[DJ-Studd]

Howdy.
After having spent enough time with these 16 year old headphones that I realised were Sennheiser HD-400's I have decided to upgrade the pleasure for my ears.

First, I'm from Australia so the currency is different.
I'm planning on spending anywhere between $AUD400-$AUD800 on a good pair of headphones, and if needed, a replacement cable for them (as I have heard that replacing the standard cable increases the quality?).

I listen to a range of music, however mostly electronic (trance, house and techno including some nice piano mixes) along with small amounts of pretty much every other style, requiring a good mix of highs and lows.

The phones that I have had my eyes on from reading these forums are the HD-600's. Are there any other phones that are in this league? When listening to trance it would be good to have a large soundstage.

So, to sum up my above post, I would like recommendations on a very good set of headphones and possibly a replacement cable.

Look forward to your replies. Thanks for your time all!

 

[DJ-Studd]

Also, as a side post, I will be powering these from my NAD Gold Series amp most of the time, and occasionally taking them out with my Sony MZR-900 MiniDisc walkman.

 

[mecano]

well hd600 are not ideal for electronica.Grado 325 are much better for rave/techno as long as rock/indie.less refined than hd600 but brighter and faster in fact they sound as they look!
(metal and leather!)my portable system is mzr900/creek obh 11/grado 325 and sounds very nice .my hd600 sound slow and dark with mzr900 as a source -with the amp of course.without an amp hd 600 is a waste of money.you really need good amp AND source to hear hd 600 at their best .It isn t the same with gradoes.

 

[Snufkin]

Quote:

listen to a range of music, however mostly electronic (trance, house and techno including some nice piano mixes) along with small amounts of pretty much every other style, requiring a good mix of highs and lows

Beyer DT770pro (closed) or perhaps Beyer DT531 (open, wider soundstage).

And a headphone amp, definately budget for an amp.

If you're budgeting fairly high, why not get more than one pair?

And don't buy Sennheisers locally, the prices that local oz suppliers charge are crazy.

 

[Old Pa]

IMHO an air transducer (headphone or speaker) should be satisfactory for all forms of input/styles of music. I have been very happy with my HD600s in this regard, but they do present a more difficult amp load and you will need an amp with good power supply. An amp can also give you crossfeed capability (Corda or HeadRoom), which I also personally like. You did not say if portability/battery operation was an issue. I would also say that for long-term listening, the Senn 580/600 style is extremely comfortable and allows variety in placement on your ears ala Jan Meier's suggestions on the Meier Audio website (forward and low). I also have been happy with my Etymotic 4S's, but that's a different listening experience (isolation and in-your-ear). I got my biggest benefit with the HD600s from adding an amp as opposed to changing a cable, and changing a cable can certainly be done later. Meier has some good combo prices on HD600s (and other phones) when bought with a CORDA or Porta CORDA amp that would be within your price range. CORDA amps have miniplug outputs, however, and a replacement cable like a Cardas comes with the larger 1/4" plug. Tyll's better HeadRoom amps sound better to me than the CORDA, but you are then into at least two or three times as much money, Finally, you did not say what your source CD player was, but upgrading your cans will probably send you towards upgrading your source. Have fun.

 

[andrzejpw]

I'd recommend getting a corda/hd600 package from meier. Why? Because it would seem like the best deal for you, since people say that you can't get a good price on sennheiser. I imagine grado is even worse there.

On the other hand, it seems like the 580s/600s aren't the best for electronica. . .

 

[mecano]

Really large soundstage is something you can get only from electrostatic headphones. Stax Basic II will beat beyer DT531 hands down for that.
But electrostatics don’t have the bass slam of top of the line dynamics. I used to own sony cd3000(based on the legendary R-10 King)and they had an amazingly large deep soundstage for a dynamic headphone,if you can find a pair of those they may be what you want.Of course all these are not exactly portable although CD3000 or Grado325 are easy to drive from an Airhead.And yes an Amp is a must.

 

[a1leyez0nm3]

audiotechnica w100 Go for it!!

 

[Matthew-Spaltro]

Ath w100 and meta42. Then you can worry about the scource. I have the denon dcm 370. I like the denon.