Looking to buy new noise cancelling headphones for around $100.
Apr 16, 2013 at 7:47 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 17

Kalixin

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Hey everybody. This is my first post on these forums, though I have read threads on here a lot. I have slowly been becoming an audiophile, I believe and sound quality of a headset or sound system is become less of a novelty and more of a necessity to me. I used to use some cheap Plantronics audio .326 headsets for gaming. I fell in love with Plantronics longevity and customer service and I decided to upgrade to the Plantronics GameCom 780. Beautiful headset. virtual 7.1 surround sound. powerful base, with realistic surround sound. highs and mids are surprisingly good as well, even for music and movies. I also do a lot of work on FL studio and they make everything from kick, to hat, from piano, to guitar sound authentic.
 
A couple issues though.
#1 USB headset. I don't like using the usb to 3.5 converters.
#2 no noise cancellation or isolation at all
#3 the microphone probably ate up some money that could've went into sound quality for the headset.
 
 
So what I am looking for is strictly headphones for movies and music (listening and editing). I got my headset for everything else.
 
Im looking for
 
1.) Around 100 dollars.
2.) Good/reliable brand. (Something that won't break down if I use them once a week for cutting the grass.)
3.) Great highs and mids and a bass that has at least a decent punch to it. (I hate overpowering base that ruins highs and mids and clarity)
4.) Good noise isolation and cancellation (I dont mind going through a couple batteries)
5.) Comfortable and maybe good looking.. The good looking part is just a plus, not a necessity. I just kind of like my stuff to look sleek.
 
 
 
Headset/Headphone/Speaker experience
 
Speakers:
Cheap Logitech speakers: Got the job done.
Logitech x140 speakers. Probably the best set of speakers I have heard under 100 dollars.
Bose companion 2 speakers: Lacked a lot of range for 90 dollars. the x140s were better at 20-30 bucks.
 
Headsets:
Plantronics Audio .326: Got the job done
Plantronics Gamecom 780: Beautiful, especially for 70-80 dollars, but doesn't get every single job done by themselves.
 
Headphones:
Heard a few bose headphones.... Buy other sound equipment..... Makes a lot of sense for their price/quality ratio.
Ableplanet: pretty much any ableplanet headset under 150 sounds muddy and unclear.
Klipsch: I am not sure what to think of them anymore. I used to think they were amazing, but some of their stuff seems overpriced anymore.
 
In-ear:
Apple ipod ear buds with volume and song control: not too bad for coming free with my iphone. No bass naturally.
 
 
 
 
 
I was looking at a few 3.5mm headphones.  Needs to be 3.5mm.
Any input on these?
 
http://www.amazon.com/Crossfade-Over-Ear-Noise-Isolating-Headphone-Phantom/dp/B003BYRGLI/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top
 
http://www.amazon.com/V-MODA-Crossfade-On-Ear-Noise-Isolating-Headphone/dp/B005HSDLCO/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top
 
http://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-HD-558-Headphones/dp/B004FEEY9A/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top
 
http://www.amazon.com/Klipsch-Reference-ONE-On-Ear-Headphones/dp/B005ZNHDYS/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top
 
 
Also I am open for recommendations. I do NOT want to spend over 130 bucks.
Please do not recommend anything that has Bose, Soul, or Beats by Dre in the name.
 
Apr 17, 2013 at 1:18 AM Post #3 of 17
I guess another question I have. Is noise cancellation worth it? Does it degrade sound quality by a noticeable degree?
 
Should I just get noise isolating headphones without the batteries and electronic cancellation?
 
Apr 17, 2013 at 4:18 AM Post #4 of 17
Quote:
I guess another question I have. Is noise cancellation worth it? Does it degrade sound quality by a noticeable degree?
 
Should I just get noise isolating headphones without the batteries and electronic cancellation?

 
I think this is a good question. I would address this one first, then consider which headphones to buy.
 
I have been thinking about this one myself.
 
Conventional wisdom is that noise cancellation is good for continuous sounds. I haven't been able to test this out very thoroughly. However the kind of sounds noise cancellation is good for is aeroplane engines. The continuous drone can be reduced.
 
I checked out some Bose noise cancelling headphones (which were way outside your budget) recently. These had a noise generator on the display and this was making a sound very like the continuous aeroplane sound. The Bose headphones would reduce this sound very well.
 
For other sounds, in particular the ones I am interested in reducing, I don't think that noise cancelling systems will be so effective. I use public transport a lot and the primary noise to be reduced is simply that of other people talking.
 
For this kind of sound my guess is that good isolation is more valuable than noise cancellation, but I have not tested this out.
 
Apr 17, 2013 at 9:41 AM Post #5 of 17
I see. I was doign research last night. I am dealing more with random outbursts of sound that I would rather not hear as loudly, or cancel out when my music is on. Also, I would hardly be using them for cuttign the grass. I think isolating would be sufficient for my needs.
 
Apr 17, 2013 at 8:07 PM Post #6 of 17
Quote:
I see. I was doign research last night. I am dealing more with random outbursts of sound that I would rather not hear as loudly, or cancel out when my music is on. Also, I would hardly be using them for cuttign the grass. I think isolating would be sufficient for my needs.

 
I suspect that isolation may well be the best thing.
 
Apr 17, 2013 at 10:33 PM Post #7 of 17
Yeah. I do not want the degrading value of cancellation toward my music.
 
 
So.... any more recommendations on actual headsets????
 
I heard a bunch of sennheiser demos ant best buy. The bass had like no punch but the highs and mids were really good. Pioneer was soso.
 
Any more thoughts on V moda crossfades?
 
Apr 17, 2013 at 10:49 PM Post #8 of 17
Quote:
Yeah. I do not want the degrading value of cancellation toward my music.
 
 
So.... any more recommendations on actual headsets????
 
I heard a bunch of sennheiser demos ant best buy. The bass had like no punch but the highs and mids were really good. Pioneer was soso.
 
Any more thoughts on V moda crossfades?

The Crossfade LP is all bass, everything else sounded muddy when I tried them. The LP2 is a more refined version from what I've heard (I haven't tried them), but for now I'd recommend the M-80 or the M-100 if you're looking to get V-Moda.
 
Apr 17, 2013 at 11:00 PM Post #9 of 17
Any other brands have a bit less bass and a bit more highs and mids? Like i said, sennheiser didnt impress me. Klipsch are decent. ableplanet was terrible. bose is overpriced. audio technic I am willing to give a thought to. I can go up to like 130-140 on price range
 
Apr 17, 2013 at 11:14 PM Post #10 of 17
Quote:
Any other brands have a bit less bass and a bit more highs and mids? Like i said, sennheiser didnt impress me. Klipsch are decent. ableplanet was terrible. bose is overpriced. audio technic I am willing to give a thought to. I can go up to like 130-140 on price range

The M-80's have punchy bass, great mids/vocals and decent highs. They can be found here for $120ish if you don't mind used. Other headphones you might want to look at are Shure SRH-440, Audio Technica ATH-M50 or Grados, depending on what type of music you listen to.
 
Apr 17, 2013 at 11:21 PM Post #11 of 17
Quote:
Any other brands have a bit less bass and a bit more highs and mids? Like i said, sennheiser didnt impress me. Klipsch are decent. ableplanet was terrible. bose is overpriced. audio technic I am willing to give a thought to. I can go up to like 130-140 on price range

 
Also, could you tell me what music genres you listen to, and do you want Open or Closed back headphones?
 
Apr 17, 2013 at 11:37 PM Post #12 of 17
Preferably closed. I want minimal interference and leakage. Also, open tend to not be horribly comfortable for me.
 
I listen to a lot of rock.
Rise against
MCR
Black Veil Brides
Papa roach
Green day
AFI
Sum 41
Breaking Benjamin
 
I also listen to some dubstep/techno:
DJ Manian
Blackmill
Lindsey Sterling
(I use FL Studio to make my own music as well....piano/percussion primarily)
 
 
I rarely listen to classical
 
I NEVER listen to jazz or country.
 
I do not listen to much pop
 
anything else isnt prevalent enough to note. The rest is stuff I might listen to once or twice a month.
 
Apr 18, 2013 at 12:26 AM Post #13 of 17
I am really interested in the audio technica m50s.... They outclass the LPs on every review I read and they are only like 10 bucks more
(crossfade lp: 100-110........................m50s (s for straight cable, not coiled): 110-120
 
I am totally fine with losing the sleekness and customization of the V-modas, for a less muddied bass and better highs and mids.

the TH-ANC7B looked decent but I have decided I do not need active noise cancellation and I do not want the degraded sound quality. Also, the m50s have better reviews

 
If I were to think about the m50s but didnt mind spending an extra 25-50 bucks, would it even be worth it? or are these the best I will get under the 150 dollar price range.
 
They seem to have a punchy enough bass and extremely good highs, and decent/good mids from what I have read.
 
Apr 18, 2013 at 3:11 AM Post #14 of 17
Quote:
Preferably closed. I want minimal interference and leakage. Also, open tend to not be horribly comfortable for me.
 
I listen to a lot of rock.
Rise against
MCR
Black Veil Brides
Papa roach
Green day
AFI
Sum 41
Breaking Benjamin
 
I also listen to some dubstep/techno:
DJ Manian
Blackmill
Lindsey Sterling
(I use FL Studio to make my own music as well....piano/percussion primarily)
 
 
I rarely listen to classical
 
I NEVER listen to jazz or country.
 
I do not listen to much pop
 
anything else isnt prevalent enough to note. The rest is stuff I might listen to once or twice a month.

Grados are ideal for rock, but might not be the best for Dubstep/Techno/Classical not to mention they're open. The M50s are more suited for stuff like Pop/Dubstep. The mids are slightly reccessed on them. I'm not sure how they would work with rock, but definitely not classical.
 
Apr 18, 2013 at 9:54 PM Post #15 of 17
Well I took into consideration, that I do not work with vocals with my software. Also, I was pretty sure having good highs and lows could cover a somewhat lacking mid
 
I bought the ATH m50s at guitar center today. they were 160. They pricematched B&H audio/video for $107.00. After tax I got my new headphones for 117.
 
 
My thoughts so far.
 
I listened to
Manian - Ravers fantasy
Blackmill - Spirit of Life
Black Veil brides - morticians daughter
MCR - welcome to the black parade
MCR - The sharpest lives (A drum cover)
Queen - We are the champions (A vocal cover)
Bon Jovi - Its my life
Bullet for my valentine - Tears dont fall
Frank Sinatra - Fly me to the moon
AFI - Miss Murder
 
 
Thoughts:
 
Manian and Black mill were incredible on this headset. the highs in spirit of life were a bit too crisp. Bass was awesome in both. Nice punch.
 
Moriticans daughter was beautiful
 
MCR - drum covers are a bit rough due to the cymbals being over-present
 
MCR - black parade- Cymbals a bit over-present again. Guitars and vocals were just fine. Percussion was fantastic.
 
Queen - Vocal covers and actual song were absolutely incredible. I noticed a lot of parts of the song I missed before.
 
Bullet for my valentine - Awesome lows. More than satisfactory mids. Again, the highs were slightly over-pronounced.
 
Frank Sinatra - Amazing.
 
AFI - same as other rock songs. good lows and mids. cymbals too crisp.
 
 
 
Coming out of my motherboard from my computer using the 3.5 mm jack: overall
 
 Lows were amazing but not overpowering. Bass had the perfect amount of punch for me, but not enough for extreme bass heads.
Mids: not nearly as recessed as I thought they would be, or as people made them out to be.
Highs: ridiculously clear and crisp. Cymbals and hats are a bit rough on the ears.
 
So everything was nice and this headset is extremely clear and crisp. The highs are a bit much, but I hope that gets better as I burn these bad boys in a bit.
 
 
 
Comfort: great for my ears even with glasses. A bit tight, but thats expected. I will give em a day or two of sitting on their box or my head.
 
Noise isolation: Better than my 80 dollar gaming headset. idk how well it will put up with a lawn mower though. I feel as if the isolation wont cut it there, but I will test it in weeks to come
 
 
 
Quality for the price: 9/10
 
Quality for exactly what I was looking for sound-wise: 8.5/10
 
Quality for noise isolation: 7.5/10
 
Now i will try it with my ipod
 
 
 
 
 
---edit-----
with my ipod, the highs are a little less harsh, but the bass is much more powerful and recesses the mids a bit. This is on both the flat EQ setting and the OFF setting.
 
interesting.
 

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