[Divinesin]

Well i wanted to buy the 280pro's but i am not sure. My basic listening experience is drum & bass, techno, rock, and death metal (extremely distorted mp3 form usually...). I have a few questions.

While i am not too bothered with having huge amounts of bass i do want the bass to sound tight and clear, undistorted (when i am listening to a drum kick or an electronic beat). Does the 280pro's do this?

Also would they make mp3's sound bad, show all there encoded problems, or will they make them sound a bit better than the encode?

Do the 280's do anything for rock, metal music? or do they just make the sound of the music hard to listen too?

I was also looking at the V6's, but i do want clear sound and wasnt sure if the V6's could do this, is there any other recommendations you could give me? (below 120$ of course).

Also they would need to sound good unamped, from either my SBlive! 5.1 card, or my JVC 8030VBK reciever. And they need to be closed, and semi-comfortable. Thanks alot in advance!

 

[kentamcolin]

Personally, I like the 280 Pro's. I also have HD650's but sometimes choose the 280's just because of the great isolation they offer, but they do sound good. For the money it's hard to go wrong, IMO.

 

[kugino]

i listened to the 280s once...hated them. they are anemic and very bass shy...the bass can't be tight when there isn't any. they are also big and clumsy...the only thing i liked about them was that they were comfortable.

if you're into techno/rock, try the grados. i love the sr60...nice bass, quick, detailed. cheap, too. the 280s are more of a studio monitor headphone.

 

[ixeo]

they will reveal all flaws presented by your source (SB Live!) and your distorted mp3s. avoid at all costs. cause once you get it and say it sucks the zealots will come in and say "get a decent source! get decent audio files! get decent cables!" and the list goes on. so save yourself some pain (and money) and get something else.

 

[BowerR64]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kugino i listened to the 280s once...hated them. they are anemic and very bass shy...the bass can't be tight when there isn't any. they are also big and clumsy...the only thing i liked about them was that they were comfortable. if you're into techno/rock, try the grados. i love the sr60...nice bass, quick, detailed. cheap, too. the 280s are more of a studio monitor headphone.

I didnt find them comfortable and the curly cord was a pain.

 

[Divinesin]

Everyone is saying.."Get something else! Get something else..." So..what do you recommend?

Edit again: I think i may actually consider the Grado SR60's..They seem like a very good price and every review i've read say they really like them..so i think i may go with those. Would it do me any good spending another 100 or so to get a better pair of grado's? or what? I did plan on buying an amplifier down the line, maybe in the next year or two.

 

[hentai]

get the akg 240s and it benefits from an amp

 

[Divinesin]

What about the Alessandro MS-1's? I am very interested in the grado/Allessandro line now. BUT..i was wondering if the Alessandro Ms-1's would be worse for mp3's? (most of my music is 320kbps straight CD rips, but i have some favorities in the lower end, and would like them to sound good too). So what i'm basicly saying is...Ms-1's or The Grado SR60?! x.x Sorry if i am asking so many questions

 

[hentai]

if you can afford the ms-1 , go ahead with it.

 

[kalzone]

i don't recall where this was mentioned, but it was mentioned on this discussion forum saying that that Alessandro MS-1 is comparable to the Grado SR-125s and the MS-2s are compareable to the Grado SR-325s.

my current setup consists of the SR-325s and a headphone amp (meta42) and I listen to my mp3s which vary anywhere from lousy 128kbps to 320kbps but I'm alright with it.

as an alternative, you could go for the Sr-60 and spend another $100 for a new sound card such as the EMU 0404.
you have to keep the source and output kind of balanced. a good pair of headphones will be limited if you have a bad sounding soundcard.
i'd also consider the chaintech av-710 and the Grado SR-225 which isn't too much above your stated budget.

anyway, take your time and research. audition audio equipment at local music store if at all possible.

 

[DoomForce]

I sencond all the bad impressions here...very bass shy, VERY uncomfortable, too clumsy and dorky, will reveal all flaws in the encode...not really the musical phone imho, for studio use...as it says on their plastic casing.

i sold them and never looked back...(i listen mainly to metal-rock-electronica etc.)

 

[ixeo]

well, if you want recommendations i'd recommend the Alessandro MS-1. do note however that i do not own a pair (plan on fixing that soon). but from the impressions gathered here, they are more balanced than their Grado counterparts and all i've seen are happy owners. $99 shipped, pretty good deal.

MS-1 is based on the SR-125, which is up from the SR-60 & SR-80. they are effectively the middle of the line.. since you have 5 pairs in the SR series, 60, 80, 125, 225 and 325.. and since you're listening to drumbs and beats.. Grado/Alessandro would be a good choice since they are known as rock headphones...

if i had the money i'd order it in a heartbeat

 

[tigger]

This price for the HD280 Pro may make a decision easier!

 

[ixeo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tigger This price for the HD280 Pro may make a decision easier!

doesnt make a difference how much it is if its left collecting dust in the corner. imo of course

 

[Divinesin]

Thanks alot, i think i am going for teh Allessandro MS-1's and a new soundcard for my computer. Although i do have one final question, would it be better to buy a small amp (say in the 150 dollar range) like the Headroom Airhead, or buy a new sound card like the EMU 0404?

Also is the EMU 0404 the best soundcard for the price, (100 bucks)? I will be running my external sound system/Allessandro MS-1's through it. Right now all i have is an SBlive 5.1 Value.