# Best quality headphones?



## darshin (Mar 14, 2014)

Planning to buy good headphones for listening to music.

Any recommendations?


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Thats a really loaded question. your going to get a boat load of answers to that but AKG, Sennheiser and Grado all make good quality ones.
Do you have a budget in mind?


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## darshin (Mar 14, 2014)

yeah.. ... thats an open ended question! ..lets narrow it down, bout $100-200 is my budget range.

Want some really good quality stuff in that range. Sennheiser is something I have in mind. How about Philips? as a kid i grew up hearing loads about its sound quality, dont know how good does it compare with the three you mentioned?


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Philips is kind of the middle of the road, I personally like the AKG K240 headphones at home and they sound really great for the price.


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## GusGus748s (Jul 22, 2013)

This is something I just started getting interested in since I am tired of hearing my co-workers complain about everything!


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## Viggen (Dec 31, 2008)

many do not like best buy.... however they have several different headphone brands and it might be worth a visit. All 3 of my kids wanted headphones this past winter and due to other purchases only 2 got the headphones. Two weeks ago the oldest saved up enought money to buy what he wanted and we listened to several different ones. He was more into..... O man.... this has great BASS...... and mostly purchased what he did for the name. I can't recall which ones he purchased but to me what he went with sounded horrible  Go figure..... I thought the Polk Audio headphones sounded better.......


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## GusGus748s (Jul 22, 2013)

Viggen said:


> many do not like best buy.... however they have several different headphone brands and it might be worth a visit. All 3 of my kids wanted headphones this past winter and due to other purchases only 2 got the headphones. Two weeks ago the oldest saved up enought money to buy what he wanted and we listened to several different ones. He was more into..... O man.... this has great BASS...... and mostly purchased what he did for the name. I can't recall which ones he purchased but to me what he went with sounded horrible  Go figure..... I thought the Polk Audio headphones sounded better.......


LOL I can kind of relate to that. My nephews are all into BASS. So, if a speaker has a lot ob BOOM BOOM, they will love it. :rolleyesno:


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## Almadacr (May 5, 2011)

Depending of your musical tastes you can go from AKG , Grado up to Beats/Monster ( overpriced IMO ) but this year my favorites on the $200 range are the Jabra Revo . Sennheiser has one of my favorite models but it's in the $400 so , there's a lot to audition around .

Is Greko a new brand Tony ?


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Almadacr said:


> Is Greko a new brand Tony ?


:duh: LOL, spell check seems to think so, I meant Grado


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## Almadacr (May 5, 2011)

tonyvdb said:


> :duh: LOL, spell check seems to think so, I meant Grado


:T i went to look for it and came back as yogurt  .


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## darshin (Mar 14, 2014)

cool...thanks everybody ...so then, i am going to go to a store tomorrow n check AKG n Grado... Sennheiser seems out of league...


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## buildsafire (Nov 10, 2013)

I personally like Sennheiser phones... I have 3 pair. I think the HD280's are great for the price. The only closed ear pair I have is the HD380's... I love them. 

Honestly though, if you don't need to isolate from/to outside sounds, etc... Then I feel an open ear design sounds better. - that's just my opinion. Good luck!

Sent From My S4 Via HTS App


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## rab-byte (Feb 1, 2011)

I have two pair of headphones. 
Bose NC for flights and Grado 80 for home. 

Bose comes in at 300 and they a absolutely shutout the would quiet, not the best sound but OK (I need them for flights). 

My Grados were only 100$ and sound impressive for the money. They're open back so I can listen to music or watch TV and still interact with my wife while she reads. They have a decent bass response and image quite well. 

I'll echo others sentiments AKG and Sanhizer both make real quality stuff. You may also really like the Denon headphones. Also check out Bowers and Wilkins p5 for some very smooth sounding classy looking cans. 

Best thing you can do is try to go listen to as many as you can.


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## rab-byte (Feb 1, 2011)

[delete]


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## rab-byte (Feb 1, 2011)

Viggen said:


> many do not like best buy.... however they have several different headphone brands and it might be worth a visit. All 3 of my kids wanted headphones this past winter and due to other purchases only 2 got the headphones. Two weeks ago the oldest saved up enought money to buy what he wanted and we listened to several different ones. He was more into..... O man.... this has great BASS...... and mostly purchased what he did for the name. I can't recall which ones he purchased but to me what he went with sounded horrible  Go figure..... I thought the Polk Audio headphones sounded better.......


Beats or SoalRepublic?


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## yapper (Mar 11, 2014)

Sennheiser make some very good products. I have a pair of HD420s I bought more than 20 years ago and they still perform well. But ultimately your choice will depend on more than just the brand name.

Open-backed headphones tend to have a more natural soundstage but they also leak a lot more noise into the room so your wife may complain.

Closed headphones don't do that so much, but some find that their ears get too hot after long periods of listening.

Earbuds seem to be the way to go if you like bass, but the sound varied wildly depending on the size of the tip and how well they fit into your ear.

Prices for all types of headphone vary wildly and price doesn't always reward you with quality sound. I recently paid $17 for 2 pairs of Mee M9P earbuds from Yugster and they have a sound quality that is way beyond what I would expect for the price.


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

I purchased a pair of AKG's after much research and after developing a disdain for my Sony Gold's. Anyone have an opinion of these?


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

No opinion of these from anyone? I also considered the Sennheiser HD650. Looking for some feedback and hoping I made the right choice. Reviews for both seem to be good and it was a very hard decision. I liked the fact that the AKG's are handmade.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

I've always been a fan of AKG hence the reason I own three different pairs. If I had the cash those would be something I would look at as well Jeff.


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

tonyvdb said:


> I've always been a fan of AKG hence the reason I own three different pairs. If I had the cash those would be something I would look at as well Jeff.


Thanks for the reply Tony. I really don't know much about headphones and have always been content with my Klipsch earbuds. I just kind of wanted to take my experience to another level and there seems to be a lot of good choices out there. It's good to know you're a fan of AKG.


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

I do have another question. Do dedicated headphone amps make a big difference and if so can you steer me in the right direction of a good one? What is the audible difference of just plugging into my Onkyo?


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

I'm currently testing an inexspencive tube headphone amp and I like the sound. As to if it's "better" than what the output on the receiver has is still up in the air. I need to give the tube time to break in so my thoughts may still change. Look here for my review.
http://www.hometheatershack.com/for...4375-bravo-audio-v3-headphone-amp-review.html

Those k712s are higher ohm so it could impact the sound in a good way by using an external amp.


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

Looking at the FiiO E12 Mont Blanc right now. Any thoughts on this?


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Headphone amps are new to me is I really don't know. Hopefully someone can give you a better idea.


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

Ok, thanks anyway. Reviews seem good on it.


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

Nice review by the way on your amp. Somehow I missed this previously while perusing the forum. I really like the look of it and the blue glow is awesome. Not sure this would work for me though because I'm looking for something portable.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Thanks.
It's small, but not really portable.


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

Is there an audible difference in using the amp versus plugging into another source? How do your headphones differ in sound quality amongst sources such as iPad or the Onkyo? Just about ready to pull the trigger on this FiiO amp so it will arrive Friday with the 712's.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Yes, it sounds warmer for lack of a better word. I like it.


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

tonyvdb said:


> Yes, it sounds warmer for lack of a better word. I like it.


Ok thanks Tony. I went ahead and pulled the trigger on the amp. I'm still curious as to how they'll sound plugged into my Onkyo/iPhone 5 versus the amp but I guess I'll find out Friday. Really impressed by the look of the 712's from the unboxing video I watched on YouTube.


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

Got my new "cans" and amplifier today. Woo Hoo!


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Im jealous  Hope you like them


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

tonyvdb said:


> Im jealous  Hope you like them


Don't be jealous Tony as I'm sure you've got some nice headphones.  Gonna fire them up here in a bit.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

LOL, well both my AKGs are 20 years old, the elasticity is gone in the headbands on both so they no longer sit on my head properly. They sound great still but soon I need to upgrade.


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

tonyvdb said:


> LOL, well both my AKGs are 20 years old, the elasticity is gone in the headbands on both so they no longer sit on my head properly. They sound great still but soon I need to upgrade.


Are you going to go AKG again? My runner up was the Sennheiser HD650 but decided on the K712's.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

yes, AKG again for sure. Given these have lasted over 20 years I think they have proven that they make a quality product.


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

That's good to know they've lasted that long. I really don't think I would have gone wrong either way but liked that some described them as being very crisp in the higher frequencies. I really like my highs clean thus probably why I've always been a fan of Klipsch speakers.


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

Tony, any idea what crossfeed is for on amps?


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

Really liking my AKG K712's with the FiiO E12 Mont Blanc amp. Not sure how true the whole burn in theory is but they sound great! I'm finding myself getting lost in the music more than watching the Royals game.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

JBrax said:


> Tony, any idea what crossfeed is for on amps?


Sorry, sat Dow and watched the new hobbit movie. I'm not sure what "cross feed" is, what amp do you see that on?


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

tonyvdb said:


> Sorry, sat Dow and watched the new hobbit movie. I'm not sure what "cross feed" is, what amp do you see that on?


It's a setting on my headphone amp. FiiO E12 Mont Blanc is the amp I'm using.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

I'm wondering if it feeds a little of each channel to the other to give some sort of 3D effect?


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

tonyvdb said:


> I'm wondering if it feeds a little of each channel to the other to give some sort of 3D effect?


I'm not sure but it seems to flatten the sound. I definitely prefer it off.


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