If the Sennheiser PX100 headphones are the best portable headphones I ever heard, then the Sennheiser HD595 are easily the best high-end headphones I ever owned. I knew my Sony MDR-V600s were considered below average by audiophiles, but the HD595s actually make them sound like a $10 piece of shit.

So yeah, these Sennheisers are easily some of the best investments I ever made. You really don't know what you're missing until you try them yourself.

Nice - I really need a good set of headphones. How do these do for muffling outside noise?

Fuck those. Get a pair of Studio Kans.

I just bought those Sennheiser HD-555's.

Im not a fan of Senns.. we had them in our lab in graduate school. They were ok.. but meh. Esp. at that price there is serious competition out there. TO sound like a parrot, check out the Grados.

Hum.

*rubs hands together in a 'plotting' kind of way*


*scratches goatee*

Hum.


Hey... on a gear-related note... I found a subwoofer on the street the other day. It had a sign on it that said: "free working subwoofer".

Had that thing in a cab ride home in about 2 seconds.

I believe they're "open," so they do not do well for muffling outside noise.

I'll still rep my Beyerdynamic DT770s http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/DT770pro/

I've had these for about a year or so now. LOVE them.

But I should confess, that I have 20 pair of Senns HD202s sitting in my lab right now. I use them for the participants in my experiments since they are really cheap and have an effective range for the human voice. I should raffle off pairs.. Id give them away to Obnerish.. but Im too lazy to go to the postoffice

could anybody recommend me a pair in the $50-75 range? i'm sure the $200 headphones are great, but i can't afford that on public interest money.

what are you looking for dru? Portable? Living room use? Best Bang for the buck?

If you are just looking for the best drivers in headphone, have a decent system and plan on just using it inside, then the Grados are choice. I wouldnt recommend them for outdoors though, they are large dorky looking and are rather open headphones.

I'll second the Grado SR-60s.

portable isn't really a factor. i'll primarily be using them for listening to music at home and doing some mixing. do you have a link to the grados?

Id plurge on the SR-80s but if $$ is a real issue, then the SR-60s are best buy

http://www.gradolabs.com/product_pages/sr60.htm

http://www.gradolabs.com/product_pages/sr80.htm

*All* the money is in the driver, the headphones themselves look rather chintzy, but they are comfortable to my head at least

Actually that site I linked would be good for you to look through for comparison in your price range. The reviews are pretty straightforward and honest, and they are supposedly excellent to deal with when ordering.

I'm looking for something with a retractable wire so shit stops getting tangled in my bag.

use sandwich ties

I don't like folding the wires up as it tends to break the connections inside, as does pulling them out when they are snagged on something inside.
I want something that will be fast and easy.

And who actually uses sandwich ties anymore? They don't even come in the boxes of little baggies anymore. You are supposed to just fold or use the ziplock.

well my thinking was this: if you are buying headphones because of retractable wires, odds are the headphones are shit.. i..e they sell the phones because of the wires, not the sound. So why not just get good headphones use a tie and then replace them when 'folding leads to breaking connections (which sure if you fold them 180 degrees back on themselves...but Ive never had a problem).. ah well, to each his/her own

They aren't closed headphones, so if that's what you're looking for you probably shouldn't buy them. In fact, I don't think I ever bought a pair of closed or noise-reducing headphones.



I heard people say that the 500-series is better than the 600-series, so I think we both made the right choice and saved some money in the process.

$$$

The studio kans have an 1/8th inch jack (standard miniplug) in one of the ear pieces so you can replace cords if you get a short. You can also have mini to mini for your ipod or mini to quarter inch for your stereo at home. Also, there's a volume control right on one of the ear pieces. Large liquid filled cushions give you a 29 dB cut from the outside world so you can listen to your music at a reasonable volume instead of drowning out the outside world with potentially harmful levels.

They're designed for drummers in recording studios, but I haven't come across a better set of phones in their price range, for what they do, that is, serious isolation.