[Sonorous Bleb]

Hi all!

I'm off on a two week trip to Thailand soon, and I've decided to buy a second hand sp2000 for the various long plane journeys, and I feel I should get hold of some decent headphones to go with it that will be less antisocial than my Sundaras. My current closed backs are Razer Opus Wireless (2021), and I have some cheap £25 (or thereabouts) Sennheiser earphones, so I suspect that something fancier will get a lot more out of the sp2000.

IEMs seem more ideal for noise isolation and traveling light, but I'm given to understand that it's quite important to trial these things in order to get a good fit, and I have no shops around me that make that possible, so I'm looking at closed backs. ANC might be a plus, but my impression is that there isn't much with this feature that is particularly inspiring soundwise, at least not within my budget (£500 or under). Let me know if you feel I'm wrong about that.

So my research into closed backs led me to some Drop and DCA Aeon Closed X. I've read very good things about these, and the only thing causing me to hesitate is that they're apparently quite large, and don't fold down in any way. I'll be traveling light, with one cabin bag, and... maybe I'd be able to cram them into the big front pocket on my bag? It's difficult to tell just by looking at photos online. It's clearly not their intended purpose, but I've heard such good things about pretty much every other aspect of them.

I'm also looking at the Austrian Audio Hi-X60. Reviews seem a little less glowing, but still good, and they do have the benefit of folding up nice and compact. Also, I can get these (plus a seperate hard(ish)) case for them for £150 less than the Closed X.

Please give me your thoughts! How do the Closed X and Hi-X60 compare? Is it conceivable to travel with just one bag and the Closed X, or is that just insane? How well do these headphones pair up with the sp2000? Do you have any other better suggestions? Am I wrong about ANC headphones? Would you advise just saving my money and using my Razer Opus (although they lose points for wearability and comfort over long periods before things like sound quality are even considered)?

Cheers guys!

 

[dunring]

For travel I'd go with the AKG K371 wired which are Harman tuned and easy to drive plus very portable. If you get the 7hz Salnotes Zero:2 you won't regret it either, I use them for daily drivers and have the choice of anything on the market. Can't go wrong with either one.

 

[silent-circuit]

You might be able to find other Dan Clarks that will fold up within budget if you're willing to buy used. As an Aeon Closed X owner I agree they'd be a great choice, but they're pretty big and don't fold. The Noir and Aeon 2 fold, however.

 

[Sonorous Bleb]

For travel I'd go with the AKG K371 wired which are Harman tuned and easy to drive plus very portable. If you get the 7hz Salnotes Zero:2 you won't regret it either, I use them for daily drivers and have the choice of anything on the market. Can't go wrong with either one.

The K371 look as though they'd be alright, and cheaper than the Hi-X60, although from what I've read, not as comfortable or sturdy. Those are fairly big concerns, as I plan to be wearing them for long periods at a time on these flights, and then they have to withstand being crammed into a backpack and lugged around for two weeks. I've also seen someone on Reddit say of the K371 "you may lose a ton of bass if you have a beard or glasses". I have both. Apparently the Hi-X60 create a better seal around the ear so it's not a problem.

When it comes to the Zero:2, as I say, I'm very hesitant to buy in-ears if I can't try them on for size first. I don't even have a clue how my ears compare to others' for the purposes of guessing whether certain earphones will be a decent fit, so I'm afraid it needs to be over-ears for me for the moment.

You might be able to find other Dan Clarks that will fold up within budget if you're willing to buy used. As an Aeon Closed X owner I agree they'd be a great choice, but they're pretty big and don't fold. The Noir and Aeon 2 fold, however.

Aye, I tried looking for some of the collapsing models on Ebay and Marketplace, but haven't been able to find anything under about £650, which is too much for me, unfortunately. Could you perhaps give me some rough dimensions for the Closed X case?

 

[jmwant]

For travel I'd go with the AKG K371 wired which are Harman tuned and easy to drive plus very portable. If you get the 7hz Salnotes Zero:2 you won't regret it either, I use them for daily drivers and have the choice of anything on the market. Can't go wrong with either one.

Second this.

 

[silent-circuit]

Aye, I tried looking for some of the collapsing models on Ebay and Marketplace, but haven't been able to find anything under about £650, which is too much for me, unfortunately. Could you perhaps give me some rough dimensions for the Closed X case?

I'll try to get you dimensions later today.

 

[Sonorous Bleb]

I'll try to get you dimensions later today.

Thanks!

 

[yage]

Personally, I would go for something like an Etymotic IEM. The body is small enough that it will fit basically any ear opening. They're also deep insertion which means the isolation is equivalent to that of an earplug or ANC. I've traveled with them before and they're much more portable than over-ears and more effective at reducing airplane noise.

These days, I just use my phone to store some music and use TWS IEMs with ANC (AKG N400NC). The only downside is if the airline doesn't have an entertainment app and you need a wired headphone to watch movies / TV.

 

[HipHopScribe]

YMMV, but in my experience passive isolation from closed-back headphones does not cut it in flight. The plane noise will be intrusive enough that any sonic advantage compared to ANC headphones will be moot anyway, and you'll probably end up cranking them up way too loud. So I'd recommend either IEMs with good isolation or better ANC headphones. For ANC headphones in this range, I'd probably go for the Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2. For IEMs, I will defer to other opinions as I'm not well versed in the current offerings for wired IEMs. IEMs will take better advantage of your SP2000 obviously, so that may be the way to go.

 

[Sonorous Bleb]

YMMV, but in my experience passive isolation from closed-back headphones does not cut it in flight. The plane noise will be intrusive enough that any sonic advantage compared to ANC headphones will be moot anyway, and you'll probably end up cranking them up way too loud. So I'd recommend either IEMs with good isolation or better ANC headphones. For ANC headphones in this range, I'd probably go for the Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2. For IEMs, I will defer to other opinions as I'm not well versed in the current offerings for wired IEMs. IEMs will take better advantage of your SP2000 obviously, so that may be the way to go.

Personally, I would go for something like an Etymotic IEM. The body is small enough that it will fit basically any ear opening. They're also deep insertion which means the isolation is equivalent to that of an earplug or ANC. I've traveled with them before and they're much more portable than over-ears and more effective at reducing airplane noise.

These days, I just use my phone to store some music and use TWS IEMs with ANC (AKG N400NC). The only downside is if the airline doesn't have an entertainment app and you need a wired headphone to watch movies / TV.

You guys are making a lot of sense to me. A good pair of closed backs would still be of more use to me than ANCs, for recording purposes, but if there are IEMs that will reliably fit, then that may be the way to go. I've looked up the Etymotic ER4XR (are there any others of theirs that I should look at?), and my only big concern is the pain that everyone says they feel when they start using them. I'm a bit wary of shoving stuff into my ears too far, but I'll trust that they're safe. I'm wondering approximately how long this pain lasts before people get used to them. What was your experience, Yage?

 

[HipHopScribe]

You guys are making a lot of sense to me. A good pair of closed backs would still be of more use to me than ANCs, for recording purposes, but if there are IEMs that will reliably fit, then that may be the way to go. I've looked up the Etymotic ER4XR (are there any others of theirs that I should look at?), and my only big concern is the pain that everyone says they feel when they start using them. I'm a bit wary of shoving stuff into my ears too far, but I'll trust that they're safe. I'm wondering approximately how long this pain lasts before people get used to them. What was your experience, Yage?

Regarding the Etymotic ER4XR, I also own a pair and I personally didn't have any pain with the triple-flange tips even early on, but they do also come with foam ear tips that may be more comfortable for some

 

[yage]

You guys are making a lot of sense to me. A good pair of closed backs would still be of more use to me than ANCs, for recording purposes, but if there are IEMs that will reliably fit, then that may be the way to go. I've looked up the Etymotic ER4XR (are there any others of theirs that I should look at?), and my only big concern is the pain that everyone says they feel when they start using them. I'm a bit wary of shoving stuff into my ears too far, but I'll trust that they're safe. I'm wondering approximately how long this pain lasts before people get used to them. What was your experience, Yage?

I didn't have any pain from the Ety's but I also didn't leave them in for more than an album's worth of songs. Try the different sizes / types and see what's most comfortable for you. I used the large triple flange but a friend preferred Comply foam eartips.

The rubber eartips seal really well so you might want to wait to put them in your ears until after the cabin pressure stops adjusting for ascent / descent.

If you're still considering ANC headphones, keep in mind that sometimes the feature is only enabled when you're connected with Bluetooth.

 

[Sonorous Bleb]

Thanks for the help, guys! I'll see how I go with the Etymotics - they're on their way. Do kinda still really want to get those Aeon Closed X, though.

 

[earmonger]

The Etys are always pictured with the triple-flange tips, but I would suggest trying the much less photogenic foam tips that are included. You can squash them, insert, and let them expand to fit your individual ear. Better seal, more comfortable, more bass (which is good with Etys). They still go deep but they don't feel intrusive like the triple-flange.

 

[Sonorous Bleb]

The Etys are always pictured with the triple-flange tips, but I would suggest trying the much less photogenic foam tips that are included. You can squash them, insert, and let them expand to fit your individual ear. Better seal, more comfortable, more bass (which is good with Etys). They still go deep but they don't feel intrusive like the triple-flange.

Thanks for the advice! There should be plenty of opportunity for me to experiment. Those do sound comfier. I've already imagined one of the tips coming loose and getting stuck halfway down my ear canal, so I'll be pretty happy as long as that doesn't happen, really.