[MaZa]

Greetings. Lemme introduce myself. A long and boring biography! Jump straight to end if not interested.

Im mainly listening Deathmetal and Blackmetal, classical and Ambient. I am looking for higher end headphones currently. I started my hobby with Sporta Pro and used them for years. I also bought Philips SBC-HP840 for computer and homestereo use, and considering for price i paid (20€) they sounded surprisingly good!

When my Sporta Pro broke, i bought AKG K26P. And good god, they practically sucked. They have deepest bass i have ever heard from small headphones, but it was so bloomy! Phony mids, no highs, all bass. I popped in Hate Eternals - I monarch disc, and all complex guitar riffs were drowned under mayhem of drums and midbass ambient. Luckily i got PX100 soon after, and man i love those headphones! Everything is so balanced after those horrible K26P.

To replace my HP840, i got AKG K 240 S. At first i was slightly dissapointed. I had expectations high, but they still sounded good. Midbassy, but good! A slight nudge to midbass in equalisator and cutting a hole to foam covering drivers and sound was mainly fixed.






And now to the main question: I am looking for even better headphones to replace K240S.

If you bothered to read all above, you perhaps have some indication what im looking for. As i listen very emotionally aggressive and heavily layered music (be it grim wall-of-sound with melodies like blackmetal or intense mayhem of deathmetal), i guess i want them to be clear with impactive, but non-bloomy bass.

Grados are out since they cost ridiculous amounts of green here in finland! Too bad, really... I have my eyes on HD 595 and AKG K701. Atleast reviews are impressive. Which one of those are more suitable for music i listen? I can get a pair of HD595 for quite cheap. Or should i save more and move straight to AKG K701? They are costly and my old home stereoamplifier isnt powerhouse, but are they worth it? I have been reading about them for some time now, and i am impressed what i have readed about its highs and mids. My concern is bass though if they are impactive enough for high-speed aggressive drumming and if they are able to bring enough emotion to music.

Im also open for other possible headphone choices.

 

[Mercuttio]

I think the K701 is a little more "polite" (lacking impact) compared to the 595. I think between the two, the 595's more of a rocker.

 

[NotJeffBuckley]

I have a pair of SR-225, an Audio-Technica A900, Sennheiser HD280Pro, Sennheiser HD650, and a really nice stereo.

The headphones all have individual amplifiers, as well, for quick switching if I feel the desire to do so.

With all those choices, which do I use for death, progressive, folk, and ambient metal?

The HD650. They've got everything just right for metal cans. I love the strength they bring to the listen, effortlessly and powerfully reproducing the whole spectrum without overemphasizing any particular part of it and without leaving anything out. Compared to my SR-225, which are great rock headphones, they have the feeling of a considerable amount more body and fullness to the music. It's difficult to describe without relying on BS audiophile vocabulary that means nothing, but the sensation of hearing the whole wall of sound is there with the HD650 and not with the SR-225.

 

[Mercuttio]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NotJeffBuckley I have a pair of SR-225, an Audio-Technica A900, Sennheiser HD280Pro, Sennheiser HD650, and a really nice stereo. The headphones all have individual amplifiers, as well, for quick switching if I feel the desire to do so. With all those choices, which do I use for death, progressive, folk, and ambient metal? The HD650. They've got everything just right for metal cans. I love the strength they bring to the listen, effortlessly and powerfully reproducing the whole spectrum without overemphasizing any particular part of it and without leaving anything out. Compared to my SR-225, which are great rock headphones, they have the feeling of a considerable amount more body and fullness to the music. It's difficult to describe without relying on BS audiophile vocabulary that means nothing, but the sensation of hearing the whole wall of sound is there with the HD650 and not with the SR-225.

Yeah, I think having the "wall of sound" is rather important with that music. Grado have a more sparse presentation.

 

[Rickio]

I like DT990 and SR225 for all kinds of rock and DT990 is great for Ambient and Classical, all Rock really.

I have a HD555 and had been ignoring it but I got a Hornet amp and Cardas interconnect and man! That HD555 sure opened up a lot! It's said to be the little brother of the HD595 which is said to be more detailed.

I am hearing some ambient right now on HD555 and it sounds excellent.

If the HD555 sounds this good I imagine the HD595 would be excellent for your music. In fact with a good amp like I mentioned you would likely be happy with the HD555. I also have k240s and have koss ksc75 and 50 which uses same driver as portapro.

 

[kramer5150]

Millet hybrid
RS1 / HF1
SA5k

IMHO Senns are too laid back.

Garrett

 

[darkninja67]

Listening to Metallica's: And Justice For All with my 595s right now and it sounds great. The 650s seemed to be too relaxed IMO. If you like more bass impact go with 770s or A900s (less thump but still heavy)

 

[MaZa]

SA5k would have been really interesting, but they are WAY out of my pricerange. They cost over 500€. HD650 and K701 are on pain-line, (about 350€) and i have to save for some time before i can get one.


So its down to HD 595 and HD 650. I try to find a shop that has them both and give them a try and listen them.

 

[MaZa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by darkninja67 Listening to Metallica's: And Justice For All with my 595s right now and it sounds great. The 650s seemed to be too relaxed IMO. If you like more bass impact go with 770s or A900s (less thump but still heavy)

What kind of headphones are those last two, in sound that is? And who is making them?

 

[Icehawk]

Respectively, Beyerdynamic and Audio Technica.

Personally I wouldn't toss Grado out - I really like the SR325i and some of my test music was Megadeth and Pantera

Not sure how bad the markup is in Finland but an SR80 might be a nice can for you to try.

 

[MaZa]

Well lets say that SR80 costs about as much as HD595, slightly less, when its supposed to cost about half less! Really, they are twice costlier than in US. Grado products are horribly overpriced in Europe.



Megadeth - Sweating Bullets makes me smile everytime. Funny lyrics.

 

[Ice Nine]

[size=small]Doesn't Allessandro ship MS-1's anywhere for $99? That would make a lot more sense then the lower model Grados. I listen to a lot of my metal collection through MS-1's (mostly goth metal) [/size]

 

[MaZa]

I dont have a credit card.

If i would get a Grado product, it would most likely get Alessandro model though.

 

[Icehawk]

Bummer, maybe you can poke around here and on Audiogon for a used pair that you could pay via Paypal.

I love old Megadeth the most but the test track I used interestingly enough was "Foreclosure of a Dream". I really like the speed and upfront nature of the Grado line with this kind of music and it also worked very well with the electronica I like.

My alternative choice was the K701 but I felt they were just to analytical/clean sounding - very good but I wanted more fun, hence the SR325i.

 

[MaZa]

Perhaps. But i stay in locals for now. Lets see what HD595 and 650 has to offer. I seriously hope that 595 is better cuz that would hurt my wallet less.