Best headphones for $80

[BeepBeep2]

Preferably something I can buy at best buy because I need to waste a worthless card to best buy instead of one I could have enjoyed from newegg. :shakes:

I was looking at the Sennheiser HD280's but I've heard mixed reviews about sound quality.

[BeepBeep2]

bumpity bump bump.

[monst0r]

Grado SR80i's are great too. Are you using an amplified source? If not the SR60i's might suit you better. The hardest part I found starting to look for decent headphones was actually trying them out before I bought them. Of course, each has its own distinct sound signature which is up to personal taste really.

[BeepBeep2]

Nope, it's actually onboard audio, might buy an Asus Xonar D1 sometime.

Just want something more comfortable than my el-cheapo HD202's that sounds quite a bit better.

[Bobsama]

Senn HD-555's are decent. JVC HARX900's have had a fair bit of fanfare in the past year. Grado SR60i's and SR80i's are decent.

[BeepBeep2]

Anything closed instead of open-air?

[Bobsama]

HARX700/900 are closed. Other than those, Sennheiser HD 280 Pro's are supposed to be decent. From what I've heard at least, there's few good closed headphones beneath $150; the HARX and HD280's are about all. I really disliked the Senn HD-201's and I hear the HD-202's are worse. I don't know about HD-205/II's or HD-428's. Audio Technica A700's are supposed to be good. Maybe Koss PRO-4AA's or similar.

Don't pay more than $80 shipped for HD-555's or HD-280's. I actually bought my HD-555's for $50 or so.

[BeepBeep2]

HARX700/900 are closed. Other than those, Sennheiser HD 280 Pro's are supposed to be decent. From what I've heard at least, there's few good closed headphones beneath $150; the HARX and HD280's are about all. I really disliked the Senn HD-201's and I hear the HD-202's are worse. I don't know about HD-205/II's or HD-428's. Audio Technica A700's are supposed to be good. Maybe Koss PRO-4AA's or similar.

Don't pay more than $80 shipped for HD-555's or HD-280's. I actually bought my HD-555's for $50 or so.

Yeah, I looked at the A700's and I really want to get rid of these 202's :down: They are okay-ish for gaming and thats about where it stops.

[Bobsama]

Yeah, I looked at the A700's and I really want to get rid of these 202's :down: They are okay-ish for gaming and thats about where it stops.

I found my HD-201s to be extraordinarily uncomfortable. The combination of the practically flat leatherette earpads, closed design, and the plastic rubbing along the outside of my ear was what killed it for me. The sound wasn't horrible but they were simply not functional for me. I even stuffed them with paper towels and the like; an improvement yet still unacceptable. I literally got them, listened for a few sweaty yet air-conditioned hours, threw them in the box, and ordered Koss PortaPros. A month or so later I found my current HD-555's on "refurb" (they were practically new; no retail box, though) and have had them since. I actually am looking to upgrade so soon as I get a job. I know I have a pair of AKG's or Beyerdynamic's waiting for me.

[BeepBeep2]

Yeah, I get you there. My HD202's bug the hell outta me after about an hour of wearing them.

[Bobsama]

Yeah, I get you there. My HD202's bug the hell outta me after about an hour of wearing them.

Ja. I find the HD-555's to be not too bad but my ears get sore after a few hours wearing them. Grab the A700's and don't look back. A side-note: buying open or semi-open cans will probably be more comfortable.

[stars1]

Sennheiser HD-280
http://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-HD-280-Dynamic-Collapsible-Headphones/dp/B000065BPB/sr=8-2/qid=1172110403/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2/104-0908610-9388746?ie=UTF8&s=electronics

[.Logic]

A700s have my vote, very good yet still inexpensive headphones.

I still LAN with mine :up: only my Darths/650s have taken over music duties (depending on what I am listening to) at home and JH 13s are used for commuting and travel. The A700s are great for gaming with very nice soundstage and good seperation in the lows that packs enough of a punch but isn't bass heavy.

[RPGWiZaRD]

Sony XB700. They aren't all about bass, far from it. I personally prefer (and I'm not the only one but it all comes down to what sound signature you prefer) the little brother XB500 more cuz it has more punchy bass & impact and more aggressive sound signature to it and smoother highs which is more to my liking being a basshead but both have absolutely lovely full natural sounding mids. There's one person on Head-Fi that prefers XB700 even over Sennheiser HD-650 (these costs 370~$400) for example and he also owns or has owned at least 20 other headphones. XB700 costs about $80 or $75 if u look around a little. And these are probably among the most comfy headphones you'll find. I prefer these two over for example the highly popular BeyerDynamic DT770 Pro/80 or AudioTechnica ATH-M50 which costs 2 - 3x as much. However they do leak sound so not recommended if you intend to use them in public.

[jason str]

Grado SR80i's are great too. Are you using an amplified source? If not the SR60i's might suit you better. The hardest part I found starting to look for decent headphones was actually trying them out before I bought them. Of course, each has its own distinct sound signature which is up to personal taste really.

+1 Grado makes some great cans, this would be my first pick for the price.

[Donnie27]

Sennheiser HD-280
http://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-HD-280-Dynamic-Collapsible-Headphones/dp/B000065BPB/sr=8-2/qid=1172110403/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2/104-0908610-9388746?ie=UTF8&s=electronics

Sure if you listen to nothing but voices:rolleyes: NORMALLY it would simply be a matter of taste. But that's not the case with these. Any decent bass makes these cars distort very badly. In fact, I've heard $29 cans from Koss and Philips that sound better, Hi's and Lows BTW. Same goes for Most of the Sony's that cost $110 or less Bass-wise.

[Sam_oslo]

I don't know which one is best, but make sure to get something with solid construction.

My Logitech G35 just went into pieces, literally. They have used a tiny plastic joint for the ear-cup. I couldn't believe how tiny it was when i looked at the broken joint, it was just too stupidly tiny for a part that gets a lot of tension each time you try to wear it.

[Donnie27]

Preferably something I can buy at best buy because I need to waste a worthless card to best buy instead of one I could have enjoyed from newegg. :shakes:

I was looking at the Sennheiser HD280's but I've heard mixed reviews about sound quality.

Give these (http://reviews.cnet.com/headphones/koss-portapro-headphones/4505-7877_7-32897197.html?tag=also) a shot? At least then you have something to compare the rest to. For 29 to 39 dollars you can't go wrong!

[lkiller123]

The closed A700 is going for an "okay deal" here (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000E9VKUQ?ie=UTF8&tag=xtreme07-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B000E9VKUQ) on Amazon, going for $120, but I seriously recommend those.:)

If you want, the opened version "AD700" is going for just a tad over 90 dollars (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000CMS0XU?ie=UTF8&tag=xtreme07-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B000CMS0XU).

I will try to look for one that stays within your limits.:up:

[Kingcarcas]

Hmm, well i thought my HD280s were good but that guy says they're terrible compared to other brands.............i will pick up the Audio Technica's down the road then..

[lkiller123]

Of course, I HAVE to recommend the SR60i, $79 on Amazon. (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0006DPMU4?ie=UTF8&tag=xtreme07-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0006DPMU4) Best bang for buck.

If you want to spend a little bit more to get a way nicer sound, the SR80i for $99 (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000G3LCQC?ie=UTF8&tag=xtreme07-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B000G3LCQC).

If you really want a full cup, get the Beyer DTX900 going for $99.99 (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000F2BLQU?ie=UTF8&tag=xtreme07-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B000F2BLQU) on Amazon. It's not very well known, so the review is here (http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/356181/beyerdynamic-dtx-900-impressions-d) on Head-Fi.

[RAW-Raptor22]

Sure if you listen to nothing but voices:rolleyes: NORMALLY it would simply be a matter of taste. But that's not the case with these. Any decent bass makes these cars distort very badly. In fact, I've heard $29 cans from Koss and Philips that sound better, Hi's and Lows BTW. Same goes for Most of the Sony's that cost $110 or less Bass-wise.

Hmm, I was thinking of picking up a pair but I guess I wont now... :p:

Im very happy with my HD475s since they dont distort noticeably with bass. They sound better through my Kenwood amp from my Audigy 2 ZS, but they still sound decent plugged into the onboard on my other PC. If I do decide to upgrade, what cans should I be looking at?

[Donnie27]

Hmm, I was thinking of picking up a pair but I guess I wont now... :p:

Im very happy with my HD475s since they dont distort noticeably with bass. They sound better through my Kenwood amp from my Audigy 2 ZS, but they still sound decent plugged into the onboard on my other PC. If I do decide to upgrade, what cans should I be looking at?

HD475's hold bass better than the HD280's=P


Listening

The HD 280 Pros are billed as being "designed for professional monitoring applications". There are tons of really awful headphones out there that're described with some combination of the words "Pro Studio DJ Digital Hi-Fi Reference" in front of the word "Monitor", but Sennheiser actually mean something by it.

Monitor headphones, like monitor loudspeakers, are meant to have flat, uncoloured, un-exaggerated response across a wide frequency range. They're not meant to sound "sweet" or "bassy"; they're just meant to deliver the input signal cleanly to your ears.

This isn't the philosophy of most sealed headphones. It's easy to make a sealed 'phone with a lot of bass, so that's what a lot of manufacturers do - including Sennheiser, with some of their models. The HD 280 Pros, though, don't have phat bass.

In the manual (available in PDF format here), Sennheiser quote the HD 280 frequency response as being from a perfectly adequate 25kHz to a tooth-loosening 8Hz - but those are the minus ten decibel (dB) points, which aren't actually very informative. Neither is their frequency response plot, which is pleasingly (some might say suspiciously...) flat, but which only extends down to 90Hz at the bass end.

The only way to get anything below 80 to 90Hz is at extreme low or almost en-audible volume levels. Again, for Voice and Flat monitoring HD280 ain't bad. For just about everything else, they suck and that's just not an opinion, it can be measured.

[BeepBeep2]

Yay, thread ressurection! I'd given up but I just looked down and this was the thread with the latest post :p

I'd been looking that the A700's, thanks guys!

[Donnie27]

Yay, thread ressurection! I'd given up but I just looked down and this was the thread with the latest post :p

I'd been looking that the A700's, thanks guys!

IMHO, if you haven't tried those Koss Cans, you might be surprised! 4.5 stars on 687 customer reviews. Part of the positive reviews is the price but a large part is the pure sound out put as well. I'd have loved to have compared them to the 700's.

Only the B-DT770 replaced mine. Even at 5 times the price, they didn't blow the Koss set away. Only the Mid-Bass hump as westcoastplayer called it sounded better on the DT-770 Pro 80's:rofl:.

[BeepBeep2]

I really like how the A700's look as well, what a sexy closed phone. :D

[lkiller123]

Yup, the shiny black piano finish.. *drools*

[cirthix]

I've been happy with the ah-d1001s that I picked up a while ago for around 80 bucks.

[Bli]

If you like earbuds, Klipsch Image S4 earbuds have been treating me well so far. Pretty good bass response.