one pair for relaxed listening, one for rocking
Mar 17, 2006 at 9:08 AM Thread Starter Post #1 of 16

uzziah

Headphoneus Supremus
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i'm leaning towards this sort of an approach, likely with a zhaolu v2 dac/amp powering.

contenders:

relaxed (studying, reading; also detailed listening to jazz or classical):
hd600, 650, dt880, k501,

rocking: (headbanging, toe-tapping, classic rock, metal, rap, trance)
325i, hf-1, keep my sr60's
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i guess i can't think of a non-grado.....
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OR..............

k701 for everything.....
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i think in the end i'd prefer to just have one pair of phones; i don't really want to change my phones for different types of music; i just want one pair to do it all well, give me detail, clarity, comfort, and more than anything to feel as "live" as possible. the other thing is that my ears are rather sensative to brightness; my sr60's are difficult to wear for a long time because of this, and i sold my ms-1's a long time ago for the same reason.

i have to be honest and say that most of the time when i'm listening to music i'll be doing something else: more than likely reading a book or studying. of course i'll have time for dedicated listening, but it will be a bit in the minority. i need a great pair of cans i can just keep on wearing. then again, it was headphones that first got me to actually sit still and JUST listen to the music

btw: just went to see the CU-Boulder chambre orchestra perform some mozart etc. and man, i'd really encourage everyone to find out what live performances you can get in on. audiophilia is about reproducing such beauty, and alas it really cannot; get out and experience some live acoustic unamplified, unaltered beauty
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so much free music to be had at universities and the like.....awesome
 
Mar 17, 2006 at 9:18 AM Post #2 of 16
I'd stick with a grado for rocking. The K701 will not fill that void. It sounds closer to the relxing headphones you listed. As for relaxing I love my 880 but I haven't had as mouch experience with the 650. I wouldn't reccomend the 501 because it is to bass light for all situations.
 
Mar 17, 2006 at 9:18 AM Post #4 of 16
I honestly that it's pretty hard to find ONE pair of headphones for every mood you are in. I think your idea of having one for relaxed/critical listening and another pair for just excitement/rocking out should cover almost every conceivable genre/mood you are in. This is what I'm trying to do to right now: use my K701 for times when I want to listen critically, and hopefully a pair of HF-1s to just rock out.
 
Mar 17, 2006 at 9:41 AM Post #6 of 16
Quote:

Originally Posted by uzziah
in the end i'll just have to start trying things....oh well
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can't be too bummed about that



Just think of it the start of a beautiful journey
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Two words,buy used.
 
Mar 17, 2006 at 10:35 AM Post #8 of 16
I personally find the DT880 both relaxing and lively/stimulating at the same time... hard to describe. It's also a somewhat "larger than life" sound that I find very convincing in terms of making live music feel more live (more than any other headphone I've listened to). It meets almost all of your criteria.

The "elephant in the room" is the brightness issue... some people can't take it, some don't mind it at all. It varies a lot between recordings. If you're willing to take the risk, the DT880 is an awesome headphone... if not, there are safer choices...
 
Mar 17, 2006 at 10:42 AM Post #9 of 16
I bought a Grado HF-1 for RAWKING and an AKG K701 for everything else. You could substitute a Senn HD580/600/650 for the AKG and have the same result, but I like the AKG more.
 
Mar 17, 2006 at 11:01 AM Post #10 of 16
Completely satiesfied with DT880 and HF-1 for now (apart from the amp issue of course). HF-1 is the best there is for rocking out in my opinion. For critical, yet relaxed listening you cannot go wrong with either DT880, HD 650 or K701. However you should really audition the cans first to see, which sound signature you like best. The DT880 are brighter than the HD650, but maybe this gives them this extra bit of "air". I can't comment much on the K701, but it is considered by many the best of both worlds.
 
Mar 17, 2006 at 12:19 PM Post #11 of 16
I'm doing HF-1 and HD595. It gives me the rocking and the relaxing but it's missing the can for the detailed critical listening. I just don't get a lot of detail out of the HD595 but it is comfy and relaxing. The most detailed headphone I've owned is the DT 931. Maybe I should sell the HD595 and get the DT880. Or better yet get the K701. Hmmmmm....

I think this would be the killer collection:

HF-1 - Rocking
HD595 - Relaxing
K701 - Critical listening

We're all nuts and this post proves it:

Quote:

Originally Posted by humanflyz
I honestly that it's pretty hard to find ONE pair of headphones for every mood you are in.


We treat headphones like sportscoats! and wouldn't have it any other way.
 
Mar 17, 2006 at 12:26 PM Post #12 of 16
For me (Currently)

Relaxing - Senn 650
Rocking - Grado sr225
Orchestral - Beyer DT880 (New version)
Portable - Senn hd25 or px100
Walking in public - Senn 300
Listening while the wife watches the telly and we're in the same room - Beyer DT770
At work in my office - Grado RS60
Touring - the lot!! plus Go-Vibe

Headfi has a lot to answer for ......
I've got others too as the mood takes me!!

Ian
 
Mar 17, 2006 at 1:08 PM Post #13 of 16
Quote:

Originally Posted by skyline889
Sennheiser HD650s sooth you and lull you to sleep, like being hugged by a giant teddy bear
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Sony MDR-SA5000s for the headbanger in all of us, extended listening is a no-no.



I would also recommend these two.

I can't see any reason for not to use SA5000 for extended listening though. They're super comfortable and the sound isn't fatiguing in any way.

I prefer SA5000 to Grado RS-1 and RS-2 with almost any kind of music. With some very old and poorly recorded tracks RS-2 might sound better. It's still good to have one pair of Grado's. Grado house sound is must have in everybody's collection.
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Mar 17, 2006 at 1:29 PM Post #14 of 16
My recommendation is to fight upgraditis by getting the absolutely best can you can possibly afford. The best all-rounder I have are my W1000's but I think they would be a bit too analytical for you. My Senns are very laid back and smooth because the bass and midrange are emphasized over the treble--too laid back for me to use very much.
 
Mar 17, 2006 at 1:37 PM Post #15 of 16
I got both the HD650 and SR325i. Neither satisfy me fully. There are aspects of both headphones that I like, but there are also others that I detest. Don't get me wrong, both are extremely good headphones and I couldn't live without either. They also complement each other very well for pretty obvious reasons. However, I still still feel that there is a gap left unfilled: engaging, yet non-fatiguing sound.

The HD650 lie on the non-fatiguing, boring extreme and the SR325i lie on the engaging but fatiguing end. Ofcourse, I exaggerate a little when I say the HD650 is boring. Their laid-back sound just isn't as good for certain genres.

This is where the K701 come in. After a lot of looking around, I have finally decided that the K701 might be able to fill in that gap. Unfortunately, they still haven't arrived yet! I am waiting for a pair to come and I expect to receive them the coming Monday or Tuesday.
 

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