Recommend a pair of headphones for me

Can anyone recommend a pair of over-the-ear headphones that have noise cancellation, are fairly comfortable to wear, and cost somewhere in the $50 or less range?

xposts: How will you be using HD-25s?

Having done a lot of research for headphones of that ilk last summer, I can vouch for them sounding amazing, and being comfortable (at least momentarily) and light, too. Indeed, I came thiiis close to getting a pair, but didn't because: I found a pair of ATH-M50s that were crazy marked down (whereas HD25s lean toward the pricey, at least in Canada), and because bad experiences with open ear headphones have left me scared that HD25s will give me a lot of ear pain (this is obv only a problem if used for regular extended listening), and cause I think the ATH-M50s actually sound better, at least insofar as they have a rich, thick low end (which is what I was looking for).

Anyways, I'm presently living away from home, so everything I listen to is either through laptop speakers or my best beloved ATH-M50s, which I just cannot recommend enough.

I'm living away from home, so

hey, has anyone else noticed a heartbreaking decline in the quality of koss portapros? i don't mean the headphones, but the way they're put together. they changed the jack, so it's straight rather than right angled, i guess for ipod reasons, a while ago, & since then i've got through like three pairs or something. they break & i order a new one because i can't do without headphones & now i have several pairs ready to bag up and return.

I'm too poor to buy cheap stuff

ha. i know. they were £16 for a while, so i could always sorta justify recklessly buying another pair, or couldn't avoid caving. it really sucks because they're my fav & i don't even really feel like i want or need better sounding headphones. it's just they keep breaking.

enjoying the eskuche 'kassette' model.. (over-ear), super basic in appearance. can find em on the net for $39, but i hear they sell em at like urban outfitters and record shops (like skull candy, but not atrocious-looking)

i have moderate tinnitus, and used to rely on $10 sony in-ear throwaways, but in-ear phones generally exacerbate the problem. i've been told that noise-cancelling phones also potentially aggravate the ears.

Yeah I'm pretty much done with portapros because even with the replacement policy they're just too fragile. Have a pair of decent headphones for work. Thinking of going back to earbuds for "commuting" headphones. Need a recommendation for something durable whose cord is hard to get too tangled. Since I'm going to be listening in lots of noisy circumstances (trains, etc.), sound quality comes a distant second in concerns.

still sendin' back my portapros, i basically have broken over 1000000 headphones in my lifetime and the pps dont seem any more fragile than most

lately i have started using some nu force ne-700x earbuds. can't always quite get the fit perfect but even when i can't the sound is great. i don't know how durable they are, sterl, but the cord seems fine.

i had been using some cheap koss 'plug' earbuds, and before that some nicer ones, and before that some higher-end sorny earbuds, all variously satisfying (though breaking or wearing out easily), but these nu-force are the best-sounding, fidelity-wise, i've had in a long time.

i think once i get into a rhythm of owning two pairs of portapros, & sending back a pair when one breaks, i'll be fine, cyclically exchanging and refreshing my headphones. but yeah i just wish they'd use thicker wire covering at the jack? i don't want to have to become someone who's carrying their headphones around in the small leather pouch provided but i'll do it if i have to.

I have a pair of Klipsch S4i headphones that sounded good and had the inline iphone mic and controller thing that I love so much. One year into the two year warranty, the plug area started shorting out so I got them replaced. I kind of hoped that maybe they'd had to replace lots of these under warranty and would have redesigned the plug, but the new pair seems to have an even flimsier plug than the previous ones.

I get the feeling that these weren't really designed to actually carry around around with you and use on a daily basis.

iirc someone recommended some cheap no-name earbuds that you could get off ebay or amazon, and said they break pretty regularly but they sound great so they just order like 10 pairs at a time; anybody remember this? can't find the post

I have a pair of Klipsch S4i headphones that sounded good and had the inline iphone mic and controller thing that I love so much. One year into the two year warranty, the plug area started shorting out so I got them replaced. I kind of hoped that maybe they'd had to replace lots of these under warranty and would have redesigned the plug, but the new pair seems to have an even flimsier plug than the previous ones.

I get the feeling that these weren't really designed to actually carry around around with you and use on a daily basis.

mine just shorted out this morning (6 months into owning). ugh. i guess i'll buy a new pair and then send these back for warranty so i always have one around. it's already driving me crazy to only hear through one ear...when i had the jack that was l-shaped, it seemed to last longer, but these ones don't seem to come that way?

when i had the jack that was l-shaped, it seemed to last longer, but these ones don't seem to come that way?

^^ key problem of our era imo, & downfall of koss portapro

i just bought koss kdx300. evidently it comes with a lifetime warranty?

and is cheaper than klipsch

do not sleep on the industry standard

http://pro.sony.com/bbsc/ssr/product-MDR7506/

every time i break one of these nice earphones, i pull out my old crappy earbuds and am reminded of the vast difference in sound and i sigh and shell out $$ for the fancy kind.

The Klipsch S4's are great sounding headphones that are let down by some seriously poor build quality. I've been through 2 pairs within 18 months. Wankers.

My experience as well. I'm about six months into my second pair, where my first pair lasted just a little more than a year. Juuuuust enough to get beyond the factory warranty.

But to be fair, I'm not easy on earphones. I use them every single day, and you may need to shell out a few extra bucks if they're going to get that kind of use.

lately i have started using some nu force ne-700x earbuds. can't always quite get the fit perfect but even when i can't the sound is great. i don't know how durable they are, sterl, but the cord seems fine.

sigh. the cord was shit.

I was slightly disappointed my first pair of Portapros only lasted 4 years, but the 2nd pair have started crackling in the left earphone after just 4 months.

i've had my Klipsch S4's for more than two years and they're going strong. Maybe the build quality has gone down?

I was sold a pair of AudioTechina ATH-ES7 by a mate who runs a headphones store in WA... dont know if it was as much "need to shift this stock" as it was a genuine recommend but I love them, they have a punchy, solid sound and the cans block out external noise well, if theyre a little too small (they dont completely encase the ears). My only gripe is the stupidly short, frail lead on them.

A friend told me that his replacement porta pros went after a couple of months...

also I noticed that my new ones have a straight headphone jack, rather than a l-shaped one.

maybe the new batch just aren't up to the old ones' standards.

mine are still fine though, had them for about 3 months.

yeah the era of portapros is over i think?, & uh huh it's since they changed the jack. i have burned through a bunch of pairs. out of inability to work out which headphones i should get instead, last time they broke i bought these, which are twice as expensive but have a nylon lead instead of the rubber kind. they're okay so far! but it has only been two months or something:

http://www.materiel.net/casque-compact/koss-porta-pro-bbc-the-plug-61512.html

i have pioneer HDJ-2000s

i would not really recommend them ... they are super lush headphones w/ excellent sound and a lot of nice features. for example the ear cushions rotate 180 degrees independently and on springs, so you can easily achieve all of the various pro-dj headphone positions, for example, canted sideways on your head with one ear cushion on one ear and the other one sitting over your eye like a pirate eyepatch. and they are made of really solid metal and have leather and memory foam ear cushions, etc etc etc

*but*

i have broken the 1/8 jack on the cables twice, and one of the springs on the ear cushion part has already broken. it cost me about 40 bucks each time to fix the 1/8 jack and it's going to cost, i dunno, probably 100 bucks to fix the spring.

so in essence i've had them two years, i paid about four bills for them and i've already put in two bills on repairs

fuckers

they are pretty sweet though and certainly "complete the look" if you really wanna be mr bedroom dj

if anybody is interested i have a pair of knockoff hdj-2000s, they are not built of the same materials and they lack some of the articulation but it looks like they're built with the same dies and molds and as far as i can tell the cones and drivers are of comparable quality if not actually the exact same thing

I have those TMA-1 headphones, and a million pairs of portable/backpack/small headphones because I am a nerd with a headphones buying issue.

do those sound any good? because they are damn good looking

that is insane. i've never had a pair of headphones for over a year - one ear usually going out tends to be the problem. plus, i don't treat them totally well: their either on my head or stuffed in a backpack, admidst whatever.

my porta-pros i only keep returning to b/c of the lifetime warranty. as for the jack being l-shaped, the ones i just got back from the refurb place are just that. that said, i wonder if these are refurbed ones i'm getting or entirely new pairs? i notice all my scratches are gone on them, leading me to think they're just trashing the ones i send in. i don't particularly care either way, just saying.

i meant to quote this:

I was slightly disappointed my first pair of Portapros only lasted 4 years, but the 2nd pair have started crackling in the left earphone after just 4 months.

― useless chamber, Tuesday, 7 August 2012 13:32 (6 days ago) Permalink

weird enough, i was asked for the first time on the bus where i bought my headphones. i told the guy who bought them that they sounded great, but he didn't seem to care: he just liked the style.

I've settled for now on a-JAYS earbuds for travel. The flat no-tangle cable works out really well, and they seem very durable. Sound quality is pretty good, if not astonishing.

my porta-pros i only keep returning to b/c of the lifetime warranty. as for the jack being l-shaped, the ones i just got back from the refurb place are just that. that said, i wonder if these are refurbed ones i'm getting or entirely new pairs? i notice all my scratches are gone on them, leading me to think they're just trashing the ones i send in. i don't particularly care either way, just saying.

― kelpolaris, Monday, 13 August 2012 02:31 (11 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

oh yeah they are new pairs for sure i think. i've sent things to grado & got my headphones back but i figure they just reach into the portapro barrel & give you a new pair. that said it's awesome you got a pair with an l-shaped jack - i have a big pile of dead pairs upstairs that i'm waiting to send back (actually at the risk of overstepping can i ask which repair contact you sent them to?)

mh? tma-1s?

I like the sound. It's slightly bass-heavier than some other cans in the range, but in a good way, and not a "ultra bass-boost" way. The fit is interesting -- they don't really clamp to your head in any sort of firm way, but the rubberized inside of the band keeps them from slipping. The detachable cable is very nice. I bought mine before they swapped to the iPhone-style in-line controls, but I don't believe anything else has really changed. I'm curious how their newer studio ones differ other than the pads.

The other aiaiai headphone released recently, the capital, is quite nice, too, but really do not work correctly if you're wearing glasses with thicker/firmer arms. Makes my upper ears sore and also pushes the top of the headphone out enough that they don't quite seal to my ears.

Speaking of bass in headphones, a friend of a friend has these:
http://store.sony.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&searchType=search&storeId=10151&catalogId=10551&productId=8198552921666310329

Yes, they really are that large and look like tractor tires on your head.

that's good to know about the capital, i have the same thick glasses problem and one of the things i like about the hdj-2000s is the amount of clearance around the different parts

those sonys look like they should be cross-branded w/ tonka or caterpillar

yup

btw, the TMA-1s with the default pads have none of that problem

it makes me sad because the sound of the capitols is quite good. I'm hoping they make alternative pads.

my porta-pros i only keep returning to b/c of the lifetime warranty. as for the jack being l-shaped, the ones i just got back from the refurb place are just that. that said, i wonder if these are refurbed ones i'm getting or entirely new pairs? i notice all my scratches are gone on them, leading me to think they're just trashing the ones i send in. i don't particularly care either way, just saying.

― kelpolaris, Monday, 13 August 2012 02:31 (11 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

oh yeah they are new pairs for sure i think. i've sent things to grado & got my headphones back but i figure they just reach into the portapro barrel & give you a new pair. that said it's awesome you got a pair with an l-shaped jack - i have a big pile of dead pairs upstairs that i'm waiting to send back (actually at the risk of overstepping can i ask which repair contact you sent them to?)

― , Blogger (schlump), Monday, 13 August 2012 12:37 (Yesterday) Permalink

I just sent them to Koss itself, located in...Milwaukee, I think? Whatever place they have outlined on their own website... the new $9 fee and everything.

I didn't know there were alternatives?

it might just be by country, i have used a couple of addresses in the past. ty so much for the info, though, i am super psyched if it's possible to get the right-angle-jack ones. i like them so much & their decline bums me out.

hey i'm looking for a new set, under £50 (will go like £75 at most), most be durable more than anything because i'll wear them everywhere (like on bike rides and stuff)... any recommendations?

did you not ever read the informative document included with every pair of sorny headphones ever about not doing that?

well i'd need to buy them first to get such a document, no?

basically it's said to be real bad news

ok well either way i need a new set of all purpose headphones.

budget? in-ears or hphones?

hphones, not in ear. up to £75 at most

Koss Portapros. You'll have £50 leftover.