[abs0lute]

I'm looking for a nice pair of budget closed headphones for both portable and computer use. Portability itself isn't that much of an issue to me--I wanted a full-size pair of cans to go with the HJE50 canalphones that I just bought. Buy.com has the XD200s at $20, and the HD201 is the same price pretty much everywhere. Which do you think I should go with?

 

[renesis_au]

I'm in the same position, I am using the RP-HJE50's for portable use, but I find that I want something more comfortable and more relaxing to listen to while at home. I've asked a friend to get me a pair of XD200's, but I don't think they have been bought yet so I can still change my mind. What I would want to know is which has a better soundstage, and a more relax, ie less fatiguing sound would be good.

 

[seiferoth10]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GreenEggs313 sure Compared to the Sony XD200s: Hmm....these phones sound pretty similar. They Sony's earcups are more comfy, because they're bigger. But I hate the XD200's headband. The plastic part was digging into my head, so I took scissors and just cut them off. Now the XD200s barely clamp my head, and they're pretty comfy now. The bass on the XD200 is slightly more boomier. The soundstage is larger on the XD200...I have a hard time judging soundstage though because all my headphones have a small soundstage. The 201's look alot cooler than the XD200. I'd never think of wearing the XD200s in public I prefer the 201 for most songs, but for the price of these phones I really am happy with both. Bottom line is the 201s are 30 bucks shipped from headroom. They're definately worth it.

there ya go

 

[Oink1]

Returned my XD200's - Despite a long burn in they had an uber rolled of high freq response - perhaps i had a duff pair but i just couldn't live with them

 

[EdipisReks]

i've heard neither, but i would get the Senn 201's based on looks alone!

 

[South_Korean]

hello! XD200 look cool too!

 

[EdipisReks]

Quote:

Originally Posted by South_Korean hello! XD200 look cool too!

yeah, they look "cool", but the 201's are classy

 

[gshan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by EdipisReks i've heard neither, but i would get the Senn 201's based on looks alone!

roger that. i was very surprised at the design - nothing like the hd202/212/4xx series.

--

Oink1: The 201s are also rolled off in the highs, but I haven't tried the xd200s yet.

 

[Oink1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gshan Oink1: The 201s are also rolled off in the highs, but I haven't tried the xd200s yet.

Imagine stuffing the cups with cotton wool balls before you put them on!

Made everything sound really nasal IMO

 

[South_Korean]

so they are equal. now that sound quality is covered. now lets see which ones wins the last round of looks.

 

[renesis_au]

What's this talk of nasal sounding voices? I don't think I've ever heard something nasal before. Is it such a big problem on the XD200's or not? I'm assuming the HD201's don't have the same problem, but the soundstage on the HD201's are well. I'm even more confused now, both are closed headphones, are there any open headphones in that price range that sound as good (apart from the SR60), as from what I have read generally open headphones sound better than closed ones.

 

[SDA]

IMHO:
The HD201's bass seems tighter than the XD200. Both are bass boosted, but the HD201's bass boost occurs lower, so it sounds more punchy than bloated.

The HD201's midrange definitely sounds more closed, a little nasal, and somewhat recessed. The XD200's midrange is less recessed and a little less "closed" but more nasal and more colored overall.

Both headphones have treble roll-off, which probably contributes to that "closed" sound.

The XD200 seems more detailed, the HD201 seems more fun. Both are fairly easy to listen to for long periods of time.

The XD200 is more comfortable on my ears. (The insides of the HD201's pads irritate my ears.) The HD201 is more comfortable on the top of my head, though.. I hate that rubbery under-band on the XD200, but it digs into my head without it.

The HD201 isolates better.

 

[abs0lute]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SDA IMHO: The HD201's bass seems tighter than the XD200. Both are bass boosted, but the HD201's bass boost occurs lower, so it sounds more punchy than bloated. The HD201's midrange definitely sounds more closed, a little nasal, and somewhat recessed. The XD200's midrange is less recessed and a little less "closed" but more nasal and more colored overall. Both headphones have treble roll-off, which probably contributes to that "closed" sound. The XD200 seems more detailed, the HD201 seems more fun. Both are fairly easy to listen to for long periods of time. The XD200 is more comfortable on my ears. (The insides of the HD201's pads irritate my ears.) The HD201 is more comfortable on the top of my head, though.. I hate that rubbery under-band on the XD200, but it digs into my head without it. The HD201 isolates better.

If I'm reading you right, the HD201 is more transparent than the XD200 (but your comment about the XD200 being detailed kind of threw me off). In that case, I'm going to have to lean towards the HD201.

 

[SDA]

The XD200 seemed more detailed because it seemed to have more.. separation, I guess. Detail isn't the same thing as transparency, artificial detail is easily achieved by boosting certain parts of a headphone's frequency response.

I'm not comfortable with calling either one more transparent, to be honest. Neither of them sound very transparent. Closed headphones generally don't. All I can say is that the HD201 is more euphonic to these ears.

 

[abs0lute]

Oh, oops.
Well in that case, I'm not so sure I want closed headphones. The cheap-fier in me wants headphones now, but I'm wondering if I should save up and get SR60s.