Suggestions for Headphones

[HoWheels]

I have obtained headphones!

-a

[Nuclear Vampire]

So what did you get?

Btw, what would Sony's MDR-5706's go for? I can't seem to find any prices on the web.

[HoWheels]

Okay so I went to Guitar Center.
I brought my MDR-V600's with me as a reference.
I tried on the Sennheiser HD280, the Beyer DT-770 PRO, and the Ultrasone PROline 650.

As a reference... Besides the defects of my Sony's needing new earpads badly, I'd describe them as being very flat response. The bass is good, but the highs seem to be somewhat compressed and harsh. The soundstage is average. It is fatiguing to listen to these for extended periods of time. They are average comfort on my head. Attenuation of outside noise is non-existent.

First up the Senn's. $99
Coming from using other Sennheiser open-back headphones, particularly the 580, 590, and 595, I was pretty disappointed with these. They felt flimsy and were not particularly comfortable on my ears. The noise attenuation was great. The frequency response was decent. A bit better than my Sony MDR-V600's. The high end was not anywhere near as harsh as my Sony's, but they weren't particularly well defined either. The soundstage was good, but it was right on par with the Sony's. These headphones are all plastic and do not feel sturdy.

Next the Beyer. $199
Immediately my impression was that these were solid headphones. Metal frame. Everything on these cans is user-serviceable and the parts are reasonable from what I've seen. It feels like quality materials. When I put them on, they felt great. The feel better than any of the headphones in this group by a longshot. They felt as good as Sennheiser's open-air headsets. I love the velvet pads. Sound wise, they are very smooth and articulate. These were the bassist of the bunch, but also the most articulate in the bass frequencies. I initially perceived the high frequencies to be somewhat attenuated compared to the other sets I tried, however I noticed that I could more easilly pick out the details of the high frequencies with this set. The outside-sound attenuation was very good, but not quite as good as the Sennheiser's.

Finally, the Ultrasone's. $299
My immediate impression ... THEY'RE PURPLE! Purple plastic! Everywhere!
Comfort-wise, these were average, but not great. In fact, I'd say they were the worst of the bunch. They were very tight on my head. The sound attenuation was poor, but not quite as bad as my Sony's. Sound wise, I found the bass to be superior to the Sony's, but not quite as good as any of the others. I found the high frequencies to be particularly harsh. The salesman tried to tell me that this was because they had not been properly broken-in yet. There was a bit of hiss on the mixer I was plugged into. While I could hear it with all of the other headphones, it was VERY LOUD with the Ultrasones! Actually, the hiss was almost as loud with my Sony's.
These probably had the best mid-range articulation of any of the headphones I tried, and by far the best soundstage and spatial separation. If I were doing purely studio work and not listening to music for extended period of time, I would probably give these more serious consideration. However, I feel that the Ultrasone's would be very fatiguing over extended periods of time (like the Sony's).

So, I walked home with the Beyer's!
I've been listening to them for a few hours since I got home, and I couldn't possibly ask for more. Extreme comfort, and the sound is amazing!

YMMV!

-a

[HoWheels]

I also wanted to disclaim the fact that these are purely my subjective opinions. I didn't take notes, so I may have forgotten a thing or two, but this was based on my gut reaction to how much I enjoyed listening to various tracks from a few sources. I tried them all plugged into a mixer they had at GC and finding the highest bitrate tracks they had on the computer (which happened to be Led Zeppelin).

I also plugged into my iPod and listened to a few select tracks on there which were encoded at 192kb/sec or higher (mostly VBR).

-a

[TommyD]

Suggestions for Headphones

> I use a pair of Sony MDR-150's for normal portable cd-player applications. You can get those at any Wal-Mart for 20 bucks. I don't like taking them out of the house much,but I also have a pair of the MDR-V700DJ's and those are the best sounding headphones I've ever put on my head for under 200,most catalogs like ProSound or Sam Ash have these at around 139.00. Some may not like them due to the fact that the cord only runs on one side,but consider that these are the near-universal standard for live DJs's. They sound awesome for gaming as well,my typical use for this pair. Tommy D.

[jackson1]

I initially perceived the high frequencies to be somewhat attenuated compared to the other sets I tried, however I noticed that I could more easilly pick out the details of the high frequencies with this set.

Hallmarks of a quality HF speaker and design.

So, I walked home with the Beyer's!

Of course you did. My word is golden

What ohm did you get?

[wulfe13]

I've had the MDR-V600s for a couple years now and LOVE them. The only thing bad about them is that they don't seem to fit quite tight enough to my head. I had a pair of Sonys earlier version of these for 9 years and they were perfect. They were about $189 back then, around 1990 or so. I never liked the Sennheisers, always sounded a little too harsh on the highs. Never heard of the Beyers... maybe when these wear out, I'll try them.

[yard dawg]

I use AKG 271 and they are good phones.. Beyer Headphones are a great deal. They are under rated. Studio standards are Fostex .

[gemini8026]

Im also an AKG 271 user for my little home studio. My mixes improved quite a bit with the purchase of them. With a good amplifier they play ultra clean to ear shattering levels, and take a LOAD of abuse *ive ran over my chord a thousand times and had the volume dialed numerous times with no issues*

Brand new they are pricy, but I bought mine off Ebay for 140$ and am happy (I upgraded from Senn HD590's)

[HoWheels]

Hallmarks of a quality HF speaker and design.

Of course you did. My word is golden

What ohm did you get?

I'll never doubt you again

I ended up with the 80ohm version, which is perfect for me.

-Matt

[Szostak]

Skullcandy are pretty damn good 'phones.

[shadowcat]

Oh, I see I came here too late, but you made the right decision anyways.

I've used AKG K501 for 4 years (got them for half the price back then), but since I'm investing more in my home studio equipment right now, the first thing I got was a set of closed headphones.
I did read alot of reviews at the head-fi forums and finally went out to compare.
And last week I went home with the Beyerdynamics DT-770 PRO (the 80 ohm version).
They are awesome, especially for the price. Very good noise attenuation, awesome bass (alot more than the AKGs), great quality and very comfortable. Just alot of fun to listen too.

The AKGs are better for use with my digital piano though, so I still have good use for them. They are very different of course, because they are totally open and have almost no noise attenuation. But they have a great airy soundstage, very nice for all things classical that don't require huge pounding bass.

[emperor_black]

Other than reviews, comfort and price, what are the technical specs that are important while choosing a nice pair of headphones?

I am looking at the freq response range...

For the Beyerdynamic DT-770...which seems to be the best recommended in this thread...the range is 5 to 35kHz. The "5" which refers to the lower range of the spectrum would mean that this pair can detect freq's as low as 5 Hz. This translates to the low-end that we all crave so much. But is it the punchy low-end or the boomy low-end? I dont like the boomy low-end.

Is "the lower & higher the better" applicable? When I look at the freq range for say Sennheiser HD280 (which is the other recommended), its 8 to 25 kHz which means its not as sensitive as the BD's. Is this a good way to compare headphones? Because I'm thinking just like one guitarist does not like the tone of an amp which another happens to love, maybe reviews are gonna be based on individual opinions. Prices are not a good indication either because there is the "brand-name" hype.

[Spivonious]

Frequency response is one aspect of speaker evaluation. Others off the top of my head include transparency, comfort, price, and above all, personal preference Go try some out and you will quickly learn which you like best.

[emperor_black]

ok. Also, is the difference between the closed-back and open-back headphones the same as in a closed/open back cab? I really LOVE closed back cabs. They lose out on the headroom section but come up with tight punchy bass IMO.