Headphones to play through?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Rex Rocker
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Rex Rocker

Rex Rocker

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I'm sadly forced to play using my HX and headphones since I'm stuck in an apartment for now.

I'm using Beyerdynamic DT770's for now. They're alright. They're kinda harsh and thin-sounding.

I wonder what would be a good alternative that's not like an whole different league price-wise. I mean, I'm aware I have to spend a little more if I want an upgrade, but I don't want to spend thousands on pair of headphones either.

Opinions? Recommendations?

Thanks!
 
Sennheiser HD650 or similar. There are others that can be good but headphones are tricky with frequency response.

There are some sites that do frequency response comparisons.
 
dead-pan said:
Sennheiser HD650 or similar. There are others that can be good but headphones are tricky with frequency response.

There are some sites that do frequency response comparisons.
Click to expand...
Aren't those open-back? I would suspect those wouldn't be the thickest either?
 
Interesting to hear that you think the 770’s are thin sounding. The pair I had seemed to push the bass heavily. I ended up switching to iems though and won’t look back. I’d recommend getting a ear mold for them at some point, but starting out with the Shure iems is a good start.
 
Closed backs are much more isolated and will have more emphasis on low end.
Open backs are better for mixing imo.
It all depends what your looking for.
 
jtgainor said:
Interesting to hear that you think the 770’s are thin sounding. The pair I had seemed to push the bass heavily. I ended up switching to iems though and won’t look back. I’d recommend getting a ear mold for them at some point, but starting out with the Shure iems is a good start.
Click to expand...
They have bass... but a HUGE dip in the low mids. Or the upper bass. Whatever that area is called, LOL.
 
Rex Rocker said:
They have bass... but a HUGE dip in the low mids. Or the upper bass. Whatever that area is called, LOL.
Click to expand...
Interesting. Mine felt like a big hump from about 80hz to maybe 5-600 hz. I usually cut 3-4 db around 400 hz anyways so maybe I just didn’t notice.
 
Could be a low quality headphone output making your phones sound thin. Beyers are usually high impedance and take a stout amp to drive well. Not just to make them audible but to actually fill them out. I use a set of Audeze LCD-2 Closed Backs that are pricey but sound really really great. I recently discovered how much a headphone amp can impact the sound quality of headphones when I switched from a UAD Arrow interface to an Apogee Boom. Sounded like a different set of headphones altogether.

For a budget friendly option of headphones I'd recommend the Shure SRH840A. They're much more neutral sounding than any Beyer set I've owned (i've owned a few). They're under $200. Comfortable, closed back, easy to drive, nice low end.
 
Mine are the 32 Ohm version. They are quiet, though. Like not unusably quiet, but quieter than the random consumer-grade Sonys I was using before.

I also replaced the pads for sheepskin because the stock velour ones were giving me dermatitis, LOL.

Honestly, worst 170 bucks ever spent, LOL.
 
I've been pretty happy for nearly ten years with the closed-back AudioTechnica ATH-M50x.
The bass isn't hyped like consumer headphones these days, but they aren't thin sounding to me.
They seem to have fairly neutral mids and IMO the highs are well-defined but not harsh.

I got cooling gel pads for 'em that are more comfortable over long periods than the stock ones.
 
eclecticsynergy said:
I've been pretty happy for nearly ten years with the closed-back AudioTechnica ATH-M50x.
The bass isn't hyped like consumer headphones these days, but they aren't thin sounding to me.
They seem to have fairly neutral mids and IMO the highs are well-defined but not harsh.

I got cooling gel pads for 'em that are more comfortable over long periods than the stock ones.
Click to expand...
I would also recommend to get the M50x and use the EQ settings here to flatten them out.

https://github.com/jaakkopasanen/AutoEq/tree/master/results/oratory1990/over-ear
 
I've spent lots of money and hours reading forums and testing various headphones myself, so here it goes.

Best bang for buck
1)Sennheiser 560s (open back not really isolated )

Amazing "Reference" headset that doesn't necessarily require EQing. Really comfy too.

2) AKG K371 (closed back)

This is my newest set and I love it. Easy to drive - Reference closed back - not fatigue at all

Note that I am using "Oratory's EQ' for both sets / Sound ID Reference. I am so happy with these two options that
I sold my super expensive Denon 9200 (1500 euros new)
 
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