Portable cans?

[Yossarian22]

I recently purchased a Thinkpad T410 and while it is an excellent machine and portable enough for my needs, my cans aren't. I'm packing Beyerdynamics DT-150s and holy shit are they huge! Not to mention the sound card itself has a hard time driving the DT-150s and I'm not ready to carry around a pocket amp for the daily commute.

I was wondering if I could get a recommendation for this sort of weird niche.

• Thin and portable
• Closed is my preference but I can be swayed
• Minimal leakage to not bother others who wouldn't understand the weird music I listen to
• Rugged construction around the headband (see JVC HARX)
• Relatively inexpensive, $120 or less (preferably less)

Does such a product exist or do I go right to earbuds?

 

[Jospeh]

I'm not ready to carry around a pocket amp for the daily commute.

That's just how we roll around here. 50 lb batteries on our backs to power our 20 lb labtops. Headphones bigger than xboxes and with impedance ratings so high that you can't even hear them using onboard sound.

 

[jeremyshaw]

ATH-M50s. Since they are studio monitors, they can fold in all sorts of wierd positions.

I'll get a pic of it ontop of my m11x.

 

[jeremyshaw]

EDIT: PM.

 

[brn80]

ATH-M50s are good value @ the ~$100 mark right now. If you want something smaller/svelte, there's the ATH-ES7, but it doesn't seem as sturdy especially in the headband region. The Sennheiser HD 25-1 II would probably fit your bill except for the price part (it's said to be found for a tad over 100 on deals); great sound and extremely sturdy.

A reviewer on head-fi did a round-up of a ton of generic and brand name portables in various tiers (price ranges) with pics. Something might strike your fancy there: http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread...db-logic-hp-100-arctic-sound-p281-added-12-24

 

[Blackbeard Ben]

I'd say the ATH-M50 and HD 25-1 II are both spot on - they're the first two 'phones I was thinking of. Oh, and the Shure SRH-440 and 840.

The other choice is IEMs. I've had a good experience with my Shure E2c, and it impresses me quite a bit even now that I have an HD 600 and Alessandro MS1i.

 

[Rossi~]

HD25-1 II are what i use, i have 2 pairs and love them to bits. Amazing for portability as they can take a beating and if for some reason they get too much of a beating, all parts are easily replacable.
They are easy to drive also.

 

[450]

I use the Sony MDR-V6 for portable use. Why? Because it looks like a Sony MDR-v150 and it won't get stolen. Sounds good, and its cheap too!

 

[SirMaster]

I would just go with IEMs if you want portability. They also offer lots of sound isolation. They can also be quite durable as some have detachable cables and they look much better in public

Modern IEMs can actually be some of the best earphones around (at least some expensive ones). They are definitely don't produce less quality than full-size cans if you are getting the right IEMs.

 

[nakedhand]

HD25-1 II are what i use, i have 2 pairs and love them to bits. Amazing for portability as they can take a beating and if for some reason they get too much of a beating, all parts are easily replacable.
They are easy to drive also.

This particular headphone benefits GREATLY from proper amping, really only a shadow of itself un-amped. But the OP can go to head-fi.org to read more on this.

Unless the OP is not planning on getting an amp at some point, I would recommend he spend his money differently. Another detail here is the price, which is nowhere near $120.

Perhaps the Denon AHD1001K would be an option, very easy to drive and great sound for this price point. The Denon sound is comfortable and easy to listen to, often with emphasis on the lower spectrum. Not at all as isolating as the HD25's, which are hard to beat on this point, also does not have the near perfectly even (for studio usage) frequency response curve that the HD25 has.