[Solrighal]

I've just recently bought a pair of Sennheiser PX100-II's which I got for £25. I'm not sure what's happening but to my ears I prefer the sound from these budget cans to any of my other pairs (see sig). I don't know if this is because they're maybe easier to drive with my sources or it's down to their much more open design. They have far better defined bass than my Shures do and more of it too.I think perhaps they're ultimately not as accurate as my Shure's, nor as neutral, but the sound is much more "fun". In short, I think they're better, to my ears anyway.
 
With this in mind I'm now looking to spend more money. I'd really like to achieve the same overall sound characteristic which I think will preclude a closed design. My HD595's are open too but I really don't like their sound at all. To my ears they're anaemic and bass-light. I could spend up to £250 but no more. I'm thinking maybe the AKG K702 or Q702, although I gather they'd be more difficult to drive and perhaps deficient in the bass. Another possible contender might be the Beyerdynamic DT990's. What do you all think?

 

[tyoung8]

Yeah, the K702 is difficult to drive and there are quite polarised opinions on it.   Don't think fun is the first description you would describe it.  Probably the opposite.

 

[JasonD]

How about a pair of Grados? They're very easy to drive and definitely in the "fun" category.  225's sound like the price/performance winners from what I've read. I love my 60i's and I've got some 325is's on the way

 

[tyoung8]

ooo I really like the Grado 225.  I was listening to some rock music on it and I think if I bought it, it would make me a rock music lover.
 
(wonder if headphones actually changes your music taste?)

 

[Bilavideo]

Never apologize for liking something, regardless of the cost.  Even a low-cost headphone may be doing something that you pick up on, something fresh and interesting, something you want more than you want some of the other accessories or benefits promised by other headphones.
 
I'm a Grado guy, not because they're more comfortable than other headphones (They're not), and not because they look cooler (They don't).  They don't have more robust bass.  They're not as fast as the HD800.  What Grado does right is provide an open sound, with unfiltered treble, and with voice coils and diaphragms that make them easy to power (32 ohms).  With the right pad, you can get plenty of bass.  With the right recabling, you can get some amazing detail.  With certain mods - like venting the driver, damping the magnet plate and woodying up the shell - you can get the feel of a live concert.  I like mine is a little more bombastic than most but it fools my head into thinking I'm hearing it all live and raw.
 
The SR225 ($200) is the best choice in Grado's value lineup.  It has the best balance of bass and sparkle of any of the plastic Grados.  The next Grado up, the SR325, gives you more sparkle - because of the aluminum shell - but people love or hate it.  If you vent the drivers, the bass catches up to all that sparkle and you end up with a headphone that will make you so happy you'll come out of your skin.
 
Grados don't appeal to those looking for a more polite, refined, distant soundstage - as you'll hear from the Sennheiser line, particularly the HD600 and HD650.  For those folks, the Grados have too many treble peaks, which is grating to them.  To me, the Sennheisers are so polite they leave me wanting so much more.  I had a similar experience with the Shure SE530 IEM, which everybody said was the best universal they had heard because of its smooth presentation.  But to my ears, it was like drinking salt water to cure a thirst.  I knew the music was playing but I just didn't hear what I was "looking for."  It wasn't just the treble roll-off.  It was a smoothness that left me unsatisfied.  Some folks love that smoothness.  They think it's absolutely terrific.  They do not get along with Grado's treble, which is so peaky it feels percussive, but that percussive, dynamic treble just grabs me.  There are better and worse versions of it, and I do think the driver needs to be vented to allow the bass to catch up, but you may be a born Grado head.
 
If you're looking for the best value Grado, straight out of the box, the SR225 is what you want.  If you're looking for more value, and don't mind getting your hands dirty, you can buy an SR60 and mod it up.  Either way, it's a love or hate thing.  People are either drawn to that unfiltered sound or they're not, but definitely the open sound is my favorite.  I don't like the canniness of closed cans.  Show me a closed can that sounds decent and I'll show you a better can when we vent it.

 

[il1us10n]

@Zorrofox: you're not alone having this experience..i went through a similar phase where my PX-100ii beat my d5000 in the fun stakes to the extent that i actually sold the d5000 

 and i used to absolutely love that thing..however, since the senns lack isolation, i needed a closed back pair for on the go and ended up buying the d1100 (yeah, big denon fan ).. i'd say that if you like your bass, this one is for you..the sound sig is fairly similar to the senns and its very easy to drive through a D2 (or most DAPs for that matter)

 

[joelpearce]

Detail is a double-edged sword.
 
My PX-100 doesn't sound as technically impressive as a lot of the headphones I own, but there's no denying that it's an easy and pleasant headphone to listen to.  It's easy to drive, manages any genre well, is comfortable, and portable.
 
I've discovered that for me, the detail is worth some tradeoffs, but I can understand why someone would want to keep with the PX100 and leave it at that.

 

[Solrighal]

I see a lot of mention of Grado, I was thinking that way myself. I've managed to hear two pairs of Grados', albeit briefly. I heard both the 225's and the 325's in a local hi-fi shop and liked them but I think the 325is was quite a bit better than the cheaper model. I don't find them very comfortable though, unfortunately. If it turned out they were sonically my best option by far I could forgive the comfort issue but I can't really see that happening. Has anyone got any experience of say, the Grado sound against that of the Beyer DT990's? I know the Beyer's will win in the comfort stakes.

 

[tyoung8]

yeah true, they weren't all that comfortable but I still have it as a future headphone to get just because it sounded so different.  Won't have it if it were my only pair of headphones tho.