[kadrik0]

Hi,
 
I've slowly been upgrading my headphones. I love music and just want to experiment with different styles of headphones. I have some bose headphones, souls, and just purchased online a ath-m50s with fiio 6 amp. The reviews are more or less great on ath-m50's (for $300 or less headphones), but then I noticed a pattern and many are recommending open back headphones. I don't really want to go over $300 since to be honest the outside noise coming in could bug me and I have a feeling these may not be my go to headphones most of the time, but I love the idea of a bigger sound stage and less of a music in your head feel. I would only listen to these at home and most of my music listening is right before bed time every night. I'd rather buy mid-upper range than go cheap on a sub $90 headphone and wish I got the $150 or $250 model down the road. Which would you recommend?
 
I'm looking at the Glado sr80e, Glado sr225e, and the Shure srh1440 based on the reviews, but I'm still open to suggestions. I kind of get the impression the sr225e is the better of the three sound quality wise, but I have mixed feelings on the cups and comfort. I have medium-large ears and I really prefer a cup that goes over my ears than on my ears. I've never heard or seen a glado or shure headphone in person. Here in MO my options are pretty limited on what I can try on. Best Buy is our biggest vendor and they pretty much only have Beats, Bose, Audio Technica, Sony, Phillips, etc are out on display to listen too. I would love to try glado or shure since they are highly rated companies. I really don't want to go over $300 since I'm wondering if closed back or noise cancelling headphones will be my go to most of the time.
 
The fiio 6 has some great reviews and I have it coming in the mail so I can get the most out of my ath-m50. Granted I don't really go over $300 for headphones, should the fiio 6 fit the bill or should I look into maybe upgrading to x product down the road? I only listen to music off my ipod touch and via my rhapsody app. I never stream music and instead I download all songs before I really listen to them. I do take my ipod out and about once and a while, but I mainly listen at home. Ideally, I want something portable and somewhat compact. I have a newer ipod so some of the amps with a 30pin connector won't work.
 
Thanks for the help. I plan on buying it sometime next year, but want to budget a little bit each month to try out a decent/great pair of open back headphones.

 

[superjawes]

Welcome to Head-Fi! (Sorry about your wallet!)

If you're going to be waiting for a while, then just keep your eyes (and ears!) open. Head to a Head-Fi community meetup if you can (to try different models), and just generally keep a beat of what's going on in the headphone world.

For example, if you were buying NOW, I would probably point you to the HE-400's. These sold for $400 originally, had the price cut to $300, and I've seen used pairs as low as $210. But the priced dropped because HiFiman is releasing the HE-400i @ $400 soon, so the HE-400 might be going away.

One good place to keep an eye on is InnerFidelity's Wall of Fame. This might not be a comprehensive list (IF gives "Stuff We Like!" ratings as well as "Wall of Fame" recognition), but it's still a pretty good list. Head-Fi also has buying guides around here somewhere...

On the topic of open vs. closed, your main concern should be isolation. Is there going to be background noise? Other people who could get annoyed? If "no" and "no," go open. With the ATH-50's, you have a sealed pair for those cases, anyway.

Anyway. Good luck and happy listening!

 

[cel4145]

First, we need to know what kind of sound signature you are looking for other than better soundstage. Could you go with a bit less bass emphasis than the M50? Do you need more? Better mids? About the same? What do you like/dislike about the M50s sound?

That being said, I agree that the HE-400 are a fantastic value at the moment. Razordog has like new open box pairs for $249 shipped.

For less money, there is also the Beyerdynamic DT990: http://www.amazon.com/Beyerdynamic-DT-990-Pro-250-Professional-Acoustically-Applications/dp/B0011UB9CQ/

Finally, the M50s are not known for great soundstage. If you just got the M50s and can still return them, that might be another option for you.

 

[kadrik0]

I haven't received my m50 yet. They were bought on ebay for cheap. They were refurbs from an authorized dealer for $70 best offer on ebay. My sister just broke her headphones on the bus yesterday so if I don't like them they will go to her a 2 month early birthday present. (My sister and I are like that, we can't wait when it comes to presents.) I just won't let her see them so she won't know they are hand me downs. I should know more in a few days. I bought the amp and m50 and was reading reviews to validate my purchase and then saw the trend in open back headphones. At the moment, my bose qc15 and bose qc20 are my headphones to beat. I love them, but I wouldn't mind a little more bass. I experimented with the Soul 150's since they were rapper headphones with additional bass, but didn't take the highs down with it like the mid range beats. I mainly listen to classic rock, 80's, country, and top 40 songs. I don't want a super heavy thump like the beats, but I do want something that is more acoustic like the bose, but with a controlled bump in bass.
 
I'll have to research the HE-400's.

 

[cel4145]

I would wait until you get the M50s and have a chance to listen to them a good bit before you pursue this further. Many people on this forum have heard the M50, so your descriptions of what you want relative to them could easily result in recommendations better targeted towards your listening preferences.

 

[mgh24]

First, we need to know what kind of sound signature you are looking for other than better soundstage. Could you go with a bit less bass emphasis than the M50? Do you need more? Better mids? About the same? What do you like/dislike about the M50s sound?

That being said, I agree that the HE-400 are a fantastic value at the moment. Razordog has like new open box pairs for $249 shipped.

OK cel4145., you have helped me out so much already! Please compare he400 to SoundMAGIC hp150. I really like, close to love them.
What do I gain and lose between the two. The hifiman phones surely get a lot of love! Maybe I can still sell

 

[cel4145]

The HE-400 have a more bass focused signature. I think this review does an excellent job describing them. http://www.head-fi.org/t/634201/battle-of-the-flagships-58-headphones-compared-update-audeze-lcd-2-revision-2-6-4-13#user_HE400

 

[hardykalyan]

Hi,

First of all, I am not an audiophile but an enthusiast. I have been doing a lot of research to buy my next pair of headphones under 300$ range. The new Philips Fidelio x1 is one of my top choices. Try those if you want the low end and sound stage. The only drawback that is keeping me away as the Non replaceable pads.

 

[kadrik0]

I'm probably going to buy the he-400 in two months. What amp would you suggest? I was looking at the bravo audio ocean, but now it looks like the vali or magni amp. I like the idea of tubes, but the vali has a ringing issue when you touch it or plug it in and can hum if you plug them in to IEM headphones. I think I will mainly listen to the he 400 headphones. The magni seems to be more forgiving and great universal headphone amp. Please let me know what you would pick to go with a he 400. I also have a ath-m50.

 

[cel4145]

Magni would be my choice.

If you want to get into tubes, look into the Little Dot I+. Lots of love for it on Head-Fi

 

[kadrik0]

I got the magni and boy is it great. Got it today and testing with the ath-m50. Going to get the he-400 here into two months. Thanks for the help.

 

[cel4145]

Nice! That Magni will drive the HE-400s well, too