#191

I just wanted to chime in with a recommendation for Audio-Technica ATH-R70x. I don’t see them recommended that often, maybe they’re overlooked. Fantastic headphones. I’ve used them as daily drivers and for studio use for two years now, super light and so comfortable you forget you’re wearing them. Most importantly they have extremely flat frequency response, great bass extension, and amazing detail.

#192

I use Sennheiser hd25 aluminium. Some of the advantages and disadvantages are following:

  • Every part is exchangeable. Including headphones, cable and the headband(sceleton).
  • The quality of all materials are terrific.
  • It is not big, bulky thing like many other alternatives
  • It is very good at blocking the sounds coming from outside but this comes with a cost. It compresses your head too much to block outside noise and it is a very odd way to do it.
  • Because of the reason of compression it has a significant boost on low and low mid frequencies. I always keep an eq on computers output to filter out some of this low frequency areas.
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#193

I had the ATH-R70x for 3 years and they were pretty good as far as providing a flat frequency response, but I found the bass a bit lacking and they were fatiguing for daily use. I couldn’t listen to music normally without adjusting the EQ. Going from an ATH-R50 to the ATH-R70, I found them less comfortable because the ear cups are shallower so they pressed on my ears slightly.

The plastic connector for the ear piece broke after a year and I got a free replacement because it has a 3 year warranty. Almost immediately after 3 years the headphones broke in the same spot and I didn’t end up getting them fixed because they were out of warranty. I got them even after seeing other people have this issue in Amazon reviews because I figured I would just be careful with them but they just broke even when I was being careful.

I went back to the ATH-50 that I was using before. I think I’ve had them for a decade now and I’m really happy with them. The black coating around the headband has almost completely flaked off and the ear pads are also flaking off. I replaced the ear pads maybe 5 years ago. I wear them for many hours at a time and don’t have any issue with discomfort or ear fatigue.

#194

Huh. Mine have hit the floor dozens of times without a scratch, they seem very sturdy to me. And I guess there’s no such thing as a perfect frequency profile, but these hit the absolute sweet spot for me. But then again I’m used to HD800 and several AKGs, all on the brighter side. Good to hear that you found your own sweet spot.

#195

@sam, I used a pair of TMA-2s for a couple of years, and used to be happy with them, but I wouldn’t recommend them now. Comfort and isolation is great with the large microfibre over-ear cushions, but the sound quality just isn’t good enough for me anymore. I have both the S01 and S02 drivers, and they are really rough and grainy (distortion, basically) compared to other headphones in the same price range. The high-end drivers might be better, but I certainly couldn’t justify them after spending around €400 on parts. Also, they are covered in that rubbery soft-touch plastic coating, and will get ugly and sticky after a few years. I tried to clean mine up with isopropyl alcohol. Most of the coating came off, and now they look terrible as well. Shame, they are beautifully designed.

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#196

Yep, that’s a definite deal breaker, I hate that stuff.

Anyway, just replaced the headband padding and the earpads on my Sennheiser HD650s, the headband padding in particular has made a big difference.

#197

Any recommendations for some decently isolating closed back headphones? I’m currently sharing my workspace with a work-from-homer and they need to listen to music, podcasts, etc for concentration but are unable to use headphones. I have Sony MDR-7506 but they don’t seem to isolate too well and the very pronounced high frequency peak becomes quickly fatiguing. I already have some good open backs and monitors for critical listening duties.

#198

maybe consider beyerdynamic dt770s or audio technica ath-m50s? the beyers are pretty comfy at least…

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#199

Thanks. I considered ATH-M50 but according to reviews they do not isolate well. Will research the Beyers. Also seeing that Sennheiser HD 380 PRO have good noise isolation, any experiences here?

#200

I know it’s entirely different price bracket so proceed with caution, but have you considered noise cancelling headphones?

Eg. way before the pandemic I bought a pair of Sony WH-1000XM3 for the office, and even now, having worked from home almost a year, they’ve been a great purchase - comfy enough to use for long periods, cancel noise really well, and sound very balanced. They work both wirelessly (use them with my work computer via Bluetooth) and with a cable.

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#201

Similarly, I recently purchased the slightly lower model, the Sony WH-H910Ns.

My plan was to use them for lectures, Teams meetings and occasional music listening, but they are so comfortable and have such suprisingly good sound quality that they are now almost glued to my head!

The addition of being able to use them with a cable means they have currently taken the place of my dodgy HD-25s (that I’ve had for around 15 years) for monitoring use.

Also, on the right side of the headphones the tap / swipe controls are clever, and the method to activate ambient sound by covering it is igenious.

#202

covid, ugh. the situation here has progressed such that very little music can be played out loud without someone complaining. so, headphones. I primarily need a mix solution, and I know, I know, mixing on headphones not so much. but I need to be able to sit in the living room with others and have the best possible representation I can, so they really need to be closed back, which, also not optimum. but I hope to pair this with some car stereo checks and maybe all the rest of the headphones I own and hopefully I’ll get to a good place.

I have loved my Grado 60s but the wrinkled diaphragm thing is almost constant with electronic music. I have the etymotic er-4s but they are so uncomfortable that I can only really wear them for an hour before pain ouch and the bass is not really representative. from careful reading of this thread, the two contenders look like the 770s or the AT M50s. anybody care to compare the two for mixing/mastering?

#203

So far I’ve used Focal Spirit Professional and ATH-M50 for that purpose.

Focals are pretty much the only headphones I could personally actually make consistently sensible mixing decisions on, but unfortunately they were not very comfortable for my head shape for longer periods. I don’t think that exact model is available anymore, but they have something equivalent or better now. If you have a place where you can buy / borrow those for auditioning, I highly recommend trying them out for the sound. If they feel comfortable to you, I’d rate them over any other closed back headphones I’ve tried so far.

ATH-M50 is kind of opposite but not completely. It’s a fine monitoring headphone and quite comfortable all things considered (I don’t remember having to take frequent breaks unlike with the Focals), but it took a while to get used to the sound and learn to translate that so that the end result didn’t sound weird on speakers. Still, they’re a good pick for not a lot of money, there’s absolutely nothing seriously wrong with them IME and one can learn them as with any pair of headphones.

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#204

Hmm, now I’m intrigued about these noise cancelling headphones. kbra, manfromuncool, do you notice any audible artifacts from the noise cancellation algorithm?

#205

I can’t hear anything obviously wrong with them - although I’m not an audio professional. The Sonys (at least those higher tier ones, no experience of any of the others) seem to have a really good NC algorithm in either case. I haven’t tried them for eg. mixing, but for listening to music they are superb. Perhaps a hint of loudness curve if anything, but nothing like weird transients or hiss masking things… plus they’re very comfortable and nice to use. I just see them as a very decent sounding comfortable pair of headphones which cost a lot due to a really good NC feature.

The only weird thing is that sometimes when using the headphones with Bluetooth connection when listening to music, the headphones and computer seem to negotiate a weird connection protocol and things suddenly sound muffled until you turn off the phones and turn them on again. I don’t think I experienced this with a wired connection so it sounds BT-specific.

#206

If you wanted to avoid bluetooth, the Direct Sound brand of headphones is used pretty regularly by drummers in recording studio settings; depending on the model they provide 33-36dB of passive attenuation. I haven’t myself heard any of the current models, though, so can’t speak to their sound quality.

#207

I know this is a bit out of the main wheelhouse of this thread, but I wanted to chime in with my favorite pair of beater headphones, the Monoprice Over the Ear Headphones. Nothing fancy at all, but in terms of inexpensive headphones, these are a lot of fun and sound really good. I think that sometimes having an easy to find low cost option can be a saving grace in times of need. There is a really entertainingly glowing tape-op review of them that turned me on to them a few years back.

I don’t think they would compete with or replace the nicer 'phones that have been mentioned in this thread, but I have never had a problem with them on gigs or during my walking commutes.

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#208

i recently ordered to demo Austrian Audio x55, Beyerdynamic DT 1770 and Neumann NDH-20 and kept the Beyerdynamic sounded best to me and easily best build/ most comfortable

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#209

Likewise, no expert, but I haven’t noticed any issues with noise cancellation.

I have found the sound quality, along with the fit, entirely non fatiguing.

I was worried about the codec used, but with MacOS and Android I haven’t noticed any quality issue. There may be latency issues, at least with MacOS.

I have also had some weird connection issue, only with MacOS, where it very rarely disconnects and then reconnects.

Overall I am very happy with them, one of the most rewarding purchases in a long time. My partner is annoyed with how much time they’re on my head (something that would be way too painful with my Sennheisers), because despite the ability to cover the right side to enable ambient sound, that doesn’t exactly appear social!

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#210

thank you, the Focals were not on my radar but the new model does indeed boast improved comfort so that is a very strong contender. appreciate your take.

wanted to chime in about the Monoprice as well, I have been using the over-the-ear models and they’ve been great. I have those and their even more consumer, less bulky $15 models and they both are really hardy. I am a little hard on ‘phones in general and the $15 ones spend 50% of their time on a seven year old and neither has had a problem. the response on both is rolled off in the highs, but there doesn’t seem to be any peaks either so they don’t sound harsh. the over-the-ears have more bass to be sure, and I use them as a “too much bass” check against the Grados, but not nearly as muddy down there as my old Fostex T20s and T40s.