Headphone Decisions

[Xalicor]

HI guys my brother is looking to buy a nice pair of headphones neither of us are audiophiles by any means however i am a tech enthusiast (obviously) and have narrowed it down to a few decent pairs i've found. budget is aprox $200NZD also keep in mind that there is a very limited range in NZ and only a couple of retailers really sell any decent stuff over here. Heres a few that i've found though other suggestions are welcome keep in mind pricing and availability over here is terrible:

 

Audio Technica ATH M50's: http://www.computerlounge.co.nz/components/componentview.asp?partid=16114

 

Sennheiser HD 280's: http://www.computerlounge.co.nz/components/componentview.asp?partid=990

 

Sennheiser HD 518's: http://www.computerlounge.co.nz/components/componentview.asp?partid=13809

 

Sennheiser HD 558's: http://www.computerlounge.co.nz/components/componentview.asp?partid=13812

 

Shure SRH440's: http://www.computerlounge.co.nz/components/componentview.asp?partid=18103

 

The Music he listens to consists of mostly nightcore and techno he also listens to some dubstep and "nightstep" what ever the hell that is and occasionally top 40 stuff he also uses pandora a fair bit. They will be driven my onboard sound from a m5a99x asus mobo may get an external amp and dac in the future not sure and doesnt exactly fit in the budget at the moment anyway so we'll just stick with the headphones for now.

 

Also there is no real way we can try them out in stores as while NZ has a limited range as it is i currently live in one of the least techie towns in the country its ridiculous so thats not really an option.

 

Thanks in advance and don't rip on me too much i'm relatively noobie when it comes to audio.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[SAV1OUR]

@Windspeed36 help this man! 

[BennisTheMennis]

id say either the hd558 or srh440, just need to decide if you want closed or open

[Fred Castellum]

Hey! I own both the Audio Technica ATH-M50s and the Sennhesier HD 280 PROs so here's my opinion. 

The 280s are better at being a flat EQ than the ATH-M50s however they are not totally flat. Bass is a bit muddy but mids and treble are great. 

ATH-M50s are advertised to be flat but they are a bit punchy, bass is noticeably heavier even after the burn in. However overall the ATH-M50s sound clearer and are wayyyy more comfortable than the 280s. Just my 2 cents, have any more questions feel free to ask. 

[helping]

I would lean towards the 440's with the 558's as second choice

 

I can't really judge how good or bad these prices are, but those two are IMO the best of the bunch. 

[epeglab_1_]

Hey! I own both the Audio Technica ATH-M50s and the Sennhesier HD 280 PROs so here's my opinion. 

The 280s are better at being a flat EQ than the ATH-M50s however they are not totally flat. Bass is a bit muddy but mids and treble are great. 

ATH-M50s are advertised to be flat but they are a bit punchy, bass is noticeably heavier even after the burn in. However overall the ATH-M50s sound clearer and are wayyyy more comfortable than the 280s. Just my 2 cents, have any more questions feel free to ask. 

 

Agreed

[Xalicor]

Hey! I own both the Audio Technica ATH-M50s and the Sennhesier HD 280 PROs so here's my opinion. 

The 280s are better at being a flat EQ than the ATH-M50s however they are not totally flat. Bass is a bit muddy but mids and treble are great. 

ATH-M50s are advertised to be flat but they are a bit punchy, bass is noticeably heavier even after the burn in. However overall the ATH-M50s sound clearer and are wayyyy more comfortable than the 280s. Just my 2 cents, have any more questions feel free to ask. 

yeah ive heard the HD280s are quite uncomfortable but there have been some mixed reviews and yeah apparently the m50s are more of a v shaped eq they are ment to have good base and treble but i've heard the mids are kinda recessed have you noticed this at all? thanks.

[Fred Castellum]

yeah ive heard the HD280s are quite uncomfortable but there have been some mixed reviews and yeah apparently the m50s are more of a v shaped eq they are ment to have good base and treble but i've heard the mids are kinda recessed have you noticed this at all? thanks.

HD280s are initially uncomfortable depending on head size. People just stick em between books and it gets better. Mids are a little bit recessed but overall they sound good enough for my standards. Don't regret my purchase one bit, I love these ATM-M50s... however being the semi-audiophile I am I'm probably going to look for another pair to mess around with in a couple of months. 

[Xalicor]

Theres a surprising amount of support for the shures which i wasnt honestly expecting has anyone had any personal experience with them also does anyone know what the build quality is like for any of the five headphones mentioned? I would expect them all to be pretty good however the sturdier the better metal headbands are always nice also my brother and i both have quite big heads so if any of these are known to have a small head band that i dont know about that info would be appreciated. thanks.

[ERSCreeper]

I have HD 558's and I haven't used anything better than them yet

[Xalicor]

HD280s are initially uncomfortable depending on head size. People just stick em between books and it gets better. Mids are a little bit recessed but overall they sound good enough for my standards. Don't regret my purchase one bit, I love these ATM-M50s... however being the semi-audiophile I am I'm probably going to look for another pair to mess around with in a couple of months. 

lol thanks looks like the m50s and the shures are the front runners atm then also does anyone know if the price difference between the 518's and the 558's is worth it? how much better are they is the build quality the same?

[Xalicor]

I have HD 558's and I haven't used anything better than them yet

haha i expected them to be good have you tried any of the others in the list though? they could give em a run for their money.

[Lauen]

lol thanks looks like the m50s and the shures are the front runners atm then also does anyone know if the price difference between the 518's and the 558's is worth it? how much better are they is the build quality the same?

getting 558 over 518 seems unnecessary to me, they sound almost the same, with a tiny bit more bass in the 518. myself, I prefer the Shure SRH440's, and even more so with the 840 pads, if you can get those, I highly recommend that. the stock pads on the 440's aren't that good, the 840 pads solve this. You can read my reviews of the 440's and M50's too, they're in my signature. to keep it short: M50's have more bass, but less mids, highs are very similar, but a little "smoother" on the 440's. comfort is lightyears ahead on the 440's with 840 pads, and the replacable cable is nice on the 440's, no replacable cable on M50's.

[Lauen]

Also, none of the headphones need an amp, so unless there's some crackling or hissing with your onboard, there's no need to get anything new.

[Xalicor]

getting 558 over 518 seems unnecessary to me, they sound almost the same, with a tiny bit more bass in the 518. myself, I prefer the Shure SRH440's, and even more so with the 840 pads, if you can get those, I highly recommend that. the stock pads on the 440's aren't that good, the 840 pads solve this. You can read my reviews of the 440's and M50's too, they're in my signature. to keep it short: M50's have more bass, but less mids, highs are very similar, but a little "smoother" on the 440's. comfort is lightyears ahead on the 440's with 840 pads, and the replacable cable is nice on the 440's, no replacable cable on M50's.

thanks i'll give your reviews a read i am starting to lean towards the shures and i only just noticed that they had the replaceable cable before i read your post thats quite a big deal as cable seem to break far to easily.

 

Also, none of the headphones need an amp, so unless there's some crackling or hissing with your onboard, there's no need to get anything new.

thanks for that i figured they would be fine with onboard also this may sound really dumb but does using the front panel audio jacks affect audio in anyway opposed to using the ports on the mobo? also i'll look around for those 840 pads everyone ive heard talking about the shures have said to get those pads are the stock ones that bad?

 

EDIT: i have found the shure 840 pads though they are like $40NZD which places them at the top end of the budget instead of being the cheap ones which is fine but i think we're gunna try the shures and if my bro decides he wants the pads he can buy them after.

[NannerBeans]

Shures hands down. The pricing of all the other headphones are just terrible. Or rather way more terrible than the Shures. Might want to invest in SRH840 pads as well. 

[Lauen]

thanks i'll give your reviews a read i am starting to lean towards the shures and i only just noticed that they had the replaceable cable before i read your post thats quite a big deal as cable seem to break far to easily.

 

thanks for that i figured they would be fine with onboard also this may sound really dumb but does using the front panel audio jacks affect audio in anyway opposed to using the ports on the mobo? also i'll look around for those 840 pads everyone ive heard talking about the shures have said to get those pads are the stock ones that bad?

 

EDIT: i have found the shure 840 pads though they are like $40NZD which places them at the top end of the budget instead of being the cheap ones which is fine but i think we're gunna try the shures and if my bro decides he wants the pads he can buy them after.

the cable doesn't break easily, it's a pretty good cable.

[Xalicor]

Shures hands down. The pricing of all the other headphones are just terrible. Or rather way more terrible than the Shures. Might want to invest in SRH840 pads as well. 

are you talking about the NZD prices in my links? they are all in the same kind of range and the shures would end up being the second most expensive (about $210NZD) if i buy the 840 pads aswell.

[NannerBeans]

are you talking about the NZD prices in my links? they are all in the same kind of range and the shures would end up being the second most expensive (about $210NZD) if i buy the 840 pads aswell.

 

Wow those pads are expensive but yeah I would still go for the Shures since it's better than the 518 and 558 for that type of music. My runner up would be the 280 pros though. I think the Shures have a V-curve and the 280s are relatively flat. Correct me if I'm wrong. 

[Xalicor]

I was under the impression that the shures were relatively flat the m50s were a v and I don't know about the rest I think I am going for the shures though and may but the pads if the stock ones are really uncomfortable.

[NannerBeans]

I was under the impression that the shures were relatively flat the m50s were a v and I don't know about the rest I think I am going for the shures though and may but the pads if the stock ones are really uncomfortable.

 

Yeah you're right. They are relatively flat.

http://www.headphone.com/learning-center/build-a-graph.php?graphID%5B0%5D=2811&graphID%5B1%5D=2941&graphID%5B2%5D=533&graphID%5B3%5D=563&scale=30&graphType=0&buttonSelection=Update+Graph

The 840 pads will give them a bit more bass so they will be pretty similar sound signature wise to the Senns. 

[Lauen]

Yeah you're right. They are relatively flat.

http://www.headphone.com/learning-center/build-a-graph.php?graphID%5B0%5D=2811&graphID%5B1%5D=2941&graphID%5B2%5D=533&graphID%5B3%5D=563&scale=30&graphType=0&buttonSelection=Update+Graph

The 840 pads will give them a bit more bass so they will be pretty similar sound signature wise to the Senns. 

There is more bass in my 440's than my PC360's, which is very similar to 518 and 558. Actually, they sound VERY different, and frequency response graphs don't tell the truth. 

[ERSCreeper]

haha i expected them to be good have you tried any of the others in the list though? they could give em a run for their money.

I have used HD 280's and HD 518's and niether were as good the HD 558's but I know for some people the price jump doesn't justify the improvement.

[NannerBeans]

There is more bass in my 440's than my PC360's, which is very similar to 518 and 558. Actually, they sound VERY different, and frequency response graphs don't tell the truth. 

Hm yeah I also find my PC360 bass lacking. I assumed the 440 were strong in bass since they're closed. 

[Lauen]

Hm yeah I also find my PC360 bass lacking. I assumed the 440 were strong in bass since they're closed. 

Yes they are, I was just pointing out the fact that although the frequency response may look similar, they sound very different.