Please, help me. I don't know what good sounds like.
Sep 8, 2009 at 6:28 AM Thread Starter Post #1 of 64

BrandenJay

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I am a bewildered seventeen-year-old who loves to listen to music. My parents are nice people and have bought my last several pair of headphones for birthday and christmas presents... and the last two were skullcandy.(I always suspected they were flashy garbage... but what could I do?) I got curious about my headphones a week or two ago and went searching for some perspective... eventually I ended up on this site and let me tell you, I am shocked at how much I did not know about headphones. I am completely ignorant, un-educated, knowledge-less... So please, help me.

I looked through stickys and found the Equation Rp21, which is supposedly superb, but another sticky said source is important and if headphones are TOO good they show you how bad your music sounds... download quality...
frown.gif


So the question:
What should I buy?
  1. I have a Zune
  2. I need something durable that won't crack or break after weeks of heavy use (I wear them around my neck all day, until I get home.)
  3. I'm hoping to pay under $100

-addendum-
I listen to things as they come to me, but I listen to a lot of classic rock, alternative rock, techno, and, oddly enough, some hits from the 30's and 40's.
 
Sep 8, 2009 at 6:56 AM Post #4 of 64
Do you need isolation? And what genres do you listen to?
Do you have anything against in-ear monitors?

You're used to Skullcandies so even though you want something more refined you would probably still want strong bass.
IEMs or full-size headphones are the two basic routes. IEMs are best for isolation, but probably not so good for bass (if you need to feel it
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)
As for full-size headphones - from the top of my head I can recommend Denon AH-D1001 (circumaural/supraaural depending on the size of your ears
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) or Audio Technica ATH-ES7 (supraaural).
Both don't have great isolation, but don't leak much and have fun sound.

Btw, headphones marketed at portable use are usually not so picky about source/amplification so you should be OK with your Zune.

On second thought you should probably listen to pdupiano, otherwise sorry for your wallet...
 
Sep 8, 2009 at 7:10 AM Post #6 of 64
Yes, I know it's not the same
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OK, mainly for rock and some bass-heavy electronic stuff the recommended D1001 and ES7 both fill the bill nicely. Although I don't know if these can be worn around your neck, but neither is very big so probably yes.
 
Sep 8, 2009 at 7:56 AM Post #10 of 64
You might want to try a pair of Grados. The SR-60i, SR-80i and the Alessandro MS-1 are all in your budget and will go well with your music. Another to consider is the venerable Sony MDR-V6. They don't rock as hard as Grados do, but they're excellent headphones for the money. I owned a pair for years (before discovering this place) and loved them. Also, all of them will do well right from a Zune or other DAP.
 
Sep 8, 2009 at 8:00 AM Post #11 of 64
Hard to imagine anyone wanting to wear any of those headphones around their neck all day, every day. And it's still unknown whether isolation is needed.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Uncle Erik /img/forum/go_quote.gif
You might want to try a pair of Grados. The SR-60i, SR-80i and the Alessandro MS-1 are all in your budget and will go well with your music. Another to consider is the venerable Sony MDR-V6. They don't rock as hard as Grados do, but they're excellent headphones for the money. I owned a pair for years (before discovering this place) and loved them. Also, all of them will do well right from a Zune or other DAP.


 
Sep 8, 2009 at 8:11 AM Post #13 of 64
Quote:

Originally Posted by pdupiano /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Get a pair of KSC75's and call it a day. Its $13 or so on Ebay/Amazon. IF they break, just replace them, pretty cheap. After that... run away, run far far away from head-fi, you're parents and wallet will thank you


This. Seriously. Spend the rest of the cash on a better source (Sansa fuze or an amp3) and music.
 
Sep 8, 2009 at 8:14 AM Post #15 of 64
Quote:

Originally Posted by 1Time /img/forum/go_quote.gif
OK. But if you really want headphones you can hang around or behind your neck all the time, you'll probably want portable headphones that are smaller than the full size headphones discussed in the full size headphone forum.


I used to wear my Q40s around my neck all day at school. They make for a good neck pillow when you sleep in class too.
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