New headphones?

[Cyanite]

I've been using the same headphones for both making and listening to music. I've been using Grado SR60's, which apparently were the best headphones $80 can buy:



They were great until about 3 weeks ago. The right cup fell off of the thin piece of metal that kept it in place, and the left one's cable frayed because of how often the things rotate. Usually I could manipulate the cable to get some sound out of it, but that just stopped working today. Even when they worked I think crap got into the open air backing and it constantly rattles during low frequencies.

So I need new headphones. I'm going to go ahead and invest in some audiophile quality ones, probably the AKG K 701 model:



Lowest price I can find them at are $280, so I thought I might get some input before shelling out that much on headphones. Does anyone have any other suggestions?

[PsYcHoZeRoSk8eR]

Talk to iPatch about this. He knows more than any one person should about headphones. He helped me get a great pair way back when.

[deltro300111]

I must reccomend sennheiser HD280s. They're $100 and except for a little bit of headcrushing if you don't stretch them out they have very accurate response. Compared to the middle-end Grados (SR-60/SR-80's, don't remember), they have MUCH fuller bass response.

[DJSBX]

I have some AKG 240 MK II's, and they are pretty sweet. Cost around $200 I believe

[Nightfirecat]

You could probably just grab any AKG or Sennheiser headphones at the high end, and it should be fine. I've got a set of Sennheiser HD555 headphones, and I love em.

[Cyanite]

I probably should have pointed out that I'm looking for an open or semi-open ear design. I don't want those ones that wrap around your ears and block outside noise, I've never liked those.

I'm also not too keen on buying anything from Sennheiser. I've heard you can find headphones as good as or better than anything Sennheiser sells for the same price, or less, except maybe their upper end models. But I don't really want to spend $500+ on a pair of headphones.

But hell, I could be wrong.

[deltro300111]

I'm using a $100 pair of Sennheisers, and they actually sound quite a bit better than the Grados I've used.

Once you start getting into the tip-top end of head phones ($150 - 200+) the quality you get out of them will be more dependent on your amplifier, rather than how much money you spent on the headphones.

good luck!

[iPatcH]

Beyerdynamic makes some great studio phones. I've been using a pair of DT-250 and has a ludicrous flat and wide sound response. I picked up a pair for $100 but they sell normally for about $250. The 880's are also really flat, but from what I'm told are wimpy in bass response.

AKG 701's are also super nice and flat, but you might want to put them over a basketball first or your head might implode from their massive headsqueeze.

Lower-end Senns are decent but they don't really start getting invest-worthy until you go over the HD555 imho, but man can they be liquid.

Also, high-end models don't start until you hit the $400+ range, deltro, although mid-range is all you really need unless you have some super insane audiophile setup. 8)

Also, have you ever considered using studio monitors instead of headphones? It's a whole different experience. Using both headphones and speakers to get a great mix is crucial, especially if you ever want to play live.

[deltro300111]

*spends $5,000 on a wire*

[Cyanite]

Originally Posted by iPatcH

Lower-end Senns are decent but they don't really start getting invest-worthy until you go over the HD555 imho, but man can they be liquid.

This is another reason why I don't want a Sennheiser, they seem to have some of the best headphones available when you're willing to drop more than $500, but beyond that they seem about as good as anything else, and the "anything else" usually seems to be cheaper.

So far I really still want those AKG K701's. I'm just looking for decent priced ($200-300) headphones that are still going to hold up as a good investment later on.

Also, have you ever considered using studio monitors instead of headphones? It's a whole different experience. Using both headphones and speakers to get a great mix is crucial, especially if you ever want to play live.

Yeah I used to have speakers wired to this thing until the sub blew out, once I get situated in my dorm in the fall I'll set some speakers set up. Until now I'm content with the headphone setup, especially since playing live isn't important to me yet.

[Johny2by4]

go get DR DRE Headphones

[Zageron]

I have the HD 280s as well. They ARE really good, but you said you don't like the closed design.

So I'd go for somewhere in the 500 series. It's everything you could want except for the loss of the Kevlar coated audio cable in the 600 series. Personally I think the 500 series are the coolest looking as well, so the 595s might not be a bad idea.

They go for about $350.

[DJSBX]

Originally Posted by Johny2by4

go get DR DRE Headphones

LOL