[TomMe]

I'm looking for passive noise isolating headphones that isolate against the noise from my neighbors. They have 4 noisy children that like to yell, run around and slam with the doors, and I am hypersensitive to sound and always at home due to chronic illness, which in combination makes me suicidal and really REALLY angry. So I am in dire need of something that will allow me to watch tv, play on my xbox and listen to music without wanting to smash everything around me to bits, as a temporary substitute for killing my neighbor's children. I can't really spare the money since I have no income, but I'm willing to spend around €150 if necessary anyway.

I hope that is enough detail.

I have read that the DT770, SR440 and ATH-M50 are good choices. But I don't really have a preference for one of those 3, just something that's not too bassy and suited for my purposes. I am also sensitive to touch/pain/headaches so nothing that clamps too much on the head. I read someone on here got headaches from an SR440 so that one is probably out of the picture.

Thanks in advance!

 

[warrenpchi]

Hi TomMe, welcome to Head-Fi! 

  Sorry about your wallet. 

  And the neighbor's hellspawn. 

 
If noise isolation is your main priority, with comfort being nearly as important, would you possibly consider a custom IEM (CIEM)?  It would be custom molded to your ear, and thus block out much more sound than most any headphone.  And it wouldn't exert any clamping force on your head/ears.
 
If you wouldn't mind such a thing, and taking your budget into consideration, you might want to look at http://www.cosmicears.com/shop/ba1/.  They tend to be very affordable, with prices starting as low as 120€ (although you will need to pay for a visit to an audiologist the have your ear molds made).
 
Just a thought.
 
P.S. - I should note that I have not heard anything from Cosmic Ears at all, so I can't offer any impressions of their sound quality.  Just mentioning them as a possible option in terms of addressing your isolation/comfort/budgetary needs.

 

[BillsonChang007]

Hello!

In-Ear may not be for everyone! But if the OP likes it, then the isolation here, is gonna be excellent! I do not think IEMs are suitable for gaming anyway.. I mean, the soundstage, imaging etc.

Anyway! Hello and welcome to HEAD-FI! For €150, maybe you can take a look at the UE6000 with active NC. It is also a very comfortable pair of headphone. Other than that, you can take a look at the HD 439! Excellent pair of headphone for gaming, but the isolation here, is definately less.

Hope this helps
Billson!

 

[warrenpchi]

Quote:

In-Ear may not be for everyone! But if the OP likes it, then the isolation here, is gonna be excellent! I do not think IEMs are suitable for gaming anyway.. I mean, the soundstage, imaging etc.

 
All very true, I was just looking at it more as an anger management tool. 

 

[roma101]

The KRK KNS-8400 should do you well. They're light and very comfortable, isolate pretty well and don't have a lot of bass. Should be great for gaming, movies and music. They're balanced across the spectrum but they are also a tad on the bright side, a bit of emphasis on mids and treble. I never found them fatiguing however.

 

[supercollider]

I think the best isolation for your price range is going to be the Etymotic er4p.  They are IEMs (so same issues mentioned by the other posters) but they can be found for ~$200 (U.S.) from 3rd party retailers on Amazon and below that used either on this forum or eBay.  I haven't owned or heard them, but I know they are very well regarded in these forums.

 

[warrenpchi]

My, what a truly remarkable consensus we've reached! 

 

[TomMe]

Hello again guys,

Thanks for the advice and kind words. The problem with IEMs though is that I already wear ear plugs during the night and sometimes for a large part of the day as well. I recently read that regular use of ear plugs might cause ear inflammation, and strangely enough, shortly after my inner ears started to become irritated after wearing my ear plugs. They are a bit sore even now, so you can understand why I am not a big fan of IEMs at the moment..

On the other hand, someone offered to sell me their beyerdynamic DT 770 M in perfect condition for €100. What do you guys think? Does it isolate well?
 

 

[Hellbishop]

I have the Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro (250 Ohm version) they isolate pretty good especially when the volume is turned up blocking out the unique piercing quality of childrens loud playing in the backyard. They're very comfortable. Am more into vice grip headphones for isolation so i havent really used my DT 770 in every possible noise scenario.
 
You might also want to check out the extremely comfortable Sony MDR XB500. They have ear pads like mushy pillows and block out sound in my opinion much more better then the Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro. They have very good bass and with some equalization the treble really stands out. They also cost alot less. I've had mine for about two years and they're still in perfect shape.
 
Best wishes on your situation. I know exactly what your going through eventhough children at play never bothers me because my mind sees it as a happy positive sound full of joyful life. Its when adults and old noseybodies that love to complain are acting like fools that i feel alot like you do due to my sound sensitivity triggering my mental defenses and suffering from schizophrenia which makes me sensitive to over stimulation in the environment.
 
I assume you have a psychiatrist to talk with. I do and i would suggest you ask them to help you get in contact with places and people you can socialise with. Being around others and or having visitors regularly really makes a difference. You dont want to isolate and let negative thoughts grow out of control. NAMI the national alliance for the mentally ill is a great place to make contacts and keep busy with things your interested in. Quality of life be yours.
 
Be well

 

[warrenpchi]

Quote:

On the other hand, someone offered to sell me their beyerdynamic DT 770 M in perfect condition for €100. What do you guys think? Does it isolate well?

 
Take it.  And yeah, isolation's not bad at all.  Also, as Hellbishop said, they are VERY comfortable over a long period of time.

 

[ThinkAwesome]

It's not audiophile tier stuff, but some of the niche super noise isolating headphones like UltraPhones might be good. I've never heard them, but they use Sony V6/7506 drivers so it's probably at least decent. 

 

[BillsonChang007]

I, personally a IEM user as for now. I can't wear it any longer than 2hours a day! I do not think they are going to sit around any longer! Either sell it to my friend or pass it on to my brother or, keep it with me and just it for portable because of it's isolation. XD

 

[TomMe]

Hello again,

I have looked at all the options in this thread and have settled with a beyerdynamic DT 770 M, but I had to buy it new because that guy I talked about had already sold his to someone else. Oh well..
 
I am currently wearing it. It is fairly comfortable (not exactly light weight but not too heavy either) and isolates well, although perhaps less than I had ideally hoped. But then I am used to wearing heavy duty earmuffs and ear plugs. It might just be enough though, especially when I'm actually using them to listen to stuff and not just putting them on my head. Wearing glasses with it is also a challenge, as I have to put the arms up on the edge of the pads which are luckily large enough to encompass my ears without squeezing them.

The first thing I noticed about the sound is that it sounds muffled, closed off, not "open". I'm not an expert, but I'm sure you guys know what I mean. Perhaps this is due to the headphone's isolation? I also have to turn up the high frequencies on any device I connect it to because otherwise it sounds too bassy. I'm actually a bit curious now to know what the Pro sounds like.

So far I am happy with it, but I am still testing. I watched a movie with it yesterday, which was nice. The headphones don't seem to like classical music much, but seem excel with modern/pop music. One thing that bugs me though, is the inline volume control. When I turn down the volume slider, the channels become unbalanced so that when I turn it down completely there is only sound coming from the left channel. Is this normal?? Or do I need to get the headphones replaced?
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Hellbishop /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
Best wishes on your situation. I know exactly what your going through eventhough children at play never bothers me because my mind sees it as a happy positive sound full of joyful life. Its when adults and old noseybodies that love to complain are acting like fools that i feel alot like you do due to my sound sensitivity triggering my mental defenses and suffering from schizophrenia which makes me sensitive to over stimulation in the environment.
 
I assume you have a psychiatrist to talk with. I do and i would suggest you ask them to help you get in contact with places and people you can socialise with. Being around others and or having visitors regularly really makes a difference. You dont want to isolate and let negative thoughts grow out of control. NAMI the national alliance for the mentally ill is a great place to make contacts and keep busy with things your interested in. Quality of life be yours.
 
Be well

With me it's more than just mental defenses that are being triggered, it's a combination of chronic fatigue, hypersensitivity of the senses and problems concentrating. As you might imagine, I don't have the energy to socialise, having others around actually drains me (or even typing this message) and I need the alone time to be able to survive. But nobody seems to understand this, which is "understandable" I guess as this is so far removed from a "normal" person's everyday reality and point of view that you have to live it yourself to be able to do so. It's no surprise then that I have always run into a wall of disbelief and misunderstanding. I have seen my fair share of doctors in search of health, but most of them were completely clueless (about health) and all of them had their own opinion about things. So I don't really see the point of talking to yet another doctor who in effect cannot understand or help me at all. But I appreciate your kind words.

On the bright side, I am currently on a path to heal myself through nutrition and have had a bit of succes so far, so I know that at least I am heading in the right direction.