Headphones

Could anyone recommend a decent set of headphones for me to get.

I've not had a pair of headphones for years and there are so many new makes that some help would be appreciated.

I can budget to about £200, or is this to much?

 

Sennheiser HD600/650
or Grado SR225
or equivelant by Beyer

 

Cheers Bobbypunk,

I'll check em out.

 

The Sennheisers are excellent for the money,as are the Grados,and you may also be able to find used Stax electrostatics at around that price level also.
If you should go for the dynamic headphones,be sure also to invest in a good headphone amp if you want the best out of them.

 

Yep, you'll get alot of recommendations for Sennheiser HD650/600s. You can find the HD600s pretty cheap, now, too.

 

Ask Direct have the Sennheiser HD 600 at £139 and the Sony MDR-CD1700 at £74 . Both prices are well below RRP.

http://www.askdirect.co.uk/uview?call=ask.productBrowse&id=351&topcatid=15

Both are highly recommended headphones.
The service there is excellent too

 

I'd recomend the senn hd600's too but you need a good headphone amp to get the best from them. Best £140 I have ever spent and coupled with my GSP solo headphone amp put's my HC set up to shame giving crystal clear detail and fantastic range. I got mine from ask too and had good prompt service.

Has anyone any experiance in upgrading the leads on these headphones are there performance gains to be had in doing so?

Any relivant links to possible replacement cables would be apreciated

 

Hawklord, I got the Cardas v2 HD 650 Upgrade Cable which is not burnt in yet. I'll keep you informed.
Click on the link in my signature for a review

 

I've seen Zu Mobius cables recommended. They are about £150.
Russ Andrews do a cable for Senn HD600 at £160 for 2m.

No idea how effective these are but, for me, there would need to be massive improvements to justify spending this sort of money.

 

Thanks for that very informative.
Where did you get your cable from and how much did it cost? (the review said around $150 so that'd probably translate in rip off britain terms as £150). I'd be needing a cable of at least 3 meters and even 5 if available.
Are you convinced it has been a worthwhile investment with your limited use? Does the retailer let you try before you buy or do you just have to risk it? I'm very reluctant to buy blind as it's a lot of money to be forking out if the benefits are not markedly so.

 

Well, I bought mine off the classified section at Head-Fi. Someone was selling a couple of new ones (10 ft). I paid $125 with shipping
Otherwise I would have ordered them from Headroom, without a doubt. They're asking $150. Don't think you have a return period, but speak to Jamey and perhaps he can arrange it. Say "Hi" from Duncan in Spain

Otherwise, many at Head-Fi rave about the Zu Mobius cable which I know has a 30 day listening period.
This cable is supposed to make the HD 650s much more "forward" according to the reviews.

 

Just bit the bullet and ordered a cardas cable from headroom for around $170 which works out at around £93 around £60 cheaper than you can get in the uk. Lets hope I don't get clobbered for vat etc as that'd add at least another £17 (still cheaper).

thanks for heads up (I hope it's worth it)

 

Good move! Headroom is a good company and I like to support them. Any company that has the guts to run an online forum as customer support is OK by me Plus they're raving enthusiasts themselves, which helps...

I think the Cardas will be a great choice. Well, at least, I did put my money where my mouth is (or typing finger)

 

Hawklord, keep in mind these have about a 200+ hour burn-in time.

 

Tardis, I recommend the Sony MDR-CD3000 from www.audiocubes.com

I have owned the Sennheiser HD580, HD650, Beyer DT880, DT931, DT990 among others, and have heard the basic Stax system. Quite frankly, the Sony's urinate on them all, sounding far more dynamic and exciting than any of them, and having a far better "soundstage" affect thanks to their specially angled drivers. As for bass, lets not even go there