[SpacemanSpiff23]

My brother's headphones died the a few weeks ago, and he is on the hunt for a new pair. He likes my A900s, but says they are a little light on the bass. Also, he does want closed headphones, but not quite as isolating as mine are. There are a few other things to consider before you all tell him to get the Beyer DT770s.

First off, he has a rather large head. It's not huge, but something with a really strong clamping force would probably be pretty uncomfortable. I'm not sure of the exact price range he's looking at, but let's keep any suggestions well at or around $200. That may be too high, but it will be a good range to start in. Also, he doesn't have an amp. Maybe in the future he'll pick one up, but he doesn't have one now. These will mostly be used for gaming (in particular, Rock Band). They will be plugged in to an Onkyo receiver most of the time, but will also spend time in a computer.

I know the most logical response will be the DT770-80s, and that is probably what he will end up with, but I'd love to get an idea of what is available from other manufacturers.




So, to sum it up,

-Similar Sound quality to A900s, but with more bass.
-Closed, but not as isolating as A900s. (if that is even available)
-Sound great without an amp (or recommend Headphone /amp combo)
-Around $200 for either headphones, or headphone/amp combo.
-Comfortable on large head
-Would love to hear other suggestions aside from Beyerdynamic DT770-80.


I think that is everything. Thanks for any help you can send my way.

 

[jgonino]

I think The Ultrasone PRO 2500/750 might work pretty well. I find them to be very comfortable.

 

[Steve_72]

Perhaps Denon D2000?

I haven't tried them, but they seem to be something to consider. Closed, comfortable, and relatively easy to drive from what I gather. Not sure about their bass quantity though.

 

[SpacemanSpiff23]

I think maybe $300 was too high. I changed it to 200 as I think it is probably much closer to what he would be willing to pay.


How are the Denon AH-D1000?

 

[SpacemanSpiff23]

Can anyone tell me anything about Ultrasones or Equations?

 

[Rednamalas1]

use the search feature to see reviews - there are tons of reviews

 

[jgonino]

Actually, I think the d1000 would fit the bill. They are very comfy, and Isolate very little. They are also pretty cheap.

Oh, and you can get the denon 2000's for around 225 used here, or the ultrasones for around 230 here used as well.

 

[darkswordsman17]

Ultrasone HFI-700s would be worth considering as well. (Shameless plug) I'm selling a pair of the rebadged Alienware version. I would say they're more similar to the A900s than the DT770s (I have DT770s now as well and had the A900s before). They have extra detail that would be great for Rockband and similar games (and the cord is longer and better than the curled one found on the 770 Pros).

 

[SpacemanSpiff23]

whats the difference between the HFI and Proline headphones? Is it just an overall better quality headphone?

 

[alexpea]

I just sold my Proline 750's for 185$. I hated them. First of all, the design is bulky, with plastic all over and clumsy edges. The earpads are round, and doesn't fit quite around my entire ear. And the pads can be taken off?!?! What's that about? They kept falling loose every time I held them in my hands. To the sound though - Low bass, but not better than the A900s. I've owned them as well. The highs are terrible and display a very metallic and harsh sound. When cranking up the volume, only the treble gets raised, and everything gets messed up.

So..my advice would be NOT to buy them.

If I were to recommend something different from the DT770's, I would have to say the DT150's. Do a forum search here, and you'll see that they are underestimated. I don't know how much they cost, and if they are sold anywhere though..

 

[SpacemanSpiff23]

I wonder if it would be safe to say that all the Ultrasones have the same design flaws, as they all look like they are built the same way.

 

[darkswordsman17]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SpacemanSpiff23 /img/forum/go_quote.gif whats the difference between the HFI and Proline headphones? Is it just an overall better quality headphone?

Well, yes and no. The HFIs I think are aimed more at having a more pleasing sound (well, I mean a sound intended to not be neutral), while the Prolines seem to be more analytical. Also, most of the Prolines are open, and most of the HFIs are closed, with the exception being that the HFI-2200s are open, and the Proline 750s are closed. The Proline 2500s are basically just an open version of the 750s.

As for the earpads, I think its just the Prolines, possibly the HFI-2200s that have the easy twist off ones. The HFI-700s don't. From what I've heard, I don't think the Proline 750s would be a good fit, as I see a lot of people who say you need a very good quality source or else it will sound bad (because the high detail resolution shows the flaws), and when you consider cover songs and the fact that the audio is coming out of a game console and then through an A/V reciever, as well as a computer, and I think he'll be disappointed. Sorry for sounding biased and like I'm trying to steer you to a certain one, but I do think the HFI-700s will fit much better for him (they were designed with games and movies in mind).

You could also consider blu-tak modding the A900s, which helps with the bass, so thats something to consider too.

 

[SpacemanSpiff23]

Thanks for the info dark. Are the new 780s similar to the 700s? I'm asking because it doesn't look like Ultrasone has them on there site anymore, so maybe they were replaced by the 780s.



As for my a900s, nobody's touching them.

 

[darkswordsman17]

Yeah, the 780s are the new version of the 700s (I believe its mostly cosmetic, no major rework of the design, although I could be wrong). You can also consider the Alienware Ozma 7 (which is just a rebadged HFI-700).

As for the A900s, I really recommend at least checking out the blu-tak mod, its not difficult to do, doesn't cost much, is I believe completely reversible, but most importantly does improve the sound.