[Lyuokdea]

I almost convinced myself to get the 598s, but then stopped at the last minute because I'm worried about sound leakage. I work in a pretty quiet office with one office mate, who sits about 8 feet away. I usually listen to music at pretty low volumes, but am worried it will be too bothersome for him. In theory I would actually like to have sound leak in, since if there is sound it's a 50% chance that somebody is trying to talk to me. 
 
So I'd like either a closed, or semi-open set of headphones that has the large soundstage of the HD598s or AD900Xs. I usually listen to:
 
Classical - 50%
Jazz - 20%
Singer/Songwriter - 20%
Pop/Rap/Electronic - 10%
 
I don't like heavy bass, and would consider a reference piece to be something like "Duel of the Fates", if a headphone can be a bit analytic with the rapid violin part, and then also bring power to the vocals.... 
 
Currently I have ATH-CK10s which I really like, but I've found that I can't deal with IEMs day to day without ear pain.
 
Budget is probably $150, though I could do $200 if there was something in that range worth getting. I don't have an amp and would rather not buy one if possible. I will be hooking it into either a macbook pro or to a desktop with a pretty decent motherboard (though no external soundcard)
 
Alternatively, if somebody can convince me that my office mate won't hear the 598s, or that there is an open headphone that leaks slightly less.......
 
Thanks!

 

[PurpleAngel]

Check out the AKG (Massdrop) K553 Pro headphones.

 

[Lyuokdea]

Ok, this looks quite promising on first inspection -- will need to keep looking around, but they seem to be compared quite favorably with the 598.
 
Thanks!

 

[Lyuokdea]

One related question, are all open headphones about the same in terms of sound leakage, or are some better than others? I've heard that Beyerdynamics (DT990 and DT880 for example) are semi-open, and have less sound leakage than the 598s?
 
I also see that the K7XX are on massdrop for $199, though these are open instead of closed, they are almost the same price otherwise (best bet is probably to wait for the price of the K553 to drop a bit) -- but these might have way too much leakage and take me back to my original problem...

 

[PurpleAngel]

  One related question, are all open headphones about the same in terms of sound leakage, or are some better than others? I've heard that Beyerdynamics (DT990 and DT880 for example) are semi-open, and have less sound leakage than the 598s?
 
I also see that the K7XX are on massdrop for $199, though these are open instead of closed, they are almost the same price otherwise (best bet is probably to wait for the price of the K553 to drop a bit) -- but these might have way too much leakage and take me back to my original problem...

 
Technically the DT880 is less open then the DT990.
The DT880 has lots of tiny holes and the DT990 has larger slits.
I would guess the DT880 and HD598 are about equal when it comes to how open they are (lots of tiny holes).
 
Still think the AKG K553 Pro is the better choice, closed so it block outside noise.
But I'm guessing if someone is trying to communicate with you in the office, they will be able to get your attention.
 
The 62-Ohm AKG K7XX is slightly more power hungry then a 250-Ohm DT880/DT990.
So a decent headphone amplifier is recommended.
Where as the 32-Ohm K553 Pro can easily be driven plugged directly into the Mac or any smart phone.

 

[Lyuokdea]

One last question, does anybody know where to get the K553 for less than $195 in the US? It looks like Amazon usually carries it for $169, but is currently sold out, and previously there have been massdrops for as low as $129. 
 
$195 isn't totally out of my price range, but maybe there is some normal seller I'm missing?

 

[PurpleAngel]

  One last question, does anybody know where to get the K553 for less than $195 in the US? It looks like Amazon usually carries it for $169, but is currently sold out, and previously there have been Massdrops for as low as $129. 
$195 isn't totally out of my price range, but maybe there is some normal seller I'm missing?

 
Used AKG K663 Pro
$114 or best offer, shipping is $12.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/262326091349?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT