General Question

gggritso's avatar

What's a good pair of headphones for $100?

Asked by gggritso (5459points) July 30th, 2009

I’m not an audiophile, but I decided to spring for a good set of cans. I’m looking for something that is comfy and sturdy. I did some research and I’m leaning toward Sennheiser HD280, but my friends are recommending Audio-Technica. I listen to alternative rock and indie most of the time, but enjoy some electronica as well. Any tips?

Observing members: 0 Composing members: 0

14 Answers

Allibaby808's avatar

WeSC headphones are what most DJ’s use. My bf has been wanting a pair… I think these are cool http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/599039-REG/WeSC_9103687_474_Oboe_On_Ear_Stereo_Headphones.html

sandystrachan's avatar

sennheiser is a brand i would say to look into , i could give you proper names of different headphones but being in the UK i don’t think i would get the prices right .

teh_kvlt_liberal's avatar

don’t buy apple headphones
those are just horrible

derekpaperscissors's avatar

Sennheiser HD 280s have good isolation if that’s a factor for you. Quite big though if you don’t mind the bulk. Depends really on how you’ll be using it.
Grado SR80 comes up a lot on audiophile forums and it has an improved bass, which could be good or bad depending on you. Design is somewhat retro. SR60 is the previous version of this.
AKG K240 Semi Open Studio Headphones have larger speakers than the usual cans so its more sensitive and has a higher dynamic range, clear highs.
If you’re looking for more standard and compact headphones, try the following:
Koss PortaPro Headphones
Senns PXC 250 or PX100
If you want something unique/cool looking but not those bass heavy skull candy’s, try
Sony MDR-XD400. Deep bass, comfort fit, more for studio monitoring.

Personally though, I just got me some cheap but reliable Behringer HPX2000 after my Sony MDR-Z700 cables got bent. Great sound, good bass but I guess they weren’t durable enough. Gets uncomfortable though after hours of use.

gggritso's avatar

@derekpaperscissors Wow, that was very thorough, thanks!

dalepetrie's avatar

I bought my wife Etymotics ER-6, and not only are they FANTASTIC, any little problem I’ve ever had with them, the tech support was on the spot and fast.

derekpaperscissors's avatar

@gggritso no problem, all for the love of music.

justn's avatar

I own a pair of the HD280s. They sound great when coupled with a nice amp, but just plugging them into my iPod leaves much to be desired. I also found the HD280s to be a bit tight on my head.

I’m personally more of an ear-bud kind of guy. I have a pair of Shure e2c’s that I’d recommend. They are my go-to ear-buds for listening to pretty much anything. I think you can pick those up now for less than $70.

gggritso's avatar

I’m seriously tempted to pick up a pair of Audio-Technica ATH-M50. They get great reviews and a few of my friends have them and keep raving.

zina's avatar

You might have already bought them, but I had a pair of AKG K240s and LOVED them – both the ear piece shape and the semi-open-ness makes them comfortable to wear for extended periods of time. Now I have simple Sony studio 7506s (for a slightly different purpose), but of course both the smaller ear piece and closed design are much less comfortable. Since you’re using them for listening, and to probably commercially-produced stuff, and you emphasized wanting them to be comfortable, I would definitely look for semi-open as a necessary element.

If you live near a music/audio/electronics store, go try out all the headphones (bring a portable CD player if they don’t have that set up, but it would even be useful without getting to listen to music), and of course you can then go home and buy whatever online. You’ll learn a lot about your preferences by actually trying them on yourself.

stratman37's avatar

Guitar Center has a booth of headphones for you to test drive…

gggritso's avatar

Well, I tried on my friend’s Audio-Technica ATH-M50 yesterday and I thought they were pretty great. Since I tried them on and they’re good I’m not going to risk it and pick up a pair sometime later. Thanks for the help everyone!

Answer this question

Login

or

Join

to answer.

This question is in the General Section. Responses must be helpful and on-topic.

Your answer will be saved while you login or join.

Have a question? Ask Fluther!

What do you know more about?
or
Knowledge Networking @ Fluther