[leeperry]

.

 

[Bengt77]

Portable

Apple earbuds (old and new)
Awful. Period.
Apple In-Ear headphones (1st generation)
Horrible fit. Anemic sound. Period.
Sony MDR-ED2X
Can't remember the exact model number. (Was it the MDR-ED21?) Very decent sound for very inexpensive earbuds. The L-shaped plug, when moved, made the sound crackle, though, so it's collecting dust.

Full-size

Sony MDR-CD250
Very nice, closed headphone. Offered a good seal and a really good sound quality for it's price.
Philips SBC HP845
Sound quality not that bad, but hurts my ears after listening to it for maybe half an hour.
Audio-Technica ATH-AD900
Wonderfully wide soundstage, lush mids, fast and tight bass. Used to be my favourite headphone. (Still my favourite for 'natural' music, but I find myself listening to electronic music more often.)
Audio-Technica ATH-A900Ti
My new favourite. Narrower soundstage than the ATH-AD900, but still quite wide for a closed headphone. Has somewhat recessed, but still excellent mids, plus the highs and bass are simply wonderful. Really, really good headphone.

 

[Almoxil]

Everything I wrote below is based in my opinion, listening to the HPs through either my Cowon D2 or my CD Player + DAC/Amp combo.

The best ones:

Ultrasone HFI-780: Excellent sound. No sound tweaking at all out of my Cowon D2. Bass is punchy and tight. Mids and highs don't disappoint either. Rock, metal, hip-hop, rap, you name it. They all sound awesome on the 780s.
Alessandro MS-1: Sounds excellent with no EQ tweaking. Only sound enhancement I use on my Cowon D2 is Mach3Bass, which I usually have set to 8/10, giving them some slam to the bass.
AKG K271S: Excellent sound, but bass needs some help. Mach3Bass on my D2 or my home amp (Zero with rolled opamps) gives them some nice slam, but nowhere near my 780s.
FutureSonic Atrio M5: Great IEMs. Isolation is excellent once you insert them right. Since their bass frequencies are a bit emphasized, I lower some of them via EQ, and set Mach3Bass to 5/10. Great sound.

Great ones:

Koss PortaPro: Excellent budget headphones. Bass is great (although I lower some frequencies via EQ, since it can get muddy sometimes), and there's plenty of detail to speak of, considering they're their price. The only reason I don't use them more often is because they're open.
M-Audio Q40: Sound is great, but too bassy sometimes. Overall great cans for the price.

Not so great:

Audio Technica ATH-AD2000: Detailed but "boring" (at least on my setup). Bass is deep but there's not much slam to speak of. Some jazzy stuff sounds awesome on them, but I haven't got many albums in those genres. It's a love/hate relationship. They don't respond well to EQ'ing or sound enhancements...
Audio Technica ATH-ESW9: Overemphasized mids get to my nerves sometimes, but overall great cans. Since I have better ones, I rarely listen to music through them.
Audio Technica ATH-SJ5: Honest performance for the price, but there are better cans in their price range. As with my other AT cans, they're bass-shy and need some tweaking to sound reasonably involving.

 

[kool bubba ice]

212 pro-Bass heavy
595-Upfront and aggressive.
650-Warm. Laidback. seductive.
AKG 1000- Uphoric. Transparent.
AKG 340-Bass shy, intimate midrange.
AKG 501- Spacious.
AKG 701- Hollow. organic. Artifical.
Technic 810- smooth. Black canvas.
Yamaha Y1- smooth. smoother. smoothest.
600- neutral.
AKG 240 sextett- Musical. Lush. Sweet.
DT48a- analytical. Clear. detailed. light bass. Special.
DT48e X2- look above.
DT770. Boomy bass.
DT880- Out of head presentation. 3D imaging. Cold.
DT990- Deep bass. transparent bass. Shallow mids.
SA5000- Dry. Lean. revealing. Fast. unforgiving. great bass extension.
AKG 280- 3d imaging. good bass response. Good seperation.
AD700-Colored. Great depth. fleshed out images. recessed mids.
MDR F1- Big and wide sound stage. Airy. Natural sounding bass. Holographic imaging.

 

[LingLing1337]

Sennheiser HD485- A good amount of bass, if you're into that sort of thing. Very, very warm, sometimes bloated bass. Veiled. Not really good for any particular genre, but I'll take it a million times over iBuds.

Head-Direct RE2- This is more like it! I really like it for guitar pieces and instrumental rock. Sounds more open, not at all veiled like the Senns. Boosted but sometimes harsh treble. Anemic bass without an amp, but with my E3 it is quite passable.

Hopefully going to Guitar Center this weekend so I'll have a few more.

 

[daniele_g]

Oh, I forgot Sony MDR7506 and 7509: deep and tight bass, just a little bit grainy (7506) and "cold"; comfortable and isolating

 

[chews89]

Wow, I can tell that this is going to be a very very useful thread indeed. Good work guys

 

[porschemad911]

Sennheiser HD497 - Really good value, nice balanced sound, easy to power.

Koss TD/80 - Killer bass, needs lots of power.

Sennheiser HD595 - Good all rounder, but sounded too muffled for me.

Sennheiser HD650 - Very smooth sound, bassy, but too muffled for me.

Sennheiser HD280 Pro - Under-rated 'phone, great isolation, nice flat sound. Excellent for all genres in the office. Just sounds a little hollow and plasticky compared to K501.

Sennheiser HD201 - Excellent value, no glaring faults for the price. Good budget 'phone, but beaten comprehensively by KSC55.

Sennheiser CX300 - Lots of bass, sharp highs, not much midrange, excellent isolation.

AKG K501 - My all-time favourite. Really balanced, life-like sound, just wonderful to listen to. Gives me goosebumps and shivers all the time!

AKG K701 - Excellent all-round 'phone, very clear and natural sounding, just missing some magic.

Koss KSC55 - Great value, uncomfortable after a while, nice sound for rock.

Alessandro MS1 - Too sharp-sounding, not much bass.

 

[intoart]

k701-My first phones. Great midrange and highs, great soundstage, no bass at all, uncomfortable to the point of of actual pain in long listening sessions, taught me that isolation is mandatory in my situation.
HD280-Good sound for the price, but will never be a substitute for more expensive phones. I kept them because they sound good with my portable CD player and no amp. Low impedance/high sensitivity makes them noisy with my home stereo amp.
DT770 Pro/80-The second best sound overall that I have ever heard, and the best bass bar none (not only very extended but clean, tight, detailed, natural, and absolutely free of distortion, "bloat", or mud.) Supremely comfortable. Easily cans I could live with for the rest of my life. The only shortcoming is that they are a bit too revealing, making bad recordings intolerable.
D5000-Very nice sound, and very comfortable. No isolation whatsoever (even in comparison to completely open cans like K701.)
DT150-The absolute best headphones I have ever heard or ever expect to hear. Flawless bass only slightly weaker than DT770. Open, natural midrange. Huge soundstage. Detailed highs with just enough rolloff to tame sibilant/compressed recordings. So lifelike that if a recording includes a knock at the door or a ringing phone, I will get up to answer it! Soundwise, there is no room for improvement whatsoever. Not very comfortable (but far more comfortable than K701.)

 

[ecruz]

Grado SR-60 Thought they were great, at the time. Now I think they're a little (lot) forward and pretty uncomfortable.

Shure E2c Uncomfortable and rolled off at both frequency extremes.

Shure E4c More comfortable, better sound, still not as full as I like, but okay for a portable.

Beyerdynamic DT 990 Nice all around sound. Ever so slightly forward/bright for my taste. Not uncomfortable, but not super comfy either.

AKG 701 Great, great detail, air & space, very comfy, lacking slightly in the low end for my taste.

Sennheiser HD 650 The perfect phone for me. Super comfy, I can wear them for hours. The most balanced sound I've ever heard. Love them.

 

[subtle]

DT770/80 - "fun" headphone, really good for positioning in gaming, nowhere close to a reference sound, emphasis on bass that is uncontrolled, flabby, a bit bloated and that which overpowers the mids and highs

CD3000 - huge soundstage, excellent for electronic music, classical, and opera, little bit light on the bass for my tastes, highs spectrum slightly overpowers the rest and can make your ears almost bleed on hot and/or poorly mixed recordings

HD650 - does almost everything right and everything wrong at the same time, dark veiled sound that takes the life and energy out of recordings, slow syrupy signature that isn't fast enough to make music sound accurate, sound excellent upon first impression and then get extremely boring quite quickly

PL750 - well balanced headphone that leans slightly towards the bass end of the spectrum, nice soundstage, downfall is the slightly recessed mids and metallic nature of its tonality, acoustic guitars and other instruments just don't sound accurate at all and the decay is lacking, fast and decently resolving, another very fun headphone that excels with electronic music but falls flat with pretty much any other genre due to its inaccuracies

Edition 9 - improves upon the PL750 in every category, unfortunately it still can't shake the trademark Ultrasone metallic tonality but it is noticeably better, acoustic instruments still just don't sound spot on to me, excels with electronic music due to its excellent soundstage and amazing bass quantity and quality, clearly on an entirely different tier in terms of resolving properties compared to the PL750, if you like/love the Ultrasone sound this is the headphone for you

RS-1 - amazingly fun and colored headphone that adds emotion and life to the music, very resolving, wonderful midrange and overall sound spectrum, gets you involved in the music and toes tapping, weak in the soundstage department as it puts you on the stage with the musicians, beautiful for both male and female voices, typical awesome Grado tonality, downside is that it seems to have this signature that it applies to all recordings...but it's a good one

PS-1 - has a cleaner more sterile amazingly liquid midrange(one of the best I've ever heard) that removes a bit of the coloration the RS-1 applies(in a very good way), incredible decay, has a clear improvement in refinement over the RS-1 to the point where every recording doesn't have that signature applied to it, bass quality and quantity that amazes on every listen but can be overpowering with the flat pads, bowls only use with these is my personal recommendation, downside is weight which can be offset by affixing a Beyerdynamic leather wrap to the Grado headband(I now do this with all Grado models), I have currently never heard another headphone that produces a live recording so accurately, listening to my library of FLAC Radiohead concerts brings tears to my eyes, makes you lean back close your eyes and take the music in

GS1000 - don't understand all the mixed reactions on this one, clearly has the Grado sound signature in the mids but adds depth and soundstage to the recording which steers it away from the expected Grado intimacy, highs region can be a bit hot on poor recordings and if used in the wrong setup, bass is excellent but can also be overblown if not controlled, very light on the head and an amazing bargain IMO at the $600-700 range they sell for used now

HP-1000 - flat but amazing sound spectrum that presents exactly what is in the recording, awesome Grado midrange and the most accurate tight extended bass I have heard out of a headphone, one of those headphones that requires you to listen to it for awhile before it truly wows you(and it most definitely will), not at all one that will impress in meet conditions, out of the head soundstage that will downright scare you at times, wider in soundstage axis than front to back, Herbie Hancock "Headhunters" is a treat through these, bought these before the PS-1, sold them when I got the PS-1, sold the PS-1 and came back to them in the end, the accuracy kept calling me back, I'll never be without a pair

ATH-L3000 - take everything I said about the PS-1 and throw in an improved soundstage, lacks in that it is not quite as airy as the PS-1 due to the closed back, which to me is why the PS-1 sound slightly more real with live recorded music, but it gains from that a slightly tighter bass that seems to extend a bit deeper, very balanced sound with positioning and imaging that are jaw dropping and amaze on every listen, just slightly dark in nature but benefit wonderfully from a slight bump in the highs region on an eq, ooze build quality all day long

 

[dspang]

Koss Ksc 75 - Tight controlled but ample bass. My goodness those smooth highs.

Koss Sportapro - Good bass. Recessed mids and weird highs but good cheapy.

Sennheiser Hd202 - Underrated to me. Great bass with good highs. Slightly recessed mids. Fun phones.

Audio Technica Ad500 - Bright headphone. Forward and aggressive. Tight bass but a little light on that.

Sennheiser Px 100 - Relaxing warm sound with emphasis on bass. Great portable.

 

[AmanGeorge]

FutureSonics Atrio M5: Very nice earphone, great, deep bass, slightly recessed mids, a little bit of treble sparkle. Nice soundstage depth. Sound sig close to Denons. Sold, with mild regret

Etymotic ER4P: Maybe my favorite. Incredibly energy, great detail, unparalleled transparency, wonderfully musical (if not lush) midrange, deep and controlled but thin bass. Scales shockingly well with equipment.

Beyerdynamic DT880: Bass very well balanced with the rest of the spectrum, decent amount of detail and sparkle, but ultimately slightly recessed mids and slow transient response led to them leaving me. Sold, with no regrets

AKG K701: Awe-inspiring soundstage, very musical, excellent balance across mids and treble, fast and detailed, a little on the dry side with my equipment, excellent bass extension and clarity but too little bass impact.

Senn HD650: Smoothest headphone I've ever heard. Dark sound signature but extremely relaxing to listen to, but was unable to excite me. Slightly slow, veiled mids, but very musical. Sold, with no regrets

Sony MDR-SA5000: Best balance across frequency spectrum I've encountered. An Ety with bass. Fast, detailed, pretty musical, excellent bass, moderate soundstage. Too similar to my Etys and AKGs and too expensive to keep all three so they were kindly parted with. Sold, with heavy regret

Denon D5000: Latest addition to my collection. Wonderful! Extremely involving, excellent detail, remarkably powerful and deep but slightly boomy bass, decent soundstage, nice midrange, only okay airiness. Excellent all-arounder.

 

[MaZa]

Koss KSC75 - Jaw dropping for the price, but not phenomenal and has its faults.

Sony SA5000 - Almost perfection. Fast, tight, detailed, PRaTty, but quite cold.

Grado SR225 - Sharp and bright but still lush in the midrange, headbanging, in-your-face (team obvious

)

AKG K601 - Balanced and innoffensive but not too distant nor too hollow, but not headbanging either. AKG sound.

Sennheiser HD580 - Smooth, beautifull, faultless and inoffensive, balanced. Sennheiser sound.

AKG K26P - Horribly pronounced upperbass and midrange, but no treble, no soundstage, nothing but boomy mishmash. Crap, nuff said.

AKG K81DJ - Far less crap than K26P though basic sound is similar. More detailed, less boomy, but still boombass and midrange centric. Treble is opened a bit by foam removal.

Beyerdynamic DT880 - Balanced but very bright, analytical.

Beyerdynamic DT990 - Weigthier version of DT880, but also piercing.

AKG K701 - Distant, hollow, grey, bright, BORING.




Cant put others into words yet.

 

[jonathanjong]

Quote:

Originally Posted by chews89 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Wow, I can tell that this is going to be a very very useful thread indeed. Good work guys

That's what I'm hoping.

I might sort them by headphone at some point.