[DarkLord79]

Hello there,
 
I'm in awe of all this knowledge here in the forum Instead of taking too much risk I'd like to hear your opinion on my situation.
 
I have a pair of HD 201s whose lifetime, I fear, is coming to an end. The insulation is coming off generously and I can see the metal cables roaming free. The pads aren't a cheerful sight any longer, too (but I'm more worried about the cables).
 
My simple approach was to order some replacement 201s - but the retailer said they were obsoleted and not shippable any longer. So I wonder whether I probably should step up (?) for an HD 439 or the like or just try still get an HD 201 from another retailer. I read here that the 439 where the best compromise of the 4x9 bunch.
 
Must have: As you might see on the pic I have a large head and, even more decisive, large ears To be more exact they are very tall (elliptic) and I almost fully fill the pads of the 201. There is almost no gap left especially on top and bottom inside. So my must-have requirement are circum-aural phones in oval/elliptic shape. I have seen pictures of phones that claim to be circum-aural but from their circular shape I already know they won't fit Don't know whether there are similar competitors to Sennheiser or if Sennheisers were just made to fit ears like mine
 
Budget: EUR 20,-- for a HD 201 would be a no-brainer. 50-60 Euros for the 4x9 range are unplanned but would be ok too. I would dare to go up near 100 Euros if it was really worth that/sensible but I somehow doubt that. I just don't want to spend more money on a product that was inferior to the 201s sound-wise.
 
Usage: As of now, I almost exclusively use the 201s on my PC for either gaming or listening music (CDs, CD rips, streaming) while doing other stuff like programming. That also includes material of varying quality like YouTube vids/webcasts. An old Technics CH530 hi-fi set is nearby so it could happen that I plug'em in there but that's just a "bonus scenario".
 
"Equipment": I have usually used a SoundBlaster X-Fi XtremeMusic but due to non-existent Win10 drivers as of now (thanks Creative! :>) my active "backup plan" consists of my new mobo's on-board Realtek ALC1150 with Software-SoundBlaster MB3. I tended to use increased bass and treble on the X-Fi control center as well as bass-boost for the phones. On the SB MB3 I now use 10 % Crystalizer / 10 % Surround / 55 % Bass.
 
Satisfaction: HD 201s have been a sturdy companion for me. I have been very satisfied so far but as mentioned I needed to tweak some soundcard settings. I had never thought of it but maybe the 201s are a bit too "flat" for me in default - or it's just "crappiness" of the soundcards, don't really know.
 
Music Taste: Difficult That can range from symphonic metal (Nightwish) to real classical music over orchestral movie/TV soundtracks (Bear McCreary, ...) including brass stuff like Beirut or more popular stuff like Foster the People. So it's certainly not a "boom-boom" only choice
 
Audiophile? Don't know whether I would qualify ... maybe not ... but I'm pedantic and I could tell VBR MP3s (no-go) from CBR MP3s when ripping for the first time so all MP3s I ripped from my CDs are 192 kb/s CBR and I'm fine with them.
 
 
So what would be your take on this?
 
Thanks a lot!
 
- Markus

 

[juan1894]

  Hello there,
 
I'm in awe of all this knowledge here in the forum Instead of taking too much risk I'd like to hear your opinion on my situation.
 
I have a pair of HD 201s whose lifetime, I fear, is coming to an end. The insulation is coming off generously and I can see the metal cables roaming free. The pads aren't a cheerful sight any longer, too (but I'm more worried about the cables).
 
My simple approach was to order some replacement 201s - but the retailer said they were obsoleted and not shippable any longer. So I wonder whether I probably should step up (?) for an HD 439 or the like or just try still get an HD 201 from another retailer. I read here that the 439 where the best compromise of the 4x9 bunch.
 
Must have: As you might see on the pic I have a large head and, even more decisive, large ears To be more exact they are very tall (elliptic) and I almost fully fill the pads of the 201. There is almost no gap left especially on top and bottom inside. So my must-have requirement are circum-aural phones in oval/elliptic shape. I have seen pictures of phones that claim to be circum-aural but from their circular shape I already know they won't fit Don't know whether there are similar competitors to Sennheiser or if Sennheisers were just made to fit ears like mine
 
Budget: EUR 20,-- for a HD 201 would be a no-brainer. 50-60 Euros for the 4x9 range are unplanned but would be ok too. I would dare to go up near 100 Euros if it was really worth that/sensible but I somehow doubt that. I just don't want to spend more money on a product that was inferior to the 201s sound-wise.
 
Usage: As of now, I almost exclusively use the 201s on my PC for either gaming or listening music (CDs, CD rips, streaming) while doing other stuff like programming. That also includes material of varying quality like YouTube vids/webcasts. An old Technics CH530 hi-fi set is nearby so it could happen that I plug'em in there but that's just a "bonus scenario".
 
"Equipment": I have usually used a SoundBlaster X-Fi XtremeMusic but due to non-existent Win10 drivers as of now (thanks Creative! :>) my active "backup plan" consists of my new mobo's on-board Realtek ALC1150 with Software-SoundBlaster MB3. I tended to use increased bass and treble on the X-Fi control center as well as bass-boost for the phones. On the SB MB3 I now use 10 % Crystalizer / 10 % Surround / 55 % Bass.
 
Satisfaction: HD 201s have been a sturdy companion for me. I have been very satisfied so far but as mentioned I needed to tweak some soundcard settings. I had never thought of it but maybe the 201s are a bit too "flat" for me in default - or it's just "crappiness" of the soundcards, don't really know.
 
Music Taste: Difficult That can range from symphonic metal (Nightwish) to real classical music over orchestral movie/TV soundtracks (Bear McCreary, ...) including brass stuff like Beirut or more popular stuff like Foster the People. So it's certainly not a "boom-boom" only choice
 
Audiophile? Don't know whether I would qualify ... maybe not ... but I'm pedantic and I could tell VBR MP3s (no-go) from CBR MP3s when ripping for the first time so all MP3s I ripped from my CDs are 192 kb/s CBR and I'm fine with them.
 
 
So what would be your take on this?
 
Thanks a lot!
 
- Markus

Hi!
 
The hd439 are very good headphones for its price at this time (45USD-Amazon). However when you say large and elliptic ears the HD5x8 series come to mind. If you can buy the HD558 and don't mind the isolation... just do it.

 

[DarkLord79]

Thanks Juan! I see you have both, so you prefer the HD 558 over the HD 439? Are the pads of the 439 smaller than the 558's?
What's about the isolation, do you mean hearing stuff from the outside because they are open phones or the environment hearing my music?

 

[DangerClose]

HD558 is a long way from EUR 20, isn't it?  
 
I don't see where you said if open or closed matters.  If you want big pads stock, the Philips SHP9500 has the biggest pads I know of, and the price is good, in $ anyway.  They are very open and leak a lot of sound and have zero isolation, and sound better than the HD558 imo.
 
If a headphone is known for having other popular pads fit, that would open up more options, and then just add $15 or so for different and bigger pads to put on them.
 
Nothing wrong with the HD439, just they were often overpriced, and the pads are decently big but still small for real over-ears imo.
 
There's also the Tascams, Takstars, and Superluxes.  
 
I don't know what any of the above costs in euros.

 

[ahunatu]

201's and 4x9 series have very different sound signatures (more bass) but they are a step up in terms of overall sound quality not to mention clarity. The main weakness of the 4x9 series is the bass, it's not as robust as it needs to be, almost monotonous, but overall very good clarity and sound especially at the 30-40 dollar mark. 

 

[DarkLord79]

Thanks a lot for the suggestions! Reading a lot here, which made my head hurt a bit , I've made a decision. With all models there are pros and cons, some like A, some like B but dislike A, ... There is no shop nearby that would enable me to listen to the phones in question and even then I wouldn't know about burn-in time or audio source quality.
Juan led me to the 5xx range and as there is so much debate about the 558 mod and the comparison to 598 I decided to go for the HD 598 as an experimental step. I have good experiences with Sennheiser so far, my 201 and my wireless Senn HDR 140 for watching TV and those before I have forgotten. The Senns were always a perfect fit for my elliptical ears so I opted for the last Senn I could drive unamped. Yes, 156,-- Euros including shipping is a lot more but I can afford it. I've only been reluctant to spend a lot of money on some phones that potentially could disappoint me compared to the cheap 201s I've been using with satisfaction to a large degree. However, as I said, the need to fiddle with soundcard settings may be some indication of weaknesses/some dissatisfaction in the 201s I haven't realized before.
Since I also installed the new X-Fi W10 drivers yesterday (Creative ahead of schedule being a first I guess) I'm thrilled about the results this week will bring
 
Thanks again!