[Ra97oR]

The thing with the "extra detail" that headphones give you is that it's usually the detail that no one wants to hear. A lot of the times it's hiss and stuff that just detracts from the music
 
Good speakers ($500-$1000 range) give you all the detail you probably will ever need. 

Not true. Where you might be right on live recordings (with bad audience) or poor recordings. The extra details you might pick out on some good recordings just adds to the music enjoyment imo. If it is in the recordings, why not be able to hear it? I moved to headphones from speakers for that very reason.

Also with speakers, it is hard to get the level of intimacy that can be achieved by headphones. That quality makes listening to vocal centric music on headphones very engaging.

 

[HesterDW]

I dont think that it detracts from the music but headphones can definitely be less forgiving as said earlier. I can see where DirtyLaundry is coming from though. Sometimes speakers can be perfect if all you need is simple sound. No intricate detail or separation of ranges just straightfoward sound. And I think a lot speakers can offer that at a lower price than headphones. There have been times where I preferred my bookshelf speakers over my Denons simply because I was irritated by the hiss coming from my PC. Another thing I like about speakers is being able to feel the sound. Maybe that added use of another sense makes it feel like more bang for your buck.

 

[Ra97oR]

I dont think that it detracts from the music but headphones can definitely be less forgiving as said earlier. I can see where DirtyLaundry is coming from though. Sometimes speakers can be perfect if all you need is simple sound. No intricate detail or separation of ranges just straightfoward sound. And I think a lot speakers can offer that at a lower price than headphones. There have been times where I preferred my bookshelf speakers over my Denons simply because I was irritated by the hiss coming from my PC. Another thing I like about speakers is being able to feel the sound. Maybe that added use of another sense makes it feel like more bang for your buck.

Gonna go off topic from here. I extensively uses computer as a source, and have no hiss. A good computer set-up can sound extremely good and hiss is never a problem with reasonably good setups. If hiss is on the sound card, you are most likely feeding unclean power to it. If it is a problem a good USB DAC can always be used.

 

[obutto]

 
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I dont think that it detracts from the music but headphones can definitely be less forgiving as said earlier. I can see where DirtyLaundry is coming from though. Sometimes speakers can be perfect if all you need is simple sound. No intricate detail or separation of ranges just straightfoward sound. And I think a lot speakers can offer that at a lower price than headphones. There have been times where I preferred my bookshelf speakers over my Denons simply because I was irritated by the hiss coming from my PC. Another thing I like about speakers is being able to feel the sound. Maybe that added use of another sense makes it feel like more bang for your buck.

Gonna go off topic from here. I extensively uses computer as a source, and have no hiss. A good computer set-up can sound extremely good and hiss is never a problem with reasonably good setups. If hiss is on the sound card, you are most likely feeding unclean power to it. If it is a problem a good USB DAC can always be used.

I'm just going to add that Macbook Pro's are notorious for their hissing noise. You can get rid of it with the right cable. And I agree with Hester, I like to feel the sound (esp bass). It just makes everything sound so much exciting, like I'm at a concert. In the end, for me anyways, quality of sound is not always correlational with an "exciting experience". 
 

 

[scompton]

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also with proper placement,room acoustic experiments and time they'll give you far superior soundstage performance and detail to any headphone around per dollar. now that said i don't want anyone throwing a hissy fit or whine cause this is my opinion and it's matter of preference. also i would like to throw in everyone is not lucky enough to get good speakers for a nice price or don't know anything about how speakers function in rooms. speakers can offer far better bang for buck but you need to understand and study more to understand your room limits cause you can make even a pair of 50,000 dollar speakers sound like 50 dollar speakers with improper room.
 

Not every room has a spot for proper placement of speakers.  I don't have a room in my house that would work, except maybe the living room, but my wife would never let full sized speakers in there. And I'm not sure they'd work well there either with a 6 foot wide opening into the dining room.
 
 
 

 

[bcasey25raptor]

thing is, the reason i prefer speakers is perhaps i like to feel my music. heck i seem to be perfectly satisfied with $30 logitech 2.0 speakers. its just i don't know. the reason i wish headphones would give me the same feeling and enjoyment is because i will be living somewhere i can't play music without bugging people. so i need a way to enjoy music. i feel that since i have gotten headphones past $60 i can't just sit down and enjoy my music anymore, and i can't listen to headphones because even on low the bass drives people nuts.

 

[badbob]

There are headphones for as low as 300 dollars that can give you the feel and impact of very deep bass to 30 hz and lower but of course the feel and impact is in your ears and around your head not your whole body. To get that deep bass with proper feel and impact is not only expensive speakers but also a powerful amp (xtra $$) and a room that supports that bass. Most rooms do not.

 

[scompton]

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There are headphones for as low as 300 dollars that can give you the feel and impact of very deep bass to 30 hz and lower but of course the feel and impact is in your ears and around your head not your whole body. To get that deep bass with proper feel and impact is not only expensive speakers but also a powerful amp (xtra $$) and a room that supports that bass. Most rooms do not.

If you play too loud and have a sub, you can probably still feel it with a crappy amp and a crappy room.  Especially if you have a sub.  Even if you get a Sony XB and can feel the bass, it's not the same as feeling it in you chest.  Of course if you can feel it in your chest, you probably need hearing protection and your neighbors are going to hate you.
 

 

[DemonicLemming]

Stop thinking about wearing headphones and just listen to the music.  You're probably mentally conditioning yourself to subconsciously compare your headphones to speakers every time you put them on.
 
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thing is, the reason i prefer speakers is perhaps i like to feel my music. heck i seem to be perfectly satisfied with $30 logitech 2.0 speakers. its just i don't know. the reason i wish headphones would give me the same feeling and enjoyment is because i will be living somewhere i can't play music without bugging people. so i need a way to enjoy music. i feel that since i have gotten headphones past $60 i can't just sit down and enjoy my music anymore, and i can't listen to headphones because even on low the bass drives people nuts.

 

 

[jackmccabe]

From the sounds of it you prefer a more fun sound with lots of bass so I suggest you get a different set of headphones.

 

[badbob]

If you play too loud and have a sub, you can probably still feel it with a crappy amp and a crappy room.  Especially if you have a sub.  Even if you get a Sony XB and can feel the bass, it's not the same as feeling it in you chest.  Of course if you can feel it in your chest, you probably need hearing protection and your neighbors are going to hate you.
 

I always wanted to do that, get something that could shake the whole building (just for a minute of course) then the gear I needed cost too much.

 

[HesterDW]

@Ra97oR I totally agree with you. My source is FLAC to my HT Omega and I still have hissing in the back of my songs. Fortunately I have an E7 on the way.
@badbob I have some shi*** Panasonic bookshelfs with a 300w amp built in that could shake my walls. One of the reasons I decided to switch to headphones was annoying my dorm mates with my speakers. Dorm rooms have the worst acoustics, tiny little rooms. 
 
I know what OP is going through. You can never compare speakers and headphones. My solution was to go all out with my car stereo. The frustration that I get from not being able to feel the bass from headphones is occasionally let out in my car at the cost of people next to me at stoplights 

.(Im so obnoxious with my subwoofers)
 
 

 

[bcasey25raptor]

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From the sounds of it you prefer a more fun sound with lots of bass so I suggest you get a different set of headphones.

actually no, my speakers bass is always on the lowest and it's still to much for me. also it tends to over power the music if the bass is higher then the lowest setting. 

 

[vrln]

With the exception of electrostatic headphones, I agree that even semi-cheap speakers are far superior. That said, after owning (and getting disappointed by) several high end dynamic headphones (and one orthodynamic: LCD-2), it was not until I tried Stax gear I gained a fewfound faith in headphone technology. Compared to the ribbon/dynamic driver speakers I´ve heard, Stax headphones offer more detail, superior instrument separation, a fully black darkness from which all sound elements appear (this is the main "wow-factor" in electrostatics) and a completely 100% non-fatiguing sound with zero sibilance. That said, I´d probably be very, very impressed with electrostatic full size speakers. 

 

[bcasey25raptor]

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With the exception of electrostatic headphones, I agree that even semi-cheap speakers are far superior. That said, after owning (and getting disappointed by) several high end dynamic headphones (and one orthodynamic: LCD-2), it was not until I tried Stax gear I gained a fewfound faith in headphone technology. Compared to the ribbon/dynamic driver speakers I´ve heard, Stax headphones offer more detail, superior instrument separation, a fully black darkness from which all sound elements appear (this is the main "wow-factor" in electrostatics) and a completely 100% non-fatiguing sound with zero sibilance. That said, I´d probably be very, very impressed with electrostatic full size speakers. 

what exactly is the difference between dynamic and electrostatic?