[Merdril]

Zathan, how did you find the MDR-XD200?

 

[Judge Buff]

The 440s are very good budget-fi headphones. They are fairly neutral in my setup, but there is clean, controlled bass and very clear and airy upper mids and highs. My Indeed amp is currently using an excellent Mullard ECC88 A Frame and the sound presentation evolves with tube rolling, as it should. The 440s pair well with my Zune unamped but you must crank it up to the 14-15 volume levels to drive them that way. Since I listen to the 440s at home amped with my old Zune, I set my vol level at an 8-9 and let the 40 year old Mullard tube drive the sound presentation.

Merdril, every one of us are listening to phones as part of systems made up of different components. It's important to point out specifically what your components are. The true audiophiles that are members here are more than just "lovers of sound." They seek to experience audio in the most pure and pristine manner they can afford, and each one invests large sums of $$ in each component in their systems. You and I aren't there yet. I won't ever be able to buy that kind of equipment as I have kids, a mortgage and especially a wife that won't allow that to happen. But I do enjoy looking for "bang for the buck" kind of budget audio components, especially IEMs. I'm not much of a basshead, but I was a long time ago.

My advice for you is to hang back and observe for a while. Get familiar with a bunch of the equipment comparisons here and get a sense of how different reviewers look at equipment and how they write their impressions. While I will spout opinions about many topics here on head-fi in the non audio forums, it's only been in the last few months that I feel semi-competent enough to post anything regarding equipment. And it's also only about equipment that I have some reasonable experience with. There are people here that can get fairly harsh on noobs, but don't take that to heart.

Sorry for hijacking the thread, y'all, but I thought that someone needed to...

Oh yeah, I love my 440s and I like the super-comfortable 840 ear pads that fit them, too.

 

[Merdril]

Thanks for your useful post, and I hope I haven't offended any true audiophiles by using that title. I'm looking into purchasing an amp now that I've found headphones that match my taste from an unamped source. I have read many impressions here and I see that many people have multiple sources and intricate setups, and even go as far as to recable their headphones.

However, there are so many different amps and equalizers and dacs and recievers and preamps that I'm not even sure where to start (well, I know what each of them are and what they do, but that's about it). So I guess for now, I'll be listening to these headphones that I think sound amazing, but mainly because I've never heard anything better.

 

[Merdril]

The XB700 doesn't match the SRH440 for quality in "Presto Agitato." The piano isn't nearly as transparent (if you've never heard it, it's a piano solo) and you can't be fooled into thinking there's a piano in your room, but I didn't expect the XB700 to perform as well as the SRH440 in classical music. If you like classical music more than I do, the SRH440 might be your thing.

 

[InFn-0]

I briefly tried the SRH440 out of a Asus Xonar D2, and somewhat found the highs too powerful and bass overpowering for my tastes. Also, after hearing the 440's i realized that i personally like laid back sound. Dont get me wrong into thinking that something is wrong with the headphone or anything, they are brilliantly versatile headphones and can pull off almost anything you put to them, but they just weren't my cup of tea.

Build quality is excellent, and they look much better in person than they do in pictures; in pictures they just look like ugly headphones which are over sized for their design, while in reality, they are pretty small and elegant.

Also, i noticed one hell of a difference when playing from onboard audio (realtek chip) and the Asus card. With onboard audio, sound went heavily distorted when i raised the volume considerably, and bass sounded bloated. With the sound card on, everything sounded more tight and well controlled.

 

[Merdril]

We must be complete opposites then

.

 

[pasoleati]

Here is my review of the SRH440. I have now used these for some 10-15 hours. I have had no problems with comfort, they fit me perfectly. These appear substantially sturdier in construction than my previous AKG K240 Studio. The coiled cord basically requires an extension if you listen to say more than a metre away from the sorce, if you want to void any substantial pull on the plug. On the other hand, in my case this is also a plus as the coiled cord acts as a buffer when accidentally stepping on the wire and standing up without noticing that.

My sound sources are: for home theater the 'phones jack of a Harman&Kardon AVR-1550 amplifier. For music it is the 'phones jack of a Pioneer A-335 amplifier.

For movies on DVD, I have been watching the Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis with a short period of Bones. Via the HD recorder, I watched a Christmas concert from Vienna.

As far as music is concerned, I have listened to a reasonable wide variety of music: metal (Hammerfall and Nightwish), Del Shannon, sountracks (Stargate Atlantis, LotR etc), classical music (orchestral, vocal, Gregorian chant, organ).

I did some almost side-by-side testing comparing these to my secondary phones, Portapros. The difference is huge. Portapros sound like one is listening the music is coming from behind a heavy closed door.

First I have to say that the Shures sound very detailed. E.g. I heard many new details when listening to the Stargates when the volume was set to produce approximately the same level of dialogue as with the AKG and the Portapro. Though I must admit that the AKG listening was not side-by-side as these failed about 2 weeks ago.

The soundstage is very spacious as well. For example, when listening to organ music (some Bach and some German chorales), the sound is very similar to the sound of church acoustics.

Similar width is well evident when listening to Nightwish´s first album Angels Fall First.

Other comments have to wait for further listening!

 

[Merdril]

I'm glad this is turning into a thread for SRH440 reviews, as it should be. Keep posting!

 

[lessthanzero2]

Hey, Pasoleati, thanks for your comments regarding the SRH440's and the mention of the AKG 240S. I only watch Blu ray and DVD's from my home theatre and wanted to know which would be better for my application. I am considering the SRH440's or the AKG 250S. I have been using the AKG 80M, but my cat liked them too, so I am used to the "openness" of the AKG, and was told that if one used "closed" headphones your head may explode...?? SHURE would not want that to happen. So, with your experience with both the Shure and AKG, which would you recommend for home theatre use. Thanks.............

 

[Squalish]

May I recommend, for the bassheads, a DT770 or ATH-M50? The d1001 as well, though I think the former two are considered better.

While it was alive, my 770pro250 was great on electronica & hip-hop and not bad on everything else. The M50 is what I've settled on next.

 

[Merdril]

I haven't gotten around to writing the review of the xb700 yet, but I did manage to cover the holes on each side of the headcups in a quick and dirty fix (I put a few bandages over both sides). The sound leakage was similar to the SRH440, in that there was barely any. However, the sound quality diminished tremendously. Sound south of ~300 Hz was gone (which is where I like my sound). Of course, this was probably due to the bandages being particularly absorbent and not reflective of sound, so I'll have to find something else to use...

 

[kshelton]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pasoleati /img/forum/go_quote.gif No offense intended, but IMHO terms "audiophile" and "Japanese pop"/"electropop" do not belong on the same page. These terms are frankly mutually exclusive. And BTW, I did test the Shures yesterday with a bit more varied music (Howard Shore´s The Two Towers) and the performance was very good.

Quote:

Originally Posted by pasoleati /img/forum/go_quote.gif Could you please point out where did I claim that those two are not musical genres? Or that I denied anyone´s right to listen to them? It is just that an "audiophile" means a connoisseur to me and to me connoisseurs are seeking something more demanding that pop mp3 files. Just like automobile connoisseurs are more keen on Rolls-Royce or Ferrari than Toyota Yaris.

I guess he better switch his taste in music then. Otherwise he won't be a real Rolls-Royce type audiophile connoisseur!

 

[keezzzz]

Strange..........
i think that your (computer)source is bad
i tried the 440's with a ipod and later with a ipod and the nuforce icon mobile
these hp's sounds great !!
Ok , they are not Grado's or Ultrasone's , but for the money (99 euro) they are very good

 

[12345142]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Merdril /img/forum/go_quote.gif I haven't gotten around to writing the review of the xb700 yet, but I did manage to cover the holes on each side of the headcups in a quick and dirty fix (I put a few bandages over both sides). The sound leakage was similar to the SRH440, in that there was barely any. However, the sound quality diminished tremendously. Sound south of ~300 Hz was gone (which is where I like my sound). Of course, this was probably due to the bandages being particularly absorbent and not reflective of sound, so I'll have to find something else to use...

Well, I don't think the holes were meant to be covered in the first place; most subwoofers have a bass port for better resonance, and I know the Sennheiser IE6 and Ultimate Ears MetroFi series both have holes which are fundamental in creating their proper sound (those two are dynamic IEMs, by the way). Those holes probably operate on the same principle, especially seeing as the XB700 is designed for bass; its drivers are quite large too, at 50mm in diameter. I would liken it to the effect of covering a pair of open-back headphones. Nonetheless, I suggest you try using a more resonant material to cover the holes up. I'm curious to see the difference, as these holes are much smaller.
My Icon Mobile is still enroute, by the way. I ordered it on the 23rd, but the holidays and weekend after New Year's have delayed matters.

 

[dL.]

I have a totally different experience from yours. The SRH440, though not the best headphones in the world, are the best headphones for the price. Simply put, I was surprised at the quality and details the SRH440 provided me. The bass is definitely not the strongest, but to me I find it more than adequate. In fact, certain songs I find the bass to be overwhelming.

On the other hand, I tried quite a few Sony headphones at the Sony store and they are nowhere near as good as my SRH440. The bass is too overwhelming, mids are somewhat unclear, and the highs are very irritating to listen to.

And I think your credibility of the review is lost when you state: "unless you like the sound of $5 earbuds." Seriously?

dL