a headphones recommendation thread

Meier audio cord a gear. Google it. I run a rega Apollo into one.

Specifically an older version of the Swing - http://www.meier-audio.homepage.t-online.de/ - with a pair of aKG K601s.

Cheers. How much did you spend on one?

(Good work on the record club by the way, been enjoying looking at it. Gonna start up my own too!)

Cost me €200 about four years ago, the headphones were about £150 from a German website. Thoroughly recommend them.

(Thank you! Next meeting might be later this week depending on how quick I can get back from a conference.)

On the back of this I've ended up with a Rega Ear amp and a pair of Allesandro MS1s.

Hopefully they should arrive for tomorrow. I'm taking me Wednesday off.

i'm about to send my ms-1s off to get fixed. not because they're shitty, just because i schepped them around so much that they got messed up. don't use them as your portable phones, is the moral of this story.

Alessandro MS1s, $100 incl shipping. Better than either. Made by Grado.

Thinking about getting these, but curious how they'll sound from different sources. I often pop in CDs at home, but also play shitty 128kpbs AAC files in iTunes from my laptop, and from my iPod. (Lower quality = more storage room. I've been importing at 128kbps for years as I can't tell a different between 128, 160, 192 on earbuds or laptop speakers.)

Anyway, what are the Alessandro MS1s best suited for? Also, do they require a dedicated amp? I've read different things from various sources.

Could also go for the Koss Portapros from Amazon for $35 if the Alessandros won't make a big difference...

...as I can't tell a different difference...

I'll report back when I've tried them out properly tomorrow although I don'ta have any experience with the Portapros and I'll be listening to CD's and Vinyl through a decent enough all Rega set up. I bought a headphone amplifer due to my Amp having no headphone out although I'm sure I've read somewhere that the Allesandro's should be fine unamped.

I've got a pair of PortaPro's and use them pretty regularly. A little conscious of the tacky 80s design at first but that's really the only fault I can find w/ them. Bass is amazingly crisp, tho there was one instance in listening to Massive Attack that I found that they sorta over-rode the vocals... then again, maybe it's just b/c I had been listening to the band for years on Sony MD180's (cheapies).

they def can get loud tho, love that about them

Also, along w/ the headphones question-- can anyone recommend a pretty good, dedicated, home-use CD player that pairs well with nice headphones like the Alessandro, Grado, etc.? Figure I could probably use one...

I can't tell the difference between CDs and 192 VBR but I sure as heck can hear a 128 MP3 - just listen for splashy cymbals! I bet the higher-end headphones will reveal the differences to you immediately.

I've had Portapros since that 80s decide was current - great headphones for the money but I was always snagging a chord and ripping it out so I switched to Koss KSC-35 which is the same as the Portapros but they're clip-ons. I like them more than my Grado SR60s.

I can't tell the difference between CDs and 192 VBR but I sure as heck can hear a 128 MP3 - just listen for splashy cymbals!

I've heard something about 128 AAC being similar quality to 160/192 mp3 but that may be BS -- anyone know?

Alessandro MS1s get a lot of praise on head-fi

MS1s seemed too bright for my taste but a lot of people swear by them.
Got the B&W P5s last week - satisfied so far

they're okay, but like all grados they have a v. narrow soundstage

Sick Mouthy, I forget if yr an Apple guy: if so, curious how the Alessandro MS-1 performs when plugged straight into a Mac headphone jack. Figure it should work fine with a dedicated CD player... curious about a laptop.

If anyone else can testify to this (or something similar, maybe the Grado SR-80), please chime in!

I have a pair of SR-60s and if comfort is a big deal for you, you shouldn't buy them. I'm happy with the sound but they are not the most comfortable headphones in the world, especially when used for long periods of time.

rather, I have the SR-80.

no dice, laptops have the shittiest soundcards ever (even macs)

Right, but that'll be the case regardless of which headphones I use. So, really, I'm just looking for something decent to pair with the stock (shitty?) soundcard in my laptop, among other uses.

does not compute, any headphone is gonna sound shitty with your laptop soundcard

your best bet is to save 1-200 dollars and buy a nice usb dac + amp, if you want nice sound from your laptop (but that means you'd probably have to rerip everything you own into a better, higher quality format)

Not gonna happen with 3,000+ discs right now, unfortunately. But I have the CDs as well, so can play those for HQ format -- no need to re-rip for right now, at least.

this is why you do it right the first time

mr. dayo, what's the threshold at which it makes sense to go to outboard DAC? like if i listen to mostly v0 mp3s does it matter.

it makes sense regardless of your mp3 quality level imo. the soundcard in your laptop is 1. some 5 cent onboard chosen for cost savings x scales of production, it's not designed to output quality sound. plus, the internals of a laptop are just about the noisiest electronic environments possible. try plugging in a low impedance headphone in to your jack, and just listen to the hiss.

an outboard DAC moves the entire processing out of the computer, into a (hopefully) well-designed and well shielded circuit. bonus if your outboard DAC feeds the signal straight into an amp. I use an ibasso d4, it has two DACs, one for each stereo channel, also runs completely off USB power. I love it.

thanks

over here in HK I see a lot of cheap usb DACs now - I think that that market is 'opening up'. really, just about anything will be an improvement - you don't need to spend big bucks (unless you're a gearhead)

this is why you do it right the first time

i started in 1999 or something :( didn't know shit, stuck w/ it

Ok so I had a chance to immerse myself in my new Allesandro headphones coupled with the Rega Ear yesterday. As some folks have mentioned the Allesandro's so seem to have a fairly limited soundstage but they do have a good punch to them. I listened to Mines by Menomena first which sounded great but didn't really blow me away. I kept spinning random tunes to get a feel of the sound til I eventually ended up listening to Future Day's by Can which sounded immense.

I didn't dig the bowls that came with the headphones at all and ended up making some DIY cups out of an old pair of long dead headphones I had kicking about which I found much more comfortable.

Will give a more detailed listen and the weekend and report back again.

I've had my AKG K701s for over 6 years now. Over time I've read reviews saying they're best suited for acoustic jazz and classical, with not a lot of bass. I really like them for movies, actually, great soundstage. So I'm keeping them in the living room, and got a used pair of Denon AH-D2000 to use in the office. I have a NAS server with my 8,000+ album collection in flac, with a Meier Audio Corda Cantate.2 amp. Lots of rave reviews of Denon's low-end capabilities, very suited for rock music, and I agree. I already have the AH-D1000 in the bedroom, which are super comfortable and smaller so it's easier to wear while lying against a pillow. Highly recommend both.

I ended up ordering Audio Technica ATH-M50 Professional Closed-Back Studio Headphones

hope they're alright ;_;

Whenever I compare hps the akg 701s are always the ones I come back to but when I use them at home I usually find them kinda boring. Nit sure what it says about me or what I expect from hps

I actually bought Audio Technica ATH-M50 last year to use at work. I think sq is slightly stronger than the Denon AH-D1000. It took some getting used to as they are heavier than even the large AKG K701, and grip my head much tighter. But pretty ideal at work when I tend to only listen for 30-60 minutes before I have to interact with people or focus on something and switch to speakers at low level.

I think sq is slightly stronger than the Denon AH-D1000.

sq?

IlXor; only just seen yr question - I am a Mac guy, yes, but have never plugged my MS1s straight in; they have a big jack so don't fit, and I run them out of a DAC which sits in-between the iMac.

Anyone have a recommendation for a decent portable headphone amp I can use with an iPod Classic? I was thinking maybe around the £200 mark?

portable headphone amps are more hassle than they're worth imo

sq = sound quality. I use portable amps at work (Practical Devices XM5 DAC/amp) and in my bedroom (iBasso D10 Cobra DAC/amp) but yeah, don't do music "on-the-go" enough to make it worth lugging an amp around.

I was reticent to spring for a headphone amp for all the obvious reasons, but this little wonder really does the trick:

http://www.digizoid.com/

It really adds low-end while punching up the sound across the board. You can control how much bass it adds but even on low settings (which is where I keep mine) it really makes a difference out of an iPod Classic. It's really lightweight and not a hassle at all!

Listening to Lindstrom and Christabelle on my new Grado SR80is connected to M-Audio USB Audiophile.

damn

hooooooooly shit ATH-M50

everyone buy these headphones right fucking now

One cool thing about Grado's, is how you can use your fingers to feel what is the left or the right side by the "L" or "R" on the part right above the ear pads.

hey AKG owners

is it possible for me to order a new connection cord? mine is seriously on the fritz (barely any movement/touching of the end will take the sound out of one of the ears & also the tip of the piece is getting stuck in the headphone jack of my computer pretty often)

which AKG do you have?

K240

idk why i was being a tuomas -- i see them for sale online on third party sites -- guess i could check my warranty tho

yah most AKGs have detachable and replaceable cords. btw if youre using your computer to drive your headphones, youre not taking the full advantage of em. AKGs are pretty hard to drive in general. you should consider getting an external DAC/amp, like

http://www.nuforce.com/hp/products/iconudac2/index.php

or

http://www.ibasso.com/en/products/show.asp?ID=44

yeah i don't have an ipod or stereo or anything so i'll def look into it -- do the amps come cheaper than like $100 or is that p much what you're looking at

idk I haven't kept up with that scene in a while, I just remember the nuforce udac-2 was recommended as a really good entry level one. it's probably the best intersection between price and quality. if you don't like it you could always sell it on the second-hand markets at one of those headphone forums. but I figure if you listen to music a lot then they are good investments. free shipping if you buy from amazon!

http://www.amazon.com/NuForce-Icon-uDAC-2-Black-Headphone/dp/B003Y5FRNS