Hey guys, I am looking for some high-quality headphones for home use. The most important thing for me is the sound quality and the wearing comfort (my ears shouldn't hurt after listening to music two hours). I had the chance to test the Sennheiser HD-650 at work and have to say that there is a big difference between them and my PX-100. However, 250 € is a pretty high price to pay for a pair of headphones. Would you say that the HD-595 for half the money have a similar quality? Any other recommendations for 150 - 200 €?

Sure, the PX-100 and the HD-650 sound completely different, they are also in a different price-range.

Personally I really like Grado headphones. They are open and sound very natural. Compared to others they might be a bit brighter, but I like that. I have the SR-325i which cost about 300 Euro I think. But also the SR-225 for about 200 sounds very good. A lot people like them even more than the SR-325i.

Definitely worth a look: http://www.gradolabs.com/product_pages/sr225.htm

Big_Berny

I would say that, yeah. I haven't done any kind of extended "benchmark" listening with the 595, but my impression is that they offer a similar experience to the HD-650, which I've had for about four months now.

If you're looking to use these for monitoring purposes, I'd probably suggest springing for the HD-650. They'll very likely end up being the last cans you ever have to buy.

I have used the Sennheiser hd-600s for several years and found them physically comfortable for listening sessions of several hours length. When I bought them the hd-650s had just been released and, although they sounded slightly different and, possibly, slightly better, the extra money did not seem worthwhile to me and so I went for the hd-600s. When they eventually fail I am quite likely to replace them with the same again.

Headphones vary quite a lot in sound and, as suggested by Berny, some people certainly prefer the more forward sound typical of Grados compared to the more laid back sound typical of Sennheisers.

I use a pair of 595's at work and, while I haven't heard the 650's to compare, I can say that to my ears they are great sounding headphones, very neutral sounding I think. I love them

Grado: top-notch, but...

- damn expensive in Germany (or europe in general) - but still worth the price imho
- many people criticize the comfort as Grados are supraaural (only the GS1000 is circumarual)


Another idea could be Beyerdynamic headphones: DT-700, DT-880, DT-990 (2005 editions). Not as neutral as grado or AKG, but it's really fun listening to these.


@Sebastian: What's your amp/source?

You're right. I'm from Switzerland where the prices are the same as in switzerland if not even more expensive. But the price I posted before already was the European price. So if he gets it in the USA it will be even cheaper.
About the comfort you're right. Some people like it, some people don't. I also tested some different pads - which changes the sound surprisingly much IMHO. But I like the original ones the most although I reversed them.

Big_Berny

Alessandro Music Series

http://www.alessandro-products.com/headphones.html

Sennheiser 595 is good.

Might also want to give a listen to AKG.

You might want to give the audio technica A900ti a try besides ATH-A950LTD. These phones will be worth the money just for home use.

In my opinion, in a somewhat expensive but still somewhat reasonably priced and definitely worth the money price range, there are no better sounding headphones than the Ultrasone Pro 750 headphones (formerly called "Proline 750") or the Ultrasone Pro 2500 headphones. The Pro 750's are a closed back design and Pro 2500 are an open back design. Both models sound very similar to each other. I recommend highly that you check out these headphones. I have heard a number of headphones over the years and I have never heard better, more natural, more articulate sounding headphones ever. Both of these models retail for around $400.
In most cases, I would say that for normal home (non-studio, non recording) applications, open back headphones probably sound better than closed back headphones. In the case of the Ultrasone line however, I have never heard an open back headphone that sounds better than the closed back Ultrasone Pro 750.
Also, they are very comfortable for long listening sessions.
Go to this website for more info: www.ultrasone.com.

Planing to buy an external soundcard and I also have a cMoy pocket amp.

I am not a big fan of AKG because the models I tried tend to emphasize the highs somewhat.

As sound quality is most important for you, I wouldn't spend over 200€ for 300 ohms headphones (HD650) when you're planning using it with your cMoy. It could not push the headphones to the limit (volume and sq-wise).
In this case I would tend to the HD595 (50 ohms) which should be a lot easier to drive and save some money.

Anyway, for best sound quality, you should consider buying a "real" amp.

I have audio techinca A900ti, they are good!

If you liked the HD650 so much, but need a much cheaper alternative, look for a factory refurbished Sennheiser HD-580. It has the same drivers and frame(just different grill and color) as the HD600, and HD600/580 is very similar to the HD650 in all ways. You should find 580 for well under $200USD.

-Chris

HD 595 here, which fit my large ears It was not the case with the AKG140 of Philips 890 I had before.
A true heaphone amp is mandatory, anyway.(Expect more than 200€)
As usual, try (both)before you buy.
Some amps have an USB input, if you don't have a good soundcard.

"To nobody, except those who will take pleasure here"
(Franz Schubert, 01/31/1797 - 11/19/1828)

Another vote for the Grados (resp. Alessandros). Even the cheapest model SR-60 is great.
Comfort is ok to me though I would prefer it circumaural too.

I have Sennheiser HD 215 (closed) and I cannot complain. They're not that ovebassed as other headphones but they have very natural sound.

I was going to suggest the same! I've been using HD-580 for many years (I'm using it right now, actually), and they serve me very well. I had to replace the cable once - HD-600/580 cables are a bit delicate. Also, in mu opinion 580 are much better-looking than 600!