[L1b0rp]

Hi all,
thanks for accepting me to this community. I'm a student in CZ and a year ago I bought my first in-ear headphones with DAP - Campfire Audio Polaris II & Fiio M11 and this combination works pretty well for me, there is a little bit more bass than I would like and it sounds to me a little bit "darker"?, but I like them and will keep them as long as I can.

Currently my old SteelSeries 5HV2 are not working properly (plastic bridge is falling off piece by piece) and I am looking for a new (and better) pair of over-ear headphones, which will be what the Polaris II aren't - neutral-ish tuned, solid soundstage and addictive to listen to.
I have found around 5 pairs, that have good reviews and are in my budget range (250 - 350 USD), but I am open to any recommendation.
The headphones I already consider are:
1) Audiotechnica ATH-R70x,
2) Beyerdynamic DT880 Pro,
3) Hifiman HE400i (HE400s?),
4) Hifiman Sundara,
5) Sennheiser HD600.

I listen to almost every genre of music (rock, pop, classical, soundtrack,...) and I will use these headphones primarily with PC (probably need DAC/AMP?) for distance education and gaming.
Which one of these should I consider optimal for me? Do you have any other recommendation?

Thank you for all your answers and replies.
Best regards,
Libor.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

The Sennheiser HD 600 is one of the best possible all around headphones at any price but you will need an amp to get the most out of them. The Sundara is designed to be run from laptops, portable devices etc. and should be a very nice set also.

 

[silent-circuit]

R70X gets my vote, but you'll definitely need an amp with them. In fact, I'd recommend a DAC/amp with balanced output and a balanced cable for t he R70X.

They keep up with things costing multiple times their price, and I personally prefer them (both in terms of sound and comfort) to the HD600 series.

 

[Cruelhand Luke]

You should consider the Fidelio X3...its a really underrated headphone. It's as good, or better, than everything on your list, depending on what your priorities are.
Huge soundstage, some of the best bass you'll find in the price range, detailed and clear treble....just a beautiful and engaging sound.
And they are FAR easier to drive than anything else on your list. They were on sale for as low as $200 recently ...I doubt you'll find any used ones for sale, they are keepers.
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/philips-fidelio-x3.913807/page-99

 

[gimmeheadroom]

R70X gets my vote, but you'll definitely need an amp with them. In fact, I'd recommend a DAC/amp with balanced output and a balanced cable for t he R70X.

They keep up with things costing multiple times their price, and I personally prefer them (both in terms of sound and comfort) to the HD600 series.

The HD 600 is perfectly comfortable. It just takes your jaws and skull a decade or so to get used to the clamp

 

[L1b0rp]

Thank you for quick replies.

As I see it at the moment I will not be able to avoid purchasing headphone amp, whether it'll be for HD600s, Sundaras or ATH-R70xs or any other pair of headphones. Maybe it'll sound quite interesting with guitar preamp (Steinberg UR22 mk2) and my electro-acoustic guitar.

@gimmeheadroom - I don't mind if the comfort is low, if it sounds amazing I could bear the pain
@Cruelhand Luke - From what I've read from the thread you mentioned, the headphones (Fidelio X3) are interesting, how are the frequencies in the bass spectrum loud compared to headphones from the list above? I'd like an "universal" pair of headphones not only for computer use (playing guitar, listening to music, watching movies, etc.) and since I have already bass-heavy CA Polaris II, I don't have the need to have another pair with little bit more bass. Accuracy, soundstage and tone neutrality will be important for me, but at this price point I can make some compromises.

I've looked into the headphone amp problematic and IMO it will be better for me to buy something from second-hand or maybe even better - from Schiit Audio USA directly. Will be Schiit Audio Magnius (199USD+50USD CZ taxes+duties) enough considering balanced output and the high-impedance headphones like ATH-R70x or should I spend a little more extra and get Valhalla (349USD + 80USD taxes+duties)?

 

[gimmeheadroom]

They are amazing, the HD 600 is probably the best all around set of headphones in the history of headphones, at anywhere near the price. Many of the parts are available too so they should last forever.

If you're talking about a USB audio interface then no, it will not do a good job driving high impedance dynamic headphones. Check with audigo.cz and see if they have a Valhalla 2 available. It is not worth importing schiit to CR, and the company that owns audigo.cz (empetria.cz) is the schiit distributor for CR. Jakub is a good guy.

 

[L1b0rp]

@gimmeheadroom I don't mean USB audio interface I mean something like this: PC->2x3.5mm jack to 2x RCA->Schiit Magnius or another amp(powered off the wall)->headphones.
I didn't know Audigo.cz is an official Schiit distributor, that's awesome! I'll try asking there (two years ago I bought there Fiio M11+CA Polaris II and since then I bought some Comply and I was satisfied with their customer service).

 

[gimmeheadroom]

Sure, if you can run them off a real amp they'll be fine. For high impedance dynamics a Valhalla 2 will do much better than a solid state amp. If you do get a solid state amp you can drive a lot of headphones fine though.

Yeah schiit europe is based in the UK and even before Brexit would not sell to CR. I found out years ago schiit has the CR distributorship.

I can't recommend any schiit products aside from Valhalla 2 and Lyr 2 though. If you have the money you could look at Burson or whatever else audigo can get. Feel free to pm me if I can help with anything.

 

[L1b0rp]

@gimmeheadroom Thanks for info, unfortunately I don't have that much money for Lyr 2 or Burson (and headphones). Lyr 2 alone would be like 80 - 85 % of my whole budget

 

[gimmeheadroom]

Lyr 2 is not a good match for HD 600s but it works well for planars. Also, the Lyr 3 is out so the 2 should be cheaper. Stay away from the 3

 

[QuantumRock]

Hi all,
thanks for accepting me to this community. I'm a student in CZ and a year ago I bought my first in-ear headphones with DAP - Campfire Audio Polaris II & Fiio M11 and this combination works pretty well for me, there is a little bit more bass than I would like and it sounds to me a little bit "darker"?, but I like them and will keep them as long as I can.

Currently my old SteelSeries 5HV2 are not working properly (plastic bridge is falling off piece by piece) and I am looking for a new (and better) pair of over-ear headphones, which will be what the Polaris II aren't - neutral-ish tuned, solid soundstage and addictive to listen to.
I have found around 5 pairs, that have good reviews and are in my budget range (250 - 350 USD), but I am open to any recommendation.
The headphones I already consider are:
1) Audiotechnica ATH-R70x,
2) Beyerdynamic DT880 Pro,
3) Hifiman HE400i (HE400s?),
4) Hifiman Sundara,
5) Sennheiser HD600.

I listen to almost every genre of music (rock, pop, classical, soundtrack,...) and I will use these headphones primarily with PC (probably need DAC/AMP?) for distance education and gaming.
Which one of these should I consider optimal for me? Do you have any other recommendation?

Thank you for all your answers and replies.
Best regards,
Libor.

My vote would be for the Meze 99 Neo's or the Sundara's. The Meze's would be a little cheaper, and they sound amazing. I've seen a lot of people convert to Meze products after trying them.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

Audigo has both these and you can probably even try them in their shop if you can get to Prague without being arrested

 

[L1b0rp]

I know you could try them on before the "lockdown" begun, but at that moment my over-ear headphones were working properly. I've read on their website, that their stores in Prague and Brno are closed and only e-shop is open unfortunately. And even if there wasn't any "lockdown", Prague is for me quite far away (~165 km).

 

[gimmeheadroom]

Ok, but you could bring a carload of Pilsner Urquell with you. It wouldn't be a trip without any purpose