Toothless
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2014
- Posts
- 159
- Likes
- 22
Hi everyone.
Sorry if I seem spammy all around the forum but every year I kinda research headphones and buy another one... And I guess its that time of the year again
My last years purchase Brainwavz HM5 (most expensive I had yet. Also had CAL) are pretty fantastic. Build quality is top notch and comfort too. I have plenty of those pleather memory foam pads. Thicker too... I have like 3 pairs total now. This is the best thing.
but I found them lacking in fun (not enough bass, punch) and kinda tiring. Not that they are uncomfortable but getting very hot(claustrophobic too) and I avoid wearing them until its late night and not warm middle of the day anymore... Now also, I don't need isolation anymore. Don't have a roommate anymore and can do whatever I want.
Been looking at some most recommended models.
Koss portapro seems to be bassy and put on the head and forget but Idk.. they look like they would crush in my hand and I don't think bass is possible without.. They said CAL is bassy too and it wasn't when I had it.
Other highly praised recommendation is pro80... Now I've heard its bass and not bassy depending on source. Price is ok since I am looking for below 100$ headphone. But the cable is super too long(ooops, checked that. Cable is actually pretty good with pro80.. not sure where I got the coiled from), some say headband is too short and it would seem like sweaty hot tiresome headphone. Not something to replace(or rather add, I am not selling) hm5 with. btw. Which pro80 is the best ? pro80 or cloud ? or gemini...
So I guess I could look at open hedaphones. How is 2050 ? is it bassy at all ? What if I would use it with pleather hm5 pads ? The price is very good
Also I am open to other recommendations. Takstar or not
edit: I have e10k and 100$ to spend max. thanks
At 100$ I think you will have plenty of over-ear options (from what I read this is probably what' you're after). The Sennheiser 558 is a very good headphone, albeit too laid back for my taste. The ATH M40x is another great contender, I even enjoy its sound more than its bigger brother M50x. The AKG K553 (an additional 19$ on top of your budget limit) pops up every once in a while on Massdrop. I've not personally listened to it but it gets heavily praised. If you're willing to stick with the Takstar, I suggest you buy a Kingston HyperX Cloud core. They are, imho, better built than the Pro80, with paracord cable (The Pro80 straight cable feels quite flimsy to me, worse than the HI 2050's), softer earpads, an additional mic for chatting, and probably comes with a longer warranty. Not to mention it looks prettier too. There are offers from Grado (Sr80e), Superlux (hd 681 EVO) and Somic (MH 463) too, very good headphones for the price.
The 2050 is mid bassy, but to my ears it doesn't get low enough, there's almost no ''oohm" i.e no sub bass with the stock velour pads. I sold it and bought a Kingston Hyper Cloud. When I tried the velour pads on the Cloud I get similar experience as the 2050: less bass and more treble, almost unlistenable with treble heavy songs. But it sounds just right once I put the pleather pads back on. So to conclude, I think the HM5 pads would be a good replacement for the HI2050 pads.