Headphones pros and cons

[Stefky]

SRH440 for most users, 7506 for the professional user. 380 for those that want a more balanced sound, the Crossfade LP for the bass head, and DT770/880/990 are just better, but few users might not be able to power them to a volume they like. 

 

Interesting how in different circles different favourites crop up in different corners, and such utter myths are spread. Did you ever consider looking at measurements?

 

Here is the "balanced" sound of the 380:

 

 

What 'professionals' in their right mind are going to use headphones that are as shy in bass and hot in the treble as these?

 

 

The LPs are flat out awful headphones with audible grain throughout the mids, None of those mid range beyers are worth the money when you compare them to the equally priced Sennheisers. 

 

Meanwhile, the ATH-M50x are pretty well behaved, and for the money offer very good performance. There are much better headphones (none of them that you mentioned) but they all cost relative to the gains. 

[Stefky]

lp are my second choice, and if i dont like the 558s, i will simply send them back to amazon, and get the lp, im kinda a bass head kinda, but the m50s bass was enough for me, so i think the 558s should be good to.

 

Don't get the LPs. Seriously, save your money. If you can deal with on-ear V-Modas M80s are very decent indeed, but their earlier models are trash. The 558s and M50 are both better options.

[duncan5200]

Don't get the LPs. Seriously, save your money. If you can deal with on-ear V-Modas M80s are very decent indeed, but their earlier models are trash. The 558s and M50 are both better options.

558s cheaper then m50x, so i can get a decent mic, yeah, 558s, i guess it is.

[EmoRarity]

-snip-

(No 380 Pro sadfacenospace)

I don't pick what has been the most used monitor for the past 30 years, the people that work in the field do. But if you want to play the measurement game, lets. While bass light, the 7506 is the cheapest and gets closer to perfect flat then the Shit50(x) does, which is nothing more the a grainy bass heavy listeners headphone in monitors clothing. Not counting that it 40-60 dollars more then its competition but w/e, the 7506 is better, its closer to zero and its the cheapest, what more is there to see. 

Don't get the LPs. Seriously, save your money. If you can deal with on-ear V-Modas M80s are very decent indeed, but their earlier models are trash. The 558s and M50 are both better options.

The LP2 is the shit one, the original LP is k, nothing special. 

[duncan5200]

(No 380 Pro sadfacenospace)

I don't pick what has been the most used monitor for the past 30 years, the people that work in the field do. But if you want to play the measurement game, lets. While bass light, the 7506 is the cheapest and gets closer to perfect flat then the Shit50(x) does, which is nothing more the a grainy bass heavy listeners headphone in monitors clothing. Not counting that it 40-60 dollars more then its competition but w/e, the 7506 is better, its closer to zero and its the cheapest, what more is there to see. 

The LP2 is the shit one, the original LP is k, nothing special. 

those charts, is it the lower the line or the higher the line, what signifies better?

[EmoRarity]

those charts, is it the lower the line or the higher the line, what signifies better?

Better is subjective, but the closer the line is to zero amplitude, the flatter that headphone is. The higher (above zero) the more that frequency is present. 

[duncan5200]

SRH440 for most users, 7506 for the professional user. 380 for those that want a more balanced sound, the Crossfade LP for the bass head, and DT770/880/990 are just better, but few users might not be able to power them to a volume they like. 

For someone who listens to dubstep primarily, and plays lots of games, yould you then reccomend the lp, or still the over all expirence of the 558's

[EmoRarity]

For someone who listens to dubstep primarily, and plays lots of games, yould you then reccomend the lp, or still the over all expirence of the 558's

Still the 558's, modern "dubstep" isn't really bass heavy due to high compression, so the 558's will do just fine 

[NannerBeans]

-snip-

Pretty much all the Sennheisers sound the same and there are people that just flat out don't like the sound. I personally don't. The regular LP are like $60-70 used so it is pretty good. I got them for $45 myself on craigslist. I actually found them fantastic for the price and I've listened to a lot of headphones. Sennheisers also lack bass. The LP might be too bassy for some but the Sennheisers have the opposite problem. 

 

 

For someone who listens to dubstep primarily, and plays lots of games, yould you then reccomend the lp, or still the over all expirence of the 558's

I would say AKG K612 if you want open. I would pick those over the Sennheisers. 

[duncan5200]

Pretty much all the Sennheisers sound the same and there are people that just flat out don't like the sound. I personally don't. The regular LP are like $60-70 used so it is pretty good. I got them for $45 myself on craigslist. I actually found them fantastic for the price and I've listened to a lot of headphones. Sennheisers also lack bass. The LP might be too bassy for some but the Sennheisers have the opposite problem. 

 

 

I would say AKG K612 if you want open. I would pick those over the Sennheisers. 

not crazy on open, wanna give it a shot, but i like my privacy a lot

[NannerBeans]

not crazy on open, wanna give it a shot, but i like my privacy a lot

Beyerdynamic DT 770 are  some nice closed headphones. I really like my Modded Fostex which are semi open but have a lot of isolation but those are pretty expensive. 

[duncan5200]

Beyerdynamic DT 770 are  some nice closed headphones. I really like my Modded Fostex which are semi open but have a lot of isolation but those are pretty expensive. 

my price limit is 160 maybe if something is really good 170

[duncan5200]

Im starting to think i should probably wait another month and save up to get the custom one pros, they seem so good, thought on that?

[creatip123]

Few points for the thought:

 

- Open backs have different bass than closed backs. Closed backs usually got thumping, boomy bass, while open backs got 'rolling' bass. Which one is better is of course subjective. One thing for sure, you won't get the thumping bass of the M50x (you said you've tried it and love it) on open backs.

 

- Thumping bass from closed backs is kind of exhausting to the ear for long listening. Rolling bass from open backs is less exhausting, easier on the ears

 

- Don't worry about sounds coming in from outside. Unless you have a big speaker, or a loud machine rumbling in the room, you won't be bothered by the outside sounds, when you're playing sounds at normal enjoyable volume. I've had people sneaking up on me left and right while listening to music on an open headphone. You might have to worry about sounds coming out though. In quiet environment, people could hear the sounds you're playing. Consider this if you have a roommate or SO trying to sleep in the same room while you're playing music.

 

- Closed backs have 'closed room' feeling, while open backs have wider room feeling, with wider soundstage. If you never tried open backs, you won't know what I meant, same like I was. After going for open backs, now I can't enjoy closed backs anymore, due to it's claustrophobic feeling, just not fun enough (unless good closed backs with wide feeling, like the sony mdr-1r)

[schwat]

Headphones are extremely subjective about what one person will like and one person won't. I personally like my ATH-M50s despite all the hate they get around these forums they are a solid pair of cans. If you've tried your friends pair of them and liked them who cares if someone else doesn't like em? 

 

I've had my pair of ATH-M50s for damn near 5 years at this point & they've stood up to constant use and abuse. They fold up pretty compact for carrying which is nice because I bring em to work every day & aside from the pleather earpads getting worn out (which is gonna happen, its why they make replacements) they are still as good as the day I bought em.

 

And even if you do somehow manage to break them Audio-Technica has pretty damn good tech support I've found out. I had a friend blow out a driver on his pair after 4 years & I was able to get a replacement driver from Audio-Technica for $25 shipped & do the repair for him. 

[duncan5200]

Few points for the thought:

 

- Open backs have different bass than closed backs. Closed backs usually got thumping, boomy bass, while open backs got 'rolling' bass. Which one is better is of course subjective. One thing for sure, you won't get the thumping bass of the M50x (you said you've tried it and love it) on open backs.

 

- Thumping bass from closed backs is kind of exhausting to the ear for long listening. Rolling bass from open backs is less exhausting, easier on the ears

 

- Don't worry about sounds coming in from outside. Unless you have a big speaker, or a loud machine rumbling in the room, you won't be bothered by the outside sounds, when you're playing sounds at normal enjoyable volume. I've had people sneaking up on me left and right while listening to music on an open headphone. You might have to worry about sounds coming out though. In quiet environment, people could hear the sounds you're playing. Consider this if you have a roommate or SO trying to sleep in the same room while you're playing music.

 

- Closed backs have 'closed room' feeling, while open backs have wider room feeling, with wider soundstage. If you never tried open backs, you won't know what I meant, same like I was. After going for open backs, now I can't enjoy closed backs anymore, due to it's claustrophobic feeling, just not fun enough (unless good closed backs with wide feeling, like the sony mdr-1r)

Do you know are the turtle beach px22 a open headset or closed?

[duncan5200]

Headphones are extremely subjective about what one person will like and one person won't. I personally like my ATH-M50s despite all the hate they get around these forums they are a solid pair of cans. If you've tried your friends pair of them and liked them who cares if someone else doesn't like em? 

 

I've had my pair of ATH-M50s for damn near 5 years at this point & they've stood up to constant use and abuse. They fold up pretty compact for carrying which is nice because I bring em to work every day & aside from the pleather earpads getting worn out (which is gonna happen, its why they make replacements) they are still as good as the day I bought em.

 

And even if you do somehow manage to break them Audio-Technica has pretty damn good tech support I've found out. I had a friend blow out a driver on his pair after 4 years & I was able to get a replacement driver from Audio-Technica for $25 shipped & do the repair for him.th

Great point, in all honesty I also kinda want something to take with me on trips and such, and m50x with short cable, and extremely portable and stylish, seem like better option, and I not a audiophile, just enjoy good audio, so I probably will go the checked and trusted m50x, never thought headphone buying is more complicated then graphics card buying lol

[Plzstfu]

the 558's hae also caught my eye, but like i mentioned, I have had many a headset cable go on me, and unless best buy sells it and i can get a warranty for that there, I want ones where the cable is replacable.

The 558's cable is removable and replaceble and Sennheiser sells the cable seperately

[duncan5200]

The 558's cable is removable and replaceble and Sennheiser sells the cable seperately

I know someone mentioned it

[Plzstfu]

I know someone mentioned it

Oh sorry... I didn't bother to read the rest of the thread..

[swifty7]

oh God!!!  please avoid the 558's like the plague, they sound like shite...LOL!!!   I have both 558 and ATH-AD900x and the difference is night and day but you'll need an headphone amp to bring the best out of the AD900x

[NannerBeans]

oh God!!! please avoid the 558's like the plague, they sound like shite...LOL!!! I have both 558 and ATH-AD900x and the difference is night and day but you'll need an headphone amp to bring the best out of the AD900x

That's based on preference. I personally don't like the sennheiser sound but others do. And neither need an amp. They don't sound any different with one.

[Lays]

That's based on preference. I personally don't like the sennheiser sound but others do. And neither need an amp. They don't sound any different with one.

 

 

Depends on what source you're using, my 900x's sound like absolute crap on my onboard, to the fact that my ipod sounds noticeably better with them vs my onboard.

(450$ motherboard, onboard of a 20 cent board, seems legit right? Lol)

 

But using my ipod OR pc with my amp brings them to a great sound quality. (I use a DAC as well to get rid of the onboard's influence)

 

On paper they don't need an amp, but in my experience you may be better off trying one. Obviously it's different for everyone's source.

(You don't need an expensive one, a simple 20$ fiio e5 will do the trick)

 

 

@op  Open headphones do leak sound, but unless the person is a less than 3 feet away, odds are they won't hear them unless it's quite loud to you, normal listening volumes won't really leak much.

[Stefky]

 

Better is subjective, but the closer the line is to zero amplitude, the flatter that headphone is. The higher (above zero) the more that frequency is present. 

 

Basically right, but it all depends on how accurate the compensation curve that has been used for all these years is - most are coming around to the fact that it has been dead-wrong (it's obvious really - every set of lines drops to some extent after 1k, even with very treble heavy 'phones). This article is very worth reading - with the new curve from this research - the lines look more like the headphones sound to me.

 

 

Pretty much all the Sennheisers sound the same and there are people that just flat out don't like the sound. I personally don't. The regular LP are like $60-70 used so it is pretty good. I got them for $45 myself on craigslist. I actually found them fantastic for the price and I've listened to a lot of headphones. Sennheisers also lack bass. The LP might be too bassy for some but the Sennheisers have the opposite problem. 

 

 

I would say AKG K612 if you want open. I would pick those over the Sennheisers. 

 

It's true that all the mid-fi open Senns are cut from the same cloth, you just get better quality as you go up. The HD700 and HD800 have an entirely different (less pleasant IMO) flavour, and obviously their closed cans are a totally different story. 

 

AKG are a bit of a "marmite" headphone brand. Personally I agree with you, I think they are good, but many hate them so I seldom recommend them just in case.

 

Besides the ATH-M50 at the budget-end of things, I personally would never recommend Audio Technica. They all sound grainy with audible distortion. I heard their highest of their high end ones once at a headphone meet (can't remember the model number) and thought they were awful, horrible grainy mess. 

 

In terms of headphone recommendations - while I don't 100% agree with him on everything - Tyll Hertsen's "Wall of Fame" is a good place to start - http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/innerfidelitys-wall-fame

 

If you go to a forum for advice, especially one focussed on something other than headphones primarily - you aren't going to get the best advice.

 

If people have little experience of headphones, they will just recommend you the one or two pairs they have owned. Then the number of people owning those models grow on the forum and they become the automatic recommendation and the epidemic spreads. It's only an epidemic if those headphones are actually considered to be pretty bad elsewhere.

 

I've owned dozens of headphones, and through specialist meets I've auditioned pretty much every significant model (a few have elluded me, but most). I find some of the recommendations here flat-out odd. 

 

People have to make their own minds up, as others have rightly said it's totally subjective what you'll like, but those seeking advice would be better off looking at InnerFidelity, HeadFi, Changstar, Headphonia and so on to see what the real consensuses are.

 

Anyway, that's my piece said, I'll leave it at that.

[duncan5200]

oh God!!!  please avoid the 558's like the plague, they sound like shite...LOL!!!   I have both 558 and ATH-AD900x and the difference is night and day but you'll need an headphone amp to bring the best out of the AD900x

I'm probable just gonna get m50x used of amazon, and get amp as soon as I can afford it, I tried th m50nonx and liked how they feel and sound, although my friend used the foo amp, but my sniper 5 has better audio chop, so I just want what I know ill like, at this point.