[foboi1122]

so I have been looking around for a pair of headphones and I'm considering getting Sennheiser HD 280 Pro. But I wanted to come here and ask you guys for some suggestions first. my budget is about 120 dollars and I use these headphones mainly for home and the library. Also, I currently have a generic vista realtek HD audio driver. should I upgrade to a sound card?

 

[Fetou]

HD280 Pro's sound decent, not a bad buy in the price range. They do have an extreme amount of pressure against the ears though, they feel like clamps. This can cause fatigue and headaches. They are also a bit lacking in the bass department. I'd try to test them before buying.

 

[alphaproject]

Those 280 pros will allow you to hear the crappy onboard sound artifacts.

Personally, mine don't feel like clamps and I'm very picky about comfort. I wear them for hours on my PC for gaming/music mixing/composing and everythging else.

Check this out..... make him an offer if you want see what happens.

Sennheiser*HD280 PRO NEW*HD-280 HD280 PRO DJ FREE SHIP - eBay (item 250228298442 end time Mar-28-08 14:23:08 PDT)

 

[moogoob]

Try them on first. Some people (like Fetou) dislike the clamping pressure. I personally find them very comfortable, but they are noticably more clampy than most open 'phones. This is by design, as they need to clamp to get decent isolation, which they have in spades. I use mine to listen to music on the bus, and it cuts through the hella-noisy bus engine easily.

HD280s are meant to have a flat frequency response and as such are VERY light on bass. You'll probably have to equalize them quite a bit. The bass part of my iTunes equalizer is more a mountain than a molehill, but the 280s can keep up pretty well.

As for the sound card... I'm sure most sound cards will have a better DAC than what I assume is a cheap on-motherboard card that you're using. Plus, many Creative cards offer a headphone mode that adds some crossover. I'm not a huge fan, but may make a difference in decreasing the inside-the-head feeling.

Have fun with your 280s! They're my first serious cans, and I'm already planning some upgrades when I get the $$. Welcome, and I offer my condolences to your wallet.

 

[Fetou]

Quote:

Originally Posted by moogoob /img/forum/go_quote.gif Try them on first. Some people (like Fetou) dislike the clamping pressure. I personally find them very comfortable, but they are noticably more clampy than most open 'phones. This is by design, as they need to clamp to get decent isolation, which they have in spades. I use mine to listen to music on the bus, and it cuts through the hella-noisy bus engine easily. HD280s are meant to have a flat frequency response and as such are VERY light on bass. You'll probably have to equalize them quite a bit. The bass part of my iTunes equalizer is more a mountain than a molehill, but the 280s can keep up pretty well. As for the sound card... I'm sure most sound cards will have a better DAC than what I assume is a cheap on-motherboard card that you're using. Plus, many Creative cards offer a headphone mode that adds some crossover. I'm not a huge fan, but may make a difference in decreasing the inside-the-head feeling. Have fun with your 280s! They're my first serious cans, and I'm already planning some upgrades when I get the $$. Welcome, and I offer my condolences to your wallet.

They were my first serious cans as well. I was extremely happy with them at the time, and though I had occasional headaches from them, I got used to the pressure and thought it was normal.

It wasn't until I got my ATH-A900's that I realized how much more comfortable headphones can be. Regardless, I don't have any hard feelings for the HD280s and if you can get a good deal don't hesitate.