hifi quality headphones

[khushy]

dmsims said:

Some of the suggestions for "HiFi" are funny!

anyway:

https://store.hifiman.com/index.php/ananda-bt.html

me likey

[bitchstewie]

How much of a step down is something like the Bose QC35 II from something like a Grado SR80?

I'm a bit of a headphone collector but I've never had anything cordless.

I find that with the Grado's they get a bit uncomfortable after a couple of hours whilst a thought occurred to me which was that I did a couple of long haul flights wearing the Bose wired headphones that Lufthansa supply and I don't think I took them off the entire flight and even slept in them and don't remember any discomfort.

[Sheets Tabuer]

XM3 and momentum here, used to prefer the sennheiser for acoustic or rock but I've found the app great for tuning the XM3s

Very happy with both but if I had to pick one I'd say after playing with the app the Sony.

[take-good-care-of-the-forest-dewey]

bhstewie said:

How much of a step down is something like the Bose QC35 II from something like a Grado SR80?

I'm a bit of a headphone collector but I've never had anything cordless.

I find that with the Grado's they get a bit uncomfortable after a couple of hours whilst a thought occurred to me which was that I did a couple of long haul flights wearing the Bose wired headphones that Lufthansa supply and I don't think I took them off the entire flight and even slept in them and don't remember any discomfort.

The Sonys are way better for sound and on par with NC. I have xm2s, sr80 and 325e. Xm2s sound better than bose and the xm3s are better again.

The sr80 is an exceptional headphone for the money, so you'll struggle to match it in a closed back NC headphone.

[castex]

I have the Sony XM3. They sound pretty good, and better since I hacked my phone and made it do Bluetooth at 900 somethings.

[bitchstewie]

take-good-care-of-the-forest-dewey said:

The Sonys are way better for sound and on par with NC. I have xm2s, sr80 and 325e. Xm2s sound better than bose and the xm3s are better again.

The sr80 is an exceptional headphone for the money, so you'll struggle to match it in a closed back NC headphone.

I'm being dumb.

I ordered SR80's and Amazon delivered SR325 and told me to keep them so even more exceptional for £80

I assumed anything bluetooth would be worse on a "proper hi-fi from a proper source but I tend to listen to LBC and watch things like iPlayer on my Mac albeit with a USB DAC.

Dumb question but presume noise-cancelling does exactly what it says on the tin i.e. people in the same or next room are likely to be a bit pissed off if they're trying to talk to me?

[VEX]

I’ll have Klipsch and KLH brands available in a week or two.

All though a little unknown, KLH Ultimates (Wired) get very good reviews.

Klipsch is just Klipsch and good at why they do.

V.

Edited by VEX on Sunday 5th July 11:59

[egomeister]

khushy said:

I currently use Plantronics in the office for music and accepting/making phone calls - they sound ok - good enough while woring but the over ear pads are small

At home, I have Sure headphones and Sure IEM's - which are epic - but have no phone functionality

Do the Sony's have a mic?

Yes, the Sonys work as a hands free. The seem to work ok in a "controlled" environment like when I'm working from home, but seem quite sensitive to background noise (eg, if I use them when cooking, the person on the other end of the call seems to hear the frying noises etc disproportionally loud).

Well pleased with them in terms of sound quality and noise cancelling. I have no idea how I put up with so many flights before getting them, despite using in ear noise cancelling Bose previously, I'd say they are the best purchase I have made in a long time.

[conkerman]

bhstewie said:

Dumb question but presume noise-cancelling does exactly what it says on the tin i.e. people in the same or next room are likely to be a bit pissed off if they're trying to talk to me?

Noise cancelling is designed for cancelling steady noise, eg AC fans, Aeroplane noise etc. You can hear people just the same as with a normal set of closed back headphones. Endless fun can be had ignoring people due to 'noise cancelling'.

My sennheisers can also be set to use the noise cancelling mics to 'talk through', which is like having superpowers

For quality 'consumer' stuff, that has loads of function and sounds reasonable, there are a bunch of options.

Once you get into 'HiFi headphones' you generally forgo any convenience features, and require decent amplification, down the 'generally expensive' rabbit hole you go.

[toon10]

I have the wired B&W P7's and they are great. My mate has the wireless PX7's and although they don't sound quite as good as the P7, they are not far behind with the added functionality of being wireless and having some N/C. If you can live with a wire then the P9 signatures blow the 7's away but then you pay the premium price for that. All sound warm so if you like neutral sound then they may not be for you. I prefer a more bass rich sound so they work for me. I don't use pure direct on my home amp and tend to have all the settings neutral and the bass turned up a few notches!

[dickymint]

MOBB said:

Sony XM1000XM3 here

Love them

Snap! If I'm in the workshop (metal bashing, guillotines and power press) i can wear them all the time with NC on with radio or without - had Bose in ear QC 30's that i lost prior to that. The Sonys are far better.

[dickymint]

Forgot to mention the sonys touch pad (on the right ear pad) that allows you to scroll between tracks, scroll volume up/down or turn off whilst you cover the pad to talk/listen to people is amazing.

[bloomen]

adamlstr said:

I have the Bose NC 700's, they are not Hifi quality.

The noise cancellation seems to have only been tuned for constant noise (air travel, car) etc. I'm not familiar with the technology and how it works, but for background noise like construction, or high pitched voice (kids) they are not the be all and end all I was led to believe.

No noise cancellation can deal with sharp and sudden sounds like that. It would have to be a lot more clever and a lot more active. It might end up blowing your brain up if it gets it wrong.

Noise isolation is suited to that job but it doesn't seem to be mentioned very often. Less sexy I guess.

[jodypress]

khushy said:

looking for a pair of top quality bluetooth cans that I can connect to streaming music and/or my phone to make/receive calls with

IDEALLY with BIG oversized ear pads - as I have huge lugs lol

£ no object

I started out with the Parrot Zik 3. Great sound, lovely touch system on headphone (similar to Sony xm3) and app to tweak. Just had terrible battery life. I then went for the Sennheiser Momentum Wireless in white. Lovely pair of cans. Really like them and with great battery life. No app, but not that fussed.

For work use I have the Plantronics Voyager B825-M Focus UC with dedicated mic. I bolded that bit as all other bt headphones are rubbish with mic when trying to hold phone calls. Don't bother...lol.

[GetCarter]

Sony's are good.

Also punching way above their weight: https://www.amazon.co.uk/OPPO-PM-3BK-PM-3-Headphon...

I'm using these when I really want to hear what I recorded. Very accurate.

Edited by GetCarter on Monday 6th July 14:47

[Mezzanine]

GetCarter said:

Sony's are good.

Also punching way above their weight: https://www.amazon.co.uk/OPPO-PM-3BK-PM-3-Headphon...

I'm using these when I really want to hear what I recorded. Very accurate.

Edited by GetCarter on Monday 6th July 14:47

Much more visually attractive as well. Obviously not important but still...

[khushy]

Went for a set of HiFiMan Ananda BT - ordered yesterday - arrived today - sound and work great so far - only gripe is that the mic is VERY short - ordered a longer one which should just plug in

Cheers for the recomendation

[dickymint]

khushy said:

Went for a set of HiFiMan Ananda BT - ordered yesterday - arrived today - sound and work great so far - only gripe is that the mic is VERY short - ordered a longer one which should just plug in

Cheers for the recomendation

well you did say money no object ...........and jug ears

[conkerman]

Nice!

Enjoy the purchase.

[Mezzanine]

Well I ordered a pair of the Sony XM3’s based on this thread - should be arriving tomorrow.