[J&J]

Which out of production, vintage, (10-25yr old) dynamic headphone is still worth buying for SQ on Head-Fi, ebay, Audiogon, flea markets, Salvation Army, wherever? Exclude the AKG K 1000.

 

[Sovkiller]

I do not consdier 10 years old a vintage, most of the top models today has ten years or more, R-10, CD3K, HD600, HD580, K601, Grados, etc...

Now from the old era of 8 ohms headphones, IMO non of them sound good, constructionwise they are tanks. Those Pioneer's are still on eBay in one piece, the best I have heard was a pair of Elega 4 inches full range driver.

Yes 4 inches, the rest if the papaer cones are just IMO a joke in comparison to even an earbud from the dollar store....one thing that have improved considerably in audio in the last 25 years is the headphones...

 

[J&J]

The term vintage has no precise time frame unlike antique which generally means at least 100 yrs old. I learned that from Antique Road Show.

 

[ericj]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sovkiller /img/forum/go_quote.gif I do not consdier 10 years old a vintage, most of the top models today has ten years or more, R-10, CD3K, HD600, HD580, K601, Grados, etc...

K601 is only a few years old. From the sound signature and price it would be hard to say that it's a followup to the K301.

Quote:

Now from the old era of 8 ohms headphones, IMO non of them sound good, constructionwise they are tanks. Those Pioneer's are still on eBay in one piece, the best I have heard was a pair of Elega 4 inches full range driver. Yes 4 inches, the rest if the papaer cones are just IMO a joke in comparison to even an earbud from the dollar store....one thing that have improved considerably in audio in the last 25 years is the headphones...

Not *everything from that era sucked.

Most of it certainly did.

Orthodynamic cans from 1978 still have a lot going for them. Some of them don't even need modding.

I think the 1980 DT880 Studio is a pretty fine can. The DT770 and DT990 date to 1985.

K240's from the 70's are better than K240's from the 90's.

 

[Duggeh]

Best vintage headphones within my experience are most Stax models. Jecklin Floats, Yamaha HP50-A (an orthodynamic) and the original Beyer DT880.

 

[Jahn]

My STAX Lambda Pros are from 1984. They still rock HARD.

 

[kool bubba ice]

Quote:

Originally Posted by J&J /img/forum/go_quote.gif Which out of production, vintage, (10-25yr old) dynamic headphone is still worth buying for SQ on Head-Fi, ebay, Audiogon, flea markets, Salvation Army, wherever? Exclude the AKG K 1000.

340's..But if you plan on using them with a portable device look somewhere else.

 

[facelvega]

60s: original Senn HD414, 2000ohm version. Early electrostats.
70s: Stax, Jecklin, PMB, some AKG. Almost any orthodynamic. A few oddities.
80s: all of the above, plus DT550/770/880/990, MB QP series, is K1K 80s? Can't recall. Oddities.
90s: AKG Kx0x, HD580 and some say HD590, DTx01/x11/x31 series, some AT and Sony Stuff.

 

[JadeEast]

My pops had some AKG 240s that were mid 70s vintage
and they sounded really really good they were my first a-ha
audio experience and I spent allot of time listening to them
as a teen. I would pick up a pair in a heart beat.

I just grabbed a pair of orthodynamic headphones branded
"realistic pro 30" from the 80s they are quite good a bit lean
sounding but certainly worth the price you're likely to pay.

 

[wyki]

For those who listen to classical music, the Sennheiser HD 530 and HD 560 are very good indeed.  They have less bass than the HD 600, much less the HD 650.  On Ebay, they often sell for modest prices.  If you look at the German Ebay site, the HD 560 commands between 70 and 120 Euros.  On the German Hifi-forum.de site (the nearest equivalent to Head-Fi), you will find writers who prefer them to any newer Sennheiser (except the HD 800).  But this goes only for classical music.  I have not heard the AKG 501, but it seems to be another classical music gem.  The Sennheisers are usually cheaper.  The HD 530 may not be quite as refined as the HD 560, but it is very close, and the selling price on it is absurdly low.  People confuse it with much less valuable 5xx models.  I have never heard an HD 540, which is older than the HD 530.  The 540 is prized by collectors, but for sheer pleasure, the 530 is considered better.  (My source is again hifi-forum.de.) 

 

[joelpearce]

Some good advice here.  The one I would add is the Pioneer Monitor 10, which is both a thing of beauty and a surprisingly competent audio tool.  The Se-4 line is also a nice sounding little can.

 

[Armaegis]

Whoa, thread necromancy. Anyhow, I can't believe no one mentioned the K240 Sextett or DT48.

 

[joelpearce]

I think it might have been before the revival interest of the DT48--which also now seems to be over without KBI to defend the cause.

 

[Deep Funk]

Vintage rules, at least twenty year ago they knew how to put together headphones that felt solid. I detest the abundance of plastic this, plastic that.   
 
The 8 ohms headphones need a lot of power to sound good. You can equalize them and if the set up works such oldies can sound convincingly good. X2 on the Monitor 10 by the way, for its sound it is my favourite. My Philips Sextet clone, the N6330 has a very special sound that I like very much. 
 
I had to resist a K141 600 lately, the 'old' studio version which looked so pretty. 

 

[Armaegis]

Quote:

I think it might have been before the revival interest of the DT48--which also now seems to be over without KBI to defend the cause.

That's a shame. The DT48 are such a fascinating beast, and I have yet to hear any modern headphones that match that crazy clinical midrange.