Looking for recommendations on good headphones

I am looking for a good pair of computer headphones...

Sound quality is, of course, key, though I consider sound quality only worthwhile if the things are comfortable... I'm also not a crazy audiophile, so even moderately good (by crazy sound-sensitive terms) would do it.
"Sound quality" for me would mean something suitable for anything ranging from quiet music up to overcomplicated games with huge ammounts of bass-filled noise. Lots and lots of good sound. Laptop speakers do not cut it.

Hm... while I'm waving around crazy wishes, one thing I would definitely enjoy is being able to hear my surroundings when necessary. I always consider people bozos when they can't hear people who are talking to them (even when said bozos are justifiably deaf due to headphones). I strive to not call myself a bozo.

Some that I have noticed:
-Plantronics .Audio 645
-Creative HS-900

Suggestions welcome!

I have Sennheiser HD 555's at work - very good and not expensive. Bought them some year or two ago, and they are still rocking.

http://www.headphone.com/products/headphones/full-size/sennheiser-hd-555.php
http://www.dansdata.com/hd555.htm

K 701 from AKG (very good and natural resolution in all frequencies)
-> http://www.akg.com/personal/cproducts/powerslave,id,911,pcategory,3,nodeid,11,_language,DE.html

RS1 from Grado Labs (warm and wonderful sound)
-> http://www.gradolabs.com/frameset_main.htm

There was a third great wood headphone once from Sony but it isn't available anymore. Obviously you also need a quality headphone amplifier. Once you have this setup you'll be able to listen to music and sounds in a completely different way and hear things you haven't heard before.

A good headphone amp is essential - I use a Naim Headline, around £500 but you can pick them up cheaper on Ebay.

Hi there,
I bought a creative external soundcard for my laptop. Then I use the optical or coax output to feed a Beresford standalone DAC which also has a built in headphone amp and use a pair of Seinheiser open backed phones. I bought the phones years ago and they still sound brilliant. The DAC costs about 100 off ebay and the soundcard about 20 pounds.
In order to avoid potential bozoism just avoid closed backed designs!!
Regards

I have the Creative HS-900 through a Kenwood 100W amp. They also have a boom mike for speech recognition or gaming. Sounds quality seems fine. I replaced some old headphones that had the occasional crackle but were otherwise very clear.

If you want to be able to hear your surroundings, then you want an open-air design. Open-air headphones have holes around the speakers so sounds from outside can each your ears.





I don't know whether to laugh or cry!

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/102-0678610-7200142?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=grado+gs1000&x=0&y=0

$700!

If you're crazy enough to spend that much on headphones you might as well got whole hog and spend the $300 more to get the top of the line GS1000's with even more dynamic range, and a more stylish appearance.


I have a pair of Sony Studio Monitor headphones. They weren't cheap at $100, and they're not open-air, but I don't have much of a problem hearing people when they're in the same room (But I don't blast my sound at full volume) and they're really comfortable, and look slick enough. Also the sound you get out of them is supposedly accurate, and I can hear all the quiet sounds you might normally miss with a cheaper pair.

Of course, I have never listened to a $1000 pair of headphones, so I don't know what I might be missing. Maybe those have really good bass reproduction. I'm sure my headphones could do better in that area, most suck at that. But no set of headphones is going to give you the same body rattling feeling that a subwoofer will, so what's the point?

Oh, and I have my doubts about whether you could hear the difference with those expensive headphone amps too. Or at least, whether the cost would be worth it. That stuff gives me Monster-cable vibes.

One more thing. I just read a page on open-air headphones, and depending on just how open they are, people around you will be able to hear what you're listening to, just as easily as you can hear them.

So if you don't want to disturb others with your music then you might want to stick with the closed designs.


Oh and I just took a look at those K701's. Those look pretty cool. Leather headband, and the ear pads look nice and comfortable. I have no idea how good they sound, but the price isn't totally unreasonable, at just under $300:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/002-1898517-5669620?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=K701+akg&x=0&y=0


One thing I should mention about my Sonys is that the ear pads are foam with a thin plastic membrane. They're very comfortable when you get them, but I have had mine for seven years and the plastic membrane eventually tore in the last 2-3 years and it's now completely disintegrated, leaving just the foam and little shreds of plastic membrane around the edge. So I've been looking at getting a new set of headphones as a result.

But the cover on the K701's looks like some sort of flannel like fabric, so it would likely be a lot more durable than the plastic covered foam of my Sonys, and probably more comfortable than the bare foam on the Grado RS1's.

Doesn't that make the concept of 'personal headphones' a bit redundant? Might as well just get some decent speakers.

Well I'm sure they're still a sight quieter and less room shaking than a 5.1 surround system. :-)

Sennheiser HD25 (not the HD25s) are fantastic. They probably still cost just over £100 but they are honestly the nicest sounding 'phones below £300!

They are closed back, so 99% of the sound actually goes into your ears rather than the environment. They can also handle a lot of power. Far more than needed to deafen you ;)

Plugged in to a decent amp, they are awesome. They also work well (with a 3.5mm adapter) in the headphone outs of most portable devices. Ipods are a bit quiet through them though.

**EDIT** They are also extremely comfortable. May not seem like an important point, until you wear uncomfortable 'phones for more than 30 minutes!

Hm... I was just about to go ahead and buy those K701's to replace my current headphones which are falling apart, when I found this page:
http://www.onheadphones.com/product-reviews/akg-701-headphones.html

The reviews of these headphones all say they're great. And this page is no different. But what IS different is the photos of the headphones.

Without a professional photographer lighting them just right, these don't look stylish at all. :-(

On the official page they're shown against a black background and all lit cool:
http://www.akg.com/personal/cproducts/powerslave,view,gallery,pcategory,3,id,911,nodeid,11,_language,EN.html

And on the CNET page they look almost like brushed aluminum with dark gray bands that go over the top of your head:
http://reviews.cnet.com/headphones/akg-k-701/4505-7877_7-31649804.html

But on that other page the white looks cheap, and the bands are a dull medium gray.

So... hmm. I think I'll pass, and save myself some money.

@sswift

I tell you something. In comparison to average to very good boxes, heaphones are priced extremtely reasonable. I would rather suggest buying some great headphones than just some okayish boxes as you can hear much more with them. Cheap solution if you compare it this way. Expensive if you compare it to some heaphones you get with your iPOD.

Once you've listened this way to music you never want to give them back. And if you take care of them they last for many years.

And as for Grado Labs, i've suggested the model which sounded the best to me and not the one which might have better data or looks better. Headphones are an individual thing. Do they fit to your head? Do you find them comfortable also after wearing some hours? Do you like the sound characteristics?

Nice suggestions! Thanks :)
Sennheiser's stuff all looks pretty good. Now pondering the HD 212s since they are closer to my price range, a tad smaller, and readily available at some stores near me.
The 555s have a significant advantage with higher range sounds (where the 212s have a rather common frequency response of 12 - 19,000 Hz, 555s going up to 28,000), but what I don't know I won't miss. I doubt my existing setup handles anywhere close to either of those.

Unfortunately, the 212s (and, presumably, most of Sennheiser's headphones) are closed back. Maybe I'll go with a cheap software hack to avoid being a bozo; Turn on a microphone, have it output quietly back to the speakers. Seems a bit redundant, but it could do the trick.

Botheringly, the Creative HS-900s have appalling reviews from anyone looking for new headphones, but good reviews in closed scenarios. Still interested in them, as the reviews I have found say they are very comfortable, and have a soft velvet lining as opposed to the very frail leatherette stuff.

HD555's are great, excellent quality at a good price.

Check out www.head-fi.org for loads (sometimes too many...) of reviews and good forums.

Grado Labs model SR80 is a very good set.

Read the reviews first and check for the higher models see if those are in your budget. I have the SR80 model and they are really good. They don't color the sound, they give you the purest representation of the output. You can actually hear a lot of detail on the Grados that you won't in other headphones, at ANY price range.

http://www.gradolabs.com/

sswift, stylish??? Why? Aren't headphones made for sound? Maybe comfort? I prefer to protect my ears from unrealistic sound than style. I've returned once a pair of expensive Sennheizer, they had style, but the sound gave me a headache!