[grandcross]

By all-around listener, I mean I listen to heavy metal that demands good bass, but also such things as silent piano music to relax to as well. Yeah, I have a strange taste in music :O

So far, what I'm picking up on is the Alessandro MS-2 ($300 which is quite pricey but is the best of both detail/bass so I hear), Grado 225 (for extremely great bass and $200) and AKG-501s.

I plan primarily on using these headphones at home..right now I'm using the Shure e3cs for portable listening. They're very decent for almost everything, but I'm seeking alternatives. Also, yes, I do tamper with EQs.

Thanks.

 

[ReDVsion]

Do you have any intention of buying an amp? Some of the headphones you'll be looking at will demand one.

Personally, I'd get a pair of MS1s and a set of K501s to cover both ends of the musical spectrum.

 

[KT88]

get an at a900s, and mod it like i dod. live the big foam in and take the small one out. put blu-tack all over the ear-cup, and put 2-3 cotoon balls in the center of the cup, thats all. you now have a bit weaker yet much tighter bass, and much better detail, just great for everything from rock to classical music.

 

[Ferbose]

Sennheiser HD580 would be a better all-around headphone than K501 for its stronger bass.

 

[dano1122]

you need an amp, decent one. pimeta is good.
you need a good soundcard if its from a pc, emu 0404 or a terratec card or chaintech(not sure about this one).
you need a #1 comfy headphone because if it is burning up your ears having it on then whats the point, stupid, like wearing very tight pants that look good, u just wana tear em off. (bad analogy i know). comfy almost equates to circumaural so you are pretty much down to senn and beyer for reasonable prices. 580 is fine and is 90% of what the 600's and 650's are. haven't heard any beyer's but i'm curious. anything else?

 

[spike33]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dano1122 you need an amp, decent one. pimeta is good. you need a good soundcard if its from a pc, emu 0404 or a terratec card or chaintech(not sure about this one). you need a #1 comfy headphone because if it is burning up your ears having it on then whats the point, stupid, like wearing very tight pants that look good, u just wana tear em off. (bad analogy i know). comfy almost equates to circumaural so you are pretty much down to senn and beyer for reasonable prices. 580 is fine and is 90% of what the 600's and 650's are. haven't heard any beyer's but i'm curious. anything else?

agreed, first headphone should be very comfy. grado are EXCELLENT secondary cans tho. you might want to try beyers, they're kinda in between grado/senn sound. maybe DT440? good all arounder

 

[MetalManCPA]

Audio Technica ATH-A900 - it's what my research here turned up when I was looking for an all-around performer.

I like it's sound straight out of the box. Burn in helped a bit, and I don't plan to mod as KT88 did. I'm perfectly satisfied with the sound from metal to pop to classical (although I basically listen to metal, I tested on all genres) with the A900's. They're easily driven from any source without the need for an amp, and they fall right in your $200 price range.

 

[jpr703]

I think you'd be happy with Grado 225s. The MS-2s (or Grado 325i which you should also consider at this price point) will have a little more bass, but any of these would be great cans.

 

[Target1]

Big plug for these. They are perfect for what you want. Further, used you could pick them up for about $125 and have enough left over for either a decent sound card or an ok amp. Fantastic value and they do everything well. After owning them for about a year I did eventually get some SR 225s for metal an such, but the Grado line just isn't very comfortable, and the 580s do most thing better in my opinion. Good luck.

Target

 

[grandcross]

I should have probably told you guys (sorry for bringing up an older topic by the way) that this is my setup:

Integrated motherboard 6-ch audio -> 280w hi-fi stereo -> (headphone)

If the 280w stereo can be considered a decent amp (I have no clue), then would your opinions change entirely?

I was asking around, and some other people pointed me out to the A500s - yet, they're the ideal headphone for someone WITHOUT an amp. So yeah, I'm still a bit up in the air about this. regardless, since I'm still a newbie in the audiophile world, I'd probably be happy with just about any high-end headphone.