[Ohoen]

Quote:

Originally posted by Mike Scarpitti There will ALWAYS be compromises at the level of a $200 phone, even a $500 phone.

Which might be one reason why you'd would want several different "low cost" phones. You could argue that the money should be spent on one good setup, but that's not usually how these things work out.

 

[Mike Scarpitti]

Quote:

Originally posted by Ohoen You could argue that the money should be spent on one good setup, but that's not usually how these things work out.

If one can be enlightened from the start of the process, one can avoid that pitfall...

I think most people would be disinclined to start at the top, and it's a lot of fun learning the various weaknesses of cheaper stuff, but if this poster has any inclination to avoid that effort, he can actually benefit from starting with the best and not farting around with $100 headphones, assuming he's capable of dropping $6k on an Omega or $4k on an R10. Trust me, the best are VASTLY, IMMENSELY, superior to the quality at $100-$200. In other words, this poster has indicated he may not be like most people.

 

[phonatic]

I listen to a bit of everything. I do have a variety of headphones, mainly resulting from collectoritis or upgradeitis.

For home use, I could be pretty happy if I could only have my Sennheisers, preferably the HD580s, but I could live with just the HD497s too (the 580s are more comfortable and sound ultimately better - the 497s are lighter weight and more easily driven, with an engaging, detailed sound). The 497s pair well with all my gear, although I'd have to say they are most magical when driven out of my portable MD recorder (Sony MZ-N505). I use the 580s out of the jack on my Yamaha receiver (I know, sacrilege, but it has a pretty decent DAC) and they sound very good. I'm sure I'll get around to finding an amp eventually.

For portable use... the HD497s are too large and weird-looking for me to wear them outside. I like my Sportapros in this capacity. They need a bit of power considering they are cheap portable headphones, and the midbass is as overblown as everyone says it is, but they are nevertheless very comfortable and suitable for all kinds of music. The Sennheiser MX500s sound decent, for ear buds, but I find them uncomfortable to wear after a while and they fall out somewhat easily from my ears. They also match well with the portable MD.

You know, for all the abuse Sony MD recorders suffer at the hands of Sharp fans, I think they still sound quite good, and even with some fraction of the current of Sharp headphone outputs, there is still enough current to drive most 32 ohm headphones to reasonable levels.

 

[grinch]

Quote:

Originally posted by lkmich Grinch- Excellent taste! So do your phones do equal justice to Glenn and other genres? It's hard to get a lot of useful musical information out of those Misfits recordings, though.

most of the time as of late, i've been listening to music using my ipod and er-4s's.

listening to misfits on these might be very tough for most people (due to the etymotics' detailed and analytical nature) but i rather enjoy it. most people feel that the misfits albums are very bad recordings (and they are) but at a certain point, i like the sound a lot more than most of today's records. it must be the analog masters, or the ability to not go over every song with a fine-tooth comb looking out for details, but the albums have good soundstage and most of them aren't very harsh. although, evilive is damn bad and it sounds like they put a cassette recorder on the front of the stage and just hit the button.

however, if you're into a lot of poorly recorded rock i might suggest my latest headphone which is the grado sr200. the sound is very meaty and loose, but not to the point of extreme annoyance, and while music sounds damn fun (the bass is very big) it is far from analytical so i find it a bit easier to listen to really poorly recorded/mastered albums. for example, i cannot listen to the zwan album on a headphone system.. the clipping gives me an instant headache, but on the sr-200 it's fairly enjoyable. it sounds amazingly good on my ipod as well. for the $200 i paid for it i'm pretty happy. the flat pads help though.

my descriptions above seem to almost contradict what i posted earlier, but i assure you that sonically i'd take my grado hp-1000's (from my melos or rkv) over anything i described above, and for any genre.

 

[markl]

Good sound is good sound period. A good system will reproduce the sound faithfully and accuately without regard to what kind of music you listen to.

Mark

 

[Mike Scarpitti]

Quote:

Originally posted by markl Good sound is good sound period. A good system will reproduce the sound faithfully and accuately without regard to what kind of music you listen to. Mark

Yes, but something that provides 'good sound' and that "will reproduce the sound faithfully and accuately without regard to what kind of music you listen to" is not going to be cheap.

 

[JaZZ]

Quote:

Originally posted by markl Good sound is good sound period. A good system will reproduce the sound faithfully and accuately without regard to what kind of music you listen to.

That's said from someone who owns an R10...

What if someone owns an HD 600, a DT 880 and a Grado SR-325 and likes all of them for their specific strengths (or absence of flaws the other ones show, resp....)?

 

[NotoriousBIG_PJ]

Talk all you want but there are a lot of headphones with strengths and weaknesses that lean towards certain types of music. I find any John Grado headphone too bright for orchestral music but the rs-1's are still my favorite headphones. I would rather just buy a 2nd headphone to listen to classical rather then give up the rs-1's to instead use headphones that sound good to my ears with all types of music..

Biggie.

 

[minya]

Quote:

Originally posted by Mike Scarpitti Unless it's VERY expensive. Sennheiser Orpheus, Stax Omega II, etc. So, if you want it all, ya gotta have da dough...

Have you actually heard either of these headphones, Mike?

- Chris

 

[markl]

True, it is harder to achieve this in the world of headphones than it is in the world of speakers. But there aren't very many $300-$400 cans that have such severe limitations that make them *only* suitable for one kind of music. It's not like there aren't enough choices in full-range cans to please *most* people *most* of the time.

I still believe that "sound is sound", it's either there in a tone and level that is good to you, or it isn't. I don't care what's producing that sound-- flute or an electric guitar-- it either sounds like it sounds in real life or it doesn't. It's not true IMO that you only need certain tones and certain frequencies to enjoy any one kind of music. You need them all in order to reporoduce the sound accurately and realistically. Cans that are "tailored for classical" are obviously tweaked or limited in some way, which means it is "bad" sound. The deficiencies may only become obvious when you play rock 'n roll through them, but you are still missing a lot even when you play classical.

If a particular set of cans sounds good on rock but bad on classical, I would say that that phone is not a "good" phone by definition.

Would you buy a separate TV to watch each channel because they are slightly different, or should you purchase one well-rounded TV that gets most channels right most of the time FOR YOU.

Mark

 

[lini]

I guess, that's more a philosophical question - and it depends of the design goal of the system: One might search for a combo, that provides either "good sound" (involving, musical reproduction) or "right sound" (neutral, faithful reproduction). Ideally, both design goals should meet - but that would only work for ideal recordings...

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini

 

[JaZZ]

Quote:

Originally posted by markl True, it is harder to achieve this in the world of headphones than it is in the world of speakers. But there aren't very many $300-$400 cans that have such severe limitations that make them *only* suitable for one kind of music. It's not like there aren't enough choices in full-range cans to please *most* people *most* of the time.

I guess you know very well how this hobby goes: You buy a headphone, are entirely satisfied for a certain time, then discover some minor flaws on it or a different sounding haedphone with different strengths which lets you experience your music from a fascinating new perspective... But still you like your older headphone... and maybe a similar scenario happens once or twice again... so you end up with 3 or 4 different headphones which you all like for their specific signatures, which each may suit some specific genres exceptionally well to your ears...

Remember: I for one use one preferred headphone most of the time (at home) for all music – but how can you claim it's the only correct or mature approach? I can easily understand people who like different phones for different genres, Who cares!? BTW I guess even the R10 isn't perfect in every regard. Is it?

 

[Mike Scarpitti]

Quote:

Originally posted by minya Have you actually heard either of these headphones, Mike? - Chris

I have heard the Sennheiser, and I can imagine what the other sounds like.

That's not the point, really, which is (ahem!) that only at the highest levels of cost is it even possible to speak of anything approaching perfection, or anything like an 'all-purpose' phone.

 

[Mike Scarpitti]

Quote:

Originally posted by markl True, it is harder to achieve this in the world of headphones than it is in the world of speakers. But there aren't very many $300-$400 cans that have such severe limitations that make them *only* suitable for one kind of music. It's not like there aren't enough choices in full-range cans to please *most* people *most* of the time. Mark

This is simply untrue, even at $300-$400 there are significant differences among products that lend themselves more to certain kinds of music than others. This does not diminish significantly until you near $1000.

 

[minya]

Quote:

Originally posted by Mike Scarpitti That's not the point, really, which is (ahem!) that only at the highest levels of cost is it even possible to speak of anything approaching perfection, or anything like an 'all-purpose' phone.

Actually, that is the point. Price and quality (or, to be more specific, satisfaction) do not go hand-in-hand. I think anyone who has read Nik's posts on this board will understand that.

The ultimate barometer of a headphone is your personal preference, not its cost or its specifications or what have you.

- Chris