Anyone here serious about their headphones? I've been doing a ton of research on this thread, on both headphones and headphones ideal for Metal. Curious what other folks are using.
The Headphone Thread
- Thread starter General Zod
- Start date
Mardoch
Defender of the Universe
Sennheisser HD428. They're not top of the line, but they have great sound, good noise blockage, and are all-day comfortable for me. I use those when I work on-site. Otherwise I'm a speaker person.
AeonicSlumber
srs
- Aug 14, 2008
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I have a pair of Skullcandy Aviators that I got a few years ago that I LOVE. A bit on the pricey side though (I paid $130 for mine).
I'm a little hearing-impaired, so audiophile equipment is largely wasted on me because I just don't have the ability to process fine differences in sound. That said, I really like the Monster DNA headphones - they sound nice and clear (to me) without being TOO heavy on the bass like the Beats are (I was unimpressed with those, especially for $200-$300, but that's what everyone asked for this Christmas because they were so heavily marketed), and the noise isolation is nice.
They're $200 retail, but you can get them on sale for $150.
They're $200 retail, but you can get them on sale for $150.
spag
I am a leaf on the wind
I think for the money, the Audio-Technica ATH-M50s are hard to beat. There is a guy on Ebay that has them for ~$100, though Amazon will occasionally have a price like that as well. They break in nicely, and metal is about all I'm ever listening to with mine. The only change I had to make, was putting better ear pads on them. [ame]http://www.amazon.com/Beyerdynamic-Velour-Earcushions-MDR7506-Headphones/dp/B0016MF7W2/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top[/ame] The stock ones were fine for a while, but after an hour or two, they would start hurting my ears.
SkiBumMSP
Member
I have a couple of really good headphones. The main ones that I typically use are a pair of B&W P7s. At $400 a pair, they are not cheap, but damn, they sound incredible and look quite nice as well! Way, WAY better than those overpriced, shitty sounding crappy assed Beats headphones. I pair those with a Fiio E07K "Andes" headphone amp/DAC and the "LOD cable" with my 160-gig iPod Classic. Really quite impressed with how good that setup sounds. Very dynamic with the right amount of bass that does not sound bloated or overpowering. (That was my experience with trying a pair of Beats Studios, bloated and overpowering bass, with muddy sounding mid-range - although since they came out with a new version, I hear they are better, but I've not tried them yet). The B&W P7s also has a good, clean mid-range and clear highs as well. For earbuds, that I much rather use when traveling, such as on long flights, I use my trusty ol' Klipsch Custom-3 headphones that I had for a few years. Alas, these are no longer produced, though. For working out at the gym, I also got a pair of Klipsch S4s that really sound excellent for an $80 pair of headphones. I would easily put those up against headphones costing two or three times as much.
Mardoch
Defender of the Universe
Damn, Rage. Based on that listening equipment I'd say you're definitely right about not being hard to please.
MeTuLHeD
A Member To Remember
Hey Zod! Have you checked out Head-Fi?
http://www.head-fi.org/f/
Their forums are the ultimate resource for the enthusiast. Specifically, check out this thread.
http://www.head-fi.org/t/478568/multi-iem-review-308-iems-compared-rbh-ep1-added-01-01-14-p-836
It's where I found my two favorite budget in ears...The NuForce NE-7M and The Lenntek Sonix. Both are great sounding phones at a ridiculously low price. They sound excellent, not just with metal, but with a wide variety of music.
That site is a treasure trove of information.
http://www.head-fi.org/f/
Their forums are the ultimate resource for the enthusiast. Specifically, check out this thread.
http://www.head-fi.org/t/478568/multi-iem-review-308-iems-compared-rbh-ep1-added-01-01-14-p-836
It's where I found my two favorite budget in ears...The NuForce NE-7M and The Lenntek Sonix. Both are great sounding phones at a ridiculously low price. They sound excellent, not just with metal, but with a wide variety of music.
That site is a treasure trove of information.
Sennheissers are fantastic. I have a pair of HD595s (home) and SOL Republic Tracks HD (gym). Unfortunately, the 595s have a 6.5mm connector and a chord that's 25 feet. It's a pain in the ass given that I'm more of a headphone guy than a speaker guy.
Interesting. I didn't know Skullcandy made headphones in that price range. I'll have to check them out.
I haven't been considering either Beats or Monster, as I really dislike both companies. That said, I've heard the DNAs are a solid headphone.
The ATH-M50s are on my list. They seem to be on a lot of Top 5 lists for headphones under $200 and often recommended for listening to Metal.
I don't think I'll go as high end as the P7s. When this adventure started, I was looking at the Sennheiser HD25s and the V-Moda LPs. The Sennheisers sounded nice, but were ugly as sin and made my head feel like it was in a vice. The V-Modas sounded like something was missing, no matter how much I toyed with the EQ. I sent both back. I since stepped it up and bought the V-Moda M100s (INFINITELY better than than the LPs) and the Sennheiser Momentums (should arrive today). I suspect I'll try both for the next two weeks and send back the one I like least. That said, I would like to hear Audio-Technica ATH-M50s and the Skull Candy's AS recommended.
By the way, the more I read, the more I'm intrigued by Amps / DACs. However, from what I understand, some headphones (particularly those designed for portable audio) don't benefit from them. Supposedly, this is especially true of a headphone like the Momentums because of the low amount of power required to move the speakers. Thoughts?
Thanks for that reco. I've spent a lot of time on those forums. Interestingly, the V-Moda M100s were designed with input from that forum.
AeonicSlumber
srs
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Oh yeah. They have a whole tier of high end headphones, including skus that go to $200+.
I actually own an inexpensive pair of Skullcandys (in ear) that I bought a while back and keep in the drawer at work. Always been happy with them.
I'm usually doing stuff when I listen. I could not tell you the last time I just sat and listened to something for more than 5 minutes. More free time please.
SkiBumMSP
Member
Never tried the V-Moda's or the Audio-Technica ones myself, so could not comment. I did hear that the V-Moda's are pretty nice. In the past, I've actually had listened to a pair of the Skull Candy Aviators that AS has and I was actually quite impressed with both how they sounded and looked. However at the time, I was not really in the market for a pair of headphones as I was still quite happy with my Klipsch Custom-3s (which at the time, were $350 pair of earbuds).
However, earlier this fall, I wanted to get a good pair of over-the-ear headphones that I can listen to at work instead of running the Tivoli Audio mini-rig that I have setup in my office. For many years, I've had my own office as the most senior engineer there, but alas, due to the company still growing even more and us running out space in that building (again - jeez, just a few years ago, we had to move buildings due to running out of space), I ended up having to share my office, so no more cranking up the latest Dream Theater on the office rig...
Thus, the headphones....It actually came down to either the Sennheiser Momentums, the PSB M4U2, and the B&W P7s. After spending quite a bit of time with all three of these headphones, I just found that I liked the P7 the best for my listening preferences. Interesting one review I saw on CNET, the reviewers like the Momentums a little better. I guess it truly does come down actually trying the headphones yourself and getting the ones you like the best, as everybody's ears/head and listening preferences are different. We can all recommend some umpteen different models and brands of headphones and the forums/reviews do help to narrow down to a couple two or three models to check out. After that, you really do need to get a couple of sets and listen to them.
Ah yes, the question of amps and DACs. I personally found, at least with the Fiio E07K unit that I have, that even with the P7s, which are also supposed to be easier to drive, is that I found the sound to be that much cleaner and the bass to be more tight and controlled. At the very least the DAC and the amp is more than likely going to be higher quality than the one that is built in the phone or media player. Also, having the bit of extra power of the amp gives you more headroom, thus even easier for the speakers to be driven, even at normal listening levels. You will find you won't need to have to crank up the volume level as much to get equivalent listening level rather than just running straight out of the phone/mp3 player. That typically means the sound will be a bit more dynamic and often a bit cleaner as you got a better amp that is not working as hard to deliver the equivalent sound. Plus that extra bit of power on the amp comes in handy that occasional time when you want to goose it up a little bit more to drown out some obnoxious crap going on in the background, like that one time when there was some jackass loudly blasting some of that rap crap in a nearby parking lot at the train station while I was waiting for the train in D.C. to go back to Fredericksburg earlier in December.
Monster is generally considered overpriced for what you get. Most of it being focused on their audio cables.
I also wondered what the deal is with Beats, since it seems everyone and their brother are wearing them in the gym. Can't see how anyone can exercise with those things. I can't go with anything bigger than earbuds.
Personally, I've always tried to get the best bang-for-the-buck with my headphones, since many times they don't last longer than a couple of years for me since I'm hard on my cables. Typically that has generally meant Sennheiser, since I can usually find good deals on them. But, I can say I've never had a truly nice pair of headphones.
So true. The Momentums (delivered last night) sound too sterile and overly crisp for my liking. Although I am by no means a bass head, I found the Momentums just too dominant in the highs.
Given Amazon's liberal exchange policies, I might have to give this a whirl. Is the Fiio E07K what you would recommend?
They have a history of selling overpriced products. A number of years ago someone demonstrated that even audiophiles couldn't tell the difference between a $75 Monster cable and coat hanger. Just Google "Monster" and "coat hanger" and see what comes up.
The Beats are a "lifestyle" headphone... a fashion accessory. Their sound signature is BEYOND bass heavy, so they also have a natural appeal to the Hip Hop crowd. That said, even if you wanted a can with a huge bass sound, you could do much better, much cheaper. The other aspect to this is, people often think Beats are a good headphone because their only comparison point is the crappy, stock iPhone earbuds.
As for wearing on-ear or over-ear headphones at the gym, I get it. I must have tried a half dozen, different in-ear designs at the gym over the years. They would either hurt after a short while or constantly fall out, causing me to have to readjust them. Plus, as they would slowly make their way out of my ear, the sound quality would diminish with each small movement. This never happens with on-ear headphones; set'em and forget'em. Granted, if you're doing an hour of cardio your ears are going to get sweaty. However, they're not at all an issue for lifting.
spag
I am a leaf on the wind
Several people I work with have a range of amps and DACs at the office, so I've gotten to try a few out. I know that my M50s don't benefit from an amp, which is a bonus for me. They are just fine driven by my audio card at work (mAudio), my MacBook Pro, or even whatever iDevice I happen to be using. It definitely saves on the hassle of carting around something else.
AeonicSlumber
srs
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Working out with high end headphones is pretty dumb so I can't answer that (I mean, why would you care about pristine audio quality when you're at the GYM? and on top of that - working out with $100-$200 headphones is like working out with high end sneakers, jeans, etc - why?!). Beats are solid headphones but the big appeal is that they look cool and are cosigned by Dr Dre. There's nothing wrong with that if you ask me, because once you get into the high end bracket of headphones, the differences in quality don't vary THAT much, so you may as well consider factors like looks and comfort if you're taking them outside (like on the train to work, etc). As Zod said, Beats tend to be a bit more bass heavy than other headphones in that price range and they're a bit overpriced for what they are. But at the same time, I think people go a little to crazy about high end headphones and pretend there are these massive differences between them in terms of quality - if you're listening to high quality audio files in the first place then the differences in your headphones will be very much preferential to begin with.
I agree. People overspend because they believe pricier is better, despite the fact that they themselves cannot tell the difference.
