4 ms·
Sennbeiser HD600 or HD650 (very similar sound), AKG K7XX, Hifiman HE400. All open. Many other nice open headphones on the market, but those are best bang per bu
by gcv 12y ago
Sennbeiser HD600 or HD650 (very similar sound), AKG K7XX, Hifiman HE400. All open. Many other nice open headphones on the market, but those are best bang per buck. For closed, most are not good except the Beyerdynamic DT770 (and the far pricier Fostex TH900).
You may consider an external DAC and amplifier if you listen to a laptop — this will help with case noise and power. Beware, however: this is where you get close to snake oil products. Most amps do not make a difference, and a lot depends on your source. An iPhone is an excellent source for most headphones, for example (including all of the above). A reasonable DAC-amp combo is the O2+ODAC, and it is DIY if you can solder. The Schiit stuff in the link above is pretty meh, even though it is often recommended (crappy volume pot in the cheaper units).
- slantedview 12y agoI'd second the AKG K7XX and the Hifiman HE400. Both great headphones for the cost.
- DiabloD3 12y agoI don't recommend the HE-400, but the HE-400i instead. The HE-400 has the old Hifiman headband, the old pads, and the old cable, and suffers from a boomy bass issue. Replacing the pads and cables (absolutely required, new pads fix boomy bass issue some but not all, old cable breaks easily) raise the cost to be almost as much as the HE-400i, and you can't ever fix the headband issue. The HD650/HD650 and AKG K701/Q701/Kxx/K712 family however I do agree with. Also, the DT770 isn't fully closed, its semi-open. The DT990 also isn't fully open, its semi-open. They are merely closer to each end of the spectrum, with DT880 in the middle of semi-open, but they're ALL semi-open. Disclosure: Former DT880/600 Premium owner, current HE-400i owner.