[Scottyz Rulz]

I have a NEX IIe and I want a good pair of headphones and i've been looking at the Sony MDR-v700dj headphones and I love the looks of them. If anyone knows a better pair of phones that look good like them and are in the same price range, 100$ US, then reply or if anyone has a pair of the MDR-v700 tell me what they sound like.

 

[stan23]

Try the MDR-V6 $79 and I hear its *worlds* better than the DJ line from Sony.

 

[Eagle_Driver]

Scottyz Rulz,

If you're dead set for a bona-fide DJ-style headphone, be prepared to shell out big $$$'s - and then get disappointed in the sound that's being excreted from it. You see, you'll pay waaaay too much $$$ for that MDR-V700DJ, and not get much in sound quality (if anything at all) for what you pay for it.

And not only does the MDR-V700DJ get bad reviews from most of us here at Head-Fi, but none of the other bona-fide DJ headphones (you see, the ones with "DJ" in their model name) get good reviews at all whatsoever from us. They all sacrifice clarity, detail and accuracy in favour of overpowering bass (i.e. bass that almost completely overpowers the mids and highs) and extreme loudness. And on top of that problem, whatever little mids coming out of those DJ headphones are honky, and whatever little highs coming out of them are screechy and harsh.

 

[JiPi]

I might be playing with fire saying what I will say.. but heck, I felt like it :

The V700 aren't THAT bad. I have a pair, and I kind of like them. OK, so I'm no audiophile.
That might explain my liking them. But still, I find them very good and to be honest, better than
I expected - I must admit I was prepared for the worst sound ever when I tried them on for
the first time. Blame all the burns these recieve over here, but then again, most the people
who flame them are ''audiophiles'' that listen to HD600 and CD3K all day

. Go figure.
But I must say I did not pay the whole (quite expensive) suggested retail price for them!
I may be crazy but not that much!!

I got them on, uh, sale.. So yeah, it's your choice, really. If
you really want to have the best bang-for-buck pair of headphone, then I shall stick with
the pro's and say 'Stay away from the V700!'. But if you want OK overpriced sound - and very
good looks btw - then go ahead! That's all I have to say.

As for the best bang for your buck, I guess people will say PortaPro, V6 or D66, depending
on what you would be looking for in a headphone. Obviously these are mostly portable 'phones,
presuming this is what you're looking for (unless you had in mind to use V700's at home?!!!?

)

 

[HeadphonesNewGuy]

My roomate has a pr of Sony DJ700's and they are crap..they look sweet, but they are not comfortable to say the least. The sound quality is nothing better than the pair of headphones that came with my iRiver. If you want to spend $100 get a pair of Sony Eggo's, Sony V6's or Senn. HD280 Pro's (and save a little cash). I have HD280's and my roomate seems to borrow them all the time, he says his DJ700's are **** and he paid the MSRP when they first came out ($149.99 - claims to be the worst $150 ever spent). I hope this keeps you away man.

 

[bangraman]

There is a time when a MDR-V700DJ makes sense for portable listening, bizarre as this may seem. It's when your player has a very weak output and a clean but comparatively bassless sound (and/or players with unrealistic Mega Bass settings). I can mention many Sony minidisc players or the latest super long lasting Discmans as a good example. But unless you have money to burn a portable-specific headphone (because I didn't find them usable for home listening) that the Eggo D66's completely crap on (apart from isolation and possibly looks) which is $100+ may not be your wisest purchase.


However the power thing doesn't seem to be an issue with your NEX from the specs I've looked at. Go for the V6/7506. They're lower profile and fold smaller, too.

 

[Eagle_Driver]

Well, I will have to respectfully disagree with you, bangraman, about the MDR-V700DJ's. Many of Sony's newest CD Walkman players actually suffer from noticeably rolled-off highs from their headphone outs. Couple that with the V700's recessed highs, and you'll end up with nothing but mud.

 

[gloco]

Another vote for the Sony V6 or 7506 headphone, my wimpy 5mw@16ohms MD player drives my 7506's to blazingly loud levels (with no distortion).

 

[bangraman]

Quote:

Originally posted by gloco Another vote for the Sony V6 or 7506 headphone, my wimpy 5mw@16ohms MD player drives my 7506's to blazingly loud levels (with no distortion).

Scottyz Rulz, I apologise but this next bit is going to be a bit off topic and a reply to what gloco posted. I still recommend (as he does) the MDR-7506 or MDR-V6 but not for the reasons that he's doing so. It seems from the specs of the NEX that it has ample power to drive the 7506/V6.


gloco,
Tthat's an interesting point. I found the judge of whether you're driving headphone properly or not, not to be distortion or even apparent volume. It's comparing them to when you're sure you've amped them properly and seeing what you lose in terms of actual portions of the music, as well as dynamics over various frequency ranges. With many phones, even those billed for portable use (but high impedance) and especially medium-impedance phones (>40 - <90ohm), I was quite surprised at what I lost out of weaker portables, like those billed at 5mw/channel @ 16 ohms measured, especially in the low frequencies.
Using that test, I'd consider something like an MZ-N707 for example incapable of doing full justice to the 7506 unamped. It works, undoubtedly... But not fully.
But then, there also seems to be a difference in way that manufacturers measure headphone outputs, even if it's the same manufacturer but across different product lines. So unfortunately there seems to be no rule of thumb that you can stick to for medium-impedance phones. The only way to be sure seems to be to try it...

 

[gloco]

Quote:

Originally posted by bangraman But then, there also seems to be a difference in way that manufacturers measure headphone outputs, even if it's the same manufacturer but across different product lines. So unfortunately there seems to be no rule of thumb that you can stick to for medium-impedance phones. The only way to be sure seems to be to try it...

Agreed. I know joelongwood owns a E75 and he loves it as well, its quite a special player FWIW. I always find myself amazed by how well it drives my 7506's in a quiet setting, even with the volume a bit on the loud side, the bass impact is still there in its full glory. Have you ever had the pleasure of trying a E75?

 

[Eagle_Driver]

And in addition, I cannot recommend any very-low-impedance (<32 ohm) headphones for portable use, regardless of efficiency. That's because portable players really cheap out on the capacitors used in their outputs, and often use undersized caps. The result? As thin as they sound with medium-impedance headphones, they'll sound even thinner and more lifeless with low-impedance headphones.

And as I said about the Sony MDR-V700DJ headphones, couple those 'phones (which are already recessed in the highs to begin with, and are boosted in the mid-bass through lower-midrange) with the headphone out of current Sony Walkman players (which already suffer from bloated upper bass and significantly rolled-off highs), and you'll end up with sound that's much like a bad-sounding AM radio: muddy, dull and lifeless. (And as far as I know, the AM radio signal is very capable of high-fidelity sound - but AM tuners that can deliver anywhere near such quality are very expensive. That's why almost all AM tuners in existence are very low-fi.)

 

[stevenmichael]

I have the MDR-v700 . I bought them when they first came out in 2004 so that was 18 years ago now . They hurt my ears because there was not enough room between my ears and the inside and my ears presses against the hard inside wall . I just cut out a airy type foam in a circle and stuffed it in under the cloth rim to give me more room and they feel great now and with the airy foam my ears stay nice and cool . After a year or two of wearing them daily the black plastic fake leather started coming off so I peeled it all off down to the cloth . I like the cloth feel a lot better anyways and I think it makes it cooler on the ear now that its peeled off . I also didn't like the big cord attached so I cut it off and added a 3.5 jack so I can use different cords . I think they sound really good when I use them with my ipods. iphone 11 or pixel xl phones . I also like to listen to them when they are plugged into my old 1970 sony TA-1144 amp . Now that I can add different size cords I can use my retractable cord . I have a rubber band on one side of the headphones and I like to clip my ipod nano gen 6 to it . With the retractable cord I can adjust it to just enough cord to go to the ipod ,its like having bluetooth headphones . I also used a old pair of earbud cord that has a mic in it with a button on it . At one end I added a 3.5 jack so I could plug my headphone cord into it and the other end it fits into my iphone or android so now its a hands free headphones, I can answer calls and talk and hear the caller in the headphones . I also like these headphones because when you take them off my ears and put them around your neck you can turn them so the speakers are pointing out and you can turn up the volume and they get really loud and act like 2 external speakers around your neck . I listen to them like this a lot and when I start grinding on teeth and turn the suction I put them back on my ears . They block out the grinding noise just enough so you can listen to music but still hear the phone ringing . There's not a lot of headphones that get this loud with ipods or cell phones and that can turn outward and you can listen to them off your ears . These things are like my swiss army headphones , they are build like a tank and I think they sound really good both on my ear and around my neck in the open position . You do have to turn them down when you go to put them back on your ears because they are just to loud if you don't . I think I got my moneys worth out of them from every day use for 18 years now so I can't say anything bad about them . I not only use them in my lab but I wear them when mowing the grass and on the lake while fishing . I'm not afraid to take these thing anywhere . I like to listen to 70 and 80's music along with classical guitar . I'm not into bass music and these headphones to me have just the right amount of bass for me . I have a pair of sony whxb900n that are noise canceling headphones to wear on plane trips and I didn't realize the xb was for extra bass . I don't like the way they sound at all , I like my v700's a lot better with the lower bass that sounds normal, but the sony's are good for the plane rides . I took one circle foam piece I cut out so you can see it . The cloth part holds the foam in place really good .