[Squirsier]

Greetings

Well, the cables on my beloved q-jays finally almost ripped off the earpieces, and I am awaiting warranty info from Jays' support (hopefully it is covered...), so meanwhile I have been using the AKG k414p as my backup pair of headphones.

While the sound, to my ears, isn't as good as the q-jays, I like bass-heavy headphones (altho, in all truth, I could do with a bit less from the k414p and not mind at all) and I was wondering, in the same category, ie, closed-back, small earcups portable, with good treble energy (ie, no dark headphones, please

), what models from other companies would be found here? Nevermind the price for the moment...

I know AKG released the k450, which look really nice, but I read from another thread that the drivers are the same as the old generation, leading me to think they'd sound exactly the same as the k414p...

Same sound, for a pair of headphones I initially paid 49$ for, but going for 100+ Euros, not really a good deal

So once again I ask the good crew at head.fi for some help chosing a new, closed-back, small earcup portable headphone...

Bass as to be present but not necessarily as heavy as with the k414p (I really enjoy the bass out of the q-jays, if that can serve as a reference). The treble has to be sparkling bright too, w/o being sibilant. I can live with slightly recessed mids, and there has to be a bit of soundstage too...

Anything fits that description?

Thanks again

 

[jonathanjong]

So...you want something with the same form factor as K414P, but with different sound sig (i.e., less bass, sparkling highs)? Is that right?

 

[Squirsier]

Different sound sig/better sound yeah. The mids on the k414p are slightly, huh, "nasal", so something that would sound better in that departement but not necessarily more "forward".

If that makes sense... heh

 

[jonathanjong]

Hmm, this is harder than I expected. ATH SQ5 would be a slight upgrade SQ-wise, but a downgrade isolation-wise. I remember SQ5 to be clearer than K26P (old K414P), and with better highs. ES7 would be more of a bump up SQ-wise, but are larger than the K414P. I went from K26P to HD25 1 II, but it's a hug bump price-wise, it's wayyy less discrete, and you'll be getting a similar sound sig. Much, much better, of course, but similar in that both are dark cans. (OK, maybe not that similar then...) My HD25s isolate real well, as K26P did, and are slightly larger but a lot more geeky-looking. I'm about to get ESW9, and these are the opposite of the K26P (from what I've read) in terms of sound and isolation abilities.

 

[Squirsier]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jonathanjong /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hmm, this is harder than I expected. ATH SQ5 would be a slight upgrade SQ-wise, but a downgrade isolation-wise. I remember SQ5 to be clearer than K26P (old K414P), and with better highs. ES7 would be more of a bump up SQ-wise, but are larger than the K414P.

Thank you very much for your answer. I just started looking in depth about the SQ5, and then the ES7. I'd be curious to know, sizewise, how the ES7 compares to the DT770 Pro I own (which are bulky).

The SQ5 has a cool looking design, been reading a few pros/cons from some other threads here.

As for the Senns, don't think I'm enough of a fan of them to buy another pair. Not been really pleased so far with any that I own(ed) so...

Looking more into the ES7... to be followed..

 

[jonathanjong]

Oh lordie, they're a good sight smaller than the DT770s. Thinner headband, smaller and flatter cups. Much more discrete, certainly. And pretty to boot. Rather different sound sig. from the K414 too. Only thing is they don't isolate as well, and many find them less than comfy. I'd buy them over the SQ5, though.

 

[Squirsier]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jonathanjong /img/forum/go_quote.gif Oh lordie, they're a good sight smaller than the DT770s. Thinner headband, smaller and flatter cups. Much more discrete, certainly. And pretty to boot. Rather different sound sig. from the K414 too. Only thing is they don't isolate as well, and many find them less than comfy. I'd buy them over the SQ5, though.

Thanks again for the time you took to answer my questions. I have read more extensively about the ES7 here and I decided to give them a chance

I have been very lucky with fit with all kinds of headphones, so I hope my lucky streak will continue

Foldable, which is really helpful when I want to put them in my backpack (aka my "nerd bag" to my girlfriend) and the size just looks good enough. I'm ready to sacrifice a bit of isolation, so that shouldn't be a big issue... Curious to know how they isolate vs k414p

I'll post my comments as soon as I receive them

 

[jonathanjong]

Excellent! Am looking forward to hearing your comparisons.

 

[Squirsier]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jonathanjong /img/forum/go_quote.gif Excellent! Am looking forward to hearing your comparisons.

I got my pair today (warehouse123.com sure ships fast

), and upon opening them, I was already satisfied : right size (as you said, not really big!), they fit my head fine, and when I booted up my iPod to hear my "headphone test" playlist, everything turned out to be better than I thought it would be, even before any serious burn-in done! Ever aspect of the frequency range appeals to my ears a lot, great highs, mids and excellent bass (much better than the k414p, less boomy, much more tight, as heard in Mo-Shic's Drongo song). Isolation is actually way better than I anticipated, these will do nicely for their use!

Great looks too

All in all, very satisfied here, thank you very much again for the recommendation

Update : Wow, Trifonic's Emergence track, from the album of the same name, gave me goose bumps, same for Eat Static's Pharaoh... Great soundstage too! Only *small but oh so small* thing I noticed is some cable microphonics... But I have some shirt clips I might try.

 

[jonathanjong]

w00t! Glad to help.