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Which Headphones?

Oh yeah, I also ordered the SB40's. So now I'll be able to do a DIRECT comparison between the SB45's and the SB40's. I'll let them burn in a bit, and also going to be busy this week so hopefully next week I can get something written up. I'll concentrate on gaming, but see how music sounds also from my X-Fi.
 
Citizen86 said:
This is a good place to start: http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f4/headphone-buyers-guide-271258/
That'll give you an idea of what's out there. A LOT of it depends on what you listen to. For rock, apparently Grado is great, but for classical/jazz/acoustic, you may want to take a look at Audio-Technica or Sennheiser.
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Awesome, thanks for the link. I'll check that out. And as far as what I listen to, it varies quite a bit. Everything from indie, folk, electronica, acoustic stuff, etc. I've got a wide spectrum of musical taste, haha.

EDIT: After looking through them a while, I'm kinda digging the Equation RP-21's. Anyone have any experience with these?
 
CLock3 said:
Awesome, thanks for the link. I'll check that out. And as far as what I listen to, it varies quite a bit. Everything from indie, folk, electronica, acoustic stuff, etc. I've got a wide spectrum of musical taste, haha.

EDIT: After looking through them a while, I'm kinda digging the Equation RP-21's. Anyone have any experience with these?
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I haven't tried the RP-21's, but apparently they're pretty good for music, nice boomy bass and comfy. But they go for around $90 or more. That's almost double your budget.... be careful before you've spent your entire savings on audio :p
 
I haven´t recommended the ultrasone proline for some months here so I do it again... Beats all the sennheisers and audio technicas, beyers and older AKG headphones I have tested :)
 
Citizen86 said:
I haven't tried the RP-21's, but apparently they're pretty good for music, nice boomy bass and comfy. But they go for around $90 or more. That's almost double your budget.... be careful before you've spent your entire savings on audio :p
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haha, I know. I have a birthday coming up though, so I figure if I'm gonna get some that are that expensive I'll wait until then and ask for them as my gift.
 
So I've asked for advice on this before and since then I've been trying to get a nice deal on either the hd555's or the a700's. Usually I miss a chance on a nice deal and play the waiting game. Not sure if it was spaceman that said it, but someone said the hd555's aren't worth the price they cost new. I really want to try the audiotechnica a700s, but would the hd555's at about $75+ be worthwhile or still just meh?
 
CLock3 said:
Awesome, thanks for the link. I'll check that out. And as far as what I listen to, it varies quite a bit. Everything from indie, folk, electronica, acoustic stuff, etc. I've got a wide spectrum of musical taste, haha.

EDIT: After looking through them a while, I'm kinda digging the Equation RP-21's. Anyone have any experience with these?
Click to expand...

i have some- great sound for the price. seem quality built- handles deep bass and is pretty nice on the high end. comfy for closed cans. a bargain for 100$ - i got mine for 60$ on ebay :)
 
ourfpshero said:
i have some- great sound for the price. seem quality built- handles deep bass and is pretty nice on the high end. comfy for closed cans. a bargain for 100$ - i got mine for 60$ on ebay :)
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Man, 60 bucks? I've been looking all over and everywhere I find them they are $99, even eBay. You get them for that cheap new, or were they used? I'm pretty sure that's what I'm gonna go with anyways. From all the things I've read they seem like a good all around set.
 
My gaming cans are sb40, AT A700, AKG 601 and then Stax Lambdas. There is a very good reason for these and not the RP-21s.

The RP-21 is comfy, great bass BUT no sound stage at all. They are kind of weird really.

Sennheiser hd555 are only worth $75 max new. The 595 are overpriced new. They are not as good as the A700 imo.

Darth Beyers are really good too but start around $400 new. The Stax are better and cheaper, IF you can find them. Otherwise, there are new Stax which are $$ sometimes and sometimes not. Check out head-fi for MUCH more info.
 
Yeah, I've been over there lately. This is the only tough part about picking some. There's so many different views on every set of headphones. Some people will say they are great while others will have completely different views on them. I think it's mainly because certain people have used higher priced sets than others, and of course once you buy a better set, your inferior sets are going to sound, well, inferior from that point on. We'll see I guess what I end up going with. I'm sure anything I end up choosing will sound really good to me anyways considering I don't have any other headphones to compare them to. Gotta start somewhere though, haha.
 
CLock3 said:
Yeah, I've been over there lately. This is the only tough part about picking some. There's so many different views on every set of headphones. Some people will say they are great while others will have completely different views on them. I think it's mainly because certain people have used higher priced sets than others, and of course once you buy a better set, your inferior sets are going to sound, well, inferior from that point on. We'll see I guess what I end up going with. I'm sure anything I end up choosing will sound really good to me anyways considering I don't have any other headphones to compare them to. Gotta start somewhere though, haha.
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Yeah. Lot's of assholes, I mean opinions, over there.

That is why I just make a judgement call on gaming. I know what it takes to get an edge or just to be aware of wtf is going on with a bunch of idiots all shooting at once lol.
 
has anyone tried those plantronics .audio 770? I was planning on using them with the ps3.

:confused:
 
Man, I haven't done any gaming yet with the SB40's, but I'm been A/Bing them between the KSC75's for music, and I really hope they sound better after they burn in... they sound so muffled and dark in comparison to the detailed KSC75's. I'm pretty sure they need a decent burn-in though. Been busy this week though so no time for games, I'm pretty sure they'll be great for that - that's what I bought them for ;)
 
I'm new to all this but I've read this whole thread and much more lately. From what I found out I think I would like the AKG 701. I found them for just under $250. The problem is the amps are so expensive. The headset is a little of a stretch by itself. The lowest price amps I have found are the Headroom Bithead($200), the Headroom Total Bithead($270). I saw an AudioTechnica headhone amp for $230. I don't need it to be portable as I will only be using it on my pc. Is there anything a little less expensive that would power this headphone adequetly? I will have the Auzentech Prelude. Will any of their add-on amps do the job? I really would like to try out the AKG 701s. I may end up going for the Audio Technica a900 or a900ltd if I can't find the right amp.
 
the akg701 is only 62 ohms. the prelude in your pc will drive it beautifully- no amp needed- the prelude uses an x-fi chip and all the x-fi cards put out a lot of power for sound cards
 
Thanks for the info. So it looks like I will get to try the 701 with my new build. By the way I found an amp called the Zero Dac that is getting some really good reviews and is only $140(plus $40 for shipping from China). I may be able to add that on before long. Thanks again.
 
ourfpshero said:
the akg701 is only 62 ohms. the prelude in your pc will drive it beautifully- no amp needed- the prelude uses an x-fi chip and all the x-fi cards put out a lot of power for sound cards
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True BUT the Akg 701 is actually best served w/ juice. Lots of power.

Still will do fine out of the Prelude. Just fyi about it liking an amp. The zero dac is a combo unit which I do not like as much as a separate dac and amp.
 
Thanks spaceman. What would you recommend? I am trying to find something under $200 that would do the job.
 
I would say although the Zero is a combo unit, a lot of people are still enjoying it, and it would probably work really well for you. If you get unsatisfied with it later on, you can always just use it as a DAC and buy a better amp. The Zero is cool because you can switch out the opamps to change the sound to your liking.

I've been looking at the Zero myself.
 
Thanks. I'm pretty sure I can fit the Zero into my upcoming build budget. The detailed review over at headfi is really positive. They also give a long list of opamps they've tried in it with the ratings for each.
 
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Sorry but the Zero has no chance of running the 650s or 701s to their max potential. I know it sounds wrong with the 701s being under 100ohm and the 650 are 250 ohm I believe. Both are among the very hardest to drive right. They will work out of almost anything but shine only with a very specific and dedicated setup.

It will still work fine though. I would just go with a 601 and a Zero. Balance it out. Things will still sound exceptional.
 
Would seem a pity not to go with the 701($250) instead of the 601($200) with such a small price difference. I really would like to try the best I can get. What if I started with the 701 and the Zero but figured I needed to upgrade just as soon as I could? What would it really take to make them shine? Within a month or two at the most after my build I could go for pretty much whatever it took though I would like to stay reasonable(lol yeah define reasonable when it comes to top of the line audio).
 
I am looking for a new set of gaming cans. I have a set of Sony SA-5ks for music and movies, and a Presonus Central Station I am using as a DAC/AMP combo.

Any suggestions for great FPS gaming in the sub $200 range?
 
aces155 said:
I am looking for a new set of gaming cans. I have a set of Sony SA-5ks for music and movies, and a Presonus Central Station I am using as a DAC/AMP combo.

Any suggestions for great FPS gaming in the sub $200 range?
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Not that are better than the ones you have. Want more bass? Try a used Ultrasone 2500 or 750 on Head-Fi.
 
pirate1 said:
Would seem a pity not to go with the 701($250) instead of the 601($200) with such a small price difference. I really would like to try the best I can get. What if I started with the 701 and the Zero but figured I needed to upgrade just as soon as I could? What would it really take to make them shine? Within a month or two at the most after my build I could go for pretty much whatever it took though I would like to stay reasonable(lol yeah define reasonable when it comes to top of the line audio).
Click to expand...

I would get the 601 + the Zero. Again, balance. The 701 is pickier about amp/source than the 601 which is more forgiving. Remember, the bass is heard and not felt with the AKGs.
 
Actually, I want something with less bass. I have trouble picking out footsteps during firefights because of the bass on the SA-5ks.
 
Hey, spaceman I'm thinking now of the AKG 701 with the Zero and the Little Dot MKIVse. Would that power them alright? Bit of a stretch for me on the cost but I really want to hear them properly.
 
Well, if you want to spend that kind of $$, consider some used Stax too. Otherwise, yeah. That will sound pretty nice. The LD2 is a good enough amp. Look to head-fi for used gear. Usually, the stuff is practically new anyway.
 
Thanks, spaceman. You and everything I've read have really go me wanting to hear these 701s when they are powered right. Also would like to hear those Stax but that might have to wait a little bit. I'll look around though, you never know what you might find.
 
spaceman said:
I guess this thread got unstuck lol.
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I unstuck it because no one posted in a while and it didn't seem like it was curbing the same questions being posted over and over again.. if it stays up top we can resticky it.
 
First off I want to say thanks for all the great info on the buying guide Spaceman. A few months ago I saw you saying the sb40's and sb45's were almost the same so I ended up going with the 45's. However now I see you say the 40's are better. I am not really a sound person aside from listening to music and playing many games. I was just wondering if you thought there was a major difference between the two and if so would it justify replacing my current headphones?
 
there is a major diff b/w the 45 and 40.

the 40 is for gaming. it is not a headset b/c the mic is HORRIBLE. you need a zalman clip on mic for it.
the 40 is the best headphone under $50 now. it does gaming very well for cheap.

the 45 is for talking. it is a headset.

as for the sticky. i do not really care one way or the other. it is true people keep asking the same damn ? s lol. maybe some flashing lights would help.
 
ok.. I restickied it and renamed the thread. Hopefully people will get the idea to come here first before they post a new thread on which cans they should choose. ;)
 
belated thanks. I am still here and still in the mix. Pretty sure I am arriving at the next level of audio now.

My wife just told me, "It only took you 8 years to figure it out."

I had just connected her a stereo I put together for about $300. It rocks the whole house and you can hear detail in every room. Clean and clear house-wide sound in a 2.1 system lol.

Remember: More $$ does not mean better sound. Be smart about what components you purchase and reap the benefits.
 
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