do the job.
 
Most of my music is vbr mp3s (anywhere from 192-320 kbps) and I have heard that getting too high quality headphones can bring out the "imperfections" in lower quality music. I'm fairly certain my lack of budget renders this point inconsequential, but I thought I'd include the info just in case.
 
From what I've gathered out of other threads so far, these are what I've come up with:
Beyer DT770 (Looks like the best choice all around, but sadly out of my budget range unless I wait)
ATH-A700 (Conflicting opinions so far? also pushing budget a bit)
SRH-440
 
Any headphones I've missed? Keep in mind the over ear closed type, I like to listen to the music loud at times, and don't wanna wake up my roommates late at night. Any opinions are appreciated, thanks!

 

[swbf2cheater]

the DT770 is a very good gaming set and a great set to listen to music with, make sure its a 32ohm version.  I strongly recommend it if you are looking for an all around well rounded set.  

 

[Deep Funk]

Welcome to Head-Fi and sorry for your wallet...
 
My advice, studio oriented headphones... Trance is very layered music so a studio oriented headphone should do the trick and as such something with an at least decent sound stage. 
 
Something else, how do you prefer to hear the low notes in your music in relation with the mids and highs? In short: do you like a lot of bass with bass impact or do you prefer precise bass that lets you hear the low notes as in the recording? 
 
Good luck...

 

[SoSpecial]

 
Quote:

the DT770 is a very good gaming set and a great set to listen to music with, make sure its a 32ohm version.  I strongly recommend it if you are looking for an all around well rounded set.  

Would still need an amp at least something like an  Fiio e7+ e9.
 
Questions/Statements! few questions and then I'll give a few statements and I'll end it with a few suggestions.
 
Are you gonna use these for gaming? OR just trance? Just trance will narrow my search to one or two headphones. Both means I'll have to get creative and suggest you buy two( not a bad option though it gives you more variety, and your gaming and music will both sound amazing.)
 
 
What type of headphones do you currently use?
 
Does it matter if sound leaks? Does it matter if they isolate?
 
Don't worry about "Imperfections," You wont hear them, unless your listening to really crappy quality music. Cynical headphones are not ones I suggest cause I feel headphones that detailed are counter intuitive. Where here to enjoy our purchase not obsess over crappy masters. Also don't worry about your Bit rate, you won't get noticeable artifacts in your music till about 128.
 
Try not to trick yourself into thinking more money is better, a lot of the time you will like a cheaper head phone for reasons other people hate it. I myself really hate the UR55 and think my HD201's( which are half the price) are leagues better to my ears. To each his own I say.
 
Don't worry about the D770 it will be beyond your price and it will also need an amp. No matter the Ohms that is the point that headphones start needed an amp.
 
Okay now onto the suggestions!
 
If it's for trance only then I'd probably say:
 
Shure SRH750DJ's
Creative Aurvana Lives( These could be used for gaming, decent sound stage cause of their many similarities to the Denon D1001K
Audio Technica M50's.
 
If for gaming AD700 would probably be best.
 
If both then the AD700 and a JVC RX700 preferably both of these used.

 

[swbf2cheater]

he has an SBx sound card, he doesnt need an amp
 
he would benefit from one, but you dont NEED one with a 32ohm dt770 at all

 

[SoSpecial]

Quote:

he has an SBx sound card, he doesnt need an amp
 
he would benefit from one, but you dont NEED one with a 32ohm dt770 at all

It's still $60-80 over his budget and wouldn't sound to it's full potential.

 

[shnitz]

If those are the headphones that you came up with, then you did not search, or did not search well.  A similar, if not completely identical, thread comes up here like 15 times per week.  Why do you state a $120 budget and then push it?  Either increase your budget, and tell us, or stick to your budget, and try these:
Audio Technica M50
Creative Aurvana Live! (basically same headphone as Denon 1001, on sale right now at Amazon for $70)
 
Look through the first few pages of the site, and look for threads with a title similar to yours, or something along the lines of "best bass for $100" or "help with first headphone," etc.
 
You can look through this thread too:
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/433318/shootout-57-portable-headphones-compared-audio-technica-ath-m50-added-11-12

 

[FunkyMonkey]

 
Quote:

 
Something else, how do you prefer to hear the low notes in your music in relation with the mids and highs? In short: do you like a lot of bass with bass impact or do you prefer precise bass that lets you hear the low notes as in the recording? 

I'm not exactly sure what you mean, but I like the sound of precise bass. I don't want the bass to overpower any other parts of the music, but I still want to feel it well enough.


Quote:

Questions/Statements! few questions and then I'll give a few statements and I'll end it with a few suggestions.
 
Are you gonna use these for gaming? OR just trance? Just trance will narrow my search to one or two headphones. Both means I'll have to get creative and suggest you buy two( not a bad option though it gives you more variety, and your gaming and music will both sound amazing.)
 
 
What type of headphones do you currently use?
 
Does it matter if sound leaks? Does it matter if they isolate?

I'll be using these for just trance. Currently I use a Creative Fatal1ty Gaming headset, which is fine for gaming, as I require a built in microphone for Teamspeak/Ventrilo.
I need sound to not leak, as I want to listen to music late at night without waking up roommates. Isolation I'm not really sure about, either way is fine.
 
Sorry about the confusion over the budget, I would really like to keep it under $100. The higher over budget, the longer I'll have to wait before I can buy them, and I'd like to get into higher quality music listening as soon as possible.
 
Thanks for the link to that thread shnitz, the B tier's seem to be what I'm looking for, I'll have to read more about each one now, though there doesn't appear to be any of the Shure headphones I've heard about on that list.
 
Thanks for all the replies so far!

 

[zs3889]

Quote:

 
Quote:

the DT770 is a very good gaming set and a great set to listen to music with, make sure its a 32ohm version.  I strongly recommend it if you are looking for an all around well rounded set.  

 
Okay now onto the suggestions!
 
If it's for trance only then I'd probably say:
 
Shure SRH750DJ's
Creative Aurvana Lives( These could be used for gaming, decent sound stage cause of their many similarities to the Denon D1001K
Audio Technica M50's.
 
If for gaming AD700 would probably be best.
 
If both then the AD700 and a JVC RX700 preferably both of these used.

 
Hi, I am considering AD700 as well, main purpose is for  music and gaming, bassy music and shooting game like COD to be specific. What makes the AD700 be your best choice for gaming? How is the bass of these headphones? heard it was not bassy though. Anyway my preference is good sound stage for gaming and long lasting comfort!
 

 

[SoSpecial]

Quote:

Quote:

 
Quote:

the DT770 is a very good gaming set and a great set to listen to music with, make sure its a 32ohm version.  I strongly recommend it if you are looking for an all around well rounded set.  

 
Okay now onto the suggestions!
 
If it's for trance only then I'd probably say:
 
Shure SRH750DJ's
Creative Aurvana Lives( These could be used for gaming, decent sound stage cause of their many similarities to the Denon D1001K
Audio Technica M50's.
 
If for gaming AD700 would probably be best.
 
If both then the AD700 and a JVC RX700 preferably both of these used.

 
Hi, I am considering AD700 as well, main purpose is for  music and gaming, bassy music and shooting game like COD to be specific. What makes the AD700 be your best choice for gaming? How is the bass of these headphones? heard it was not bassy though. Anyway my preference is good sound stage for gaming and long lasting comfort!
 

Bold is what they are abundent in, and the resason why I said for him to get two headphones when I told him if he wanted to game and use it for music is because they are bass shy. It's there, they have bass but it's not in quantities that some would like.If your looking for a bass gaming headphone  then  on the cheap side I'd say JVC RX700/900's Sony MDR XB500/700, and Creative Aurvana Lives. Those wouuld be better if your looking for more of a jack of all trades rather then a specialised application like AD700's would provide.
 

 
Quote:

 
Quote:

 
Something else, how do you prefer to hear the low notes in your music in relation with the mids and highs? In short: do you like a lot of bass with bass impact or do you prefer precise bass that lets you hear the low notes as in the recording? 

I'm not exactly sure what you mean, but I like the sound of precise bass. I don't want the bass to overpower any other parts of the music, but I still want to feel it well enough.


Quote:

Questions/Statements! few questions and then I'll give a few statements and I'll end it with a few suggestions.
 
Are you gonna use these for gaming? OR just trance? Just trance will narrow my search to one or two headphones. Both means I'll have to get creative and suggest you buy two( not a bad option though it gives you more variety, and your gaming and music will both sound amazing.)
 
 
What type of headphones do you currently use?
 
Does it matter if sound leaks? Does it matter if they isolate?

I'll be using these for just trance. Currently I use a Creative Fatal1ty Gaming headset, which is fine for gaming, as I require a built in microphone for Teamspeak/Ventrilo.
I need sound to not leak, as I want to listen to music late at night without waking up roommates. Isolation I'm not really sure about, either way is fine.
 
Sorry about the confusion over the budget, I would really like to keep it under $100. The higher over budget, the longer I'll have to wait before I can buy them, and I'd like to get into higher quality music listening as soon as possible.
 
Thanks for the link to that thread shnitz, the B tier's seem to be what I'm looking for, I'll have to read more about each one now, though there doesn't appear to be any of the Shure headphones I've heard about on that list.
 
Thanks for all the replies so far!

Well the Shure SRH750DJ's were built with trnace in mind, they isolate well and they don't leak to much unless your pushing like 10w of power which could possibly injure you. I suggest those  over the rest for they are the best match for the music, not knowing your personal taste tells me we need to match your genre.
 
As for the gaming headphones, umm are you shure you need an attached mic? YOu know you can get a little Labtec LVA 7330 mic and velcro it to the side of what is known to be the best gaming headphones on the market( AD700) That's just something to ponder, those headphones are really good.

 

[tomb]

The headphone that does what you want exists: the Sony MDR-V6.  Bass in spades, yet enough of a midrange to allow it to be the preferred choice in many recording and radio studios.  (Ever watch the headphones they use on Howard Stern?)  It has very extended highs, too.
 
Order them with the velour cushion upgrades from B&H Photo:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/677534-REG/Sony_MDR_V6_Studio_Headphones_with.html
You'll have something that literally blows away the Dr. Dre Beats for only $89.
 
 
P.S. I have no connection whatsoever with B&H Photo.

 

[sumathias]

AD700s are open I believe, so just be prepared for some stares if you use them in public
 
If you have a half decent amp, you should definitely consider the DT770s as I find their imaging/positioning to be very useful when I play counterstrike and other games.
 
Consider the DT770s (32ohm or Pro 80ohm) if you like bass (trance has quite a bit of bass doesn't it?), or the M50s if you like sparkly highs. Never owned the M50s so I can't say for sure, but from what I heard while trying them out they are pretty good.
 
Can't speak for the Shures as I have never tried the 750DJs.
 
Oh, and if you need an attached mic, maybe you can forget these two Unless you can attach an external mic, that is. Good luck!

 

[tomb]

AD700's are NOT open.

 

[sumathias]

Umm... they aren't?
 
http://www.amazon.com/Technica-ATH-AD700-Open-air-Audiophile-Headphones/dp/B000CMS0XU
 
Am I missing something here? 0.o

 

[FunkyMonkey]

The 750DJs are out of my price range for now, though what is the major difference between them and the 440s? Keep in mind I don't have an amp, only a soundcard, and I don't want open air headphones. The MDR-V6 looks nice too, any other opinions on those vs the 440 or others?