Headphone Reviews---WTF?

[meatballfulton]

Need a new set of cans with max isolation. A workmate has a Sennheiser HD280 pair on his desk, I put them on (no sound) and it was like being in an anechoic chamber. OK, that's good enough isolation!

Then I go off to read online reviews on these cans.

WTF

"No bass!"

"Too much bass!"

"No mids!

"Way too much mids!"

"Smooth, wide soundstage!"

"Brittle, harsh, no definition!"

"Worst phones I've ever heard!" (guess he should check out my 44 year old $8 Lafayette Radio cans)

etc. etc.

What is with the Internet anyway, is it just a place for escapees from mental institutions to congregate?

The cans arrive today, after auditioning will make sure to post a few more conflicting reviews to help other buyers

[pflosi]

Guess it comes down to what somebody wants. Somebody used to the DJ Sennheisers will attribute "way too little bass!" to high quality linear headphones.

My favorite closed cans are Sony MDR 7509 HD. Favorite open cans: AKG K702.

[madtheory]

Well if you cast you're net that wide you will definitely catch infinite monkeys at work

[Stab Frenzy]

Ah, should have posted here before you ordered and I would have recommended the DT-770s. Fantastic isolation and incredibly clear and flat. Love them.

[2manydrummachines]

Ah, should have posted here before you ordered and I would have recommended the DT-770s. Fantastic isolation and incredibly clear and flat. Love them.

Yes they are comfortable.

[Thefumigator]

Ah, should have posted here before you ordered and I would have recommended the DT-770s. Fantastic isolation and incredibly clear and flat. Love them.

I almost got a DT-990-Pro-250 but then reading the reviews I noticed that it was 250ohms, and the 32ohms premium version is too expensive. My "expending-angel" sat over my shoulder and told me to get "best bang for the buck"... so I just did my homework and after quite a while I finally decided for a superlux HD668B... I couldn't be more satisfied with them, but I'm not into serious music production. I just can't remember the last time I recorded something... but I listen to music all the time.

[Hybrid88]

haha yes, I have learned to take a ginormous sized grain of salt with headphone reviews, there is just a wealth of hyperbole out there that really isn't helpful at all.

Part of the problem is that there are just so many good headphones out there now it's hard to distinguish what's what, I'd say it's pretty hard to lose though if you stick with the better known pro brands.

[wiss]

http://www.headphone.com

I think these guys are pretty decent and trust worthy for headphone reviews.

[silikon]

Beats headphones are for lack of better terminology, 'the s**t'. Flattest response and most truthful representation of the spectrum. It's why they're incredibly expensive. Also, Bose.

</sarcasm>

bollocks.

I too enjoy the Beyerdynamic DT-770s. So much so that I have a pair in the studio (250 ohm), and a pair at the day job (32 ohm). With them on, isolation is solid; take them off and it's St. Pancras. For IEMs I really like the Shure SE535s. Not only do they sound great (to me), but with the triple-flange plugs, they isolate incredibly well.

[Hybrid88]

...I too enjoy the Beyerdynamic DT-770s. So much so that I have a pair in the studio (250 ohm), and a pair at the day job (32 ohm). With them on, isolation is solid; take them off and it's St. Pancras. For IEMs I really like the Shure SE535s. Not only do they sound great (to me), but with the triple-flange plugs, they isolate incredibly well.

Cool, is there any reason why you couldn't use the 32 ohm ones for the studio? I notice using the Apogee Quartet for example you'd get better matching with the 32 ohm ones.

[silikon]

...I too enjoy the Beyerdynamic DT-770s. So much so that I have a pair in the studio (250 ohm), and a pair at the day job (32 ohm). With them on, isolation is solid; take them off and it's St. Pancras. For IEMs I really like the Shure SE535s. Not only do they sound great (to me), but with the triple-flange plugs, they isolate incredibly well.

Cool, is there any reason why you couldn't use the 32 ohm ones for the studio? I notice using the Apogee Quartet for example you'd get better matching with the 32 ohm ones.

None. I just happened to get the 250 ohm ones (I wasn't paying attention when I ordered them); I have no issues with using them on the Apogee Ensemble or the Mackie Big Knob, thankfully.

[Hybrid88]

^ Awesome, thanks.

I was looking into them recently too and was just thrown by the different versions.

[vicd]

Seriously, I don't get all that buzz about "monitor headphones", "consumer headphones" etc. Once it covers the frequency range and does not create any (distinguishable) nonlinear discrepancies - it's up to your ears (or maybe up to your calibration procedure - you might use a sweeping sine, or a packet of harmonics, or just a well-known record you want your piece-of-what to sound like). If you don't have the ear - use the spectrograms, and the phase-meter and whatever else, there's no rocket science at all.

One thing to avoid is anything dynamically changing the frequency response curve of your listening tract - like the SRS or other "enhancers". Yes, I'm preaching to the choir.

Getting back to the cans: Audiotechnica ATH-M50 (closed design) will provide a nice response in the middle range and no overemphasized lows, so you =will= hear most of your potential problems. If still not pleased, try anything of open or half-open isodynamic/orthodynamic, like the AKG K-70x (Q-701 as well), or the Fostex TP-50RP (or some stone-age Yamahas', or whatever).

Anything on head-fi.org should be taken with a HUGE grain of salt.

[zoomtheline]

I have been using HD280's for a good few years and I fall in and out of love with them regularly.
Might be the reason why the opinions are so varied

Seriously though, they are good but they don't suit my monitors at all so I tend to mix a few times before i'm happy. I need to desperately upgrade my monitors and maybe my phones but synths are much more fun to buy.

[Cruel Hoax]

I use HD280s (two pair, actually.) Yes, they highlight the midrange a bit, which works well with my penchant for Yamaha monitors. I've used Sonys in the past; they sounded very "hi-fi," if that makes sense. I prefer my mixing tools to be nasty and midrange-forward (likely a result of using NS-10s for decades.) The Beyers combined the midrange clarity of the HD280s with a very comfortable earpiece and even better isolation, and a bit smoother response. I like the AKG open-back cans, but not so much their closed-back offerings.

Depends what you're wanting; I love the HD280s and will always have a pair around. Beyers are like a HD280 upgrade. AKGs aren't for me, but they may be for you (the open-backs have nice transient response and smooth treble.)

What monitors do you usually use?

-Hoax