[P.F. Jo]

Hey people.

A week or so ago i've asked around the AKG K81DJ's and such... Today I had a chance to listen to a brand new 81dj and an "exhibited" k181dj [ones that has been sitting opened for a while] ......

I'm sad to say that although theoretically the 81dj's was perfect for me [on the page] - On my ears they were not so good..... the bass was exaggerated, the trebles were... well... non-present, lol..... and the drums which supposed to give me a "Bang" rather than a "Brrrrm"[low bass] when are played - just aren't there either.....

On the other hand, the 181dj's sounded much better. clearer treble, more accurate bass [at most times] etc... but still not as tight bass as i'd like..

Nontheless, my Creative ZVM could barley drive them either, 80% volume to hear good.. or am I just a loud listener? I dont know

Anyway... Now that I got to hear them both, my perspective for my desired headphones has changed.. I know a bit better what i'd like in a headphones now - and definitely I know that I'm NOT a bass head.

So, What i'm looking for in my cans is:

100$ Price tag +/-.

Closed.

Size doesn't matter all that much - but supra-aural would be preferred.

TIGHT Bass, Not smothered..... Good, clear trebles and highs, same about mids.

As easy to drive as possible..... [untill I get an amplifier]

----NOTE: I'm not intending to mess with the cans and doing mods, I simply won't do it to a pair of cans that has warranty..... Its foolish in my perspective.----

Thanks for any one who helps.. I am really on the edge of giving up and buying some earbuds for 20$ and ending this journey for the perfect phones for 100$

-Jo

 

[Televator]

Quote:

Originally Posted by P.F. Jo /img/forum/go_quote.gif I am really on the edge of giving up and buying some earbuds for 20$ and ending this journey for the perfect phones for 100$

if you really expect to find the perfect phones for $100, you really should give up now and learn to be happy with a $20 pair

but if you can live with the fact that there will be flaws in any headphone (even the very expensive ones) and most definitely in lower budget ones... we can help and try to find the one which flaws bother you the least.

Just keep explaining what you like and not like about the headphones you try and you will get there

I would love to help, but closed headphones are not my specialty I'm afraid but as a starting point, perhaps read a bit about the lower end closed ATH's (E7, A700,...)

 

[RubberDuk]

My suggestion: the Sennheiser HD 25.
Closed, supra-aural, (in my opinion) tight bass AND there was a thread around in which you could get them for some $100 if my memory does not fail me.

 

[azncookiecutter]

Maybe try the Sony V6/7506. Good and tight bass, but might be a bit bright for you. But, You can find it for around $50, if you're lucky.

 

[Wid]

Try an IEM.

 

[Killercrush]

2 X on the HD25.

 

[P.F. Jo]

@Tele - I mean the perfect phones for me for 100$ lol... [also - "perfect" for the budget... not perfect as flawless versus any other phone on the face of the earth]

@RubberDuk - I'll look into it, where can I get them for 100$? And are the not 'over-bright'?

@Wid, I don't like IEMs much to be honest..

Oh and Tele, What other things might I like or dislike in a headphone? What details can I give you to make it more specific?

Thanks,

-Jo

 

[jbloudg20]

I'd give the AT ES7 a listen.

 

[P.F. Jo]

Oh I just learned a new term in headphones

"Bass Impact" - I suppose this is when you hear the drums do a "Bang" sound rather than my previous mentioned "brrrrm" smothered low-frequency bass. right?

If so - then I LIKE bass impact hehe - its the low frequency, smothered bass that I don't really get along with

[Something the K81DJ has far too much of it]

And i'll take a look at the AT ES7, I suppose this is a circum/supra-aural headphone and not an IEM? [Because I really don't like IEMs]

 

[ziplock]

Quote:

Originally Posted by azncookiecutter /img/forum/go_quote.gif Maybe try the Sony V6/7506. Good and tight bass, but might be a bit bright for you. But, You can find it for around $50, if you're lucky.

x2 on the Sonys.

These are arguably some of the best cans for the price. Brand new in the box they can be had for $79 at a local retailer or used for a price similar to what Az suggested.

Here is an old, but good review of the V6/7506:

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/showthread.php?t=573

Good luck!

~Zip

 

[wrecked_porsche]

Get the ES7, you'll be happy. Make sure it has lotsa burn in too. Do a search on Head-Fi regarding ES7 and burn in.


Just make sure you run far, far away from Head-Fi once you get the Es7 in your hands. Or you'll end up like me, I got the ES7, then I was very happy, but now the Head-Fi poison has made me order a pair of Darth Beyers... ZOMG!

Run I tells ya! Run!

 

[Televator]

Quote:

Originally Posted by P.F. Jo /img/forum/go_quote.gif Oh and Tele, What other things might I like or dislike in a headphone? What details can I give you to make it more specific?

well, each aspect we can describe about sound can be present or not or in different flavors etc etc: you mention bass impact, the opposite(s) are 'flabby bass' (= brrrr) or 'bas shy' on the other hand (= no bang and no brrrr), so in a perfect world, we would be able to state our preference for each aspect and the headphone that combined such would exist as well... which is impossible and the headphone won't exist anyway.

But listing your preferences as much as possible and ranking them (would you sacrifice a bit of bass for details?) helps even more... but which aspects you ask?

well, purely starting from "use", there are already a lot of aspects: isolation (related to open/closed, but not restricted to that as there are closed headphones that isolate very little), all things related to portability like compactness (foldable or not), weight, even looks, comfort, ...

then there are all the aspects related to audio (and sometimes also to use): bass response, treble, mids,... but also headspace/soundstage (which is important if the headphones will be used for gaming as well... and as an example: my favorite headphone as for now lacks soundstage for the most part, but as that aspect bothers me less, I do not immediately feel a need to get another model), PRAT (pace, rhythm and timing...an audiophile term that's used to describe an overall fun-feel of headphones through a number of aspects as far as I understand it), neutrality/naturalness/flatness, ...

further more a headphone doesn't produce music by itself, so there is still an important aspect of synergy with other components; a headphone might be great, but not with your equipment: this can be very obvious (a 600Ω DT880 straight from an ipod will sound crap) or less (just read any review of the GS1000). This isn't restricted to source (DAP, CDP, PC,...) but also the DAC-(=digital audio converter)-stage and the amp (and according to some also the interconnects, headphone cable, power-cord, levitating feet, ...

JK!... sorry kids, just winding y'all up!)

All the above depend also on the sort of thing you'll listen to: films and games are something else than music and different genres may have different requirements (as in rock and metal with lots of guitars sound best through grados and a tube-amp according to most, while these are lacking in soundstage and neutrality and are less evident for a purely classical listener) etc.

Add to this that each description of sound is a subjective and flawed translation of an inherently personal auditory experience into language with all translation problems that stem from such (what is the definition of PRAT? Soundstage? Where do mids end and does treble begin? What is a 'dry' or 'warm' sound?...)

...so which headphone is good for you? Hard to say

You can describe your intended use, favorite genres (or listening behavior), preferences in looks/style, sound preferences,... and ppl can try to give their advice/opinions as far as they can relate in some way to those things you describe. This will be very subjective knowledge (with lots of fanboy behavior) and will probably differ widely, but it might give you some good ideas as to which cans you should look into further.

You can try headphones (in stores or by buying/selling or going to meets) and remember what you did/didn't like about each. As you learn to express this in terms other members can relate to (the audiophile lingo; there's a pretty decent dictionary somewhere in the headphones forum...a search will bring it up I hope) ,others who have heard the same headphones (but also models new to you) can make comparisons and base their advice on such. This is still subjective, but it is already a bit more 'based on something' than the pure recommendations in most 'help me buy the BEST headphones <$200'-threads. Those threads often are just a shouting match as ppl mostly recommend their own latest acquisition.

So in short

you won't find the perfect headphone ever, and definitely not for $100... You probably won't even find 'the perfect $100 headphone for you' if $100 is your maximum budget, as learning what your taste and requirements are will probably have a monetary cost as well. You can't just follow what you read and expect it to work perfectly for you as there are simply too many subjective aspects to this game. If you can try out different models (in store/at meets) you already can diminish the risk of a miss-buy a great deal, but even those circumstances are flawed (not your own setup, not your music, not normal use,...). So in the end you'll have to bite the bullet and take a (hopefully calculated) risk of actually buying a model and living with it and learning from the possible flaws... until you can't take it any longer and decide to upgrade... and the game begins all over again

That is the curse of head-fi (and each and every '-fi' in fact) and hence the "sorry for your wallet" welcome

A couple wise lessons:
- don't expect to find the perfect headphone (in any interpretation). It won't happen and if you expect it you will be disappointed!
- if you want to get good advice, be as precise in describing your preferences (and dislikes) as possible and relating them to a headphone you have already heard is always good as it gives a tangible thing to work on
- attend meets if you can
- buy used, sell off unused headphones and expect to spend more than you intended (or look somewhere else than a (semi-)audiophile forum for advice)
- if you do find a headphone that you are (relatively) happy with, leave the forum and don't come back...or expect to feel the need to upgrade/spend more money soon

all that said, welcome to this great hobby and hope you find something that works for you

 

[ranz_blacker]

woah .. such a long post.. ill bookmark and read it later

 

[Televator]

PS: I meant the ATH-ES7... they deserve a closer look going from the reviews lately and perhaps also the Denon D1000?

PPS: sorry for the long post

I guess I went a bit overboard trying to protect someone from 'perfection' and also overzealous recommendations...

 

[Anarchy965]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Televator /img/forum/go_quote.gif long post that took too long to read.

[taken out because tele already apologized]He says the K81's would be perfect for him if not for the huge bass and lack of a high end. That means he probably needs a well isolating closed headphone with a slightly different sound signature in the under $100 range.

Personally, I think the HD 25-1's would be a good choice; more refined bass that has decent impact without overpowering the mids, a bit of sparkle in the high end, and a highly recommended headphone for drummers(I personally thought drums sounded slightly more upfront on my HD 25-SP's, but their bloated bass rules them out in your situation.) You can get them from here for 104.99 - 5% with this coupon, but right now they're out of stock. I would also point you to this thread for a great comparison of a few closed headphones.

edit: btw, I don't think the es7's would be a bad choice for you either.