[Peco]

I thought i would treat myself to some decent headphones (2 pairs actually). Music is my passion so i thought why not invest in something to take my listening experience to the next level

I have a budget of £200 (+/- £20 if its worth the extra funds) and with that I would like to get 2 pairs. 1 set for home listening and quiet places and the other set for my daily commute into London

I would like to get a pair of headphones (open or closed not too sure) as Im led to believe that these generally offer better sound than earphones. I will use these for listening at home (i piss off my parents listening to music late at night), and perhaps sometimes when i go out to quiet places or for walks.

I would also like a pair of in-ear earphones that will be used for my daily commute into London. Being London i need something with good isolation, i hate being able to hear other people and/or traffic. I love being in my own bubble walking along with just my music. I would also like these in-ear’s to have a mic so i can speak on the phone too, that would be a huge bonus, if this feature reduces the audio quality then i will pass on it, no big deal

So I have £200 but not sure what to sink more money into: the headphones for my home listening pleasure or the earphones for my daily commute.

I will be using these with my Galaxy s2 phone and i will probably be plugging the headphones into the back of my PC when at home.

Music – I mostly listen to dub techno and other similar forms of deep electronic music (i run www.dubtechnoblog.com so this music is very close to my heart), for those not familiar with this sound have a listen to a few of these tracks (the first one is actually my favourite song ever) to get the idea of the sound

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Be6iIqUyA20

www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQP7z_FN2us

www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJzVIzhZ24I

As you will be able to hear it’s heavy in deep organic sounding chords, pads, atmospherics and obviously nice smooth warm bass.

Other music styles i also listen to (mostly electronic music) – deep house, ambient, jazz, hip hop

Please give me your suggestions.

Much appreciated

 

[ZARIM]

I will highly recommend the fowolling IEMs for these genres music like JVC FXD80, GR07, Sony XBA4, Sony EX600, UE TF10Pro, Harmen Kardon AE, Klipsch Image X5 and headphones like V-Moda M80, Sony ZX700, Koss Porta Pro, Focal Spirit ONE and Panasonic DJS400.

 

[Peco]

many thanks for the options, i see most of these are well below my price range, could i not get something a little better with my money?

 

[ayaflo]

you should get cans and earphones that compliment each other .. 
my suggestion would be cal! for bassy stuff and hifiman re 272/brainwavz b2 for the more natural stuff etc. and also a fiio e10/e11 for the rest of the money left (if any)
i've to accept that i find these thin sounding iems like the b2 exceptionally good for trance 
the brainwavz b2 are crazily good iems for the price, but for 50 pounds more you can get the probably the most refined in ear monitor i've heard - hifiman re 272.
 
all the best

 

[ZARIM]

The 200 mark is for both or each because if 200 for each then there lot more highend IEMs/headphones canbe recommended.

 

[Apo0th3karY]

I listen to mostly dnb, and these are the only -good- IEMs I own, so my opinion is a little biased, but you should check out ATH CKM500, they're really impressive, and if you're listening to dub techno, then you'll like the controlled, and responsive bass, while putting forth some nice mids, with detailed highs while not being so crisp, lend a warmer sound to music. The bass kicks also doesn't cut off or distort any mids or highs in really nice subby tracks.
 
For headphones, I can't say much, but after the $58 USD you've spend on the CKM500s, you'll have lots left over for maybe some ATH M50s (~$150 USD) or a pair of JVC HA-S500 (~$75 USD), which one thread on this forum has claimed better than the M50s with some simple pad changes.
 
If you get the JVC HA-S500, you MIGHT have enough to get a Fiio E9, and get better sound from your already great sounding, budget headphones.
 
I'm recommending a bunch of popular, budget equipment here, most of which I personally don't have experience with, but I do plan on buying the M50s and HA-S500 (two pairs actually, considering their value, and modability), and Senn HD-25's - all for different purposes, like yourself.

 

[Peco]

Quote:

The 200 mark is for both or each because if 200 for each then there lot more highend IEMs/headphones canbe recommended.

£200 for both