Headphones - Whats your Pick?

**recruit** · **09-25-09, 04:18 PM**

I had a set of Bose Quiet Comfort headphones which were very good, I have just purchased a pair of Sennhieser RS130 wireless headphones which work quite well for music...with NO wires, although not audiophile quality

**JoeESP9** · **09-30-09, 11:54 AM**

I don't like headphones. Music seeming to come from inside my head feels kind of creepy to me. I live in a house and can play music and/or movies whenever I want. I very seldom play anything at headbanging levels so my neighbors have nothing to complain about. That said, in 42 years of being involved in this hobby (obsession) I've had many different headphones. The only ones I could stand were a pair of Stax "Earspeakers". Even those were unsatisfactory to me. I gave them to a buddy who has neighbor volume concerns. He likes them a lot. If I'm ever in circumstances where headphone listening becomes necessary I wouldn't hesitate to buy another pair of Stax "Earspeakers".

**1artist** · **10-01-09, 02:43 AM**

Audio-Technica ATH-M40fs are full cans that I use as monitors when playing a set of Roland TD-20's or guitars through a BOSS GT-10 and Line Six amp. For live music, they sparkle in the upper treble range, have clear, discreet mids and well-defined bass. They sound great at moderate volumes during extended sessions. They playback quite loudly without fatigue for transient critical listening.

I use a Tandberg 3002 A integrated amp with a separate volume control for headphones, also. The above AT's sound very good through the Tandberg using a Sony HDR-F1HD tuner and CD player.

For mobility, I use wireless Sennheiser HDR-130's. The sound in two-channel is enjoyable and very acceptable. Important for moving about, they're very comfortable and the range is great. Mine are 3 years old and the batteries are recharging and discharging like new.

The HDR-130's surround mode is very good for some movies. Music on surround becomes fatiguing quickly after a few minutes. A switch on the charger base changes it.

As suggested earlier, balancing these two headphones with a very close-range subwoofer adds better defined, deeper, fuller and more satisfying tactile musical sensations.

**DanTheMan** · **10-11-09, 09:16 PM**

I personally like my el cheapo Shure SE110(at $100!) in ear phones. They stay in your ears when you run and cancel noise extremely well. Their treble response is a bit muted and bass isn't the deepest or strongest, but they sound accurate otherwise. Headwize used to have a comprehensive set of measurements for the most popular models including these, but they've removed it from their site. In any case they are one of the best in ear models for the money. The Etymotic models perform well as do the better Shures.

Dan

**nsnotes** · **10-24-09, 05:55 AM**

Quote:

mulveling wrote:

I prefer the hd650 over the 600, but then the 600 does make its case with a crisper, airier, slightly brighter sound. The 650 has better bass and is a bit smoother - other than that they're very similar.

I agree here. For me Sens HD 580 (which are quite similar sonically to 600) have been working very well for a quite while. Good, transparent headphones and very comfortable. I would rather say 580/600 are neutral, whereas 650 are more on darker side. Obviously everything depends of preferences. nsnotes

**Goldenbear** · **11-01-09, 06:44 PM**

Another vote for the HD580. They are the most comfortable headphones I've tried to date (and I've tried a lot of them). They also sound very good, although you really need a headphone amp to get the best out of them.

I've been told there's very little difference between the 580 and the 600. In my very brief comparison between the HD580 and the HD650, I thought they sounded similar, but "different". Basically, I didn't get the immediate sense of ", this sounds much better".

Grado are also very good, especially for the price. However, they hurt my ears after a few minutes, due to the foam pad design and clamping pressure.

**Josuah** · **11-01-09, 07:30 PM**

I use AKG K 702 headphones re-cabled with Mogami wire (stock cable was acting as a high-pass filter). They're my top affordable preference.

Price no object, I'd pick the JH13 Pro in-ear monitors. Orders of magnitude better than the majority of headphones I've listened to, and the closest I've heard to an accurate full-range headphone.

**media** · **11-01-09, 09:34 PM**

Bose are by far the Best headphones on the market.
Excellent sound quality, as you would expect from Bose.
You can never go wrong with Bose.

We use Bose headphones for our personal monitor feed for the musicians on the stage.
(pro audio setting/Church) could not ask for a better sound.

**doctorcilantro** · **11-02-09, 10:50 AM**

I have the AKG 601 & 702....VERY comfortable and I enjoy the sound.

I don't use headphones often, in fact, always prefer 2 channel on my bookshelf speakers, but AKG makes nice stuff.

**yourgrandma** · **11-02-09, 09:53 PM**

These are what I use 9 hours a day at work. Starkey Labs IEMs. Custom fit to my ears, 26-28dB NRR and pretty amazing sound from the two way setup. I wanted to go to the three way which would have added a low bass driver, but they couldn't fit them in the shell.

**tiggers97** · **11-03-09, 11:01 AM**

I use Shure E3C in-ear headphones. Great improvement over the regular headphones that come with almost all MP3 players. They sound even more amazing when hooked up to my receiver for SACD playback.

**sub_junkie** · **11-05-09, 04:02 AM**

Not to thread jack or anything, but what headphones could be driven by an Ipod with no problem, and give really good, clean, tight bass, with nice highs? I looked through a few pages in this thread, but I just don't have time to go through all six pages right now...

Thanks

**Wayne A. Pflughaupt** · **11-05-09, 06:59 AM**

Quote:

what headphones could be driven by an Ipod with no problem, and give really good, clean, tight bass, with nice highs?

Sennheiser HD25-SP...

Regards,
Wayne

**lsiberian** · **11-05-09, 09:56 AM**

Etyomics Research.

**sub_junkie** · **11-05-09, 12:07 PM**

What kind of Etyomics Research, lsiberian?

**lsiberian** · **11-05-09, 03:11 PM**

I used the ER-4p, but if I did it again I'd get the cheaper ER-6i's

www.amazon.com is the place to buy them.

**sub_junkie** · **11-05-09, 03:35 PM**

Ok, thanks. I'll check them out.

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