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Hey guys, I really need to order some new headphones... for a while I had the Sennheiser HD202. They were my desktop computer headphones. I used them for tracking, mixing, and general listening to music/games on the computer.

Butttt, finally the cord or something on them has died out. It's not even worth my time to repair them when I can get a new pair for $20. I think I will just pick up a new pair of those, and they will be my headphones for tracking, as when I am doing that and setting up in my room I am always running over the cord, dropping the headphones, etc.

I want my total budget to be around $150 or less... so would you buy a cheap pair of headphones for tracking (I only record myself) and then get a decent pair of open-backs? Or do you think there is a do-it-all headphone? I've been reading good things about the Sennheiser HD280, ATH M50, Beyer DT770, etc. But those are all closed back I believe. If I got the HD202 again for $20, that would leave me $130 for opens. What would you do?

Thanks!

edit: Not sure if it matters, but my interface is a Firepod.. for my general listening I use some logitech speakers, haha

Comments

TheJackAttack Mon, 01/16/2012 - 21:04

There is a difference in quality of headphones between the cheapest and the better options. Cheap is fine for handing out to a band for tracking purposes but if you are spending any appreciable time with them it is important for them to be comfortable to be on, and also to be gentle on the ears for listening. The ATH-M50 covers both of these. The cheapest open back phones I recommend are the Beyers DT990 but the ones I like best are the AKG 701/702 (~$350). I have heard great things about the Sennheiser HD 800 but I'm not about to pay that.

EricIndecisive Mon, 01/16/2012 - 22:33

Thanks Jack. Hmm, if I bumped my budget up to 200... would maybe the HD202's for tracking, and the DT990's for movies / games / music listening / mixing be a good combo? I LOVE my movies, and I typically watch them late at night on my computer so I don't want to wake anyone. It looks like I could get the both of those for about $200, having a beater pair and a nice pair.

I think this might be what I will do. I am selling all of my old video games on ebay and I should have no problem using the money from that on some nice headphones. But from what I am reading it seems that I will need an amp to drive them? These are the sources I will listen to them on:

1. Creative X-FI something card, my logitech speakers are plugged into that. Then I plug the DT-990s into the jack on the speakers.
2. Presonus Firepod headphone out
3. Ipod

TheJackAttack Mon, 01/16/2012 - 22:39

If you could find a pair to try out on a favorite soundtrack that would be best. Cheap for tracking is fine for sure. Sennheiser is pretty standard for that though I used to try to have half dozen ATH-M30's back in the day. It is the Beyer you should try since they are the higher dollar item.

If you really want to look at some shizzle for movies and actual listening check out Grado.
[[url=http://[/URL]="http://www.gradolab…"]Grado Labs | Headphones[/]="http://www.gradolab…"]Grado Labs | Headphones[/]

EricIndecisive Tue, 01/17/2012 - 09:29

Thanks again! The thing is, I have no clue where I could go to test out headphones. I've never seen these in the big retail electronics stores.

It doesn't seem like there is too much competition in the price range of the DT990's.. especially since there is a reputable dealer online that has them for $180 shipped.
Do they have a coiled cable or a straight cable?

I'll check out those Grados!

EricIndecisive Mon, 01/23/2012 - 13:37

Just got the 990s. Initial impressions that they have a somewhat harsh top end, definitely some sibilance, but I think it might be because of creative's software. Also I realized what people mean by having the power to drive something. Where my normal headphones would be around 30-40% on my volume knob, these are about 55-60%. I gotta say, they cannot get even close to loud enough on my ipod. But these are for computer work only anyways. There is also an EQ for the creative drivers, so I cut the bass a little bit, turned up some mids, and then took down the 8k+ range. So right now they sound sweet, I can't wait to compare them to the Senn 202s just to hear the difference.

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