sackynut
100+ Head-Fier
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I was browsing around amazon last week when I came across the sony Altus MDR-D777Lp headphones for $30. Although I read they are not worth the $150 asking price, $30 seemed like a deal.
So they finally came. Here are my pre-burn in impressions. I know there are some other reviews around on this site, but it never hurts to have another opinion right?
Comfort:
The Altus headphones are noticeably more tight on the head than many other cans I have worn (besides the 280 Pros). There are actually two ways I found to wear these cans (take that with a grain of salt, I couldnt find a better way to state it.)
Semi-Supra-aurally and circum-aurally.
By the former, I mean purposely putting it on so it doesnt fully cover you ear. This is actually the most comfortable way to wear it. The normal way is circumaurally, which is comfortable for about ~10 minutes, tolerable for about another ~20-30 minutes, unbearable for the next 30-45 and then back down to tolerable (since you get used to the feel). I would say these are a notch less or possible on par with clamping of the Sennheiser 280 Pros, and much more clamping/painful than my Audio Technica A700's.
The reason I can tolerate the 280 Pros longer, is because when I use them, I am busy at work recording and producing audio. With the Altus headphones, I am purely trying to enjoy my music, and therefore tend to notice the clamp more.
When I put them on my head, I knew they werent ideal. Nonetheless, my ears fit entirely inside, unlike some, and I have decent sized ears.
Edit: after about 20 minutes of use, I have a headache. Not the most comfortable phones.
Isolation:
In "closed" mode:
Decent isolation, better than my A700's, and probably on par with, or VERY close to the level of isolation provided by the Sennheiser 280 Pros. when I snapped my fingers a foot away from my head, I could hear the sound very faintly. and I doubt if I could have noticed had I not KNOWN I was snapping my fingers.
In "open" mode:
No difference at all. Good job sony.
Sound Leakage:
A faint amount. If listened to at decent volumes, I doubt it would disturb someone sleeping on a hotel-beds distance away (meaning if you listened to it going to sleep in a 2 bedroom hotel room, the person on the other bed would not hear.) Complex eh?
Sound Quality:
In "closed" mode:
I listened to these tracks on my Creative X-fi Platinum sound card with the 24-bit crystallizer on.
Jam Up - Spyro Gyra [jazz, soul](V0)
Light the Skies - Cerf (retrobyte remix) [trance](lossless)
in fear and faith - circa survive [rock, emo](lossless)
inca road - zappa and the MOI [prog rock?](lossless)
Kickin it - Yadda Yadda [acid jazz](lossless)
U and Dat - E-40 [rap] (lossless)
The sound is somewhat bright, with tight bass that is not lacking. although these are not cans for bassheads, the bass does not lack IMO. If it wasnt for the bright sound the sound signature on these would be better. I found the bass extension to be average, and the impact to be slightly below average, yet tight.
I found these good for jazz, prog rock (for example my Zappa) and hip hop. Although hip hop fans enjoy a lot of bass, I found the bass sufficient, and the frequency response accented vocals (which is key in rap and hip hop).
Rock, trance, D&B (and other forms of electronica) I found lacking, but still enjoyable.
The detail is there, but clutters your head because of 1. the upfront sound and 2. the clamping, I cannot stress how hard these things clamp.
The quality of these are slightly inferior to the triports, superior to my Everglide S-500 gaming headphones (priced at $60 online), and superior to my PX100's.
Its hard to judge the sound quality of these cans. It is definitely decent, ESPECIALLY for portables, but probably worth around $50-70 for most people.
Soundstage:
I didnt really like the sound stage, there wasnt much of one. Everything was upfront and in your face. It almost "cluttered" the music. Not a laid back phone.
Build Quality:
The cans themselves are built quite nice, as well as the headband. But the plastic Y connectors seem very very cheap, and from all the reviews I have read, they break within months, often weeks. I wont care much when it happens since these only put me out $30, but if I paid the asking price ($100) I would be infuriated. They seem as though they could widthstand begin in a backpack. Meaning, they LOOK and FEEL durable for purely travel-entertainment. These would not, for example, rough it out on a camping trip or something.
Overall:
For $30 these are solid cans. Although they are worth $50-70 I would not buy them solely because of the comfort issue. I would sacrifice a slight bit of quality not to have a headache while listening to music. How am I supposed to ENJOY it, if its crushing my skull? They make great portables (at $30) if you can deal with the clamp. If you had to pay $70, I would definitely go with the Audio Technica ES7's.
Pros:
Decent sound quality, especially for $30.
Decent, tight, somewhat extended bass.
Light, portable.
Look cool.
Cons:
Very tight on the head. tighter than I expected
Bright sound (hey, GREAT for jazz and zappa!)
Not for bassheads
Build quality issues with the Y connector.
Short cord.
Pictures coming soon.
So they finally came. Here are my pre-burn in impressions. I know there are some other reviews around on this site, but it never hurts to have another opinion right?
Comfort:
The Altus headphones are noticeably more tight on the head than many other cans I have worn (besides the 280 Pros). There are actually two ways I found to wear these cans (take that with a grain of salt, I couldnt find a better way to state it.)
Semi-Supra-aurally and circum-aurally.
By the former, I mean purposely putting it on so it doesnt fully cover you ear. This is actually the most comfortable way to wear it. The normal way is circumaurally, which is comfortable for about ~10 minutes, tolerable for about another ~20-30 minutes, unbearable for the next 30-45 and then back down to tolerable (since you get used to the feel). I would say these are a notch less or possible on par with clamping of the Sennheiser 280 Pros, and much more clamping/painful than my Audio Technica A700's.
The reason I can tolerate the 280 Pros longer, is because when I use them, I am busy at work recording and producing audio. With the Altus headphones, I am purely trying to enjoy my music, and therefore tend to notice the clamp more.
When I put them on my head, I knew they werent ideal. Nonetheless, my ears fit entirely inside, unlike some, and I have decent sized ears.
Edit: after about 20 minutes of use, I have a headache. Not the most comfortable phones.
Isolation:
In "closed" mode:
Decent isolation, better than my A700's, and probably on par with, or VERY close to the level of isolation provided by the Sennheiser 280 Pros. when I snapped my fingers a foot away from my head, I could hear the sound very faintly. and I doubt if I could have noticed had I not KNOWN I was snapping my fingers.
In "open" mode:
No difference at all. Good job sony.
Sound Leakage:
A faint amount. If listened to at decent volumes, I doubt it would disturb someone sleeping on a hotel-beds distance away (meaning if you listened to it going to sleep in a 2 bedroom hotel room, the person on the other bed would not hear.) Complex eh?
Sound Quality:
In "closed" mode:
I listened to these tracks on my Creative X-fi Platinum sound card with the 24-bit crystallizer on.
Jam Up - Spyro Gyra [jazz, soul](V0)
Light the Skies - Cerf (retrobyte remix) [trance](lossless)
in fear and faith - circa survive [rock, emo](lossless)
inca road - zappa and the MOI [prog rock?](lossless)
Kickin it - Yadda Yadda [acid jazz](lossless)
U and Dat - E-40 [rap] (lossless)
The sound is somewhat bright, with tight bass that is not lacking. although these are not cans for bassheads, the bass does not lack IMO. If it wasnt for the bright sound the sound signature on these would be better. I found the bass extension to be average, and the impact to be slightly below average, yet tight.
I found these good for jazz, prog rock (for example my Zappa) and hip hop. Although hip hop fans enjoy a lot of bass, I found the bass sufficient, and the frequency response accented vocals (which is key in rap and hip hop).
Rock, trance, D&B (and other forms of electronica) I found lacking, but still enjoyable.
The detail is there, but clutters your head because of 1. the upfront sound and 2. the clamping, I cannot stress how hard these things clamp.
The quality of these are slightly inferior to the triports, superior to my Everglide S-500 gaming headphones (priced at $60 online), and superior to my PX100's.
Its hard to judge the sound quality of these cans. It is definitely decent, ESPECIALLY for portables, but probably worth around $50-70 for most people.
Soundstage:
I didnt really like the sound stage, there wasnt much of one. Everything was upfront and in your face. It almost "cluttered" the music. Not a laid back phone.
Build Quality:
The cans themselves are built quite nice, as well as the headband. But the plastic Y connectors seem very very cheap, and from all the reviews I have read, they break within months, often weeks. I wont care much when it happens since these only put me out $30, but if I paid the asking price ($100) I would be infuriated. They seem as though they could widthstand begin in a backpack. Meaning, they LOOK and FEEL durable for purely travel-entertainment. These would not, for example, rough it out on a camping trip or something.
Overall:
For $30 these are solid cans. Although they are worth $50-70 I would not buy them solely because of the comfort issue. I would sacrifice a slight bit of quality not to have a headache while listening to music. How am I supposed to ENJOY it, if its crushing my skull? They make great portables (at $30) if you can deal with the clamp. If you had to pay $70, I would definitely go with the Audio Technica ES7's.
Pros:
Decent sound quality, especially for $30.
Decent, tight, somewhat extended bass.
Light, portable.
Look cool.
Cons:
Very tight on the head. tighter than I expected
Bright sound (hey, GREAT for jazz and zappa!)
Not for bassheads
Build quality issues with the Y connector.
Short cord.
Pictures coming soon.
