The Headphones/Earbuds/Audio Thread

[shoo]

Talk about what kinda earbuds, headphones, speakers, etc you use

Audiophiles unite!

[tajiri]

it's about time somebody made a thread like this.

if i could afford another pair of shure earbuds, i'd pick them up.
arguably the best earbuds out on the market.

[shoo]

how much did you pay^^^?


I really like those bose headphones

the smaller version ones
theyre called Bose On-Ear Headphones something like that

[TingBoy]

I have a pair of Sennheiser HD 485's
Sennheiser HD 485 (http://reviews.cnet.com/Sennheiser_HD_485/4505-6468_7-31341506.html)

and a pair of black Everglide S500's
Everglide s500 (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Everglide/s50)

The Everglides need a little more bass. Other than that, they're both great. I just wish that they both had built in microphones.

[tajiri]

how much did you pay^^^?


I really like those bose headphones

the smaller version ones
theyre called Bose On-Ear Headphones something like that

i had a set of shure e3c sound isolating earbuds that i picked up for 175.
but because oregon rains so fucking much, the coating that covers the wires wore down and split open, bye-bye earbuds.

:/

[E-bortion]

I have a pair of Sennheiser HD 485's
Sennheiser HD 485 (http://reviews.cnet.com/Sennheiser_HD_485/4505-6468_7-31341506.html)

and a pair of black Everglide S500's
Everglide s500 (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Everglide/s50)

The Everglides need a little more bass. Other than that, they're both great. I just wish that they both had built in microphones.

Sannheiser is great and affordable for the audiophile on a set-income :tup:

[Rakukojin]

My current PC setup:

Chaintech AV-710 (Bit-Perfect Output) -> Zhaolu D2C with Discrete Headphone Amp -> AKG K271S with Sweetcome cable

My current portable setup:

PSP -> Little Dot Micro -> Koss KSC-75

----------

I have more, but I'm not listening to them at this time. I am trying to sell some of my gear to fund other hobbies :wgrin:

[Grimspoon]

I have some Grado SR125s:

http://www.amazon.com/Grado-Prestige-SR-125-Headphones/dp/B0006GCCWW/ref=pd_bbs_sr_4/104-3235788-3607905?ie=UTF8&s=musical-instruments&qid=1175552259&sr=8-4

However, they've seen better days. When it's time, I'll def buy Grado again. prolly step it up a bit and get some RS 1s.

[Sazae]

I have a Philips Go-Gear (http://www.consumer.philips.com/consumer/catalog/tree/en/us/consumer/portable_entertainment_gr_us_consumer/mp3_players_ca_us_consumer/hdd_audio_jukebox_su_us_consumer/product/hdd6330_17_us_consumer/ce/Jukebox+HDD6330_17) for my MP3 player, and a pair of Bose Around-Ear (http://www.bose.com/controller?event=VIEW_PRODUCT_PAGE_EVENT&product=triport_ae_headphones_index) Headphones. I just can't do ear buds. They just do not feel comfortable to me for long periods so I stick to the big old headphones. I love them though, the quality is top notch and it really pulls you in when you have stuff like Pink Floyd playing.

[Rakukojin]

I have some Grado SR125s:

http://www.amazon.com/Grado-Prestige-SR-125-Headphones/dp/B0006GCCWW/ref=pd_bbs_sr_4/104-3235788-3607905?ie=UTF8&s=musical-instruments&qid=1175552259&sr=8-4

However, they've seen better days. When it's time, I'll def buy Grado again. prolly step it up a bit and get some RS 1s.
Step up a bit? Going from some SR-125 to the RS-1 is a huge leap :sweat:

[SunocO]

i love in-ear buds. I just got the apple produced on for my ipod and love it.

First one of these i had came with my sony ericcson phone. I can't ever go back to normal earbuds now.

[Grimspoon]

When I bought the SR125s, it wa sa long ass time ago, and I had to special order them from some facility for the hearing impaired in the US, and import them into Canada. I paid an arm and a leg.

The cost of the RS-1 isn't unreasonable for the quality of product you get. Best quality-to-cost ration of any audiophile headphone in my opinion.

[oyg]

I've got the BOSE QuiteComfort 2 Acoustic Noise Cancelling (r) Headphones. Great feel to them, though a bit pricey. They do work, granted being used on airplanes, but if you're in a really noisy area, don't bother too much. The sound coming from the headphones is really superb. The treble and bass have a lot of depth, which is surprising to me. The kit comes with a bag of goodies, such as extension chords, plug converters, and even cheesy business cards that you can hand out to jealous neighboring fliers. (They're worth the price though, quite easily.)

[Festival6667]

I've got the BOSE QuiteComfort 2 Acoustic Noise Cancelling (r) Headphones. Great feel to them, though a bit pricey. They do work, granted being used on airplanes, but if you're in a really noisy area, don't bother too much. The sound coming from the headphones is really superb. The treble and bass have a lot of depth, which is surprising to me. The kit comes with a bag of goodies, such as extension chords, plug converters, and even cheesy business cards that you can hand out to jealous neighboring fliers. (They're worth the price though, quite easily.)The QuietComfort 2is wonderful indeed for noisy environments but hella pricey. I mean, I got myself a Sennheiser PXC300 for about half the price (its sennheiser equivalent of the QuietComfort3, the smaller one). Noise cancelling isn't as good but still very significant (most so-called noise cancellers barely do anythin) and it's way more affordable.
The other nose-cancelled sennheiser (PXC other than PXC-300) are pure crap btw.

Apart from that I got a pair of budget headphones (sennheiser PX100, very good for $25) just for anything and everything where quality isn't required and/or the headphones can be damaged. For the rest I got a Koss Pro4AAT which is some really hot stuff if you want almost uncolored monitoring headphones but cannot afford the real shit.

And since I mentioned Sennheiser, let me recall that the brand has some very good headphones as well as some horrible ones, and this for every price (but it's not to be a problem since the first thing to do before buying headphones is listening to them)


P.S. I second the post on the Grado RS-1, they are worth their price (though I would not buy them because somehow I never found the Grado comfortable, but this is a very very personal point of view)

[Grimspoon]

P.S. I second the post on the Grado RS-1, they are worth their price (though I would not buy them because somehow I never found the Grado comfortable, but this is a very very personal point of view)

Grado cans need a very good amount of use before they start to actually form to the individual user's head, and even then, they still aren't that comfortable.

As for myelf, I'm in a bad situation cause my earpads have fallen apart (so old) nd I've been too lazy/cheap to buy replacements. So I've been using the Grado's without any cushion at all!

Uncomfortable is an understatement.

I wanna grab the RS-1s and donate my SR125's to someone who's never had the pleasure of listening to an actual audiophile grade set of cans before. Most people never even realize what they've been missing...

[Sazae]

Are there any good bluetooth headsets out there? I'm looking for some to use with my computer so that I can play games without a wire to worry about and also to walk around my house with music going and not bother my wife. This Creative X-Fi (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102005) sound card is what I use and is a much appreciated gift from my wife this past Valentines Day :lovin: so I want something that will do it justice.

[Grimspoon]

Sazae, just a friendly word of caution; with any wireless headphone's you'll experience a loss in quality (compared to wired audiophile grade cans). No matter how much they cost.

You can get the audio quality of a restrictively expensive, high-fidelity sound system from a sub $200 set of headphones. if you're going to drop a bit of cash on some good cans, i would strongly recommend avoiding wireless headphones.

My two-cents. Take it for what it's worth :-D

[Sazae]

Oh I understand. I know wireless is not the best way to go but I will not be using them very often. If I'm not playing it right out of my speakers then I use my Bose headphones. I just want something I can have and use for walking around the house with some sound or gaming sessions when I don't want wires in the way. I'm expecting it to be maybe 5% of my listening time to be on these if that much. Luckily both my wife and I listen to the same styles of music so that allows for speakers most of the time. And since my MP3 player cannot do bluetooth they will not be used on there at all. Plus I find wireless headsets on a portable MP3 player to be kind of dumb in principle anyway.

[fluxcore]

I also recommend the Sennheiser PX100 for a nice little pair of headphones to take around that are cheap. Still comfortable after 7 hrs of use, too! Even managed to get 4 of my workmates to buy some :D

--flux

[ShaithEatery]

headset for my pc - sennheiser p150
speakers for my pc/xbox 360 - logitech z5500s
earbuds for mp3 player - some $30 philips, forget model number, sound good for what i paid

[shoo]

i like the zune premium headphones

but i wouldnt mind putting some money down for some bose on ear headphones

[celcius]

I'm still lovin my KOSS UR21 headphones:
http://www.koss.com/koss/kossweb.nsf/p?openform&pc^fs^UR21
They sound great and only cost 20 bucks.

[Barky]

Can you guys recommend a good, Sturdy pair of headphones? I have owned about 3 pairs and all of them have broken somehow. The latest one broke by being in my backpack with other items... one ear peice snapped off. Any good pair (preferably around ear style) with a sturdy construction or even a case would work. thanks

[altron1x]

For general purpose/gaming:
Sony MDR-V600

And for my ipod:
Creative Ep-630

The creative earbuds came with my laptop and are definitely a step up from the earbuds that come with every ipod. Ok sound and quality and pretty much blocks out all outside noise around 75% volume. I plan to upgrade to another pair though so I can have great sound quality, any recommendations?

[Grimspoon]

Can you guys recommend a good, Sturdy pair of headphones? I have owned about 3 pairs and all of them have broken somehow. The latest one broke by being in my backpack with other items... one ear peice snapped off. Any good pair (preferably around ear style) with a sturdy construction or even a case would work. thanks


http://www.amazon.com/Grado-80-SR80/dp/B0006DPMVS/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/104-3235788-3607905?ie=UTF8&s=musical-instruments&qid=1175648269&sr=8-1

- OR -

http://www.amazon.com/Grado-Prestige-SR-125-Headphones/dp/B0006GCCWW/ref=pd_bbs_sr_4/104-3235788-3607905?ie=UTF8&s=musical-instruments&qid=1175648269&sr=8-4

I have the SR 125 cans and have been using them for years. I've beaten the piss out of em, from dragging, dropping, smashing, stepping and yanking - basically anything that you SHOULDN'T do to a high quality set of cans, I've done at one point or another. Usually accidentally, but shit happens. only thing that ever sustained any damage was the soft ouuter pads (replaceable - 15 bucks) and that from use, not abuse - oddly enough.

Very sturdy cans, and easily the highest quality sound you can get for the price.

[Rakukojin]

Can you guys recommend a good, Sturdy pair of headphones? I have owned about 3 pairs and all of them have broken somehow. The latest one broke by being in my backpack with other items... one ear peice snapped off. Any good pair (preferably around ear style) with a sturdy construction or even a case would work. thanks
It depends, how much are you willing to spend?

[Makoto Scrub]

Rocking teh PSP headphones. Pretty good for about $20

[SentientProgram]

I got AKG271S headphones.

[shoo]

personally i cant stand that crap where its longer on one end and it goes behind your neck blah blah its crap!

i like straight down :tup:

[unledded]

Anyone know if these are good?

http://www.skullcandy.com/product_info.php?urlLocation=crushers&category=38

[Rakukojin]

Anyone know if these are good?

http://www.skullcandy.com/product_info.php?urlLocation=crushers&category=38
I'd recommend getting the JVC Marshmallow instead.

[unledded]

I'd recommend getting the JVC Marshmallow instead.

Why is that one better?

[Rakukojin]

Why is that one better?
The Skullcandy Smokin Buds look nice, but that's all they're good for because they sound terrible (coming from an audiophile). The bass may be overwhelming for most and overall they just produce poor audio quality. The Marshmallow are cheaper and sound better in my opinion, the Smokin Buds are just eye candy for those that don't care about getting good sound quality.

[plasmakill]

Anyone know if these are good?

http://www.skullcandy.com/product_info.php?urlLocation=crushers&category=38

FYE has them on sale for $9.00 if you have a store in your area. I actually picked up a pair because they where so cheap and I have a fetish for ear buds lately. Personally I kinda like the way they sound, I like the heavy ass bass they produce. I mostly listen to Durm n Bass and Hip Hop though, so that could have something to do with it. Oh and the case they came with was a POS and broke in like 2 days :(

My personal collection

Aiwa HP-VX101 (http://http://e-katalog.com.ua/opinion_ie.php?resolvedName_=AIWA-HP-VX101)

lol some Russian site or something is the only place I could find a pic of them. They where only sold in retail in Japan. Probably the best earbuds I have ever heard, maybe best headphones I ever heard.

Sennheiser HD465 (http://http://www.hifibitz.co.uk/product.asp?id=3988)

Sennheiser PC155 (http://http://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-Traditional-PC-USB-canceling/dp/B0001MHYK6)

[unledded]

The Skullcandy Smokin Buds look nice, but that's all they're good for because they sound terrible (coming from an audiophile). The bass may be overwhelming for most and overall they just produce poor audio quality. The Marshmallow are cheaper and sound better in my opinion, the Smokin Buds are just eye candy for those that don't care about getting good sound quality.

How good is this headphone compared to the JVC marshmallow?

http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?logon=&langid=EN&sku_id=0665000FS10075642&catid=#

[Green]

I have the JVC HA-FX33 (marshmallow) and the Koss KSC-75. The marshmallows are significantly more sensitive and are infinitely better at isolation both ways, though some background noise can still be heard through them. Haven't done any thorough testing, but I can't say that either are significantly worse than the other in terms of sound quality.

iPod 4th gen source.

[tajiri]

i'm torn between:
a set of shure e2c
and
etymotic er-6

anybody have any insight regarding these earbuds?

:/