[EpicPie]

I would go with KSC75's over HD201's. The HD201's are quiet and to get them playing at a pleasant listening volume they're a bit difficult to drive even though they have a 32 Ohm impedance.

 

[Scarecrow145]

Quote:

Soundcards are DACs, and usually pretty good ones if you buy high-end ones. The Essence STX I'm using, for example, is the best DAC I know of under $200 and perhaps $300. Creative's competitor, the Titanium HD, looks very good as well, but I know less about it.
 
When you get into cheaper soundcards, though, they usually lack good shielding and might introduce extra noise because of it. You're also paying for all the extra features like Dolby and THX licensing. On the other hand, external DACs have enclosures and power supplies that can take up most of the cost on the low end.
 
What's your budget? And are you going to be using one of these discussed headphones with it?

Budget would be 50-100 pounds I guess for the amp and sound card. This is something I'm planning to do in a few months or so, and I'll probably get some better headphones then as well. 
 
I have zero knowledge of audio systems so I need a lot of advice actually. The amp for instance, I'm a headphone user most of the time but I might buy some good speakers if I can find some so I don't know what kind of amp I should get. Headphones specific or just the normal ones.
 
Also, and I hope I don't sound stupid but a decent sound card and amp is all I need, and I'm all set right? Or is there something I'm missing?

 

[brat]

Budget would be 50-100 pounds I guess for the amp and sound card. ,,,

The audio system must be build around the transducers. The headphones (speakers) determine the sound signature of the whole system and they must be the most qualitative part of it (the most expensive maybe). So buy the best headphones you can afford and then choose an appropriate dac and amp for them.

 

[lossfizzle]

Quote:

I  don't know, I  don't like that  they pinch the ears. The first time I  got them, I  was really struggling to put them . Then I  learned to put them faster , but still I  think it's not much convenient..
 

If they truly "pinch" the ears, they're not set right yet. I wear mine with glasses, never have to take the glasses off, never have any problems. I will admit they take a moment to put on-- then I usually forget they're there for a good long while.
 
Recently I bought a set of KTXPro1s and found them very comparable to the KSCs, if not identical (an FR graph I found suggests they may actually be *better* than the KSCs by flatness standards). I don't know why these don't get as much attention as the KSCs-- probably because they are ugly as all get-out. But if you needed a headband instead of the clips, you could do a heck of a lot worse for the price.
 

 

[Eric_C]

Brat's last post is abso-tively correct. Do not waste time obsessing over the sound of your amp, or your DAC--by and large these components impart little colouration, and even if they do, it's far less than the headphones.

Next step is to check your music. Be sure you're ripping straight from CD--bitrate of 320kbps should be enough.

In response to your original question, I dunno about the Koss (never heard it), but the 201's were not great to my ears. kind of muddy.

 

[extrabigmehdi]

If they truly "pinch" the ears, they're not set right yet. I wear mine with glasses, never have to take the glasses off, never have any problems. I will admit they take a moment to put on-- then I usually forget they're there for a good long while.
 
Recently I bought a set of KTXPro1s and found them very comparable to the KSCs, if not identical (an FR graph I found suggests they may actually be *better* than the KSCs by flatness standards). I don't know why these don't get as much attention as the KSCs-- probably because they are ugly as all get-out. But if you needed a headband instead of the clips, you could do a heck of a lot worse for the price.
 

My ears are a bit sensitive because I've made a cosmetic surgery operation (I got protuding ears). That's why I feel annoyed with any minimal pinching (my ears were completely reworked it seems).
Regarding the flat frequency response of the KTXPro1 , I'd say I don't care because I already like to boost a lot the bass with my ksc75 ( by using the bass setting of my rockboxed sansa). I'd be more interested by the square frequency response though.

 

[Zombie_X]

I find the KTXPRO1 much better than the KSC75. They indeed are not as upfront but the sound is much more balanced and the abss is tighter.
 
Quote:

If they truly "pinch" the ears, they're not set right yet. I wear mine with glasses, never have to take the glasses off, never have any problems. I will admit they take a moment to put on-- then I usually forget they're there for a good long while.
 
Recently I bought a set of KTXPro1s and found them very comparable to the KSCs, if not identical (an FR graph I found suggests they may actually be *better* than the KSCs by flatness standards). I don't know why these don't get as much attention as the KSCs-- probably because they are ugly as all get-out. But if you needed a headband instead of the clips, you could do a heck of a lot worse for the price.

 

[lossfizzle]

Quote:

I find the KTXPRO1 much better than the KSC75. They indeed are not as upfront but the sound is much more balanced and the abss is tighter.
 

Yeah, their character does actually seem closer to the Portapro than the KSCs. I have yet to do an A/B comparison of all three, though. I will say that the comfort on the KTXPro1 is nowhere near that of the Portapros for me, and they really are stunningly ugly IMHO

 

[nicolasete]

Hi, sorry to revive the thread, but i don't want to start a new one.
 
The general consensus seems to point that the Koss ksc75 are a better value than the Senns HD201, but i imagine many of those opinions are taking into account that usualy the 201 cost double (in amazon.es they are at a 30€ while the koss cost 15).
 
The thing is, i have found the HD201 on sale for 17€ vs the koss ksc75 15€. Would you still recommend the koss with those prices? (Its for a gift so the senss are kind of more expensive-looking (being full headphones, closed and all, but ultimatelly i care more about the overall quality of the product -sound, durability, confort, etc-)
 
Thanks in advance.
 
 
(Also, would you consider the senheisser PX90 for 20€ or the higher price is not really justified?
 
 
The products:
 
- Koss KSC75..............15.03€
- Sennheiser HD201......16.92€
 
- Sennheiser PX 90........19.89€