Headphone/Earphone Reviews
Discussion
I am really pleased with my Sony MDR-EX500s. They replace a pair of MDR-EX85s and some UE 5is. I would go so far as to say they are the most neutral sounding headphones I have tried (albeit I have only tried about ten types in the past 5 years). Nothing like the bass of the MDR-EX85s but lovely detail. The dynamism has increased nicely with use - now up to 50 hours or so on the EX500s. They are plugged into my iPhone and as such don't sound that great, but hook them into my Walkman or the headphone socket of my Arcam amp and they sound very smooth.
I tried the MDR-EX300s and MDR-EX700s as well, 300s were good but not as good as the 500s. 700s sounded very brisht and harsh no matter what the source an quite disapponting given they are 2.5x the price of the 500s. 500's represent the best VFM I think.
I tried the MDR-EX300s and MDR-EX700s as well, 300s were good but not as good as the 500s. 700s sounded very brisht and harsh no matter what the source an quite disapponting given they are 2.5x the price of the 500s. 500's represent the best VFM I think.
Headphones, as in over the ear? Haven't really heard many, but the v-Jays sound good and are fairly cheap.
If you mean in ears, then Fischer Audio, Hippo and Meelectronics are the ones to have a closer look at.
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a... audio gear reviews
If you mean in ears, then Fischer Audio, Hippo and Meelectronics are the ones to have a closer look at.
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a... audio gear reviews
Coming from the Sony, you like a warm bassy sound, I would presume?
The default answer would be Sennheiser cx300/cx400, they are quite good but do not really have a clear sound.
Meelectronics m6 and m11 are highly recommended, and have better clarity than the cx300.
Nuforce ne-700x are also very good, great bass and clarity.
Hippo VB have the best bass in the price range, with variable tuning as an added bonus.
Fisher Audio Eterna are also very, very good with great bass and class leading soundstage.
Jays a-Jays are also very good with great dynamics.
A left field contender would be the slightly less bassy, but very clearand excellent sounding Soundmagic pl50.
Or go the full hog and splash out £400 on the Phonak pfe232, probably the best universal IEMs out there for now
^^ All the suggested IEMs are reviewed in the sticky on the top of the page. ^^
The default answer would be Sennheiser cx300/cx400, they are quite good but do not really have a clear sound.
Meelectronics m6 and m11 are highly recommended, and have better clarity than the cx300.
Nuforce ne-700x are also very good, great bass and clarity.
Hippo VB have the best bass in the price range, with variable tuning as an added bonus.
Fisher Audio Eterna are also very, very good with great bass and class leading soundstage.
Jays a-Jays are also very good with great dynamics.
A left field contender would be the slightly less bassy, but very clearand excellent sounding Soundmagic pl50.
Or go the full hog and splash out £400 on the Phonak pfe232, probably the best universal IEMs out there for now
^^ All the suggested IEMs are reviewed in the sticky on the top of the page. ^^
Looking for some over the ear phones for hifi and tv listening
I have a pair of SoundMagic E10s for portable use, which I love.
I don't want to spend too much but I do want some good sonic qualities and I am becoming confused!
Of the ones Finlandia has reviewed the Zomo sound good, but are a bit over my budget of c.£50-60, less if I can get away with it!
Various website reviews vary widely!
For instance, What Hifi rate the Panasonic RP-HTX7 as being the best 'budget' cans, but other sites slate them!
Anyone been given / bought decent set of headphones over Christmas?!
HebdenHedgehog said:
Looking for some over the ear phones for hifi and tv listening
I have a pair of SoundMagic E10s for portable use, which I love.
I don't want to spend too much but I do want some good sonic qualities and I am becoming confused!
Of the ones Finlandia has reviewed the Zomo sound good, but are a bit over my budget of c.£50-60, less if I can get away with it!
Various website reviews vary widely!
For instance, What Hifi rate the Panasonic RP-HTX7 as being the best 'budget' cans, but other sites slate them!
Anyone been given / bought decent set of headphones over Christmas?!
If you like the SoundMagic E10s, have a look at their on/over ear headphones HP100 and the wired/wireless WP10, they are a bit over budget though. I have a pair of SoundMagic E10s for portable use, which I love.
I don't want to spend too much but I do want some good sonic qualities and I am becoming confused!
Of the ones Finlandia has reviewed the Zomo sound good, but are a bit over my budget of c.£50-60, less if I can get away with it!
Various website reviews vary widely!
For instance, What Hifi rate the Panasonic RP-HTX7 as being the best 'budget' cans, but other sites slate them!
Anyone been given / bought decent set of headphones over Christmas?!
The Zomo HD1200 can be had for £61 or so, and sound really good for the price, or then there's the California Headphones and Colour Your World, especially the latter would be great for movies with the dual dynamic drivers.
Not heard the Panasonics, but Sennheiser PX100-II and PX200-II have generally had much praise, then of course there is the old classic Koss PortaPro. These are more on the ear than over the ear though.
Have you had chance to try the Parrot Ziks at all?
I tried a pair the other day and was impressed by the sound but put of by the look and bulkiness. My main criteria is the Bluetooth connectivity though so it's a very narrow field. I know that Sennheiser do an over ear pair too which look nicer and lighter but they look like they would leak sound at volume, which is another area that the Parrot did well in.
Or are there any others that I have missed that you'd recommend?
I tried a pair the other day and was impressed by the sound but put of by the look and bulkiness. My main criteria is the Bluetooth connectivity though so it's a very narrow field. I know that Sennheiser do an over ear pair too which look nicer and lighter but they look like they would leak sound at volume, which is another area that the Parrot did well in.
Or are there any others that I have missed that you'd recommend?
Koofler said:
Have you had chance to try the Parrot Ziks at all?
I tried a pair the other day and was impressed by the sound but put of by the look and bulkiness. My main criteria is the Bluetooth connectivity though so it's a very narrow field. I know that Sennheiser do an over ear pair too which look nicer and lighter but they look like they would leak sound at volume, which is another area that the Parrot did well in.
Or are there any others that I have missed that you'd recommend?
Not heard the Ziks yet, I hope to get a sample sometime soon. Denon do a Bluetooth headphone as well, quite like the Ziks, but not heard them either. Meelectronics is bringing out some more high end Bluetooth headphones soon, will probably get to review them.I tried a pair the other day and was impressed by the sound but put of by the look and bulkiness. My main criteria is the Bluetooth connectivity though so it's a very narrow field. I know that Sennheiser do an over ear pair too which look nicer and lighter but they look like they would leak sound at volume, which is another area that the Parrot did well in.
Or are there any others that I have missed that you'd recommend?
Of the ones I have heard, the Meelectronics AF32 would be best suited, light and quite small with good sound and they don't leak too much sound either, and as an added bonus they can be used as wired headphones as well.
Thought i would put a quick post up in here as have had my Audio Technica ATH-M50 for 7 months now and really pleased with them, use them for music and TV/films. At around £130 they are great value for money. worth checking out a few reviews for anyone considering studio type headphones for around £140
http://kenrockwell.com/audio/audio-technica/ath-m5...
http://www.stereophile.com/content/audio-technica-...
http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/audio-technic...
http://kenrockwell.com/audio/audio-technica/ath-m5...
http://www.stereophile.com/content/audio-technica-...
http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/audio-technic...
The Musical Fidelity EB-50 is a pair of in-ear monitors of curious appearance, with excellent build quality, great noise isolation, and a sound that seems entirely faithful to the source material.
Achieving a proper fit takes time, but with eleventy bundled buds of different sizes, you will get there. You'll know you have when it feels like your brain is being sucked out through your earholes, and the sound goes from Ohh noes, why did I spend all my monies? to OMFG this is amaazing!!1.
Sadly, the review period was cut short this evening when my 2 year-old snipped through the cable with a pair of craft scissors.
My Shure e2c's have finally died and I need a replacement. I have up to £100, and only ever use them at work with Spotify, and whilst flying. This is what I listen to: www.last.fm/user/matt345
Does anyone have any thoughts on what I should go for? I like in ear ones like the Shure's.
Thanks
Does anyone have any thoughts on what I should go for? I like in ear ones like the Shure's.
Thanks
For Fin or anyone with helpful suggestions please, my search criteria is quite narrow I feel:
Looking for In-ear phones (is that IEMs?).
Sound quality - reasonable, not the main criteria, being realistic I have slight deafness in one ear.
Isolation - if this is the correct term (is it leakage?). This is my main criteria. I'm looking for the lowest possible leakage that withstands volume set to eleven while not intruding on fellow passengers, etc.
Bluetooth - I know this is what restricts the field, probably, quite dramatically. Whilst this would be a very important or desirable factor I would forego this in favour of super isolation, is this a holy grail quest?
Budget - not too limited but not stratospheric either.
I'm not a sound engineer, obviously!
Thanks for any good pointers.
V.
Looking for In-ear phones (is that IEMs?).
Sound quality - reasonable, not the main criteria, being realistic I have slight deafness in one ear.
Isolation - if this is the correct term (is it leakage?). This is my main criteria. I'm looking for the lowest possible leakage that withstands volume set to eleven while not intruding on fellow passengers, etc.
Bluetooth - I know this is what restricts the field, probably, quite dramatically. Whilst this would be a very important or desirable factor I would forego this in favour of super isolation, is this a holy grail quest?
Budget - not too limited but not stratospheric either.
I'm not a sound engineer, obviously!Thanks for any good pointers.
V.
Matt, since you like the Shure sound, maybe the SE215 or SE315 would be a good upgrade. Bass heavy music will sound better with a dynamic earphone (SE215), while a balanced armature (SE315) will give much better fine detail.
Out of the ones I have heard Sennheiser IE6 or Hippo VB would suit, but then neither of them have the isolation of the Shure. A couple of left field contenders, the SoundMagic PL50 is a great earphone, but maybe a little bass light for your music, Brainwavz B2, slightly over budget, but very good performance all around, great detail and low end.
Vanya, in-ear phones or in-ear monitors, as they are called, are shortened to IEM.
The best isolating IEMs you will find, isolation meaning sound leaking in (trains, planes and you get the idea) or out (when you turn the volume up to 12), are the Etymotic.
I was impressed by the Ety hf3 headset, and while not Bluetooth, they are a headset with a built in mic, and as said, the best isolation you will find.
Other very well isolating earphones are Shure and Westone, but they don't really get up to the Ety isolation. If Bluetooth is a must, then Meelectronics do two different models of wireless IEMs, but isolation is nowhere near the Ety and neither is sound quality, and this goes for all other Bluetooth IEMs as well.
Then there are the Bluetooth modules with 3.5mm audio out like the Jabra Street 2, that allows you to connect any IEM to it and make them wireless, not tried any of them though.
If I was to get what you're looking for, I'd be likely to go for a well isolating Ety and get the Jabra for wireless use.
The reviews of the different IEMs can be found in the sticky up top of the forum page.
Out of the ones I have heard Sennheiser IE6 or Hippo VB would suit, but then neither of them have the isolation of the Shure. A couple of left field contenders, the SoundMagic PL50 is a great earphone, but maybe a little bass light for your music, Brainwavz B2, slightly over budget, but very good performance all around, great detail and low end.
Vanya, in-ear phones or in-ear monitors, as they are called, are shortened to IEM.
The best isolating IEMs you will find, isolation meaning sound leaking in (trains, planes and you get the idea) or out (when you turn the volume up to 12), are the Etymotic.
I was impressed by the Ety hf3 headset, and while not Bluetooth, they are a headset with a built in mic, and as said, the best isolation you will find.
Other very well isolating earphones are Shure and Westone, but they don't really get up to the Ety isolation. If Bluetooth is a must, then Meelectronics do two different models of wireless IEMs, but isolation is nowhere near the Ety and neither is sound quality, and this goes for all other Bluetooth IEMs as well.
Then there are the Bluetooth modules with 3.5mm audio out like the Jabra Street 2, that allows you to connect any IEM to it and make them wireless, not tried any of them though.
If I was to get what you're looking for, I'd be likely to go for a well isolating Ety and get the Jabra for wireless use.
The reviews of the different IEMs can be found in the sticky up top of the forum page.
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