Which Headphones?

jamieh

Hi all,

I'm planning on buying a new set of earphones - something small ...possibly in-ear?

My budget is around €150.

I'm thinking about Bang & Olfusen A8's or maybe a pair of Shure in ears.


Any advice?

pleasant Co.

Martin over at anythingbutipod has put together a very good spreadsheet of different IEM's. As with everything sound related it's highly opinionated, but martin's a good judge in my experience.

Comparison of 29 IEM's

Brian

Other resources:

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f103/multiple-iem-shootout-v-3-a-450407/

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f103/multi-iem-review-thread-a-453836/

Get reading

jamieh

Hi all,

Thanks for the replies.

Currently looking at Shure e530's online.

Has anyone ever heard them? (I'm just going by Internet reviews)

Brian

Are they your first earphones? They're good, but a hell of a lot of money.

DiarmaidGNR

That is a ridiculous amount of money to spend on headphones!!!!! I bought a brilliant pair of sony inner ear headphones for like €12 euro on ebay, - they retail for around €65.

Just take a look around the online shops and you are guaranteed a bargain, But if you spend more than €50 euro on headphones - that you WILL lose or break, - you sir, are an idiot. You must be the same person that spends €100 euro on a HDMI lead!!!!

cnocbui

DiarmaidGNR wrote: »

That is a ridiculous amount of money to spend on headphones!!!!! I bought a brilliant pair of sony inner ear headphones for like €12 euro on ebay, - they retail for around €65.

Just take a look around the online shops and you are guaranteed a bargain, But if you spend more than €50 euro on headphones - that you WILL lose or break, - you sir, are an idiot. You must be the same person that spends €100 euro on a HDMI lead!!!!

So you are saying that no headphones could possibly sound better than the ones you bought for €12?

OP: Take a look online for reviews of Audo Technica earphones and headphones. They are usually rated very highly.

Brian

DiarmaidGNR wrote: »

That is a ridiculous amount of money to spend on headphones!!!!! I bought a brilliant pair of sony inner ear headphones for like €12 euro on ebay, - they retail for around €65.

Just take a look around the online shops and you are guaranteed a bargain, But if you spend more than €50 euro on headphones - that you WILL lose or break, - you sir, are an idiot. You must be the same person that spends €100 euro on a HDMI lead!!!!

I find your argument unconvincing. Probably because you used the word "brilliant" and "sony" in a sentence related to earphones.

If you had gotten MDR-V6s for €12, I would have been impressed.

cnocbui wrote: »

OP: Take a look online for reviews of Audo Technica earphones and headphones. They are usually rated very highly.

Audio Technica are a good shout, but they're mainly emphasized towards headphones (AD700, A700, ESW7, M50 are all popular for a good reason) and their earphones are very pricey. They perform well though.

DominoDub

My Favs are Sennheiser IE7 the best I have ever bought ! some good deals in the UK to be got

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f103/sennheiser-ie7-appreciation-thread-420590/

DiarmaidGNR

cnocbui wrote: »

So you are saying that no headphones could possibly sound better than the ones you bought for €12?

To a certain degree - yes.
If you really want better sound - rip all of your music again to a high bitrate (320kbps +)
Price does not necessarily equal quality. All you are paying for is the obscure expensive sounding label.
Just look at some reviews to find a decent set..

pleasant Co.

DiarmaidGNR wrote: »

If you really want better sound - rip all of your music again to a high bitrate (320kbps +)

That is part of the equation of better sound quality (I wouldn't recommend using 320kbs on the go but whatever). If you really want better sound quality, raising the bitrate will not make a big impact unless you are going from a pitifully low bitrate like 128kbs mp3/aac, but if that's the case I doubt you would be in search of a good set of headphones.

DiarmaidGNR wrote: »

Price does not necessarily equal quality

A fair assumption and a mantra everyone should stick by [sensibly], which is why doing research on what you intend on buying is always recommended. You'll often find when price is taken out of the equation that the better headphones will still be the expensive ones.

DiarmaidGNR wrote: »

All you are paying for is the obscure expensive sounding label.

Nonsense, at this point you're speaking entirely from your hindquarters.

DiarmaidGNR wrote: »

Just look at some reviews to find a decent set..

That would be good advice is you'd offered the OP a few sets of headphones to check out, rather than advising him/her to read a few random reviews of random headphones which he/she could have done without your help.

cnocbui

DiarmaidGNR wrote: »

To a certain degree - yes.
If you really want better sound - rip all of your music again to a high bitrate (320kbps +)
Price does not necessarily equal quality. All you are paying for is the obscure expensive sounding label.
Just look at some reviews to find a decent set..

Post you proposition that nothing could possibly sound better than what you have over at head-fi.org and see what sort of response you get. ;-)

I disagree with you entirely. My Sony headphones cost £165 back in 1995 and were worth every cent and I have not lost them. Their sound quality is legendary on Headfi.

In my testing, you don't need anything like 320kbps to be indistinguishable sonically from the original source. I rip at 224 kbps AAC and I know that is overkill. 160 would probably be transparent for 99% of possible music samples. 192 kbs for MP3 is fine for the majority of material.

in this gadgetshow episode - http://fwd.five.tv/gadget-show/videos/top-5/top-5-headphones - they tested 31 pairs of headphones from £25 to £600 in price.

Their top rated headphone cost £380.72

cnocbui

Baza210 wrote: »

Audio Technica are a good shout, but they're mainly emphasized towards headphones (AD700, A700, ESW7, M50 are all popular for a good reason) and their earphones are very pricey. They perform well though.

Thanks.

I mentioned Audio Technica as they topped a Timesonline review a couple of years ago. I have now found the article and they are within the OP's budget:

BEST FOR: AUDIOPHILES
AUDIO TECHNICA ATH-CK9 £130

http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/personal_tech/test_bench/article4487830.ece

rednik

In my opinion you are mad spending a lot of money on in ear headphones. Why. In my own experience I have had two pairs of Shure headphones, I bought the E2c first and they lasted over a year before one side packed in. I then bought the SE210 and same again they packed in just over a year in use. I won't deny the sound difference is amazing but the cost in replacing them is just not worth it. Currently I am using sennheiser CX550's and these cost 55 euro which is probably half what I have paid, but their is no difference in sound. Cheap headphones are a no no but good headphones don't have to cost an arm and a leg.

Brian

cnocbui wrote: »

http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/personal_tech/test_bench/article4487830.ece

Unfortunately headphone and earphone reviews from general-interest sources like newspapers, and even CNet, Gizmodo, Engadget are usually rubbish.

pleasant Co.

OP,

How about the Jays Qjays, they're quite good value for money these days, I think they go for about €120 on ebay.

cnocbui

Baza210 wrote: »

Unfortunately headphone and earphone reviews from general-interest sources like newspapers, and even CNet, Gizmodo, Engadget are usually rubbish.

Prove it.

Brian

Well, for instance, they consider things like appearance (which it my mind is quite irrelevant, especially with earphones) and generally review mainstream brands that are usually outperformed by lesser known and cheaper pairs.

I'm not saying the CK9s are bad, because I'm quite certain they're not, and I'm a fan of Audio-Technicas in general, but a newpaper's general consumer electronics editor is not going to be as in-tune and up to date as the hardcore enthusiasts you find on head-fi and other such fora.

jamieh

Hi all,

thanks for all the advice.

I've gone for the Shure SE530's ...retail for 400-500 and I've got them for 220 on eBay.

Hopefully their as good as the reviews say!

Brian

Best of luck with them.

jamieh

Baza210 wrote: »

Best of luck with them.

Cheers Baz...I'll let u know how I get on.

Hope their worth the extra cash ...doubting myself after reading this thread

jeremyr62

I have the Shure SE310s and they are great. You can clearly hear the difference between these and cheaper headphones. They seem pretty robust too and are very well made. The only issue with them is the soft foam tips (you get three sizes in the box) tend to pull off the clear silicone rubber cylinder that fits onto the actual headphone unit. If you are careful you can stick them back on or buy new tips as they are cheap enough.

Good luck with your Ebay purchase. You're brave. AFAIK there are plenty of fakes out there so I hope the seller has good feedabck.

jamieh

Hey - thanks for the advice.

I've never actually heard Shure earphones before so good to hear that the SE310's are good ...step in the right direction.

Ebay seller has 100% rating ...I got them so "cheap" because their used .... new tips included thank God

cnocbui

Baza210 wrote: »

I'm not saying the CK9s are bad, because I'm quite certain they're not, and I'm a fan of Audio-Technicas in general, but a newpaper's general consumer electronics editor is not going to be as in-tune and up to date as the hardcore enthusiasts you find on head-fi and other such fora.

Can a person go to Head-Fi and find a chart listing all headphones and earphones, by price category, that represents the consensus view of the users of that forum? If they could, I would agree with you, but that isn't the situation, is it? Anyone seeking advice will be bombarded by multiple opinions with no easy way to sort the informed from the merely opinionated.

People looking for a recommendation need something like the Timesonline one, or even better, the Gadgetshow one I posted.

Aesthetics should not be the principle criteria in choosing headphones or earphones, agreed, but most people do take aesthetics into account when buying things, be it their clothes, car or cutlery.

Media reviews may not be definitive, but for most people they are useful. I posted the link to the review as I thought it was useful in and of itself, and with the secondary thought that someone seeing that it existed, might be inspired to do a search for some more reviews and thereby see if one brand or model was consistently rated highly. For instance, if you looked at both those 'worthless' reviews I posted, an inquiring mind might note that Denon was the second highest rated brand in both.

Such a sign of consistency can be useful.

Brian

cnocbui wrote: »

Can a person go to Head-Fi and find a chart listing all headphones and earphones, by price category, that represents the consensus view of the users of that forum? If they could, I would agree with you, but that isn't the situation, is it? Anyone seeking advice will be bombarded by multiple opinions with no easy way to sort the informed from the merely opinionated.

Actually, if you take a look at my signature you'll get something quite close

mossie

If I can take this thread in a slightly different direction. I don't like in-ear phones and would prefer on-ear or over ear models. I have a pair of AKG K26P phones which are OK but not brilliant. Any recommendations, please?

Brian

Sennheiser PX100, JVC HA-M750, AKG K81DJ, Sony MDR-V6 (not similar looking V600), Audio-Technica ATH-ES7.

Increasing price.

cnocbui

Baza210 wrote: »

Actually, if you take a look at my signature you'll get something quite close

Yep, your signature is most informative, like the sound of one hand clapping.

pleasant Co.

Right lads, back on topic please.