Headphone recommendations

Hello All

Anyone have a good recommendation for over the ear headphones, with good bass, that is primarily used for music, that is less than $100 or 200?

What does everyone use here and do they love it?

Are those Dre Beats headphones worth the crazy prices they are charging?

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Comments

Rakurai

I like my Bose Quiet Comfort, very good for listening to music..... or playing BF3. Although, I think they are over your $100-$200 price range. Someone back in Afghanistan had the Beats headphones, personally didn't like them too much, which is why I got the Bose.

swild

I love my Razer Carcharias headphones, only $45. Bass isn't quite as good as the Bose, but for the price, it can't be beat. Looks like they have a new model now though. If I was going to spend $200 bucks, I would go for these:
Mass Effect 3 - Razer Chimaera 5.1 | Razer Online Store

matt333

i have the dre beats studio ones there pretty good but i got them for half off ($150). i wouldnt play full price. theres a lot of hype around them but there not worth 300. Bose are always a good choice as well if you get the high end ones

Claymoore

I use Ultimate Ears ear buds:
Ultimate Ears TripleFi 10 Noise Isolating Earphones

I bought my first pair with my first iPod before a long flight to LA over 6 years ago. That pair lasted me over 4 years before they finally broke on a flight and I had to step down to a cheaper pair that was available at the next airport. Those headphones were fine for background music, but they did not cancel as much ambient noise, even with the foam ear tips. I found that I was cranking the volume almost all the way up on my Kindle Fire so that I could hear movie dialog over the jet engines. I decided another pair (fortunately much cheaper at Amazon) of the top Ultimate Ears model was worth preventing permanent damage to my hearing. Now, with the large foam tips that seal in my ears like ear plugs, I only turn the volume up about half way for a movie on the plane, and just one or two notches up from mute for music in the office. The rubber tips are fine for everyday music while the comfort-fit foam tips provide -26dB of noise reduction. My original pair were sanity savers when I had to spend time in our DR datacenter as they would block out all the fan and AC noise to make the day tolerable.

Whatever you decide, make sure you check out how much sound isolation or noise reduction they offer. Cranking up the volume to overcome background sound is bad for your ears. Save up for a bit and by the better headphones - a lifetime of hearing is worth another $100.

kalebksp

Grado SR-60i's are a good non-sealed choice. I haven't listened to them, but I've heard good things about Shure's SRH440 if sealed is your thing.

Of course my preference's may not be yours. I typically favor more neutral sounding headphones (Shure, Grado, Denon) to the bass heavy ones (Beats / Bose).

N2IT

whatthehell wrote: »

Hello All

Anyone have a good recommendation for over the ear headphones, with good bass, that is primarily used for music, that is less than $100 or 200?

What does everyone use here and do they love it?

Are those Dre Beats headphones worth the crazy prices they are charging?

My wife won some Beats and they are amazing. Some people complain they are base heavy, but I like the deeper base sound. The music I listen works well with the Beats.

I'm not a fan of Bose. You know the saying no high's no low's must be a Bose.

These are money and they are the low end ones. Jerry Harvey Audio JH5 Pro | HeadRoom Audio

JH Audio makes a killer ear bud set. I found some for around 350 and they sounded fantastic.

For the poster above Denon's are nice as well. My parents have a set that are 5 years old and they still sound amazing.

JeanM

Sony MDR 7506 or MDR 7509.... still used in MANY recording studios, ask yourself why ?

I love my 7506s, very comfy, great sound.

Bose isn't very good, they are good at marketing though! When you try AKG, Sennheiser, and Sony studio type headphones you'll be blown away and realize just how crappy Bose is... sorry

Head over to your local Guitar Center or the like and ask for 7506 or AKG and see for yourself.

tr1x

JeanM wrote: »

Sony MDR 7506 or MDR 7509.... still used in MANY recording studios, ask yourself why ?

I love my 7506s, very comfy, great sound.

Bose isn't very good, they are good at marketing though! When you try AKG, Sennheiser, and Sony studio type headphones you'll be blown away and realize just how crappy Bose is... sorry

Head over to your local Guitar Center or the like and ask for 7506 or AKG and see for yourself.

Yep, much better to go with studio headphones than the mainstream bull (Dre, Bose, give me a break). Even Best Buy carries the brands you mentioned. I use Sennheiser now, but I think I'm going to upgrade soon (possibly to another Sennheiser pair, not sure) because of all the Best Buy gift cards I have laying around.

QHalo

I have a pair of Sennheiser HD580s that I managed to pickup in the $125 range about 7 years ago and they've lasted still. Good bass as well but they are open-air cans. The issue you'll have with higher end cans is that some of them have super high impedence and require an in-line amp to really push them well.

http://tangentsoft.net/audio/cmoy-tutorial/

Aldur

I'd stay away from Bose, they are overpriced. You're basically paying for the name, kind of like buying an Alienware PC IMO.

I personally use the Beyer Dynamic DT 770 - 250 Ohm version, coupled with the Fiio E9 desktop amp. It produces fantastic sound, crystal clear and it can push some serious bass. I believe that the Beyer Dynamic DT 770 pro is going for $200 on amazon, which is in your range, but I'm unsure if an amp is required to push those.

My two fav personal brands are Beyer Dynamic and AKG. My next set of headphone will be an AKG 702, which is supposed to be phenomenal for gaming and listening to music.

jibbajabba

Ultimate Ears ALL THE WAY !!!

SteveLord

I avoid paying over $50 for any. They're all made from the same Chinese plastic and electronics that can break or fail at anytime, be it your own doing or just random. Are you only to be out a little or a lot of money?

Aldur

SteveLord wrote: »

I avoid paying over $50 for any. They're all made from the same Chinese plastic and electronics that can break or fail at anytime, be it your own doing or just random. Are you only to be out a little or a lot of money?

If you are paying $50 or less, then sure, you're going to get poor quality headphones.

I've had my Beyer Dynamic DT 770s for about 4 or 5 years now. They have yet to break or have had any problems.

JeanM

SteveLord wrote: »

I avoid paying over $50 for any. They're all made from the same Chinese plastic and electronics that can break or fail at anytime, be it your own doing or just random. Are you only to be out a little or a lot of money?

Uhhh, can't be more wrong. My 7506s are probably 10 years old now, and still going strong.

There IS a difference between crap phones you get with your device / best buy AND ones that are used by recording engineers/studios.

MentholMoose

Claymoore wrote: »

Whatever you decide, make sure you check out how much sound isolation or noise reduction they offer. Cranking up the volume to overcome background sound is bad for your ears. Save up for a bit and by the better headphones - a lifetime of hearing is worth another $100.

I like IEMs as well, for the sound isolation you mentioned, but also for comfort. I've tried many different headphones from various brands and I never could find a pair that were comfortable to wear for extended periods... they always seem to either hurt my ears or the top of my head after a while. IEMs don't put any pressure on or around my ears or on the top of my head and end up being the most comfortable option for me. Currently I use a nearly 10 year old pair of Etymotics (the ER-4S model).

paul78

I have a pair of Bose Quit Comfort 15 which are awesome. I bought the original pair about 9 years ago when I spent a lot of time in data centers. The noise cancelling was the primary reason and they are great on planes. I just replace them last weekend after the old ones snapped when I tossing them around. Bose has a trade-in plan and I got a new pair for $99.

SteveLord

JeanM wrote: »

Uhhh, can't be more wrong. My 7506s are probably 10 years old now, and still going strong.

There IS a difference between crap phones you get with your device / best buy AND ones that are used by recording engineers/studios.

I will give you that. To be fair, I should have mentioned that I am a gamer....and not an audiophile. I have 2 sets of Seinhesser that have lasted me a few years and going.

docrice

I use a pair of 7506s that I've owned since the early 90s. While I've had to replace the ear pads a few times, they still work quite well.

I thought about the Bose AE2s because they are very light and comfortable, but I'm not really going for audio quality there. I didn't do side-by-side testing, but the Bose's sound seems dull compared to my Sony pair.

kahn

whatthehell wrote: »

Are those Dre Beats headphones worth the crazy prices they are charging?

Yes they worth mate. Base is loud and the headphones are also very good in design. go for the Wireless bluetooth one it is so awesome.
cheers

PlanB

I bought a pair of Sennheiser HD280's for xmas and have been really happy with them. They really seal out outside noise and sound great. Plus they didn't break the bank.

Roguetadhg

I use TurtleBeach's PX5. I like the surround sound.

kurosaki00

I tried a couple of headphones and went for the Beats.
I paid full price for them although Yes it is over priced.
Beats should be 200-225$ the most.
The reason is the bass is great and I enjoy my bass.
So for me it was a good deal, I bought em around 4-5 months ago and I still think it was a great investment.
Working with CLI with skrillex in your playlist, doesnt get much better than that.
for example Etymotic HF are good with treble.

You should just go try some at your local store.

sys_teck

hi,

I use "Sennheiser", primarily for music <from classical music, to prog rock, symphonic rock, 80's metal, and some trance mostly vocal, and euro trance>. $80.00 and I love them