EPTHeadphone enthusiast thread! - Page 92
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dizzy101
Netherlands2066 Posts
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snpnx
Germany454 Posts
On September 11 2011 22:51 OldManZerg wrote: Hi folks, I've been reading through the thread here and am feeling a bit overwhelmed by the amount of information. Here is my situation and what I'm looking for, perhaps some of you can help. 1) I know very little about audio technology. 2) My would-be headphones would be used for listening to music when I'm at work, and then mostly gaming at home. When I'm listening to music I generally listen to trance, although sometimes I'll throw in a rock album here and there. 3) I want something comfortable that won't hurt my ears or head after hours and hours. I currently have a crummy $40 gaming headset and they're just not very comfortable. My ears a tiny bit to big for the pads so they get crushed a bit, and they're just a bit too small for my head. 4) My head is huge. I have trouble finding sunglasses and hats that fit. This makes it a little harder to find headphones that fit, too, so I need something that is known for being very adjustable and comfortable. 5) I'd like a set that completely covers my ears and can drown out ambient noise a bit, although I don't really need any active noise canceling technology. 6) I'm willing to spend money if it's worth it. $150-$200 would probably be my upper limit, although I'd be open to arguments that I should get something more expensive if it would really be worth the investment. 7) My work computer has just basic on-board audio, so I can't get something that requires getting a special sound card or otherwise modifying my work rig. 8) I'm fine getting a separate microphone for gaming. A suggestion there would be helpful as well. Thanks!! Does it have to be Headphones, or would you also go with some In-Ears? I just got the Sure SE215 which are at the low end of your pricerange (around 100 EUR, would translate to 142 $) and I'm very happy with them. They have quite a strong bass and a 'warm' sound. They do offer a very good isolation from your surroundings though, which might be bad if you have to talk to people at work a lot. Look them up. | ||
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Heraklitus
United States553 Posts
I'd prefer not to get in-ear buds. I'll look up these suggestions. | ||
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SpoR
United States1542 Posts
http://www.sennheiser.com/sennheiser/home_en.nsf/root/professional_headphones-headsets_professional-headsets_004976 I have the 280s and I love them but there is no mic and the table mics that I get have issues and the background noise is annoying to the other side. i dont wanna get a standard headset cause I love the headphones I have. Is it worth it to pay 2 to 3 times the price of the micless version for the new mic'd version? | ||
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SpoR
United States1542 Posts
On September 12 2011 03:03 OldManZerg wrote: I prefer headphones that close over my ears. Amps would be fine, although I've never used one before. It would just have to figure into the price. I'd prefer not to get in-ear buds. I'll look up these suggestions. the sennhesier hd 280pro i got for 99$ a few years ago and they fit all those requirements (same as mine actually) except the fact that they are pretty tight and hurt your ears after prolonged use. Just like anything though you just wear it in and get used to it. See if you can find a guitar center or whatever to try them out. They usually have a station with a bunch of headphones where you can plug in your ipod or whatever and test out all kinds of pairs. | ||
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Myrmidon
United States9452 Posts
http://www.guitarcenter.com/Beyerdynamic-DT-770-Pro-80-Closed-Studio-Headphones-102512019-i1126937.gc http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=203325344&sellerid=19306247 | ||
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alurlol
England197 Posts
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duckmaster
687 Posts
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Zorgaz
Sweden2951 Posts
It does it's job good enough for its price anyway  . But thinking about getting new headphones. Any ideas for a relatively cheap but good headphones ? | ||
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BleaK_
Norway593 Posts
![[image loading]](http://www.beukproductions.com/items/audio.technica.ath-m50.jpg) ...with the NuForce uDAC 2 ![[image loading]](http://www.techfresh.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/nuforce-gold.jpg) and are extremely happy with the combination! | ||
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Heraklitus
United States553 Posts
On September 12 2011 04:14 Myrmidon wrote: Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro 80 I think. You can stretch out the headband a bit if necessary (and this one is metal so it shouldn't mind), but it may not be needed. Earcups are pretty large and deep and should fit all but the largest ears. Overall the DT 770 / 880 / 990 are considered to be some of the more comfortable headphones out there, and I agree. Frequency response is kind of V-shaped (emphasized bass and treble), which should work well with trance. Isolation is good as well, better than most sealed headphones, so that covers everything. It usually runs about $180-200. http://www.guitarcenter.com/Beyerdynamic-DT-770-Pro-80-Closed-Studio-Headphones-102512019-i1126937.gc http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=203325344&sellerid=19306247 Thanks! And thanks to everyone else for the suggestions. Myrmidon--do I need to get an amp for these? What would that do for me? | ||
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Myrmidon
United States9452 Posts
On September 12 2011 04:37 duckmaster wrote: Can anyone give me suggestions for my next pair of headphones please? Currently I have the Asus Xonar STX and Audio-Technica ATH-A500, no amp. I'm looking for a significant upgrade, hopefully for under 200€. I listen to quite a wide variety of music; rock, rap, dnb and so forth. I would prefer cans that were not too neutral, perhaps a bit bass-heavy rather. Even though my current headphones are closed, I don't actually need the sound isolation, so open phones are definitely an option. The headphones need to be comfortable enough to use for extensive gaming. Also, I don't really care that much about the soundstage (is that it?), as I play very little fps's. Beyerdynamic DT 990 (pro version might be the only one in the price range)? I think people like some of the Ultrasone models for those genres, but I'm not sure which are which. If Denon AH-D2000 pricing is sane, then maybe that's okay too. But it seems to have gone back to MSRP in many places. On September 12 2011 05:33 BleaK_ wrote: I just got the Audio Technica M50... ...with the NuForce uDAC 2 and are extremely happy with the combination! How's the channel balance at the lower end of the range? That seems to be the scourge of many designs using a potentiometer, and particularly for the uDAC-2 according to some reports. By the way, unless maybe you use ReplayGain, don't set the volume control in the OS at 100%. Maybe this was kind of blown out of proportion, but the uDAC-2 clips any full scale signals a bit, so you'd want to avoid sending it 0 dBFS ideally. i.e. the DAC portion clips it, not the amp, so this is an issue at any setting of the device's volume knob. On September 12 2011 06:01 OldManZerg wrote: Thanks! And thanks to everyone else for the suggestions. Myrmidon--do I need to get an amp for these? What would that do for me? A dedicated external headphone amplifier can help or add a little bit of something (or just make things loud enough), but I don't think that's a priority with those headphones unless there's something really wrong with your computer sound outputs. I don't listen to trance much, but most recordings these days tend to push the average volume up really high (unlike in other genres, I think this works well generally), so volume won't be a problem with those headphones out of pretty much anything. | ||
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BleaK_
Norway593 Posts
On September 12 2011 06:13 Myrmidon wrote: How's the channel balance at the lower end of the range? That seems to be the scourge of many designs using a potentiometer, and particularly for the uDAC-2 according to some reports. By the way, unless maybe you use ReplayGain, don't set the volume control in the OS at 100%. Maybe this was kind of blown out of proportion, but the uDAC-2 clips any full scale signals a bit, so you'd want to avoid sending it 0 dBFS ideally. i.e. the DAC portion clips it, not the amp, so this is an issue at any setting of the device's volume knob. The channel balance on bass and some on the treble is exaggerated on some of the reviews imo. Never experienced any kind of clipping, and the only thing I have noticed is that the uDAC2 gives my flac files more room and depth, the lows more open and the highs more clearer. It's not entirely neutral, but it definitively increases the sound quality. This is of course compared to the integrated soundcard, which is less then ideal. Compared to other dedicated headamps/dac the uDAC2 have less neutrality and a smaller soundstage. Overall: For the prize, size and that it gets power from usb makes it very easy to have "on the move" with laptops and such. I would recommend it if you are a entry level Head-Fi enthusiast like me | ||
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Myrmidon
United States9452 Posts
If you get a potentiometer that is more balanced, then that's good. As always, tracking between the channels is worse at the really low end of the range, so it's really only users that listen at low levels of the volume control (say for sensitive IEMs, or for just quiet listening) that would be especially worried. I have no idea what you mean by "channel balance on bass and some on treble." AFAIK it shouldn't really be different at different frequencies? I just kind of wonder about the uDAC-2 vs. say the FiiO E7 or even the Asus Xonar U3. Regrettably I've not tried it, so I was wondering what your experiences were. Glad you're liking it. | ||
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Buckus
United States14 Posts
Also looking for some headphones to take up to school with me. Looks is a plus. | ||
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DrainX
Sweden3187 Posts
![[image loading]](http://s3-external-1.amazonaws.com/wootsaleimages/Everglide_S-500_Professional_HeadphonesxzsStandard.jpg) | ||
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Fyodor
Canada971 Posts
ATH-W1000X is at an all-time low here ($408 right now): http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004K65XOS/ref=s9_simh_gw_p23_d0_g23_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=14WXT6CF1VEVPFBZKYV6&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846 very sexy phones and I've only heard good things about the sound. ![[image loading]](http://www.avforums.com/news/images/20101215214818.jpg) | ||
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Karmablah
Canada48 Posts
Audio-Technica ATH-M50s with a FiiO E9 and my desktop at home. Sennheiser HD 555s with a FiiO E7 and my laptop. Grado SR 60i or Sennheiser CX-300 IIs with a FiiO E5 and my Samsung YP-RO on the go. ------------------ Stuff that I lend to people who come over or sit in my room being unused for a good reason (mostly the latter). Sennheiser 202s - Incredibly uncomfortable and will hurt your ears within a few minutes of use. The sound quality is pretty good for budget headphones. (bought these from best buy a few years ago before I knew any better) Corsair HS1As - Cheap and comfy but the sound quality is seriously lacking. (got this with a Xonar DG sound card when I gave a F3 500GB Spinpoint to my friend) Steel Series Siberia V2s - same as HS1As but not as comfy. (gift from a friend) | ||
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Keldrath
United States449 Posts
http://www.headphone.com/selection-guide/type/sennheiser-hd-518.php im looking at it right now cause it seems to be about the best ive been able to find under $150 trying to get the best sounding audio i can possibly get for under 150 was hoping for something with a mic but ill forgo that if i cant find something with one that's comparable. was originally looking at the razer megalodon but idk if it would be as good as something like this. | ||
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TorontoRaccoon
Canada49 Posts
![[image loading]](http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/35/350x233pxllc694341ephot.jpg/) With the ALO Audio Rx Mk2 Headphone Amplifier, waiting for Cypher Labs AlgoRhythm Solo and a custom made cable =( Can't wait... 7 more days left (if they ship by friday) | ||
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