Category: Jam Session
Hi there,
I didn't know precisely which board to put this in, but figured this would work just about as well.
Was wondering if anyone had (or has) experience with any decent headphones and was interested in talking about them here. This is a market where the law of diminishing returns will definitely apply, but I've kind of had my eyes (or ears, if you will) opened up of late. I've tried the Sennheiser HD598 and the Philips Fidelio X2 (got them from Amazon, returned them both as per the 30-day policy) and both blew me away compared to the old Logitech G35 headset I've been using for years. I only started investigating because I wanted to see what the hype was about. I didn't even know headphone amplifiers, for instance, were a thing before about three months ago.
In any case, I don't ever see myself having an audio kit worth thousands, but I've definitely come to realize that you get what you pay for in the lower to middle end of the audiophile-headphone market.
So yeah. Not going to ramble needlessly here, but I'd welcome anyone else's responses and findings.
Take a look at this link.
http://www.marco.org/headphones-closed-portable
I have a pair of Beats II and a pair of Klipch.
Both brand are wonderful, but I would say I like the Klipch a bit better.
A company I got an amp from some years back now make top notch headphones.
NAD VISAHP 50’s.
All of these have the 3 button controls for the iPhone.
All are 200 and up.
Yeah, the HP50 is a set I've wanted to demo, but haven't yet found a pair. Suppose I could use Amazon again, but I know they take a loss every time I return something, so while I may do it, I'm sort of hesitant if only because I don't want to be that guy...you know, the one who's always returning stuff?
Why do you think Amazon takes a loss when you return something?
Do you know these items are repackaged and resold?
It is the reason the item you return must be in like new condition, or you take the loss, not them.
I have a pair of Sennheiser DJ 202's and love them. I also have a pair of Sennheiser urbanites, and while they're not as comfortable and more expensive, they have great sound quality and are made of durable material so they are perfect for traveling. They fold up and have the 3 button iPhone controls. The cord is also able to be removed from the headphones, as is normal for higher-end headphones, but the cool thing about these is that the cord locks in by twisting it so it can't be pulled out easily while the headphones are in use.
Amber,
The twist mechanism is both a good thing and a bad thing. it's bad because if you ever need to replace the cable, you're going to have to replace that specific cable instead of getting a different/longer/thicker/better one. It's good because, as you said, you aren't just going to pop the cable loose if you give it a yank.
Wayne,
I know it has to be in like-new condition, but Amazon can't actually sell it as brand new if it's been returned. They can only claim that it's used and in like-new condition, which means they lose twenty to thirty bucks per piece. Now, if their overall markup is great enough that they (or their original vendors) can get away with it, then technically no one takes a loss.
I've heard good things about the Sennheiser Momentums, but I have fairly big ears and apparently the earcups are smallish.
I was under the impression businesses weren't allowed to re sell things like
these as new. They can sell them as "like new" or open box though.
While not all the headphones I've owned or currently have are really audiophile
per say, I've found a lot of solid brands, and options. As well as learning the
hard way what kinds of things i'll never purchase again.
I will most likely never purchase any kind of headset/headphones, accepting
maybe IEM's, that don't have replaceable cables. Considering wiring wares out
long before headphones usually, No point in wasting perfectly good tech, or
finding someone to RE wire them for you.
I also tend not to buy expensive units made of plastic in the hinging, or
containing any plastic movable parts. Its just not worth the investment.
Over all, I like most klipsch things i've heard, Most beyerdynamic, and
audiotechnicas.
I've heard great things about the momentums, but I know a few people have
compared them to my preferred travel headphones, and told me that the VModa
SX sounds better.
the SX are not quite audiophile, because they're not quite flat/neutral. But,
they're about as good as travel headphones get, with out NC. I'v e never been a
fan of the way NC processing sounds.
They're almost all metal construction, save the ear cups, and all the hinging is
durable metal.
they're low profile, light on the head, and have 2 jacks for input, so you can
choose which ear cup to plug in to, or day chain audio.
I've even mixed audio with 2 cables in to them at once. Using one with the
laptop, and another for my phone.
I'm not a fan of Beats, because aside from low end, their sound just doesn't
appeal to me. they sound muddy, have crushed soundstage, and only manage
to do well with a limited verity of music. Also why I don't tend to buy any other
kind of headphone in the bass head market.
Which, was why it was so shocking that the VModa SX were bass heavy enough
to cut threw subway sound, but not overwhelming enough to be considered too
bass heavy in my book.
That was absolutely true about Beats, but the new models have fixed that problem.
Mayde me buy a pair even.
As to repackaged items, they don't lose that much on an item or anything at all.
You see open box, factory refurbished and other terms.
If you pay say $200 for a pair how much do you think Amazon pays for that pair?
About 20 or 30 dollars, and maybe even less depending on how many units they buy.
When you return it, it sales again for 190 maybe 175, so you see they are making money.
You can't return them in the first place unless they meet the conditions, or are defective.
Blue has gotten in to the headphone market as well.
I'm going to try a pair when I can find them.
I've heard about the Blue Mo-Fi. Reviews are very mixed, but be prepared for quite a heavy headphone, either way. Their headband is apparently very unique.
When I say audiophile, I don't necessarily mean dead neutral. The Fidelio X2 would count as an audiophile headphone, sort of, and it's got just a bit more bass and a bit less treble than neutral (though not by much). Definitely not muddy or boomy sound, that's for sure. The DT880 is also an example of an audiophile headphone that's not neutral.
I agree with you on replaceable cables though, for sure. My Logitech G35s are dying, and it's all because of the cable; the actual hardware of the headphones appears to be in decent if not pristine shape. Some flaking on the earpads, but that's basically it.
I've heard people describe the V-Moda as basshead, and I'm definitely not after that. I like bass, but not quite that much. I've also heard that some of the new Beats models are more respectable than their predecessors, which were pretty much made for hip-hop and rap and not much else from the impressions I was getting.
Open vs. closed is another interesting hangup for me. If I go open, I'm going to be sharing whether anyone (including me) wants my music and Jaws or not. if I go closed, I sacrifice soundstage. That article in a previous post is quite good, mind you. It explains a lot of portable closed sets.
You could take your headphones to an electronics shop if you feel there worth the repair.
They're honestly not. The sound on them isn't terrible but it's not great, and it never really was. Boomy bass, tinny treble, and it's the sort of thing you get used to but which makes you think everything else sucks for awhile...including good speakers, and you know something's rotten when your headphone of choice makes a good speaker setup sound bad. The problem then isn't the speaker, and it isn't you; it's the headphones.
A lot of casual listeners have gotten used to everything being loud or bassy or really brassy and full of treble. Cheaper headphones do this, because apparently a v-shaped sound signature is really quite easy to engineer, while a more flat response takes more time...and time is money. It's something I didn't know I didn't like until I started exploring alternatives, but I'm so glad I did. I'm not hating on anyone who's happy with, say, Apple earbuds, btw; whatever floats your boat, honestly. I'm not here to judge anyone else's listening specs.
You have more to headphone performance than just the headphones too.
You have to factor in the sound source.
Put a wonderful pair of headphones on a bad sound source, and you don't get the performance you are after.
Most people don't really care about this, just that the music sounds good to them,or that they have the latest song.
The popularity of file sharing proves this out.