Headphones question...
Discussion
I'm looking to buy some new headphones to compliment my iPood. The question is 1. In ear or external ? (I will be using them outdoors and commuting etc) and 2. Which ones ? 
(budget of £150) I am aware that you can look like a tit with giant cans on your head...
(edited for spelling
)
(budget of £150) I am aware that you can look like a tit with giant cans on your head...(edited for spelling
)Edited by Frodo69 on Wednesday 10th December 17:51
Earbud quality is really good these days, if you get them make sure you get some with a moldable earpiece to make a seal and increase comfort.
That being said, for the price you're looking at earbud sound quality is only going to be so good, so external ones are going to be better, although they don't look as good and they're less practical to carry around.
150 for everyday earphones is quite a bit, are you a big stickler for sound quality. I've got a fairly good ear and my £45 Sony pair I've found quite good (my brother thinks the same). Koss make good earbuds too.
That being said, for the price you're looking at earbud sound quality is only going to be so good, so external ones are going to be better, although they don't look as good and they're less practical to carry around.
150 for everyday earphones is quite a bit, are you a big stickler for sound quality. I've got a fairly good ear and my £45 Sony pair I've found quite good (my brother thinks the same). Koss make good earbuds too.
basically you need to go and demo them
everyone has different tastes
go here as well: http://www.head-fi.org/
i tried the usual high quality in ear ones (shure, westone etc..) but IMO none could compare to a proper closed set of phones esp. for bass
i use sennhesier HD-25-1
on my second pair and swear by them
they have an incredible tight, bright sound with great bass
they are particularly good with the ipod phone jack as well which needs livening up a touch
they were actually designed for DJ's and monitoring (you see them on the television a lot) so they have a slightly supressed midrange which basiclaly means that you can listen to them for hours and hours without tiring.
everyone has different tastes
go here as well: http://www.head-fi.org/
i tried the usual high quality in ear ones (shure, westone etc..) but IMO none could compare to a proper closed set of phones esp. for bass
i use sennhesier HD-25-1
on my second pair and swear by them
they have an incredible tight, bright sound with great bass
they are particularly good with the ipod phone jack as well which needs livening up a touch
they were actually designed for DJ's and monitoring (you see them on the television a lot) so they have a slightly supressed midrange which basiclaly means that you can listen to them for hours and hours without tiring.
Edited by jackal on Wednesday 10th December 18:12
Bose Quiet Comfort 2's - absolutely fantastic. I've had mine for 4 years and still are like new. I use them for most of my commuting/travelling (Trains, Planes etc) with my ipod. In the US they are $249, a little over £150 but not sure what they cost in the UK.
Edited by Silver993tt on Wednesday 10th December 18:10
I'd go Sennheiser too, but it's personal preference. I have over-ear closed loop Sennys (they don't emit too much external noise). But Sure's are also worth a look. £150 will buy you a lot.
If you've only got mp3s up to 128mbps i wouldn't bother spending £150, the headphones won't be the bottleneck as it were.
If you've only got mp3s up to 128mbps i wouldn't bother spending £150, the headphones won't be the bottleneck as it were.
I've got the 210's and they're good enough for me. One thing to note about Shure type in-ear buds is that the bass relies on having a perfect seal between the bud and the ear. At first this can be quite difficult but once you've practiced putting them in a few times you soon get used to it. They come with 3 different types of bud in 3 different sizes each so you may have to play about with them at first to get that perfect seal. If you're a real bass head I'd go for 310's or above. The 210's have nice accurate bass, but its definitely not in your face.
Also, because they're designed to seal out external noise, you don't need to turn them up loud to drown out any background noise. I listen to my ipod at 1/4 volume and its more than fine, so you've got plenty of room to maneuver if you really do like your music loud.
Also, because they're designed to seal out external noise, you don't need to turn them up loud to drown out any background noise. I listen to my ipod at 1/4 volume and its more than fine, so you've got plenty of room to maneuver if you really do like your music loud.
Sorry for the hijack but...
What about on an aircraft, what's the best ear-phone for this?. Big noise canceling
cans or in ear. With the standard in-ear I-pod earphones used on an i-pod or lap-top
for movies the background noise blanks most of the sound you are trying to hear, do
you have to go for over ear noise canceling or are there in ear's that would do the job?
What about on an aircraft, what's the best ear-phone for this?. Big noise canceling
cans or in ear. With the standard in-ear I-pod earphones used on an i-pod or lap-top
for movies the background noise blanks most of the sound you are trying to hear, do
you have to go for over ear noise canceling or are there in ear's that would do the job?
Bearing in mind in most of the SQ tests I read the iPods did pretty badly so bearing in mind the whole crap in / crap out you'll be even more seriously wasting your money.
I am actually shocked on a regular basis as to how good my Sony NWZA818 and the Sennheiser's sound, they're that good but that's with 320kbps+ MP3s.
I am actually shocked on a regular basis as to how good my Sony NWZA818 and the Sennheiser's sound, they're that good but that's with 320kbps+ MP3s.
Frodo69 said:
If you've got a link to the £150 530's I'd be impressed ! Found them for £200 +
Ah well, the sterling has gone belly up against the dollar 
A month or so ago, you could get them from the states at around £150-160, now £200 seems to be the done deal.
Sennheiser IE7 are supposed to be very good, and around £150.
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