If you leave them at home, the day is immediately and markedly more intolerable. If you don’t have a good set at work, the day to day minutia becomes harder.
I’m talking about headphones, an essential tool for anyone who commutes, works in an office or games.
Headphones have always been the one thing I’ve been happy to spend a bit of money on. And I haven’t traditionally gone with gaming headphones or gaming headsets. I like the higher end equipment — the Audio Technica’s, Beyerdynamic’s, AKGs, things that are a Little Bit Fancier.
I still long for the day that Phillips remakes their giant cans with the big blue earpads. The HP890’s aren’t sold any more, although I’d probably fork out the money for them if a pair popped online on Amazon or something. Loved them that much.
Right now my work headphones are the closed Audio Technica ATH-A550Z headphones. They’re not too bad — not the nicest build quality, and being closed means the audio will suffer a little. But it does the job and I didn’t have to fork out more than $200, so I’m fairly happy with the purchase.
What headphones do you use on a day to day basis, and how much did you spend?
Comments
42 responses to “Off Topic: Headphones”
Bose QC20. I saved up for months for it, worth is (bought online, no way am I paying $400 for them). For commuting, it’s very good. I get annoyed when I forget to charge the battery and have no noise cancelling.
I have these. Although part of the rubber coating is peeling off the rectangular unit after repeated pocket insertions/removals, the sound quality is superb and the noise reduction is astonishingly effective.
My only complaint is the flimsy volume/mic box thingy. It shouldn’t feel so cheap on earphones/headphones this expensive. Thankfully the rubber coating on the rectangular battery unit isn’t worn out on mine… yet.
If you’re not rocking Audio Technica’s M50s when you’re out and about, you’re not rocking.
Aside from those, I use a set of ADG1s as my PC gaming headset. They’re comfy as hell, sound fantastic and the mic is decent enough that my Youtube videos don’t sound like total arse.
In a pinch I had to grab some Razer Chroma Kraken luminescent headphones, I think the models are about to be refreshed so the pair I bought was marked down….$165 I think.
This was last month.
I’m still working my way through calibrating them, on the box it says the set is supposed to work with PS4 but is that accurate? I think the Headset App is only for Official Playstation sets. I don’t think the surround sound works as well as it should be.
On the PC however, which was the primary reason for buying them after never using headphones before (always been used to earphones, with the 3DS/etc), is my neck and shoulders supposed to hurt this much? They are huge and like I said they glow in the dark, I’m having an interesting time to say the least.
I definitely feel weird playing games without them now, so there’s that.
What are some good games (or other media, like Netflix?) to test out a surround sound headset experience?
Gym: Beats Studio Wireless 2.0. People can sledge as much as they like, but these sound awesome (WAY better than original Beats 1.0 models), comfortable for long periods, fairly compact for over-ears, good battery and no wires is essential for lifting.
Out and about: BOSE QC20i in-ears. Great sound, and still work when battery runs out in noise cancelling dongle. Dongle is cumbersome though, and stay-hear tips can get uncomfortable is you wear them a lot or for long periods.
OR: Samsung bundled earbuds. Surprisingly good sound and tangle free cords make them easy to use.
PC I have Astro A40s.
I find choosing headphones impossible cause they need to be durable but the make them out of such weak mechanisms and materials.
Nearly all use PU leatherette now… and that stuff is pure junk it deteriorates so quickly and feels yucky too me. I need breathable cloth / valour fabric and they are so rare today… even the A40s they have a cloth cups but found out it has a PU inner lining thats totally falling apart @$@!#.
Also they cant have folds joints (they break), need a detachable cable from one side (cables break and bend too and need replacing). Need to fit over my big head and ears too… so few choices
PU leather is the worst, headset may last longer but with crap flaking off all the time not a pleasant experience.
Currently use a Platronics Gamescom 760, never use the mic.
I have a few. An Audio Technica AD-900 lives at my desk in my home office on top of one of these headphone stands: http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Wooden-Headset-Earphone-Headphone-U-shape-Display-Stand-Hanger-Holder-Rack-/141855777487?hash=item21074362cf:g:xM0AAOSw1S9Wc9Fc
Got the AD900 hooked up to an Audiolab Q-DAC. I use it as an external DAC and headphone amp. It’s also quite handy because it takes digital audio connections from my PC, Mac and my PS4.
I also have some Etymotic HF5 canalphones. They’ve lasted about 8 years or so I think. They still work, but the cable is starting to detach. I don’t use them as much, but the passive noise isolation is really great.
Also have a Bose QC35 (the new Bluetooth ones) which are great for commuting and travelling or even just to wear when vacuuming at home. Don’t pay retail price for these though. You can get them for $399. There’s a Whirlpool forum thread where you can get some receipt scans to help with getting the price down.
I also have a pair of Philips Fidelio L1 headphones in the cupboard as a present for the wife’s birthday at the end of the year 🙂
I’m with you Alex. I can’t stand ‘gaming’ headsets.
Turtle Beach Z60 for my PC for everything except a couple of games that don’t play nice with USB headphones (eg. Rocksmith), for which I have a ratty old pair of Sennheiser HD4xx (can’t remember the exact model). Sony’s wireless stereo headset for my PS4, swapping to the Z60s if they run out of charge. Have a month-old pair of Sennheiser HD461i’s that I use for commuting/work, but they already need a new cable – the one that came with them caused really crackly audio, and the backup I’m using that came with the other Sennheisers seems to be missing the right speaker audio.
At home I have my Audio Technica ATH-M50 but, when I go out, then I just plug in a set of Marley Smile Jamaica in-ear which have surprisingly good sound. I don’t take the M50’s out ’cause I don’t often carry a bag with me to put them away when I need to.
I really need to splash out and get a decent headset for the computer though.
Sennheiser HD 201, $20-something after discount code on The Good Guys’ eBay store. It’s an entry-level set of over-ear cans, which I use for general purposes from music to gaming. Somewhere down the line I’d like to buy a premium set of headphones with noise-cancellation and better dynamic range.
Got a Turtle Beach XO Seven for xbox. Couldn’t be happier, doesn’t need batteries and the sound is great. Use it on PC sometimes as well.
For commuting I have Beyerdynamic XP3 in-ears, they are super well built with metal bodies and tangle free cord, nicely bass-biased (rap fan) and reasonably priced – $69 iirc. For gaming (on pc) Audio Technica AD700x – very wide soundstage and neutral tone, also nicely light and comfortable for long sessions, materials aren’t amazing but since they don’t really leave the pc i can live with that.
Don’t use headphones as much as some but Senheisser do me well for when I do.
Have cheap in-ear buds for phone music and a mid range open ear set for gaming.
At work I use Sennheiser HD 280 Pros. I Have another pair at home.
At home I have Astro A50s for gaming.
I likw them both. Sennheisers are monitor headphones, and the sound is near perfect.
The A50s… eh, they’re an expensive set and I’ve yet to use a pair of gaming headphones that reach the quality of real headphones. They’re good for what they are I suppose.
I have a Shure SH840 for my desktop; it was recommended by PC Powerplay back in the day. For out-and-about use I have a pair of Sennheiser in-ears.
Parrot Zik 2.0’s. Cost a fair bit, but still going strong and they sound incredible.
I have a cheap pair of Philips headphones that use for the PS4 ($50ish), but the headphones I use for running are much more important to me. I have a pair of the these (http://www.philips.com.au/c-p/SHQ7300OR_00/actionfit-bluetooth-sports-headphone), and they are really comfortable to run with. My only complaint is they are are little too noise-cancelling, which is not too safe for road running.
I have Sacred Sound earbuds for work and another pair for jogging. They’re ultra cheap but have a brilliant sound. The one downside is that they’re pretty fragile. I’ve had a few pairs die on me. But they cost about $20 and sound better than $100 Sennies.
I have Roccat Kave Analog 5.1’s for PC gaming, Turtle Beach XP510’s for console gaming, ATH-M50’s for listening to music, and a pair of Razer Electra’s that I use while doing housework/gardening. The Electra’s are pretty cheap but they sound amazing. You won’t get the detail you get from the Audio Technica’s but they had excellent bass and a decent range. Ugly as they come though.
V-Moda Cross fade M-100. Not cheap, but sound quality is fantastic for music.
For games I loved my ATH-ADG1s.
General Listening: Audio Technica ATH-M50x – Awesome headphones for the price that genuinely make any quality of music sound even better!
Gaming/Music On Computer: Sennheiser PC 363D – A ‘gaming’ branded headset, but basically a set of HD 558’s with a microphone. Amazing open-back sound.
DJ/EDM Headset: Sennheiser HD 8 – Perfect headphones for beat matching and enjoying the bass in EDM without losing all of the other frequencies. Absolutely love these.
Shure SE215 everywhere. Just a great all-round pick at a good price point (under 100 AUD when I nabbed them).
Beyerdynamic DT-990 Premiums 250 ohm. Amazing cans for immersive gaming (or music). Huge soundstage and punchy, deep base which is hard to find in open back cans. Though needs a decent amp to drive these bad boys. Picked up fro $280 from amazon.co.uk like a year ago, rrp $400 here. Probably cheaper now the sterling is .60 v AUD.
For travel or train commute its Audio Technica ACN9 noise cancellers. Three modes and great sound. BOSE have waaaay too much bass vs no mids for me.
I have a pair of TDK ST560S headphones that I use for music, and a Skullcandy PLYR1 7.1 headset that I use for pc gaming.
Sennheiser Game One headset. I know it is meant for gaming but I use them for my overseas video conferences which happen on a daily basis.
For travel, again Sennheiser but the PXC 450; the only head set just strong enough to cut the noise of screaming kids down to a dull roar.
The latter one is special as I found an Australian based Web site that sold them at almost half the $750 price tag.
Just goes to show even local Australian businesses can compete with online if they choose to (YOU LISTENING, GERRY HARVEY ET. AL.?!).
Sennheiser HD25s, bought 18 years ago and have replaced some of the parts along the way.
Using some Tenqa wireless on ears after moving to iPhone 7, and considering the next pair of on/over ears that are wireless – QC35 or Momentum…
I have a few that I use regularly.
My Yamaha HPH MT220’s live at my desk and get used for gaming/music/computer-y stuff. I have a pair of Ultimate Ears Triple.Fi 10’s which I use when walking/commuting, but I’m considering getting something a bit cheaper because I’m always worried I’m going to lose/break them which would be annoying because they’re not cheap.
I also bought a pair of Sony ZX310’s last week for $14 from TGG’s that I keep at my bed for listening to podcasts and that. I did have a pair of Logitech UE6000’s for that job but they died 🙁
Bose QC35’s which are fantastic for zoning out. I also have a pair of Monster Inspirations which the wife uses since I picked up the QC’s. I was looking at the Sennheiser Momentum 2.0’s but couldn’t justify paying twice the price of the QC’s for somewhat better sound with worse noise cancellation.
I have Beats Pro for home and Urbeats for the office when listening to music.
I have some HD598s for movies and gaming at home and PXC450’s for Travel. Checked out the Bose QC range but i preferred the Sennheiser’s myself.
Audio-technica ATH-M40x for music at work. Got them for $127, very happy with them.
Turtle Beach x12 for PC at home/gaming. Mainly because they have a mic and amplified via USB gives nice bass for explosions 🙂 Got these for $35 in California 4 years ago and have been very impressed for the price.
For day to day stuff I’ve just got a cheap $20 pair of phillips ones for work and riding home because nothing else really fits comfortably under my helmet and they only tend to last a few months at a time. Learnt that the hard way after shelling out for multiple $100 sets.
For pc I’ve got a pair of Razer electras that do an alright job and for console gaming I’ve got a pair of Razer kraken pros because the cable for my blackshark headset broke and I haven’t gotten to fix them yet
I have a pair of Plantronics Backbeat Sense bluetooth headphones that I got last year during one of those ebay 20% off deals.
They sound pretty good but equally important for me is that they are so practical.
By which I mean they are so light and comfortable I can wear them for hours, battery life is rated at 18 hours but actually lasts over 20 hours and the auto-pause and resume when I lift them off or put them on is a really nice touch too.
Audio-Technica ATH-A500x for me, got them second hand (almost new) for about $90. I’m not sure how they compare to some of the real fancy ones, but they are the best I’ve listened to and some of the most comfortable to boot.
I bought an Audio Technica ATH-M70x for recording and mixing, but I use ’em while playing the PS4 as well. Beautiful, rich sound and comfy on the noggin.
I picked up a pair of Steelseries Siberia 200 gamer’s headphones under the impression that they’d be decent middle of the road cans for general computer usage. While the sound is a marked improvement over my old duct-taped Logitech headphones, they are far and away the least comfortable I’ve ever used, clamping tightly over my ears and putting an uncomfortable amount of pressure on contact.
Moral of the story – always do your research before buying, especially for something that varies as wildly in quality as headphones.
Don’t do that brand = quality thing, I use AKG K553s and K240s almost every day, but their low end range is mostly pretty awful, just like it would be for every other company.
Quality has little to do with brands most of the time, the one thing you can usually assign to brands are certain predilections towards particular sound signatures (for example Sennheiser typically tend towards a warmer sound with a rolled off high frequency range, AKG typically sound more neutral and emphasise the top end slightly) or design philosophies (only matters if it affects comfort in my eyes), but even that should only ever be judged on a case by case basis.
Got my hands on the Plantronics Backbeat Pro+ recently, and couldn’t be happier. For the sheer versatility of them, they are fantastic.
AiAiAi TMA-2 modular (w/ S04 drivers and over-ear cups) for audio production and gaming at home. Great, neutral sound and big bass reproduction.
I use the Bang and Olufsen H6 for everyday use at work, crystal clear mids and treble. lighter on the bass – pretty nice and really comfortable and light.
I also have the Xbox Stereo Headset as something i can throw around the lounge-room and not worry about ruining a $400 pair of headphones 😛 They’re better than they have any right to be at $60. Good for voice chat.
I HAD a $300 pair of Turtle Beach cans for XB1 and they were horrible sound-quality wise and comfort wise. They were SO tight. The official Xbox cans beat them hands down in every regard.
I use a pair of earphones that came with my sister’s Sony Walkman, they’d probably be about 20 years old now. They live in my DS/3DS pouch, and that’s mostly what they get used for. Otherwise at my PC I use whatever crappy headphones are available (don’t use speakers at all) – and swap them out with whatever’s in the Cupboard Of Mystery once the left speaker dies, as it always seems to do. Current pair… also appear to be Sony. And have a code on them too! MDR-007. Woo 😛
Actually come to think of it I did win a Plantronic Rig pair thanks to Zangief last year. But I find that sort that cups your ears to be too bulky and uncomfortable to use, also they make a lot of heat build up. The amp/switcher thing they come with is cool though.
Recently got some Bose QC25s and I am hooked. It’s become an office joke to try to scare me when I am working because I now hear nothing around me. Before that I had some Logitech G35 headphones for gaming which were pretty nice but the vinyl came off the cups and they were quite heavy.
Grado Labs SR60 open back for PC/VR so I can kinda hear what’s going on in the real world.