Best headphone for everything? (positional audio, all genres of music)

A

Abysmal

Limp Gawd
Joined
Jul 16, 2001
Messages
257
Okay, I went back quite a few pages and couldn't find this kind of specific info. I am not the most schooled on quality headphones, but I know the brand names. Someone gave me a free pair of Grado SR80s a half a year ago, and now I'm an addict. Unfortunately, I have the worst luck with all of my headphones, and yet again I get the problem with one of the channels going out (and I can't even open the can to see if I can fix it). So now I'm on a pair of $30 Philips cans which are decent but noticably poor.

Now I'm in the market for some very high quality sounding cans for everything...games, music, some recording, etc. Build quality is also a definite must. Comfort is not an issue, but a bonus. Price is not an issue either, but I think over $500-600 is pushing it (and may not be necessary for a consumer level A2ZS).

So what should I be looking at? Beyer, Etymotic, Sennheiser, Grado again? I listen to a lot of post rock music, but also jazz and anything else with style. Normally without singing. The SR80s didn't seem to have much power on the low end, so I'd prefer some of that too (all around great range and soundstage, with little to no colouring). Also am looking for great positional audio with the least amount of leakage from the outside.

I also don't know anything about amps, how exactly do they improve things if they have nothing to do with sound quality? I have no idea what to consider in this area in the slightest. Though I remember jotting down PPA in some notes after reading it in here awhile ago.

I know there's probably not a "be all end all" pair of headphones, but some suggestions on very versatile high quality cans would be well appreciated. :)
 
When you get into the higher end headphones it becomes more and more important to drive them properly. A lot of times your soundcard does not have the power-output to properly drive the headphones. You lose a lot of the low-mids and low end sounds. Amps do change the sound. This can be a good thing and it can be a bad thing (depending). For example, my Compaq PC at work uses an onboard sound chip. I can hear a hissing and distortion at low volumes, but if I turn up the volume it masks it for the most part. When I hooked up an amp it was intolerable. The amp was able to reveal what was actually being put out by the soundcard which was mostly hissing, popping & crummy all-around bad sound.

A PPA is a type of amp. A lot of people make these themselves as a DIY project. Check this link for details...

If you're looking for a good can check out the Grado SR225 & 325's, Sennheiser HD580, HD600 or HD650, Beyer DT770's & 880's... there are a lot of really good cans out there. Find a local shop that sells this stuff and go listen to it before you buy, let your ears be the judge.

More info...
www.headfi.org <-- start reading the forums here, these people know their cans & audio
www.toddthevinyljunkie.com <-- great place to buy equipment, Todd is a first rate guy
www.headphone.com
www.meier-audio.de

Hope that helps. Feel free to email me if I can help.
 
I'd suggest you spend a LOT of time at headwize and head-fi, and buy a $600 *system*, including an amplifier and one or more sets of headphones... you are also going to want to be considering WHERE and WHEN you are going to use your headphones, comfort considerations, closed vs. open... Just think of exactly how you would use these headphones, go to head-fi, and ask there.
 
I would whole-heartedly recommend the Beyerdynamic DT 770 for all purpose. It kicks ass for gaming. It kicks ass for music. It kicks ass for DVDs.

For all of the above you would need a pair of cans that can offer substantial bass...and not just crap bass. The cans need to be able to reproduce the low frequencies accurately(as well as the higher frequency bass like for example techno music).

You said price isn't an issue. If that's the case, I would recommend a PPA amp, an Audigy 2 ZS with upgraded op-amps, and of course the cans.

Beyerdynamic = ownage.

EDIT: DT 770 = closed, dynamic headphone. They are the bass Gods. Their bass is not bloated either. It's only bloated when not driven properly.

Oh and whatever those idiotphiles say about burn in...it's all in your head. It's more than likely your ears going deaf on you. ;)

Oh yea, if you get the Beyerdynamic DT 770, get the non-pro as they have less clamping force on your head. 2.8 N versus 3.5 N for the DT 770 Pro version. You'll spend a little more money for the non-pros, but it's way worth it. Other than the clamping force, the DT 770s are all identical. If you want the non-pro the only retailer I know if is www.meier-audio.de I ordered from Dr. Jan Meier. He's a great guy. Jan runs meier-audio.de
 
Thank you for the advice, I'm going to check out head-fi and the other links.

DT 770 you say? Why wouldn't the higher model number be better (990)? That's another thing I haven't grasped. Or perhaps it's just overkill.

And any ideas on a good commercial PPA amp. It may be cheaper but I'm kind of iffy about DIY ones, even if they are guaranteed quality (psychological problem I suppose).
 
That PPA project has piqued my interest. I'm going to have to look into that.
 
Originally posted by Abysmal
Thank you for the advice, I'm going to check out head-fi and the other links.

DT 770 you say? Why wouldn't the higher model number be better (990)? That's another thing I haven't grasped. Or perhaps it's just overkill.

And any ideas on a good commercial PPA amp. It may be cheaper but I'm kind of iffy about DIY ones, even if they are guaranteed quality (psychological problem I suppose).
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Eh, the 770s can reproduce the bass better as far as I know. The 990 is also an open can which would make it unsuitable for some gaming(LAN, etc). The higher number doesn't always dictate a higher model. They are 2 different headphones for different purposes. The 770s were designed for studio monitoring and as such have a lot of bass response.

As for a commerical...if you mean by a company, I guess you could go with headsave.com, but I would be inclined to call on our resident [H] amp guru...though I'm not at the liberty to give out his name any more. ;)
 
For X-mas I received the SONY MDR-700's. WOW, music has never been so clear. The Low's, Mid's and High's are all clean. Even when I run them from my soundcard "soundstorm" they sound better then my 640's. They run about $150, but well worth it. Just a thought for the budget minded.
 
Originally posted by [H]ea\/y B
For X-mas I received the SONY MDR-700's. WOW, music has never been so clear. The Low's, Mid's and High's are all clean. Even when I run them from my soundcard "soundstorm" they sound better then my 640's. They run about $150, but well worth it. Just a thought for the budget minded.
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Meh, you haven't heard better headphones in the same price class as your Sony MDR-700's. I have listened to those 'phones extensively, and they just sound cruddy compared to some headphones that cost one-fourth as much. (And yeah, I've also listened extensively to other headphones priced up to $300 - and most of those priced between $50 and $300 sound much better than those Sony MDR-700's.)

Accordingly, I strongly feel that those particular Sonys barely sound better than a $30 pair of Sennheiser HD 202's -- and worse than a $50 pair of Sennheiser HD 212 Pro's.
 
Originally posted by Harkamus
As for a commerical...if you mean by a company, I guess you could go with headsave.com, but I would be inclined to call on our resident [H] amp guru...though I'm not at the liberty to give out his name any more. ;)
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Don't be bashfull and tell us what you really think about that site you mentioned.
As far as that resident guru goes..... feel free to say whatever you want about him. ;)
 
The resident guru has spoken(That's him right there...X86 dude).

What do I really think of headsave? I think the guy rips people off. X, can make you any amp that's sold on headsave and save you some dinero.
 
That amp at headsave.com seems offensively overpriced and just made by some guy. Aren't there actual companies that make any...If not, I suppose I can do with a DIY. Give me a little time to save up
 
Dude...u're grossly underestimating even headsave and DIY. PPA is one of the top amps you can get. Many people swear by them

Sure there are amps made by Grado, Audiotechnica, Gilmore(headamp.com I believe), etc.

But, if you want one of those, be sure to cough up around 600 bucks for the amp alone.

'course you can get a nice 1000+ dollar tube amp.
 
also realize that as you get better and better headphones, the imperfections in the music shows up. so if you listen to mp3's a lot, be prepared to be dissapointed...
 
It's possible to make compressed music virtually transparent with the right format and presets. I'm not really worried about it.

I am, however, wondering about the best w/o amp headphones vs. the best w/ amp headphones. If the difference would even be significant on a consumer level sound card.
 
Originally posted by Abysmal
It's possible to make compressed music virtually transparent with the right format and presets. I'm not really worried about it.

I am, however, wondering about the best w/o amp headphones vs. the best w/ amp headphones. If the difference would even be significant on a consumer level sound card.
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The difference is significant...very significant.

Best w/o amp headphone would IMO be the Audiotechnica ATH 900. Of course, they sound much better with an amp.

Best cans with an amp for your applications would be the DT 770.
 
Originally posted by Abysmal
..I am, however, wondering about the best w/o amp headphones vs. the best w/ amp headphones. If the difference would even be significant on a consumer level sound card.
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That's an apples vs oranges comparison. There is a tremendous difference between great non-amped cans & amped cans... even with a consumer level soundcard. I started with an Audigy soundcard & Grado SR60's, then got some HD600's, then an an M-Audio Revo and recently I added a CMOY amp. With each upgrade I have been amazed at the difference it makes.

You can get great sound with an Audigy 2, a pair of HD600's and a PIMETA. That'd cost ~$250 for the cans and ~$150 for the PIMETA. Just enough to trade the A2 in for an M-Audio Revo :)

You really need to go audition some of this stuff to figure out what you like. Everyone's ear is different.
 
Originally posted by superjohnny
Everyone's ear is different.
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...yea, I tend to believe people that use headphones are slightly more deaf than others. :D
 
If it is a detached wire in one of the cans that is causeing the signal loss, then contact Grado www.gradolabs.com and see what they can do. I just got my 325s back with no charge.

If you plan on using the cans for portables and direct computer output, you might want to stick with something that has a fairly low impedance. Grados are 32 across the lone. Some Senns get up to 650. Also, The audio is only as good as the source.
 
I've got the dt770 and the a900 and I'd recommend the a900 over the 770 for general use. The scooped out mids make it a very colored sounding phone and very hit or miss with what it plays well compared to other phones. While the A900 is one of the best all arounders on the market, it seems to do everything well.
 
Colored sounding? Hmmm...what are your other components?

My DT 770 sounds very good to me. Definitely not hit or miss.
 
It's commonly known that the 770's have a very recessed midrange and sharp highs, along with the prominent bass.
It's definitely not anywhere near a neutral phone.

I've got a Mapletree Ear+ which seems to have tamed the lows of the it, so it's not quite as overbearing, though the highs can be sibilant sometimes.

They work well with rap, hip hop and some rock, but classical and jazz leave a lot to be desired since most of that is in the mids and I find myself reaching for other cans.
 
I would recommend taking a look at the Beyerdynamic DT880s. I own them and love them. They're Beyer's top of the line model, and they're much better sounding than the DT770s (to my ears at least). Also, about www.headsave.com . Whoever says those amps are overpriced has not looked at the price/sound of commercial amps or done any sort research whatsoever. My PIMETA cost me about $120 to build, and is pretty much the same as what he offers for $155. That's $35 in labor for something that can take hours of careful assembly to put together. Amazing deal if you ask me, and X86 can probably give you an even lower price.
 
It's a general consensus over at head-fi that the A900s are probably the best non-amplified headphones you can buy.

I'm not really a big fan of having my head crushed by my headphones, and so I really like the loose grip of my A500s (lower model to A900s).
 
I think I'm getting somewhere. I'm considering the A900s, simply because I'm not sure if I'm always going to have an amp around, but then again I don't see why I shouldn't. And judging from that other thread, something like the HD 650s are complete overkill. I guess now it might be helpful to know where the overkill zone starts.

The A900s do seem versatile this way, and the desire is for the "best all around headphone", not the overkill pro phones that yield much more diminishing returns. I'll keep reading though
 
I just got my sennheiser hd570s, and my friend has the 590s, For the price i'd say the 570s are a good choice :) If you wanna spend more go for the 650s they seem like they would just walk over anything.
 
Only if you have a decent amp. They need lots of juice, preferably an amp that can swing a good amount of voltage, since they're higher impedance phones
 
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