The new forums will be named Coin Return (based on the most recent vote)! You can check on the status and timeline of the transition to the new forums here.
The Guiding Principles and New Rules document is now in effect.
Nice headphones?
Uriel
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Seems it's a bit of a problem that I like to listen to my music kinda loud. My neighbors apparently wake up at the drop of a pin and get pissed if they hear any noise at all. I turn my music up and you can hear it just barely outside. The cars going down the road are louder but still the manager told me to turn it down.
Well I wanna be able to hear my music the way I want without disturbing my moron neighbors or park manager. So I'm looking for some nice headphones.
Basically I want a nice crisp sound and bass that I can feel.
Basically my price range is about 100 bucks.
Well I wanna be able to hear my music the way I want without disturbing my moron neighbors or park manager. So I'm looking for some nice headphones.
Basically I want a nice crisp sound and bass that I can feel.
Basically my price range is about 100 bucks.
Uriel on
0
Posts
Earbuds - in-ear portable type thingies
Over-ear - over the head, phones sit on the outside of your ears
Sealed-ear - over the head, cups the entire ear
Then there's noise-cancelling (to reduce ambient noise - which doesn't seem like a concern of yours), jack size (I'm guessing 3.5mm...the standard computer/iPod size jack, but it could be the 1/4" stereo receiver size)..I think that's everything we'd need.
If you're looking earbuds with a 3.5mm jack, let me recommend the Sony MDR-EX71SLAs. They've got an amazingly responsive frequency range for $30 earbuds. You could probably get some fancy Shure ones for $100 and up, but I'd save the money personally.
Hit up eBay, they can be got for about $75 less than retail prices. If you're really serious about quality headphones, I'd suggest you spend at least $150. I mean, earbuds and cheapy headphones can work, but they tend to break or go bad. My original pair of Sennheisers (8 years old) have been in the rain, had OJ spilled on them, and just generally been through shit, and they still sound fantastic. I upgraded to a newer pair to get higher quality audio, but I still keep the old ones around as travel or home studio headphones.
Now if you want a multi-functional headset (meaning...with a mic attached for gaming) then you might be better off with a Steelsound headset. It wont give you the bass feeling, but it is definately crisp, the mic is perfect, and it is comfortable to wear...best of all. its under 100 bucks.
but yeah, if you dont play games, go with Senn.
I'm not a huge audio nut, but I like my music to sound good, just so happens to get the best sound I have to turn my speakers up.
Now, you say that you like your bass and your loudness. I'm guessing that total spectral accuracy isn't something you care TOO much about. It looks like they've come down in price, so I can totally recommend the sony MDR-700DJ headphones. They are a little bassier than normal, have very clear sound, and best of all they can go really really really loud before distorting. They have to, as they are made for DJs who need to hear things over any monster PA system they are playing through. For a decent set of PC/stereo headphones I can also recommend the Sennheiser HD-280 pro.
buds don't usually do bass that well, unless you spend a whole lot.
Audio Technica A500s
http://www.audiocubes.com/category/Headphones_Audiophile,+Hifi/product/Audio-Technica_ATH-A500_Art_Headphones.html
I'm a pretty big Senn fan myself (HD650s with a M^3 amp), but to get into the really good senn sound you have to start spending more cash.
The a500s have a good balanced sound, work well for gaming, and are extremely comfortable for long periods.
They also never need an amp to sound their best (unlike the good stuff in the senn line or even the Beyerdynamic line).
Thing is, the extra $50 or $100 will give you much better headphones that will stay awesome for years and years. $30 and even $50 headphones are fine for a while, and many will "cheat" to give you better bass extension, but most will end up blown if you listen to them with any sort of volume. Or just simple wear & tear. At my work, we had 3 people with the same $30 Sony headphones. And each one gradually went to shit.
My 3 year old Sennheisers, the HD595 model, is still crystal clear and has excellent bass response, with no distortion. I love it. And I haven't though once "hmm, I think I need to buy a new pair of headphones." Which is nice for my wallet.
Edit: Oh, and they're $100. They can be found cheaper, I think, but I just went with newegg because I trust them and they ship quickly.
Not that I disagree on the Sennheiser advice, in fact, I think a pair of PX100s should be the answer to every "I don't know which headphones don't suck" thread, but seriously
I'm pretty sure that ALL headphones have good stereo separation, sort of by definition
CUZ THERE'S SOMETHING IN THE MIDDLE AND IT'S GIVING ME A RASH
You'll get richer mids and more accurate highs than you will on anything else under $100, and if you're comparing them to Bose or Sony headphones, you won't get anything for less than twice their price that sounds comparable. They're a steal. An absolute fucking steal.
They're made of highly durable plastic and metal, are extremely adjustable to fit just about any skull, and fold down to a very compact size when not in use. They're sturdy as all hell.
Get a pair of Sennheiser PX100 headphones. They will make listening to music significantly more enjoyable and you might not think you'll notice the difference, but I promise you, anyone can tell the difference between a pair of PX100s and a generic set of $40 headphones.
CUZ THERE'S SOMETHING IN THE MIDDLE AND IT'S GIVING ME A RASH
So you just suggested headphones that fail at his primary concern and have the added benefit of being really awkward to listen to while walking or eating for a lot of people. This is not a good suggestion.
OP, go with a good pair of supra-aural or circumaural headphones. That means smallish covers 80% of your ear headphones or those big earmuff style headphones. You'll get enough bass out of most headphones in the $50-$100 range to satisfy you, it's having clearly defined mids and sharp highs that you really want. They'll make the bass sound cleaner and more distinct. Really clean sounding bass is better than over the top muddy bass. You'll be able to hear it better and I'm very sure you'll like the sound more.
CUZ THERE'S SOMETHING IN THE MIDDLE AND IT'S GIVING ME A RASH
I guess the distinction I was using is that due to the increased clarity, placement in the stereo spectrum is much more apparent to the listener. In other words, there's more to the music than "hard left, center, hard right." After all, stereo listening isn't just left/right, but the "trick" of hearing sounds in different places due to how they're mixed.
However, I've found that simply saying that a good pair of headphones has increased clarity makes it easy to overlook how that affects actual stereo listening. It's easy to figure that the guitar, violin, drums, whatever, will sound more distinct. But it's easy to forget how it's mixed across the two channels.
I will agree with you on the PX100s. One of the things I learned from recommending headphones to friends, and having them try mine out, is that a person needs to spend some quality time with new headphones/speakers to hear their music again, to see what's there that they didn't hear in the first place. Perhaps more stereo image, or deeper basses, or whatever. After all, if you can't really figure out what that extra $50 or $100 is buying you when you plunk down the change for a new set of cans, you'll probably think you got taken by some sort of audiophile scam. So the lower priced PX100s, as a solid pair of headphones and a good example of what real, GOOD headphones sound like, is a good one.
My absolute favorite pair of (sanely-priced) headphones are the Sennheiser HD-280s. I'm closing in on 10,000 listening hours on mine, and I still adore them. Extremely comfortable over long periods, good performance, and they respond beautifully to a little extra drive from a CMOY or the like. Right around your price range, too. Give 'em a look.
http://www.thelostworlds.net/
http://www.audio-technica.com/cgi-bin/product_search/headphones/headphones.pl
They sound oh so good.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0001FTVDQ
greay deal
"If you're going to play tiddly winks, play it with man hole covers."
- John McCallum
Ugh.. I hated the 555s when I tried them.
For open I'd go with the alessandro MS-1 option ( I have a set I adore for rock music)
For closed and ultimate comfort I'd go with the a500s
These.
If you asked head-fi they would recommend the same thing, i used to recommend sennheiser for everything until i spent some time reading head-fi and they get out-recommended a lot there.
I stumbled onto the Audio Technica brand after my dad was able to buy a pair from a suplier at cost. I never looked at another pair of Senheizer's again as a result.
Very cheap ($19.99) and quite nice sealed-ear headphones. Very good at blocking out sound, and the trebble and bass seems to be quite nice. I actually haven't noticed myself turning up my music as loud when using them as I did before with earbuds, which is actually a good thing.
I don't know how good they actually are, but for projeck I've been very pleased with all of Razer's products (use their gaming mouse and keyboard), but haven't seem very many favorable reviews on http://www.razerzone.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=2_16&products_id=38. Was curious if anyone had any input on these. If they are good, would think they would be worth having.
Ya I've sorta moved on from those phones. I'm almost certain that Sony revised the design of the 700's and did something to muck with the quality because a buddy and I have a set from when they first came out and they have very good fidelity, just too much bass. I haven't tried the v7506 but it they anywhere near as sensitive as the 700s they should be nice.
I used to have a pair of Shure E2cs, which were noise-isolating earbuds which was awesome for bus rides home, but they ended up having some wiring problem I think with one of the buds occasionally going out on me. But while they worked, they were fantastic, and I'm not sure I'd have even noticed a better quality.
I don't think I'd have much use for cans, as they're awfully bulky for something that I'd only wear while walking about.
Yeah, I'll cop to making the occasional bonehead suggestion.
My MDR-V700DJ started shocking my ears (maybe just my right ear) after about 6 months of light usage. not a real jolt, but enough to be annoying. not sure if this was a design flaw or just mine.
Lft, Sennheisers put out absolutely amazing sound, have awesome external noise reduction, and just plain dominate.
I've owned alot of headphones over the years of gaming and music, but once I purchased my first set of sennheisers, thats all i've used since.
You're probably doing it wrong. They come with three types of headphones, the default ones which are definately the least comfortable. The foams are awesome, you can barely feel them in your ear.
Koss KSC75.
Seriously. Check them out for mad cheap goodness. The awesome reviews on Amazon will help convince you.