572 replies to this topic

[Koray Savas]

Now I am trying these Apple in ear (new 2009 model) ,they were also on my short list.

http://www.apple.com...nearheadphones/

Those look good, but are too much for me. I have the $30 ones.

[king mark]

Now I am trying these Apple in ear (new 2009 model) ,they were also on my short list.

http://www.apple.com...nearheadphones/

Those look good, but are too much for me. I have the $30 ones.

I said the Apple didn;t sound too accurate..oh wait I'm talking to "laptop speaker guy"

[Koray Savas]

You're never going to find perfect headphones KM. You're always gonna find something wrong.

[Trent Bennett]

KM give a pair of Sony MDR-V600's a try. I haven't found a pair of good headphones since. I even compared Bose headphones to these and Bose' sounded really flat compared to my MDR-V600's. They're very comfortable too and I can listen to them for hours and I wear glasses so it doesn't hurt like most over the head, headphones would.

[king mark]

Yes,those are "big" headphones. I have my Grado SR60's I'm happy with

The hard ones to find are good canal phones for ipods. Like I said so far the best I've heard are Shure E2c(now SE102)

[Jason LeBlanc]

I recently have been getting SO fed up with my crappy earbuds that come with the ipods, I finally ordered my self a pair of "nice" earbuds

I went with the Sennheiser CX 400's, which are currently on sale at amazon.com for $29.95 with free shipping (they retail for $89.99)

They haven't arrived yet, but I hope I like 'em.

[artyjeffrey]

Do the Sony MDR-V600s have those foam earpads that start flaking and rotting as you wear them? I'm thinking about getting a good pair myself...

[Trent Bennett]

Do the Sony MDR-V600s have those foam earpads that start flaking and rotting as you wear them? I'm thinking about getting a good pair myself...

They do have the foam earpads but I don't think they'll start flaking and rotting away until few years after constant use. I've had mine for a couple of years now and they're fine.

[king mark]

I have those foam pads on Grado .I was told by the store to wash them in diluted soapy water once in a while (dishwasher soap) and they last much longer. I think it's the oil from skin that melts them

[artyjeffrey]

Interesting...

I'll probably end up buying the Sony ones, but Trent I've read some comments by users who say that they're too bassy, that you lose some of the mid. Have you noticed any over-bassiness with yours?

[Trent Bennett]

Nope not at all. With film scores the mids, bass, everything is evenly well balanced. I think most of the users who've commented on the headphones listen to other genre of music and not film scores. I bet you won't be disappointed with these headphones.

[Trent Bennett]

I take that back what I said about the Sony MDR-V600's back in June. I did a bit of a test with the Sony earbuds that Erik Woods recommended compared to the Sony MDR-V600's and they sounded a bit on the flat side for the highs compared to the earbuds. The earbuds produced the highs more naturally than the V600 did. So does anyone have a recommendation on a good pair of isolation sounding over the ear headphones I could get that sound natural?

[Alexcremers]

Now these are headphones!

[Koray Savas]

Damn, those must cost a fortune.

[Wojo]

Sure do. $1,399.95 at Amazon.

http://www.amazon.co...e/dp/B001OTZ8DA

[Trent Bennett]

Well Erik Woods helped me out with recommendation for better noise canceling headphones that would be good for producing highs naturally. He recommended me these: SENNHEISER PXC350. They are kind of pricey but I am sure they'll be worth it. I'm going to get them in a couple of months. I'm disappointed in these Sony V-600's.

Video review, jump to about 2:30 into the video.

[Wojo]

...would be good for producing highs naturally.

You do know that the federal government is going to have a problem with that.

[Koray Savas]

I'm likin' the look and price of these speakers.

So it receives its sound through USB? I'd prefer something that receives its sound via headphone jack, so you could use it with an ipod or ipod docking station as well..... but, whatever you are comfortable with! Anything's better than what you got

I didn't even realize it was through USB. I asked my brother about his speakers, I believe they were Logitech THX approved. It's got some crazy sound, the subwoofer is the size of my printer and shakes the floor. They were $120, a little steep for me.

[BurgaFlippinMan]

If you can find it, the Altec Lansing VS2421 is really damned decent, and pretty cheap. Its main problem is interference from cellphones. I'm not sure if Fry's still carries it. Avoid the newer VS2521 though, those suck.

Burga - who would have picked up a 2421 had he not already ordered his dock a that time

[Koray Savas]

I think I'm just gonna settle for the Altec Lansing speakers that were hooked up to the house's old PC that no one uses. I already have a headache from listening on them though, after 2 songs. They also have a really loud hiss.

[BurgaFlippinMan]

Grado SR60 vs Grado SR80 vs Sennheiser HD 555. Any thoughts?

[king mark]

for your PC headphone jack?

I have Grado SR60 and they sound GREAT to my ears. I am afraid the PC headphone jack could not drive the SR80

[BurgaFlippinMan]

I'm mostly a laptop person now. Is the impedance that high on the SR80? I had the impression that it shouldn't be too hard to drive considering it comes with a 1/8'' jack and I'm reading about people using it with their iPods. Unless they all have amps.

Anyway I've heard many good things about the Grados, plus they are rather affordable. Two things I'd like to know is how much sound they leak to people outside since they are open back and how bright they really are (say, in comparison with the E2C) as I've heard they are a bit on the bright side.

[king mark]

Well Grados are open air so they leak out a lot of sound.

Sound :SR60 have an almost identical sound signature to the Shure E2C (I can't tell them apart listening from the same source) . I was using the Grado SR60 as a reference point when picking my ipod earphones because I know they are very neutral.

Comment :The Shure E2C do not lack bass...the ipods lack bass. My E2C sound a lot fuller on my PC than on my ipod nano.

[Trent Bennett]

Doesn't your Nano have a bass booster in the sound options KM? If so try turning that on.

I have the bass booster on my iPod turned on all the time.

[king mark]

Yeah me too I have Bass Boost turned on all the time which fixes the sound balance but in occasional tracks causes clipping, so were not getting the full sound quality the E2C are capable of on the ipod ( a reason why earphone companies try to tweak the bass in other models and muddy up the sound in the process...SE210,SE115) .On my PC the EQ is perfect in FLAT setting, as it should ideally be.

Anyways Shure E2C +Bass Boost on ipod is way better than SE210 and no Bass Boost.

[BurgaFlippinMan]

I don't have problems with the E2C bass AT ALL on my iPod (classic) set to a flat EQ. Bass boost just kills it for me, and thats not even counting the distortion. Then again I'm one of those lucky people for whom the E2C with its medium silicone sleeves fit into my ears absolutely perfectly and comfortably too. The SE210s to my ears (with the same sleeves) don't have more bass. They don't extend as low as the E2C but its bass definitely does sound 'tighter', more aggressive where the E2C sounds a bit more laidback. Its the narrower soundstage and rolled off treble of the SE210 I'm not too big a fan of, not the E2C's supposed lack of bass.

[king mark]

"narrow soundstage"...you finally have a good description of balanced armatures. It gets really annoying after a while , like a general sense that the music doesn't sound quite right.

the 2nd gen ipod Nano need the bass boost. I read the new ones sound better

[John Crichton]

Well the time has come...my old Sennheiser PX100s are starting get a bit worse for wear, and I'm about ready for an upgrade anyway. I was always very happy with that set and would definately buy another Sennheiser product. After a lot of browsing on Amazon and purusing this thread again these are the two I think I'm down to:

Sennheiser HD515

Shure SRH 440

Thoughts? Recommendations? The Shure set is the absolute most I'm willing to spend, so any of the real high end products are out of the question.

[BurgaFlippinMan]

there's also the Grado SR60 which will be in your budget range. Those are open backs though

[Blumenkohl]

John,

The Grados are designed for rock and metal music primarily. And they have a very very harsh sound. I would avoid the SR60.

The Senns you mentioned are not that great of headphones for the price you're paying. The 515s are simply not good cans. And neither are the Shure's. Shure is mainly good at IEMs, not circumaural headphones.

I would strongly recommend giving the AKG K240's a very close look. Fantastic all-around but excellent for orchestral and acoustic music.

http://www.amazon.co...s/dp/B0001ARCFA

There's the Sony MDR-V6 which are....flat as hell. That means they sound very neutral, no coloration of the sound you're hearing. You hear the music as it was recorded by the engineer. These are *fantastic* headphones for the price. I personally don't like them as much as the AKG K240's because I like my music a little more exciting sounding. But don't get me wrong, it's just a taste thing with me, these are excellent cans!

http://www.amazon.co...e/dp/B00001WRSJ

There's also the Audio Technica ES7's. They're also very good. The only catch is they don't perform as well for orchestral and acoustics. But they are still pretty good all-around as well. And one more thing, be careful about buying these from anything other than mainstream outlets, there's a lot of fake knock offs of these circulating.

http://www.amazon.co...k/dp/B000R0TPQ8



But honestly I would recommend to you the AKG K240's or the Sony MDR-V6. Both are superb especially if you predominantly listen to orchestral. They're also great all around for all types of music. The key difference between them is the sound signature and open vs. closed. The AKG's are open, which means your music will spill out into your surroundings and outside noise will spill in; the benefit is that you get a wider sound stage. The MDR-V6 is closed, so you actually get passive noise-cancelling, and others won't hear what you're listening to; the drawback is you get a smaller sound stage. Both are killer headphones for the sub $100 price range.

And seeing that the MDR-V6 are $35 cheaper...I'm tempted to say you should go with the MDR-V6.

[Trent Bennett]

Erik Woods recommended these pair of Sennheiser to me, which I hope to get one day. They're supposed to produce highs and lows very naturally.

[Blumenkohl]

I would discourage active-noise canceling headphones for any serious music listening because there's a lot of interference with the signal. You'll get an annoying buzz anytime the noise-canceling is activated and it drowns out resolution and detail in the phones.

Secondly the PXC-350's only block noise below 1000Hz, which is basically the rumble of an airplane or air conditioner. Everything else, like the human voice and beyond will leak through nice and easy.

And I don't know where "naturally" came from. Sennheisers DO NOT produce highs naturally. It is part of Sennheiser's sound signature. It's called the "Sennheiser Veil" where the highs are muffled.

If you want accurate highs and lows, AKG K271 MKII is your best bet for the price range of the PXC-350s. They are some of the most popular headphones amongst audio/studio professionals.

[John Crichton]

Cool, thanks Blume. I definately only care about orchestral playback, which makes it tough when all the reviews you read are based on more "mainstream" music. I think I'm leaning towards the Sonys, but I'll dig further on all of them.

[Trent Bennett]

I have the Sony V-600's, honestly they're alright but as stated they're flat as hell...that's why I'm gonna get those Sennheiser's, eventually and try them.

The V-600's just don't produce highs naturally like I thought they would.

[Blumenkohl]

The V600's have completely different drivers from the V7506/V6 (V7506 = V6, exact same cans). The V600's are terrible headphones indeed.

The MDR-V7506/MDR-V6 are far and away lightyears superior to the blech V600.

[Trent Bennett]

Ah, I am looking on Amazon I see they are different now. Do the V6's produce highs quite naturally?

[Drax]

And I don't know where "naturally" came from. Sennheisers DO NOT produce highs naturally. It is part of Sennheiser's sound signature. It's called the "Sennheiser Veil" where the highs are muffled.

Actually one of the common complaints I've heard about the Sennheiser HD 570 (my trusty old pair) is their highs and treble is too much. Well they would be since they're designed for orchestral recordings, and I've never heard any better. I did however buy the CX 300-II for my iPod and I regret it now because the bass is just too damn much!

[king mark]

The Grados are designed for rock and metal music primarily. And they have a very very harsh sound. I would avoid the SR60.

I'm sorry that's not true.

I love them and I think they are very natural sounding. And they won several awards from classical music magazines for budget audiophile headphones .I'm sensitive to hearing detail (especially in the music I know by heart) and they have plenty and I can't hear any coloration to them. They are precise enough to use as monitors to edit music. I haven't heard better for the price. One more thing I can leave my EQ on flat with these.

http://www.stereophile.com/headphones/532/index1.html

John you should try them at least (By the way the Sennheiser PX100 have good detail but a nasal sounding coloration in the vocals especially big choir pieces like Lord of the Rings, that is why I once tried a pair and returned them)

And Blum it sounds like your like headphones with boosted lows and highs and recessed mids.

[BurgaFlippinMan]

what do you guys think about the AKG K99?