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Portable Headphones <$150

Jmjam
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UPDATE: Decided on getting Sennheiser HD558's for house use. Still looking for good portables though $150 max. <$100 is sweet spot.

 

Looking for something that is:
- durable. I'll bne puitting it in my bag with books and a laptop
- Closed as I do not want sound to leak to others.
- Mainly listen to EDM, Jazz, 90's Hiphop.
- under $100 Canadian. $150 CAD max if they are absolutely better than the rest
- detachable cable. not a priority if it has great sound and durable. 

 

Has anyone tried the ath ws55 or koss pro dj100? 

Across the vast and majestic gulf of time and space, the jimmies rustle softly.

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V-Moda Crossfade LP's are durable for travel and have lots of bass. No other personal experience in this price range besides SteelSeries In Ear Pros...

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I like open for gaming, but it's not ideal for portable.

 

these should be about the best you can do around $100 for closed.

shure srh-440, sennheiser hd280 or koss pro dj 100

Will work for electronic components and parts


Reviews: Meelec CC51P - Monoprice 8323 - Koss Porta Pros  - Shure SRH-440 - Shure SRH-550DJ - Shure SRH-840 - Hifiman He-500 - iBasso D4 - o2 Amplifier  -  SkeletonDac

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+1 for open cans for gaming especially fps gaming. 

 

I don't have any experience with them but grado's seem to be a nice smallish form factor friendly for portables in a semi open design. 

 

Vmodas are my go to recommendation for portables. solid metal headbands and cups removable wires and the option for purchasing their boompro mic to attach to it. but its closed and bassy, I don't really think it would be ideal for fps

 

@ a $150 pricepoint you could probably get 2 cans. the ad700 and a ws55 one for gaming one for on the go. 

 

edit: the koss pro dj100 has been on a fire sale at staples lately for $27 they've been selling the tony bennet branded versions of the dj100 you might be able to snag the tony bennets or the dj100 for a nice price. 

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Seems like koss pro dj100 are good. I have seen a review that claims the ath m50's have better soundstage than the koss dj100's. Does this hold true in your experiences? What's the soundstage like?

 

Also how lacking in bass is the ad700? are there actually none at all? what if I were to plug it in a fiio e10?

Across the vast and majestic gulf of time and space, the jimmies rustle softly.

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Not sure if it will really help out, but i've been using my vulcan pro's for a while now and i can honestly tell you that they are absolutely perfect. the non pro version can be purchased for under $90

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Not sure if it will really help out, but i've been using my vulcan pro's for a while now and i can honestly tell you that they are absolutely perfect. the non pro version can be purchased for under $90

perfect in terms of what? gaming? portability? Soundstage? 

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So sennheiser hd558 for ~$100. Worth it for gaming? 

Across the vast and majestic gulf of time and space, the jimmies rustle softly.

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So sennheiser hd558 for ~$100. Worth it for gaming? 

great for gaming. not really portable unless you plan on keepin them on your head or neck. they dont fold

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great for gaming. not really portable unless you plan on keepin them on your head or neck. they dont fold

I figure I'd go the 2 can route. So HD558 for Gaming and $50 portables...?

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I figure I'd go the 2 can route. So HD558 for Gaming and $50 portables...?

sure you can do that. check out the monoprice 8323

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for portable, i'd go koss porta pros over monoprice.

monoprice is bigger, and not as comfortable for me.

 

but you can do this with the monoprice

IMG_20121002_170413.jpg

IMG_20121002_170425.jpg

 

Will work for electronic components and parts


Reviews: Meelec CC51P - Monoprice 8323 - Koss Porta Pros  - Shure SRH-440 - Shure SRH-550DJ - Shure SRH-840 - Hifiman He-500 - iBasso D4 - o2 Amplifier  -  SkeletonDac

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for portable, i'd go koss porta pros over monoprice.

monoprice is bigger, and not as comfortable for me.

 

but you can do this with the monoprice

IMG_20121002_170413.jpg

IMG_20121002_170425.jpg

Haha I like the mod. Personally I would not wear that travelling. Looks a little too bulky for me. Need something small yet pwoerful in sound. In ears or over ears.

Across the vast and majestic gulf of time and space, the jimmies rustle softly.

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- portable for listening while out travelling or moving about in the house

- decent bass. Apparently the ath ad700's have none so I tend to lean away from that suggestion

True the AD700 has very little bass. An EQ in music would help but not tremendously. Still, the AD700's are quite large and I would not classify them as portable. The Koss Portapros are amazing for under $40 but they are open dynamic so they can leak sound if you don't mind that. They are "FUN headphones" and have plenty of bass.

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True the AD700 has very little bass. An EQ in music would help but not tremendously. Still, the AD700's are quite large and I would not classify them as portable. The Koss Portapros are amazing for under $40 but they are open dynamic so they can leak sound if you don't mind that. They are "FUN headphones" and have plenty of bass.

Thank you for the input. Decided to get HD558's for mainly gaming use. Looking for good portables still and a sound card or DAC each under $100

Across the vast and majestic gulf of time and space, the jimmies rustle softly.

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Thank you for the input. Decided to get HD558's for mainly gaming use. Looking for good portables still and a sound card or DAC each under $100

My DAC I use is the Fiio E10 which is about $80. It is USB and even has a lineout for speakers. For portables I would again recommend the PortaPro. The 558 seems like a really good choice for home or "hardcore" gaming use.

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My DAC I use is the Fiio E10 which is about $80. It is USB and even has a lineout for speakers. For portables I would again recommend the PortaPro. The 558 seems like a really good choice for home or "hardcore" gaming use.

alright nice. Would you say an Asus Xonar DG is ok to pair with HD558 or go with the Fiio E10. Looking for the cheapest solution to power the HD 558.

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alright nice. Would you say an Asus Xonar DG is ok to pair with HD558 or go with the Fiio E10. Looking for the cheapest solution to power the HD 558.

With the HD558? The DG should be fine. I would highly recommend the Fiio E10 mainly because of it plugging through USB which eliminates any chance of the constant static you may hear. I have that card as well and ended up taking it out because my GPU and/or PSU may have caused this EMI. The Fiio E10 can be taken anywhere with you and used in many computers and doesn't require drivers so in the long run it is a better investment in my opinion. The E10 can drive headphones up to 300ohms if I'm not mistaken so pretty much any headphones you throw at it will be driven just fine (unless they are 600 ohms or above 300).

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Monitors: Asus VG236H, Dell U2713HM Headphones: Koss PortaPro, DT 770 80ohm, AT-AD700 | Steam profile

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for portable, i'd go koss porta pros over monoprice.

monoprice is bigger, and not as comfortable for me.

 

but you can do this with the monoprice

 

LOL @ that mod. I prefer my Clip Zip to be in my pocket honestly.

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  • 2 months later...
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tbh I'm not really liking the look of the porta pros. Though I may check them out later for home listening. So far its between the ws55 or the koss pro dj 100

Across the vast and majestic gulf of time and space, the jimmies rustle softly.

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tbh I'm not really liking the look of the porta pros. Though I may check them out later for home listening. So far its between the ws55 or the koss pro dj 100

 

Lol one month later.

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alright nice. Would you say an Asus Xonar DG is ok to pair with HD558 or go with the Fiio E10. Looking for the cheapest solution to power the HD 558.

Get the E10, Amp and DAC over sound card any day. :)

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Lol one month later.

Yea he must of been looking for a while. There's only so many headphones in the $100 range haha :)

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Lol one month later.

 

Yea he must of been looking for a while. There's only so many headphones in the $100 range haha :)

LOLOL yeah I just kinda left the thread open as I was enjoying my HD558's in the summer. Now taht I'm out everyday for school I kinda started to look into portables again. :P

Across the vast and majestic gulf of time and space, the jimmies rustle softly.

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LOLOL yeah I just kinda left the thread open as I was enjoying my HD558's in the summer. Now taht I'm out everyday for school I kinda started to look into portables again. :P

Haha, I'm glad I'm done with high school

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