[Kamui712]

I'm looking for some good headphones to buy locally. I was listening to the Dre Beats DJ Pro's, they seem pretty good, and the materials seem to be good quality. I'm wondering if there are alternative full sized headphones that you'd recommend? I already have a pair of in-ear headphones, I'm just looking for something a little bigger for lossess files.

I'm new to the audio tech field so I'm learning as I go.

Type: FULL-sized over ear headphones.
Materials I'm looking for: Strong, sturdy, something that will last me a long time with heavy use.
Sound expectations: Strong bass, clear high's without it sounding like tin cans.
Type of music: Hip-Hop / Classical LOSSLESs
Where I want to use it: At home, long air plane trips.
Price Range: $500 max

[parm104]

Really, sound is subjective...what may sound good to one person, may not sound good to another...I personally have always preferred Bose sound quality. I find that Monster Beats is more of a name and gimmick than it is to do with anything relevant to sound quality.

Bose is my choice because it's affordable and their products are great. I have the On-Ear's and the Triports and I have no problems with them.

[PornMaster]

what are you using them for?

games?
music?
portable music?

http://www.revscene.net/forums/651637-fs-steelseries-7h-usb-headset.html#post7545211

buy mine :)
awesome headphones

[JesseBlue]

i bought a dx bluetooth headset...pretty cool for 25 bucks

[StylinRed]

do people ever use the search function???


as for beats

:facepalm:



and as most threads on this subject suggest

go to Tom Lee and sample some cans

[trancehead]

Beats and BOSE are over marketed garbage.

[jeedee]

If you're looking for iPod headphones/earphones openboxco sells them for $10 +tax

[PornMaster]

Beats and BOSE are over marketed garbage.

BOSE usually is garbage, however their in ear headphones are epic.
They sound fantastic and the design for in ears are heaven.

They sit perfectly in your ear and they stay there.
The in ear piece is made of silicone and never irritates your ear.

[Razor Ramon HG]

BOSE usually is garbage, however their in ear headphones are epic.
They sound fantastic and the design for in ears are heaven.

They sit perfectly in your ear and they stay there.
The in ear piece is made of silicone and never irritates your ear.

The in-ears sound muffled and are shit.

And almost all IEMs use silicon tips if not foamies.

[PornMaster]

http://cdn.berryreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/01/80430_boseinearbig.jpg

these ones, trust me there pretty good

[Razor Ramon HG]

Yes, I know you are referring to the Triports. And yes, I've listened to them before.

Trust me, I've owned a lot of IEMs in my years (was a hardcore audiophile a few years back), and the price isn't justified at all with these earbuds. I would never recommend them, and until you've listened to better, you will never realize just how terrible these are. The majority of IEMs around/sub-$100 will easily trump these.

However, I do give props to Bose for the design. They do look fantastic, but then there also lies a design flaw. For majority of people, the tips do not go far enough in the ear canal to give a proper seal.

As long as you don't have a problem with them, then I'm happy for you. But these are far from the best headphones to buy, even if it's locally.

[Razor Ramon HG]

As for the OP, there are few places that I know of in Vancouver that sell cans. I know Tom Lee and Long and McQuade sell them, and the lesser known place, Hi-Fi Center. Last time I checked, all three places allowed you to try out various cans.

It would help if you gave us a budget and the type of music you listen to. But of course, the best deals will be found online. Read up on Head-Fi if you have the time.

By default, I always recommend the Denon D2000. Decently priced, and well-rounded for various genres.

[Culverin]

no Bose, no Beats, no Skull Candy, no Monster or anything that is "popular" or marketed to the mainstream. If you're having to ask about headphones, then a good judge of "garbage" is any brand that people say is good.

I don't think you should ever use the word "best" when talking about audio equipment. That is a very dangerous word. Best is custom made 16-driver in ear monitor or electro static paired with a tube amp.



Here's my quick and dandy headphone selection guide.


I will narrow it down to 3 main styles for you.
Full Size or over-the-ear (Circum-aural)
http://www.headphone.com/images/pages/HeadphonesFullsize.jpg (http://www.headphone.com/headphones/full-size.php)





Earbuds (hard shells you put in your ears, or the 1-flange silicone ones)
http://www.headphone.com/images/pages/Headphones-Earbud.jpg (http://www.headphone.com/headphones/earbud.php)





In-Ear-Monitor or IEMs (you probably don't know about these)
http://media.headphone.com/productphotos/icons/9990330535_n.jpg (http://www.headphone.com/headphones/shure-se535.php)


Everything is based around primary use.


Home listening = Full Size
In a quiet environment when outside isn't going to bleed sound to you, and you're not going to affect others, you use full size. They will offer you the best acoustics. Things will sound big, and you'll be able to place them around you like violin in my 12-O-Clock position, flute at my 2.
A good pair of full size headphones will trump those gimmicky 5.1 surround headseats when gaming any day of the week. If you've never heard "good headphones", go ahead, try on a pair, they will literally blow you away.


Commuting = IEMs
IEMs have the highest noise attenuation out of all styles of headphones. You would use them to block out noise of your surroundings. It's very noisy when commuting. Bussing, walking, people chattering, horrific squeal of the skytrain, these are all bad things that get in the way of you and your music. A common use of IEMs are for stage musicians so they get a properly fed mix of their own vocals as well as a mix of the backing track and their band members.


Excercise or high-traffic situations = Earbuds
Earbuds are cheap, or at least there isn't any time you're going to want to use nice ones. Use them while at the gym or while you're out jogging and hiking. Places where the cords could get yanked, they can get drenched in sweat and dust. Don't buy nice earbuds ever. Just not worth it.


Some good starting brands to look at would be BeyerDynamic, AKG, Shure, Sennheiser, Westone.


Here's my personal setup:

Commuting
Earsonic SM3 (triple driver IEMs) I went to get impressions made at an audiologist so I could get custom silicone tips. I'm running this out of a Cowon D2.


Home
BeyerDynamic DT-990 or AKG K-702, fed from an Auzentech Prelude, Foobar2000 playing FLAC (lossless files).


Please, please, please don't get suckered in by "what's popular" and "marketing gimmicks". If you've got more questions, just let me know.


Shameless Plug:
I might consider selling off my AKG-702.
Tom Lee Music - AKG ACOUSTICS - K702 PROFESSIONAL STUDIO HEADPHONES (http://www.tomleemusic.ca/main/recording.cfm?details=1&id=161&inv=137429)
I do a lot of soft listening and they just plain don't like it there, they crave medium to louder music, they shine there a lot better.

[Razor Ramon HG]

^

Nicely said. But to Monster's credit, the Turbines are great budget IEMs.

[Kamui712]

wow, thanks for this, I will take a trip to Tom Lee dt and change the information in my op.


no Bose, no Beats, no Skull Candy, no Monster or anything that is "popular" or marketed to the mainstream. If you're having to ask about headphones, then a good judge of "garbage" is any brand that people say is good.

I don't think you should ever use the word "best" when talking about audio equipment. That is a very dangerous word. Best is custom made 16-driver in ear monitor or electro static paired with a tube amp.



Here's my quick and dandy headphone selection guide.


I will narrow it down to 3 main styles for you.
Full Size or over-the-ear (Circum-aural)
http://www.headphone.com/images/pages/HeadphonesFullsize.jpg (http://www.headphone.com/headphones/full-size.php)





Earbuds (hard shells you put in your ears, or the 1-flange silicone ones)
http://www.headphone.com/images/pages/Headphones-Earbud.jpg (http://www.headphone.com/headphones/earbud.php)





In-Ear-Monitor or IEMs (you probably don't know about these)
http://media.headphone.com/productphotos/icons/9990330535_n.jpg (http://www.headphone.com/headphones/shure-se535.php)


Everything is based around primary use.


Home listening = Full Size
In a quiet environment when outside isn't going to bleed sound to you, and you're not going to affect others, you use full size. They will offer you the best acoustics. Things will sound big, and you'll be able to place them around you like violin in my 12-O-Clock position, flute at my 2.
A good pair of full size headphones will trump those gimmicky 5.1 surround headseats when gaming any day of the week. If you've never heard "good headphones", go ahead, try on a pair, they will literally blow you away.


Commuting = IEMs
IEMs have the highest noise attenuation out of all styles of headphones. You would use them to block out noise of your surroundings. It's very noisy when commuting. Bussing, walking, people chattering, horrific squeal of the skytrain, these are all bad things that get in the way of you and your music. A common use of IEMs are for stage musicians so they get a properly fed mix of their own vocals as well as a mix of the backing track and their band members.


Excercise or high-traffic situations = Earbuds
Earbuds are cheap, or at least there isn't any time you're going to want to use nice ones. Use them while at the gym or while you're out jogging and hiking. Places where the cords could get yanked, they can get drenched in sweat and dust. Don't buy nice earbuds ever. Just not worth it.


Some good starting brands to look at would be BeyerDynamic, AKG, Shure, Sennheiser, Westone.


Here's my personal setup:

Commuting
Earsonic SM3 (triple driver IEMs) I went to get impressions made at an audiologist so I could get custom silicone tips. I'm running this out of a Cowon D2.


Home
BeyerDynamic DT-990 or AKG K-702, fed from an Auzentech Prelude, Foobar2000 playing FLAC (lossless files).


Please, please, please don't get suckered in by "what's popular" and "marketing gimmicks". If you've got more questions, just let me know.


Shameless Plug:
I might consider selling off my AKG-702.
Tom Lee Music - AKG ACOUSTICS - K702 PROFESSIONAL STUDIO HEADPHONES (http://www.tomleemusic.ca/main/recording.cfm?details=1&id=161&inv=137429)
I do a lot of soft listening and they just plain don't like it there, they crave medium to louder music, they shine there a lot better.

[yeppi]

how about shure in ear headphones?
Posted via RS Mobile (http://www.revscene.net/forums/announcement.php?a=228)

[ilvtofu]

the bose in ears are quite unreliable, make sure to get extended warranty if you're planning to get them.

Right now my commuter headphones are etymotic mc3, good for iphone I guess and the noise isolation is pretty good, i love these for podcasts. I also have a pair of turbine coppers but they aren't really to my taste, the earpiece goes very deep and the range is good, I think I need new tips though because they don't fit me perfectly.

I also have a pair of klipsch s4's that sound great for music, not much bass, but they are the comfiest eartips I've used, a budget option is the S2's, I helped 737! order a refurbished pair off newegg for around $25, he loves them.

[rageguy]

Tom Lee Music - AUDIO-TECHNICA - ATH-M50 PROFESSIONAL STUDIO MONITOR HEADPHONES (http://www.tomleemusic.ca/main/recording.cfm?details=1&id=161&inv=125049)

And if you are listening on your computer, you should get a better source. http://www.hotaudio.com/store/dac-bit-perfect.php

[ForbiddenX]

Tom Lee Music - SENNHEISER - HD25-1MKII CLOSE DYNAMIC HEADPHONES (http://www.tomleemusic.ca/main/recording.cfm?details=1&id=161&inv=90673)

The Sennheiser HD25-II are a really good pair of headphones. I just picked them up and I am loving them so far.

For IEMs, the Tripple.Fi 10s are a really nice pair to have. They sound amazing and the quality is superb.

[PornMaster]

Yes, I know you are referring to the Triports. And yes, I've listened to them before.

Trust me, I've owned a lot of IEMs in my years (was a hardcore audiophile a few years back), and the price isn't justified at all with these earbuds. I would never recommend them, and until you've listened to better, you will never realize just how terrible these are. The majority of IEMs around/sub-$100 will easily trump these.

However, I do give props to Bose for the design. They do look fantastic, but then there also lies a design flaw. For majority of people, the tips do not go far enough in the ear canal to give a proper seal.

As long as you don't have a problem with them, then I'm happy for you. But these are far from the best headphones to buy, even if it's locally.

My bad I forgot they were in the 100+ price range.
If you are able to get em for 69.99 on deals (happens quite frequently) then yea there worth it

[v850]

I had some beat solo's that were good
but I went and got Bose qc15's and they are great

fairly pricey though

[sonick]

^

Nicely said. But to Monster's credit, the Turbines are great budget IEMs.

Really? My friend got a set of these for cheap and they sounded terrible. No highs, no lows, just a crapload of midrange. My JVC Marshmallow or Koss Plugs sounded better.

Check out Headphone Bar (http://www.headphonebar.com/) on W Broadway.

Senn HD25 are good, but are super-aural (on top of ear) vs. circum-aural. (surrounding ear). The Audio-Technica ATH-M50 are circumaural, which are typically more comfortable for long listening sessions. Both sound great.

Beyerdynamic and K701's are also solid cans; Beyers may be harder to find locally, AKG K701's shouldn't be too difficult (edit: they are K702 now, available at Tom Lee).

[jello24]

I would recommend the Sony MDR-V6 with Beyerdynamic pads... had it since 2005, and it's the only one I use for my almost daily late night music listening. I hope you can find it locally though, cause i've had to buy mine online, but it's so much worth it.

[sonick]

MDR-V6 are solid, the MDR-7506 is the exact same headphone with different coloured speakers; they sell them in the Sony Store.

They are great monitors, more 'flat' sounding than some other ones mentioned here but for such a wide range of music (hip hop to classical), it may be better to own a flatter headphone vs. one that may be more bass or mid heavy.

[Jer3]

i'm don't follow too closely with cans but i can chime in on IEM's as I've owned a few pairs.

in terms of budget, creative ep-630's lasted me about close to two years of service until one side shorted out. good clean mids and highs without an overpowering low end bass. those things are tanks as i threw them in my pocket, listened to them everyday on the commute to school, at the gym. great headphones if you can find them for a bargain (got mine before for $15).

sennheiser cx-300's are essentially the same as ep-630's but more expensive. sound quality is the same except they died after about a year of use.

i'm using ME electronics M6P+ and M11+ right now. The M6P+ is way too bass heavy for my liking and has a muddy mids and the highs are almost non-existent. they are good for the gym though seeing as the ear-hugging design ensures it'll never fall out.

the M11+'s are probably the best pair of IEM's since the sony ex-71's I used in high school. Decent mid-range and a very good high range for the price (which is quite affordable). bass is a bit underwhelming but i dont find it to be a problem. theres currently a promotion on the MEE site if anyones interested too.

dont settle for overhyped skullcandy's, beats or bose or whatever the fuck hipster douchebags are using right now.

[LiquidTurbo]

CX-300 too bassy.

[trancehead]

CX-300 too bassy.

I havn't cross compared them with any other in ears, but I had these for a good 3 years until the right side stopped working about a month ago.

I just ordered another one off ebay. CX 300 II so its white. about 25$, cant complain. Bang for buck...this is great

[sonick]

I have CX300's and didn't find them overpoweringly bassy; for sure they were tuned more towards mids/lows rather than sparkly highs.

[Noizz]

+1 for the BOSE in-ear ones, had em for 2 years now.

However, I do give props to Bose for the design. They do look fantastic, but then there also lies a design flaw. For majority of people, the tips do not go far enough in the ear canal to give a proper seal.

They're not meant to seal the canal and that's the sole reason why I bought them. They're meant for comfort and hence a semi-seal.

I used in the ears for the longest time and I would always get sore and uncomfortable canals after using them for an extended period of time, even when I used the smallest silicone tip. The BOSE ones I can use for as long as I want.

It doesn't cancel out all the noise, but its definitely better than your regular pair of buds. No pressure build up, tips don't get nasty, and much more comfortable (for me at least).

[Kamui712]

Has anyone ever tried allen & heath? These things look sexy as hell.

Tom Lee Music - ALLEN & HEATH - XD-53 PROFESSIONAL MONITORING HEADPHONES (http://www.tomleemusic.ca/main/dj.cfm?details=1&id=147&inv=143156)

I plan to take a trip down to Tom Lee next week and give these a try, hopefully they have it on demo.

[DragonChi]

I've owned audio technicaa ath-a900, closed headphones and dt990's (600ohm), open headphones.

my preference is an open style, since closed gets really sweaty after having them on for 4+hours.

[SiRV]

Slightly off topic, but I've also been semi- looking for a good headset. I want the full ear cover ones that can block out external noises, so even when the music is off I can keep the headset on in a coffee shop and do some reading/studying without worrying about noise, any good suggestions?

[syee]

I would recommend the Sony MDR-V6 with Beyerdynamic pads... had it since 2005, and it's the only one I use for my almost daily late night music listening. I hope you can find it locally though, cause i've had to buy mine online, but it's so much worth it.

I bought a set of refurb MDR V6's for $40 a few weeks ago from Sony's online store. They sound pretty decent - pretty neutral sounding. I also ordered a set of the Beyerdynamic pads (they're about $20 each) since everyone seems to rave about this combo. Defintely worth the $40 I paid for them and definitely fit better than the Shure SR840's I had before.

Do you amp yours or just use it straight from the headphone output? I seem to read mixed opinions on that.

[Kamui712]

Thanks for everyone's inputs, I went to Tom Lee today I was choosing between:

ALLEN & HEATH XD-53
Audio-Technica ATH-M50
PIONEER HDJ-1000

I ended up getting the Audio Techina M50's. Overall fit nicely, good bass, tight mids, hight's clear. I paid about $200, way more worth it than Beats Pro.

[sonick]

great choice.
Posted via RS Mobile (http://www.revscene.net/forums/announcement.php?a=228)

[roastpuff]

Those are good ones.

[twitchyzero]

I just ordered another one off ebay. CX 300 II so its white. about 25$, cant complain. Bang for buck...this is great

beware, tons of fakes on amazon/ebay. For $25, chances are it's fake.