Folks, need some help with isolating headphones. $80-90 tops (anything for $90 in US/EU is ~$120 in Russia)

I need the best possible isolation, long'ish soft wire, preferably metal frame (something that won't brake if dropped 50 times from 5 feet on a hardwood floor, like, surprisingly, my Logitech Fatality). I don't really care about sound quality, as long as it's acceptable for the price.

Thx in advance.

ieatkids5

United States4628 Posts

January 06 2011 18:46 GMT

#802

On January 07 2011 03:11 Go0g3n wrote:
Folks, need some help with isolating headphones. $80-90 tops (anything for $90 in US/EU is ~$120 in Russia)

I need the best possible isolation, long'ish soft wire, preferably metal frame (something that won't brake if dropped 50 times from 5 feet on a hardwood floor, like, surprisingly, my Logitech Fatality). I don't really care about sound quality, as long as it's acceptable for the price.

Thx in advance.

AKG K81DJ is a really good choice for isolation, and it's pretty durable. you're not really looking for sound quality, but that's also superb for its price.

olias

United Kingdom61 Posts

January 06 2011 19:51 GMT

#803

Hey so I have a chance of getting my hands on some "Denon AH-D501 Closed Type Stereo Headphones" for a 3rd of the price of the Grado SR 60i's. Would it be worth snapping up?

Thanks!

Myrmidon

United States9452 Posts

January 06 2011 20:30 GMT

#804

On January 07 2011 04:51 olias wrote:
Hey so I have a chance of getting my hands on some "Denon AH-D501 Closed Type Stereo Headphones" for a 3rd of the price of the Grado SR 60i's. Would it be worth snapping up?

Thanks!

Either that's a great deal on the AH-D501, or the SR 60i is way overpriced. In any case, the AH-D501 and SR 60i should be very different in terms of FR, sound presentation, sound quality, fit, form, comfort, and price. It seems like a very arbitrary comparison to me (but arbitrary comparisons are fun?!?).

I'd imagine the AH-D501 should be about £30? If you can get it for under that, that's probably worth snapping up if you're looking for that kind of headphone. I know Denon is replacing some their lineup: D501 -> D510, D1001 -> D1100, etc., so this is probably explains price drops.

Just get it and less us know if it was a good deal or not.

On January 06 2011 15:37 HuggyBear wrote:
Do you guys use DSPs with your playback? (Dolby Headphone?)

I use the Bauer stereophonic-to-binaural (essentially crossfeed) plugin for foobar but not really anything else. I just do resampler -> bs2b -> advanced limiter in foobar.

What's possible with Dolby Headphone other than the 5 channel -> 2 channel mixing? Does it also do crossfeed for a 2-channel source?

olias

United Kingdom61 Posts

January 06 2011 20:36 GMT

#805

hang on the Denon is meant o be 30 quid? I was under the impression they were comparable to the SR 60i's am I wrong in thinking this?

olias

United Kingdom61 Posts

January 06 2011 21:20 GMT

#806

Sorry that was worded poorly. So the Denon AH-D501 are not meant to be comparable to the Grado SR60i's? Are they then much worse?

Thanks you!

Myrmidon

United States9452 Posts

January 06 2011 21:32 GMT

#807

(By the way, we have an edit function for correcting posts, so you don't need to double post like that! Just do it next time.)

I'm seeing the AH-D501K listed at $35 (MSRP $70) at HeadRoom, which typically doesn't have the best prices in the US. However, the AH-D501 seems hard to find elsewhere. As I said, they're a discontinued model, so HeadRoom is probably trying to clear out stock.

They list the SR 60i at $80 (MSRP $80), though I can't remember if it's ever lower than that.

Most non-cheapo headphones are typically sold way under MSRP after they have been on the market for a couple years, so that's usually not an indication of how expensive they should be. I think Grado is kind of an anomaly in terms of models, pricing, and availability, so they may actually stay at MSRP. I forget.

"Worse" is very subjective, but the SR60i is fairly popular while the AH-D501 is kind of a unremarkable lower-end model by a respected name. Unremarkable doesn't necessarily mean bad or good. Earlier, I was just saying that in terms of features, function, and design (and street price), they are not similar. I've never actually heard either myself, so I may be stretching to make this comparison. Maybe somebody else can chime in, especially about the SR60i.

In the very least, I can say that Grados have a legendary reputation for being uncomfortable! It's like they're proud of the retro earpad design. Comfort obviously varies from person to person though--some people find Grados tolerable or even very comfortable to them.

FreekSharkHD

United States26 Posts

January 06 2011 21:48 GMT

#808

Proud owner of the Razer Carcharias headset here. I love Razer! They have some quality gear.

slained

Canada966 Posts

January 07 2011 01:23 GMT

#809

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826779009&cm_re=Klipsch_-_Image_S4-_-26-779-009-_-Product
What do you guys think of these earbuds? (kilpsch image S4s) I don tknow where else I can get em, if anyone knows where I can find them cheaper, I'm sure by their popularity people could recommend me something.

decafchicken

United States20019 Posts

January 07 2011 06:14 GMT

#810

On January 07 2011 10:23 slained wrote:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826779009&cm_re=Klipsch_-_Image_S4-_-26-779-009-_-Product
What do you guys think of these earbuds? (kilpsch image S4s) I don tknow where else I can get em, if anyone knows where I can find them cheaper, I'm sure by their popularity people could recommend me something.

They're awesome and comfortable

ieatkids5

United States4628 Posts

January 07 2011 07:10 GMT

#811

The sound signature is pleasing to most people. It's got pretty good bass impact, without it being excessive. However, I've read that the treble is beat out in terms of clarity by some other phones of the same price. There's also a slight hissing when you plug it into an mp3 player because of its low impedance.

If you tell me more about what exactly you're looking for, as well as the price range, I can recommend some more options.

Ho0ps

United Kingdom216 Posts

January 07 2011 10:54 GMT

#812

Bit the bullet and bought the HD555's. Yep, well worth it.

Go0g3n

Russian Federation410 Posts

January 07 2011 20:37 GMT

#813

Any more suggestions for the best possible isolating headphones for under $90, other than AKG K81DJ ?

sammler

United Kingdom381 Posts

January 07 2011 20:45 GMT

#814

Just ordered a pair of Head-Direct RE0s for my tab as recommended by Head-Fi.org

Last time I posted there and got a great response, and ended up getting some Goldring NS1000s. Along with my Astro A40s for my Xbox, my headphone budget is becoming troublesome kekeke.

gulati

United States2241 Posts

January 07 2011 20:47 GMT

#815

On January 07 2011 19:54 Ho0ps wrote:
Bit the bullet and bought the HD555's. Yep, well worth it.

Excellent choice my friend. Welcome aboard to the world of audio fidelity

Myrmidon

United States9452 Posts

January 07 2011 21:39 GMT

#816

On January 08 2011 05:37 Go0g3n wrote:
Any more suggestions for the best possible isolating headphones for under $90, other than AKG K81DJ ?

If you are to believe HeadRoom's measurement results and test lab, there are better options out there. Measuring headphones is tricky in practice, and their results may not be the most accurate always, but I think it's a good place to start. You can look up a wide but not exhaustive selection of headphone measurements including isolation response here.

The HD 280 Pro is the old standard for isolation in that price range I think. Note that it grips really hard, and many people prefer the sound of alternatives in that price range. But if you want great isolation, you should consider IEMs like the Etymotic ER-6i.

slained

Canada966 Posts

January 07 2011 21:44 GMT

#817

Just looking to find the highest quality earbuds I can under 120

Myrmidon

United States9452 Posts

January 07 2011 22:23 GMT

#818

On January 08 2011 06:44 slained wrote:
Just looking to find the highest quality earbuds I can under 120

Did you already catch this 131 IEM review post that keeps getting linked? It's just one person's opinions, but it's probably worth looking through. In terms of accurate sound reproduction for the price, the Head-Direct RE0 at $80 is a very popular high-value choice. There are many reports over the years about build quality/durability issues with it though.

"Highest quality" is pretty vague, as there are many aspects of quality to consider. Most people listening to music with mostly acoustic instruments prefer a neutral (flat) frequency response, while those listening to most other kinds of music may prefer a V-shaped response (boosted bass and treble) that's usually considered more fun or exciting. Any particular preferences?

decafchicken

United States20019 Posts

January 09 2011 08:42 GMT

#819

These m50s are fucking amazing. I dont know what it is about them that blows away my other music listening experiences. I keep letting my friends listen to them and they almost refuse to stop listening to them. "Its better than listening to real life sounds" lol.