Tsuioku
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Jan 30, 2004
- Posts
- 108
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Already have IEMs for outdoor use and now I'm looking for a pair of cans for indoor use. I like good depth and soundstage so I'm thinking about grabbing something open... besides... I find closed cans stuffy and get my ears sweaty
I would prefer something circumaural but supra-aural should be ok.
I listen to a wide variety of music from instrumentals (strings and piano in particular), vocals and classical to hip hop, rnb and trance. My ears are sensitive to high pitched sounds so I'd prefer something darker. I love a fluid, flowing sound but still want some detail and clarity. As a reference, I've listened to the Westone UM1, MylarOne X3 (soon to be X3i
) and the Audio Technica A500.
I find the UM1s kinda harsh and need a lot of tweaking to get the sound right for me. The highs sound very shrilly to me but when I reduce the gain, it's extremely veiled. The mids were fluid or maybe even too much. A bit more detail and separation would be perfect. The bass response was nice and kept up with my trance but would be better if it was a bit more clearer.
I tried my friend's A500 when he got them. They weren't fully burnt in but the difference in detail, clarity and separation was night and day compared to my UM1s. The highs were still a little too bright for my liking and I had to increase the gain on the low end. Maybe they just weren't fully broken in yet but the mids sounded a little boring to me. It needed a bit more fluidity and depth to get me fully engaged.
Out of the three, I like the sound of the X3 the most. I didn't get to use them much after I broke them in because the left driver died on me soon afterwards but from my limited experience, I have no complaints regarding the sound.
After doing a little browsing around, I narrowed it down to the following headphones:
AKG 240S
Sennheiser HD555
Grado SR60/80
Alessandro MS1
Goldring DR150 (if I can find a used one cheap enough)
Which of the above do you think would be most suitable for me? I've read that the bass is lacking on the HD555 but is it really that bad? Also, an amp is recommended for the DR150 according to the Buyer's Guide but will the performance be that bad without one? I will be using them on my computer, laptop and maybe my Clix2 (which has a 2 x 17mW output) unamped since I can't really afford one. $100 is already pushing my limits with Xmas and tuition around the corner.
Any advice or other suggestions is greatly appreciated.
I listen to a wide variety of music from instrumentals (strings and piano in particular), vocals and classical to hip hop, rnb and trance. My ears are sensitive to high pitched sounds so I'd prefer something darker. I love a fluid, flowing sound but still want some detail and clarity. As a reference, I've listened to the Westone UM1, MylarOne X3 (soon to be X3i
I find the UM1s kinda harsh and need a lot of tweaking to get the sound right for me. The highs sound very shrilly to me but when I reduce the gain, it's extremely veiled. The mids were fluid or maybe even too much. A bit more detail and separation would be perfect. The bass response was nice and kept up with my trance but would be better if it was a bit more clearer.
I tried my friend's A500 when he got them. They weren't fully burnt in but the difference in detail, clarity and separation was night and day compared to my UM1s. The highs were still a little too bright for my liking and I had to increase the gain on the low end. Maybe they just weren't fully broken in yet but the mids sounded a little boring to me. It needed a bit more fluidity and depth to get me fully engaged.
Out of the three, I like the sound of the X3 the most. I didn't get to use them much after I broke them in because the left driver died on me soon afterwards but from my limited experience, I have no complaints regarding the sound.
After doing a little browsing around, I narrowed it down to the following headphones:
AKG 240S
Sennheiser HD555
Grado SR60/80
Alessandro MS1
Goldring DR150 (if I can find a used one cheap enough)
Which of the above do you think would be most suitable for me? I've read that the bass is lacking on the HD555 but is it really that bad? Also, an amp is recommended for the DR150 according to the Buyer's Guide but will the performance be that bad without one? I will be using them on my computer, laptop and maybe my Clix2 (which has a 2 x 17mW output) unamped since I can't really afford one. $100 is already pushing my limits with Xmas and tuition around the corner.
Any advice or other suggestions is greatly appreciated.
