Sennheiser HD201s kick ass.
May 26, 2005 at 9:43 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 22

GreenEggs313

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Go buy a pair now. They're incredible phones.


They sound better than my HD25sp's...better than my HD212's....better than my XD200s. Unbelievable for the price.
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They're comfy, cool looking, and small enough to be portable.




Required phones for any Head-fier.
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May 26, 2005 at 11:50 PM Post #5 of 22
would you please go into detail about how they are good?

edit: I could just as easily make a post saying "the sennheiser 433s are the best headphones ever" and simply qualify that with saying that they sound better than other headphones, but that would not really mean anything.(FYI, the 433s are so bad it is funny. I got mine for free)
 
May 26, 2005 at 11:56 PM Post #6 of 22
I bought my brother a pair of Sennheiser HD201s off NewEgg, $27 shipped. A little much, but most online stores were out of stock or on back order. No retail places near me carry them yet.

They're for his birthday on Monday. He's a speaker guy, investing up to some mid-level entry type speakers he built himself. He just wanted a good sounding set of cans for when he can't blast his speakers. They've been sitting in my backpack (hidden) and I couldn't help but trying them a few minutes ago.

I listened for maybe a minute at most, just briefly to see if they had potential. The EQ in foobar2000 and in Patchmix DSP made the HD201s boom with bass, way more than they should. But from that quick listen the HD201s seemed even less bassy than my short stint with the HD212 a few years ago - but still a nice, deep bass that was pretty powerful. Overall they sounded somewhere between the HD212 and the HD497 I think - but I haven't heard my HD497s in months (traded them for ER-6) and the HD212 in like two years, so take that with a grain of salt.

My point: They sound good for $20, after burn-in they should sound fantastic. Wonder how they do from an amp or with an impedence adapter, heh.

Oh, and my source is an E-MU 1212m by the way.
 
May 26, 2005 at 11:59 PM Post #8 of 22
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention how comfortable they are. Unlike the poorly design headband mechanism that hooks to the earcups on most of the HD4xx, HD2xx and the new EHxxx, this one is far slimmer and more adjustable. It's like the design on the HD580/HD6x0 - that is, as you can see, a two sided hinge and an adjustable headband, instead of that annoying ball design that has the headband sticking out an extra inch making you look super dorky.
 
May 27, 2005 at 12:35 AM Post #9 of 22
i also bought these recently from target.com, and wanted to chime in about the isolation
smily_headphones1.gif


i commute to work by bus, and until recently been using sony ex71s to listen to music on the bus ride. today i tried out the 201s, and found that they do an ok job of isolating, but nothing near the isolation of a canalphone or the hd280s. one thing contributing to this is that because they aren't pinching your head (which is quite comfortable), it's hard to get a good seal, i found that because it was kinda loose, i could near the outside noise (bus engine, people talking) a lot more compared to the ex71s.

i think for now, i'm planning on using these w/ my laptop while mobile, and stick w/ the ex71s for the commute. although if i'm around long enough, i'm sure that won't stay the same for long
smily_headphones1.gif
 
May 27, 2005 at 12:51 AM Post #10 of 22
Quote:

Originally Posted by panic689
i also bought these recently from target.com, and wanted to chime in about the isolation
smily_headphones1.gif


i commute to work by bus, and until recently been using sony ex71s to listen to music on the bus ride. today i tried out the 201s, and found that they do an ok job of isolating, but nothing near the isolation of a canalphone or the hd280s. one thing contributing to this is that because they aren't pinching your head (which is quite comfortable), it's hard to get a good seal, i found that because it was kinda loose, i could near the outside noise (bus engine, people talking) a lot more compared to the ex71s.

i think for now, i'm planning on using these w/ my laptop while mobile, and stick w/ the ex71s for the commute. although if i'm around long enough, i'm sure that won't stay the same for long
smily_headphones1.gif



how does the quality compare with your 71s?
 
May 27, 2005 at 1:03 AM Post #11 of 22
Quote:

Originally Posted by fappar
would you please go into detail about how they are good?

edit: I could just as easily make a post saying "the sennheiser 433s are the best headphones ever" and simply qualify that with saying that they sound better than other headphones, but that would not really mean anything.(FYI, the 433s are so bad it is funny. I got mine for free)





sure
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comparisons:


Compared to the HD212:

Less bass. For example on Modest Mouse's "Float On", with the 212s the bass is much more prominent. The vocals, guitars and percussion all sound recessed. With the 201's, the bass guitar is still there, but you can make out the guitar part much easier, and the vocals aren't recessed. The cymbols sound better on the 201s. The 201's are practically the same size, but far more comfortable due to the fact that they are true circumaural phones. The 212's have pads kinda like the PX200...they look like they should be circumaural but they're so small they actually sit on your ears.

The 201's aren't bass monsters like the 212's, but I'd still consider them more bass heavy than bass shy. It's a toss up for me with techno. The 212's have bigger bass (depending on your tastes that may or may not be better) but the mids and highs of the 201 are better. It's like 2 different flavors of the same song. With the 212's you get some awesome bass, but the 201's you get better highs and mids. Depending on my mood I don't prefer one over the other when it comes to techno/rap.


If I had to choose to buy one of these phones, I'd take the 201s. They're alot cheaper.




Compared to the Sony XD200s:


Hmm....these phones sound pretty similar. They Sony's earcups are more comfy, because they're bigger. But I hate the XD200's headband. The plastic part was digging into my head, so I took scissors and just cut them off. Now the XD200s barely clamp my head, and they're pretty comfy now.

The bass on the XD200 is slightly more boomier. The soundstage is larger on the XD200...I have a hard time judging soundstage though because all my headphones have a small soundstage.


The 201's look alot cooler than the XD200. I'd never think of wearing the XD200s in public

I prefer the 201 for most songs, but for the price of these phones I really am happy with both.



Compared to my SR-60s:

The Grados are more transparent, slaughter the 201's in the mids, and have more bass impact. I love my Grados though. I like my 201s as a compliment to my Grados I guess.










Those are my quick thoughts. I listened to the phones out of my computers soundcard. But I think all the headphones I mentioned have something about them I enjoy. The 212's have the bass, the XD200s have the soundstage, the grados are God. I'm the kinda guy who enjoys all my headphones because they each give music a different flavor. I know I'll be listening to my 201s and Grados more than any other headphone I own, but if i ever need to hear some monster bass, I'll grab the 212's and rock out.



Bottom line is the 201s are 30 bucks shipped from headroom. They're definately worth it.
cool.gif
 
May 27, 2005 at 1:11 AM Post #12 of 22
Quote:

Originally Posted by GreenEggs313
sure
cool.gif



comparisons:


Compared to the HD212:

Less bass. For example on Modest Mouse's "Float On", with the 212s the bass is much more prominent. The vocals, guitars and percussion all sound recessed. With the 201's, the bass guitar is still there, but you can make out the guitar part much easier, and the vocals aren't recessed. The cymbols sound better on the 201s. The 201's are practically the same size, but far more comfortable due to the fact that they are true circumaural phones. The 212's have pads kinda like the PX200...they look like they should be circumaural but they're so small they actually sit on your ears.

The 201's aren't bass monsters like the 212's, but I'd still consider them more bass heavy than bass shy. It's a toss up for me with techno. The 212's have bigger bass (depending on your tastes that may or may not be better) but the mids and highs of the 201 are better. It's like 2 different flavors of the same song. With the 212's you get some awesome bass, but the 201's you get better highs and mids. Depending on my mood I don't prefer one over the other when it comes to techno/rap.


If I had to choose to buy one of these phones, I'd take the 201s. They're alot cheaper.




Compared to the Sony XD200s:


Hmm....these phones sound pretty similar. They Sony's earcups are more comfy, because they're bigger. But I hate the XD200's headband. The plastic part was digging into my head, so I took scissors and just cut them off. Now the XD200s barely clamp my head, and they're pretty comfy now.

The bass on the XD200 is slightly more boomier. The soundstage is larger on the XD200...I have a hard time judging soundstage though because all my headphones have a small soundstage.


The 201's look alot cooler than the XD200. I'd never think of wearing the XD200s in public

I prefer the 201 for most songs, but for the price of these phones I really am happy with both.



Compared to my SR-60s:

The Grados are more transparent, slaughter the 201's in the mids, and have more bass impact. I love my Grados though. I like my 201s as a compliment to my Grados I guess.










Those are my quick thoughts. I listened to the phones out of my computers soundcard. But I think all the headphones I mentioned have something about them I enjoy. The 212's have the bass, the XD200s have the soundstage, the grados are God. I'm the kinda guy who enjoys all my headphones because they each give music a different flavor. I know I'll be listening to my 201s and Grados more than any other headphone I own, but if i ever need to hear some monster bass, I'll grab the 212's and rock out.



Bottom line is the 201s are 30 bucks shipped from headroom. They're definately worth it.
cool.gif




Excellent
smily_headphones1.gif


I think I may pick up a pair
 
May 27, 2005 at 4:40 AM Post #14 of 22
Quote:

Originally Posted by panic689
i also bought these recently from target.com, and wanted to chime in about the isolation
smily_headphones1.gif


i commute to work by bus, and until recently been using sony ex71s to listen to music on the bus ride. today i tried out the 201s, and found that they do an ok job of isolating, but nothing near the isolation of a canalphone or the hd280s. one thing contributing to this is that because they aren't pinching your head (which is quite comfortable), it's hard to get a good seal, i found that because it was kinda loose, i could near the outside noise (bus engine, people talking) a lot more compared to the ex71s.

i think for now, i'm planning on using these w/ my laptop while mobile, and stick w/ the ex71s for the commute. although if i'm around long enough, i'm sure that won't stay the same for long
smily_headphones1.gif



even with this kind of isolation, do you think your music can be heard without turning the volume too loud? And can you try riding a car in the highway with these to check how much wind noise they can block out?
 
May 27, 2005 at 4:54 AM Post #15 of 22
this thing doesn't look good! ><
 

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