[thegrayson]

I mostly listen to music on my pc, and occasionally via a media streamer on my small Sony hifi. I long ago realised I was happier listening on headphones but could never quite find any that were comfortable. After reading a bit recently I think what I need are open or semi open circumaural phones. Price and availability here have led me to look at these headphones and although I see a lot of opinions on the Sennheiser HD 595 I see very little on the AKG K242HD. The 595s seem pretty common and probably a good start but what about the AKGs?
 
At the moment I have nothing to really drive these, my options are the headphone jacks on my hifi, PC ac97 chipset, or my Creative Itrigue 2.1 speakers. Will these headphones be good or even passable until I can afford something else? I'm looking at the Xonar Essence Stx or a Firestone Fubar IV, depending on whether I replace my current PC with a new desktop or laptop.
 
Thanks for any help.

 

[loopfreak]

From my perspective , hd 595 is little dull which is odd since that attribute often comes with akg 'phones (which is wrong from the start IMO). For both 'phones you will need little power to sound good and those integrated solutions does not cut it.

 

[Tigerhawk]

The 555/595s are not dull by any means, IMO.  They work well without an amp, but at the same time I have experienced first hand, good improvements from amping.  The AKG HD phones look great, but I have no idea how they'd sound.

 

[Ypoknons]

I remember, I used to power a '595 from a Headroom Micro (desktop 2006), and well, you don't get much of a soundstage without a decent amp, but atm I don't think you need anything fancy, just some power.

 

[thegrayson]

I suppose I should broaden my search a little. I would like a decent pair of 'phones that work well without an amp, but that will shine when I do have the money to add the Xonar Essence or an amp to my PC. I picked the HD595 and K242 because of availability and price. All of the smaller electrical shops have closed down here leaving me with Currys, PC World and HMV to pick from. None of which have a great selection or are very willing to open a blister pack and let you try them out, so I'll be buying online based on recommendations from you guys. Am trying to constrain myself top under €150. 
 
From what has been posted the 595s are a good headphone but only if I have an amp. Is the same true of the AKG K242? If so, what should I be looking at?

 

[thegrayson]

Bump. Still trying to make a decision. The new PC build is underway and will include a Xonar Essence XT. It would be very convenient to order the AKG K242HD phones with all the parts. However the Audio Technica seem to get a good mention as easy to drive headphone. So its down to these two. I play games, watch movies and tv, and listen to a wide range of music on the PC, so which is the better option?
Could really use some good advice here. Thanks.

 

[earerror]

From what i see You will have a good soundcard...regarding the Akg's they do sound good, they are detailed and the bass is not punchy..but still is present and crisp. 
I listened them once with a psp, and they sounded good. (they cant go very loud) if you need more power i think you need an amp for these. 

 

[thegrayson]

Thanks for the feed back Earerror. I'm not looking for volume. My PC is in the smallest room in house. I'm aiming for good clear sound and have opted for semi open phones over closed as I really don't like the sound pressure. I have given up on speakers as my girlfriend always complains about the bass even if the volume isn't high. I really want to pick headphones that will work well with the Xonar card without the need to add an amp. Hopefully the K242s will be a good choice.

 

[thegrayson]

Bit the bullet yesterday and ordered the Xonar Essence STX and AKG K242HD phones. Hopefully I made a decent choice, its very hard to tell with so little info and so few opinions of recent AKG headphones. Four replies out of ninety odd views isn't a lot to work with.

 

[Ypoknons]

I heard the recent version and I thought it was quite 'ok' - nothing spectacular, but a good oldie, fairly neutral.

 

[Tigerhawk]

Quote:

Bit the bullet yesterday and ordered the Xonar Essence STX and AKG K242HD phones. Hopefully I made a decent choice, its very hard to tell with so little info and so few opinions of recent AKG headphones. Four replies out of ninety odd views isn't a lot to work with.

Let us know what you think of the headphone's audio and build quality, if you have the spare time.  Hope you like them. 

 

[Hevan]

Any news on these? I'm kinda in the same boat, hard to find info on the AKG K242 HD

 

[Deadmice]

Quote:

Originally Posted by thegrayson /img/forum/go_quote.gif

From what has been posted the 595s are a good headphone but only if I have an amp. Is the same true of the AKG K242? If so, what should I be looking at?

I use the 595 without an amp and find them to be fine, they're really easy to drive. I don't know if you've taken this into consedriation but the 595's are terminated in a 1/4" plug with an adapter for normal 1/8" jacks. So the plug sticks 2"ish out of anything you plug it into with the adapter, making them kinda awkward to use with portables and pockets.
 
Edit: oops i need to read all the posts