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floss

2 posts

Wannabe Geek


#72549 28-Nov-2010 22:34
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Hiya..

I'm shopping for my first pair of decent headphones (me = audionoob), been reading lots and seen a few, now tossing up between a couple of Sennheisers and would love your feedback :)

Use
- iPhone, PC music/movies, gaming
- music: I listen to all sorts (makes it a bit harder to say which is more 'important') - pop, hip hop, dubstep, R&B, some classical, and Jewel (tell you why that's important in a sec lol)

Budget
< $250

Desired Features (other than phat sounds ;))
- comfy
- detachable cable
- reasonably sturdy - reason I'm not jumping for Bose
- circumaural ear blobs (don't like them sitting on top =/ so that sort of ruled the Grado SR60i out - unless you can change the ear pads?)
- closed - unless the open ones aren't too noisy to people around me?
- if possible they fold up & fit into my purse I'd be over the moon lol

Tried..

Grado SR60i - didn't like them sitting on top instead of around my ears, felt a bit 'loose'
Shure SRH440 - top head band was a bit stiff, not so comfy, Jewel was unbearably high (perhaps she naturally is)
Sennheiser HD215 - comfy, sounded good, but made me look like Princess Leia (not necessarily a deal breaker..)
Sennheiser HD555 - comfy, sounded good - not sure how they compare to the 215? and they're open..

So after all that, I'm thinking about the Sennheiser HD438 - read good reviews about them and they probably won't make me look like Princess Leia, only 'concern' I have atm is: will they get too hot around my ears?  I am unfortunately moving to hot HOT Canberra, so didn't want to bake my brain after a few hours of listening to music..

So.. HD438 or should I consider something else?  I don't mind open cans if they won't blare my guilty pleasures to everyone else around me..  Haven't tried Denon at all - worth considering?

Thanks for your time!!   ..buying shoes is a lot easier than picking a set of headphones >.< haha

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michaelmurfy
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  #410512 28-Nov-2010 23:19
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Heya.

Go with the HD438's. They are comfy, sound good, and also are very good for the price.

In fact, i have a set of them. I use them every day. A big bonus is they fold up in a wee pouch that comes with them.

I was in the same situation as you about 3 years ago, shopping for headphone is haaaard.

Btw, Welcome to Geekzone!




Michael Murphy | https://murfy.nz
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floss

2 posts

Wannabe Geek


  #410827 29-Nov-2010 19:26
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Thanks Michael, that's very encouraging.  It is a total pain, mainly as there are so many choices out there and I've found the all have at least 1 thing that bugs me, which another brand would have resolved.. nothing 'just right' yet hehe.. hope these will be good :)  enjoyed learning about it all though.

alasta
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  #410870 29-Nov-2010 20:40
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Here is my recent personal experience:

Sennheiser PXC-250 : Very authentic reproduction, but had weak bass, harsh treble, and over-exaggerated mids.

Bose QC15 : Typical Bose - Decent audio quality by mid tier standards, but not good enough for the price. To be fair the noise cancelling on these is exceptional.

Panasonic HC101 : Remarkably good audio quality for the price, although the noise cancelling is quite ineffective.

Out of the above, the Panasonics are my favourite despite them being the most affordable. They're probably not suitable for you as they are well under your budget and as a lightweight design they have an on ear fit that you've indicated that you'd rather avoid, but personally I'm hanging out for the HC700 to be available in NZ as I have a feeling that these are going to be quite impressive as far as affordable noise cancelling cans go. You might want to watch out for those.

I've personally avoided the Sennheiser HD series due to the lack of a noise cancelling option, but the feedback that I've heard is all good and you haven't indicated that you have a need for noise cancelling so I think you'd be very happy with them. 



Dunnersfella
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  #410954 30-Nov-2010 00:20
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If it's noise canceling, check out the HC-500's from Panasonic too.
I was really quite surprised by them as Panasonic aren't exactly well known for their headphones.
But they have been quite decent for me, and unfortunately, make some more expensive headphones I've owned look quite poor (SQ and NC combined).

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