Philips SHP9500 Headphones (Ships) @ Amazon 59.99

Krenum

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I agree

These are as good as my Sennhiser HD-595 overall. (595 are same as 598) and I use the Philips more because they have an exchangeable cord for a mod mic headset setup.
 
Hmm, I hope I dont regret this. Generally not a fan of open backed headphones. Not had good luck with headphones lately. I bought a Superlux set a few years ago that were well reviewed at the time that just sucked. My 15 year old Sony $30 monitors were better.
 
I love mine. Use em daily. Hopefully getting a pair of sennheiser 6xx for xmas
 
VMODA M100s are $149 or $30/mo for 5 months.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00A39PPI0/

These are good...can vouch for ‘em. Heck of a price but I’ve never listened to the SHP9500 so I can’t say how they compare in terms of value. I doubt the V-MODAs are 3x better, but if you need closed cans they are very good and very durable. Highly recommend the XL pad upgrade.
 
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I've got a pair of these...nice headphones, especially at that price.
 
this is the price I paid on newegg in 2017. I think when newegg has them thats the normal price.
 
I used to have a pair, paid $30 for them... sold for $90 a while back.... People go nuts over these things. They're really good for the price but not for the $90 my ebay bid war went up to... well, they're good enough for $90 but IDK why they sold for that much heh
IMO the quality with these just isn't there. They sound amazing but they're really cheaply made.
 
These may be made "cheaply" but they feel like pillows on my ears and they sound amazing
 
There are FANTASTIC headphones.

Sound stage is great and the comfort level is about the best I've ever experienced. People often talk about how you can wear these or those head phones all day long, this and that but these are truly headphones you can wear all day long and not feel any type of fatigue.
 
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Awesome headphones, their bigger brother is on sale too Philips-X2HR
I bought these and 10 minutes later cancelled the order. I just don't see how they can be much better on my untrained ears than the SHP9500's.
Did anyone find a Black Friday sale on self control and personal finance.
 
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Jesus. I want these but the lack of a mic kinda sucks. Might order them and order one of the generic mics similar to the vmod.
 
Jesus. I want these but the lack of a mic kinda sucks. Might order them and order one of the generic mics similar to the vmod.

You can attach a mic to them. Not sure which ones though

This one was recommended in the order section on amazon
https://www.amazon.com/V-MODA-BoomP...BRHKC1MQDA5&psc=1&refRID=73V31FE5ZBRHKC1MQDA5

Lots of other options here
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Vmoda+microphone&i=electronics&ref=nb_sb_noss_2

I use this one
https://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Des...icrophone&qid=1575080653&s=electronics&sr=1-4

bought it back in 2001. Still works great.
 
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These may be made "cheaply" but they feel like pillows on my ears and they sound amazing
I agree. They're very comfy. But mine had a problem with the adjustable band, and was kind of wobbly at the joint between the band and the ear piece.
 
Trying to decide between these and a Razer Kraken. These will probably sound better but Ive never felt/heard them so I'm nervous because I'm fairly particular.
 
I've got these headphones. They are comfortable, never an issue wearing them for hours. Don't have really anything to compare them to besides some cheap ass earbuds I used to wear, but they sound pretty good to me! Picked up another set just to have as backups lol.
 
Great cans but make sure you understand what open back means and how it affects you. These do not isolate sound, they bleed a lot of sound and also let a lot of sound in. They sound excellent (And are extremely comfy as others have mentioned) but are easily affected by any other noise in the room. I don't think the build quality feels cheap at all - these things have lasted longer for me than a few other headsets. I like to wear these when listening to music alone or watching a movie I'm invested in. I usually wear my closed back headsets for most use.
 
Anyone got recommnedations for good closed back headphones?

The ones mentioned in Post 7?

The Audio-Technica ATH-M50x are quite popular as well.

The Beyerdynamic DT-770 Pro is a classic and sounds awesome, but they need an amp to fully shine (unless maybe you get the 32-ohm version, which I haven't heard).

It really depends on your budget and personal taste. There are many to choose from. You'd likely get more/better recommendations in the audio subforum. I don't recommend Head-Fi anymore because you'll end up reading for days/weeks and not buying anything, lol. :p
 
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Jesus. I want these but the lack of a mic kinda sucks. Might order them and order one of the generic mics similar to the vmod.

VMODA makes the Boom Pro cable which can be used on any headset with a detachable 3.5mm cable.

C-BP-BLACK.png


Personally, I think headset mics and mic inputs are a major hassle.

I got a nice USB mic (Samson Meteor Mic) and mounted it on a clamp and a 7" goosneck. It's out of the way and super clear.
 
VMODA makes the Boom Pro cable which can be used on any headset with a detachable 3.5mm cable.

View attachment 203568

Personally, I think headset mics and mic inputs are a major hassle.

I got a nice USB mic (Samson Meteor Mic) and mounted it on a clamp and a 7" goosneck. It's out of the way and super clear.
That vmod mic is perfect. Its what I use. I bought a Blue Yeti, but my friends told me it was too sensitive and picked up EVERYTHING, which annoyed them. Keyboard keys, mouse clicks, table squeaks, noise upstairs etc. The Blue Yeti has no sort of background noise attenuation.

I've had nothing but compliments on the vmoda mic.
 
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The ones mentioned in Post 7?

The Audio-Technica ATH-M50x are quite popular as well.

The Beyerdynamic DT-770 Pro is a classic and sounds awesome, but they need an amp to fully shine (unless maybe you get the 32-ohm version, which I haven't heard).

It really depends on your budget and personal taste. There are many to choose from. You'd likely get more/better recommendations in the audio subforum. I don't recommend Head-Fi anymore because you'll end up reading for days/weeks and not buying anything, lol. :p

Skip ATH-M50X and go straight to the M40X. MUCH better experience. Throw some thick cow leather pads and a shorter cord on them and you have my go to (non-amp'd) headphone. The M50Xs are a mess (screachy highs, muddy or non-existent bass) the M40x is much more well rounded.
 
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Also the "Ships" as they're nicknamed originally linked by OP are outstanding open backed HPs.

But if you want some ridiculous bass along with the "open back" feel and presentation the X2HRs are excellent (they may fall down a little in the highs, but it's kinda track dependant). I love the X2HRs for rock/metal.
 
Awesome headphones, their bigger brother is on sale too Philips-X2HR

I picked these up at your note because I like my SHP9500 so much. The Philips-X2HR came in, and I'm listening to them now. Early impressions on audio I'll withhold until they break in a bit (they are fine, I just think small headphone drivers need a little time to break in). They are more comfortable than the SHP9500 which were already fine. The X2HR sit further away from the ear and have a deeper cup. The SHP9500 touch my ears ever so slightly - these X2HR don't. They cup completely around my ear. I expect these will be a slight step up from the SHP9500 - but the SHP9500 are such a darn bargain at $55. Off the charts value at that pricepoint. Both of these compete just fine against my Sennheiser HD-6XX which are equivalent to HD-650 and well praised $300 headphones.

(Driven with Creative Super X-Fi Headphone amp.)
 
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Well, they're damn comfortable and very good sound. Far better than what I usually use. I'll have to find my vmod mic and usb soundcard adapter and try it out for gaming and voice. I ususally game with a one ear usb mic and use speakers for game sounds.
 
I picked these up at your note because I like my SHP9500 so much. The Philips-X2HR came in, and I'm listening to them now. Early impressions on audio I'll withhold until they break in a bit (they are fine, I just think small headphone drivers need a little time to break in). They are more comfortable than the SHP9500 which were already fine. The X2HR sit further away from the ear and have a bigger cup. The SHP9500 touch my ears ever so slightly - these X2HR don't. They cup around my ear. I expect these will be a slight step up from the SHP9500 - but the SHP9500 are such a darn bargain at $55. Off the charts value at that pricepoint. Both of these compete just fine against my Sennheiser HD-6XX which are equivalent to HD-650 and well praised $300 headphones.

(Driven with Creative Super X-Fi Headphone amp.)


Awesome man, I was debating them hard, I love my shp's but just spent like $80 on another pair of headphones recently. Holding off a few months lol.
 
Z Review - Philips X2HR review - (NSFW language)


Z Review - Philips SHP9500 - (NSFW Language)
 
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After a couple days use - here's my comparison between the SHP9500 and the Fidelio X2HR

I've used the SHP9500 a LOT over the last year or so as my gaming headset with a modmic and my general purpose headphones. I'm new to the X2HR. I will be switching my SHP9500 out for the X2HR, but I will not be selling my SHP9500. Instead I will likely be selling both my Sennheiser headphones, the HD595 and the HD-6XX that cost 2x's as much and don't sound any better -- are more difficult to drive -- and have those darn proprietary cords that prevent you from using a modmic. Sennheiser, you are outdone. I've already not used you much at all for the last year - and it's time to send you to pasture.

As to the difference between the SHP9500 and the X2HR:

bass is a bit better on X2HR, it's a TINY bit deeper, and a tiny bit cleaner - 15%-20% higher quality at most - and it's that's being generous.

treble is a bit more refined/recessed? -- even a tiny bit quieter on the X2HR - this is basically a wash. Both are clearly the same company and have a similar sound.

comfort is better on the X2HR - but it is NOT as if the SHP9500 is uncomfortable..

The cup size on the X2HR feels both bigger and deeper to my ear shape. I like this! I would have thought this would have negatively effected the sound. It does not. My ears touch the inside of the SHP9500 both on the lobes, and the tops - the oustside rim of my ear, but not enough to be bothersome - it's a very light touch that occurs because the SHP9500 do not have a deep well, but they have a larger diameter well. The X2HR is a big enough cup that my smallish ears don't touch anything at all.
The X2HR are free of all contact - meaning there is zero annoyance to wearing them.

Except...
The headband on the SHP9500 is actually a bit more comfortable to me than the stretch style band on the X2HR. However it's reasonably close and I suspect the X2HR may get more comfortable as that band stretches out. The X2HR band is a little tight on the bridge of my big fat head -- but most headphones are a little tight at first. (I do wonder as the X2HR band loses it's elasticity over the years if they will stay in place, say in 20 years? This wouldn't be a problem with the metal band of the SHP9500. Realistically, this is not enough of a concern to be a deal breaker at these pricepoints.). So really probably a toss up at this point as to which may end up more comfortable overall - because of the trade offs.

The X2HR leak out about half the sound that the SHP9500 do at the same drive level on a splitter -- the SHP9500 uses a 32 ohm driver and the X2HR uses a 30 ohm driver (but the sonic difference is so close I'd not argue if you told me they used the same driver and the difference was just based on the physical difference between the pads and grills. It does sound the same volume with the cans on your head - just that the SHP9500 are putting more sound into the room with their design. My daughter pointed this out to me, and I hadn't noticed. I had them both hooked up by a splitter and was demoing them back and forth, as was she. She asked me to unplug the SHP9500 because it leaked so much more sound it might throw off the comparison. When I held each of the back of the headphones' metal grills up towards my head in turn it was clear the SHP9500 put more noise into the room. I think that's a null concern for the loud drive levels we were demoing (because the leaked sound in the room is a fraction of the overall volume with the headphones on your head - but it is a point of note if you are using this as a gaming headset with a modmic and having trouble with the mic picking up your headphones sound (open air designs can pretty easily suffer from this at louder drive levels and I’ve run into this with my SHP9500). The less ambient noise of the X2HR is preferable here if using as a PC headset with a modmic — but its just probably not a deciding factor for most people - and I’ve used the SHP9500 for a year now with great results - so this to is getting pretty nit picky.

The SHP9500 feel a bit lighter and more secure on your head -- maybe that's an illusion because of the ear pads coming into light contact with my ears and remind me they are on my head. While the SHP9500 clearly look bigger in the photos, they do NOT feel bigger on my head.



BOTH EXCELLENT CANS!

You can tell they are VERY VERY similar. I think you'd be hard pressed to identify them uniquely on sonic signature outside of a quick A/B where they are both running at the same time and you can immediately swap back and forth. Even plugging them in, may be enough time to lose your audio memory on which is which aside from the comfort difference. In fact I'd say the comfort is the biggest differential, and it's a small nod towards the X2HR. I like the velor or velvet ear pad covering more than the 1990 Honda accord seat fabric of the SHP9500 (which is an accurate representation of what it feels like to your fingers, but not necessarily fair to depict how it feels on your head). The X2HR pads are removable, the SHP9500 pads are not (I learned that in the Z review videos above). For the price, scratch that --- for ANY price these are both simply phenomenal headphones. I’ve been to trade shows and heard lots of expensive headphones. These are right up there - say 90-95% of the best of them — and these cost $50 or $100 bucks — compared to cans that cost $1k range like the Sennheiser HD800.

I asked my eight year old after comparing the two with me which she liked better - she said the X2HR were more comfortable but she didn't think they sounded different enough to have much of a preference.
My 10 year old after comparison said she like the X2HR better in most every regard, but it was all slight preference. I asked her if she thought they were worth $100 vs. $55 and she hesitated. She said you're joking right? They cost 2x's as much? I said yes. She wouldn't believe me. She said they are a little better, but there's no way they are worth 2x's the money. I then asked her if she had $100 which would she buy? She said, well if you just gave me $100 I'd buy the X2HR, but if I had to buy them with my own money I'd get the SHP9500.

And that about sums it up.
 
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I'm super happy I cancelled my X2HR order after reading Archaea's review.
 
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