[cardan]

The title really says it all. Are there any cans out there that sound as great as the AD700's but with much deeper bass? Maybe even basshead levels. I'd say $300 is my budget.

 

[obobskivich]

Okay here's the qualifier: I haven't heard the AD700.

That said, within your budget the Ultrasone HFI-2400 come to mind as a relatively good staging headphone with a healthy dose of bass. No idea if/how/etc they compare to the AD700's soundstage, but that's all I got (for under $300, for over $300 I have maybe 1-2 more suggestions ).

 

[cardan]

Hmm, those do sound like they meet my needs. Are they completely over the ears though? 

 

[Bingturong]

I would go for the AD900. They're a big improvement over the AD700 except comfort. They're also going for cheap now as audio-technica just introduced the new versions on the cans.

 

[Oregonian]

Quote:

The title really says it all. Are there any cans out there that sound as great as the AD700's but with much deeper bass? Maybe even basshead levels. I'd say $300 is my budget.

 
pi too have not heard the AD700, but I do know the following are good bass phones
 
1 - M-Audio Q-40's
2 - Sony XB700 (discontinued but look in the secondary market) - I will never sell mine
3 - Beyerdynamic DT770 - I have the 32 ohm limited edition and they are more than capable bass phones.
 
have you read the Basshead Club thread?  One of the most popular threads on Head-Fi.

 

[Shazb0t]

Q701?

 

[runswithaliens]

I picked up a pair if Sennheiser HD650s on Amazon for $336.00, so just a tad over your budget.  It used to be that the prices on them was fluctuating wildly on the Amazon website so I added them to my cart and checked periodically over the course of a week while it went to over $400 and then back down into the threes, and late one night I checked and it had hit the price I got them at. I just checked now though and they are at $494.00.... don't know that I would be so quick to get them at that price.  Anywaze, the HD650 are a significant improvement in mores ways than just bass over the AD700s (which I also have) while still having an open soundstage.
 

 

[cardan]

What about the Ultrasone PRO 900's? 

 

[Graphicism]

What are you plugging the headphones into?

 

[cardan]

Quote:

What are you plugging the headphones into?

As of right now I only have my Asus Xonar DG to plug them into. Willing to buy a reasonably priced amp to go with the headphones though.

 

[obobskivich]

Hmm, those do sound like they meet my needs. Are they completely over the ears though? 

Absolutely over ears. Very comfy.

pi too have not heard the AD700, but I do know the following are good bass phones

1 - M-Audio Q-40's
2 - Sony XB700 (discontinued but look in the secondary market) - I will never sell mine
3 - Beyerdynamic DT770 - I have the 32 ohm limited edition and they are more than capable bass phones.

have you read the Basshead Club thread?  One of the most popular threads on Head-Fi.

I've heard the Q40 of those (and it was some time ago), and don't recall them having an exceptional soundstage. I'd agree with the recommendation though, otherwise. No idea on the other two.

What about the Ultrasone PRO 900's? 

LOTS of bass. Even compared to the HFI-2400. Soundstaging is good (on par with other S-LOGIC headphones), and I like them - but I feel like buying the PRO900 from where you're at now is like buying a Hummer with snow-treads because your Smart car slipped in a half inch of slush. Unless you explicitly know that you want a wall of bass, I'd probably stick with the 2400.

 

[Graphicism]

Well the Ultrasone PRO900 are demanding, a similar but easier to drive headphone would be the HFI-780.
As obobskivich suggested the HFI-2400 might suit, I haven't heard them, but they likely aren't as bass heavy as their closed Ultrasone counterparts.
Ultrasones S-logic is good once you get accustomed too it, I suggest researching this, in a nutshell it's like a faux-soundstage.
 
A large soundstage comes from the headphone being allowed to breath, the problem however is a lot of bass leaves at the same time.
No open headphone I know of has bass-head levels of bass, likewise no closed headphone has an open-air sound.
A compromise will have to be made.
 
Moving away from closed and looking at open with decent bass, I would have to suggest the Sony SA5000.
The SA5000 is almost end-game in terms of sound quality, it's top notch.
The downside however is they need a good amp.

 

[obobskivich]

The PRO900 are no harder to drive than the 2900, and both are about on par with the 2400 (although they're lower impedance, so they'll play nicer with portables). They're a bit insensitive, but the K701 are a more demanding load. Bass-wise, the 2400 and 2900 are probably the most you're gonna get in an open, dynamic headphone - they have more impact than a reasonable amount of closed cans. The 900 are bassier still, and their staging is almost 1:1 with the 2900. Fun side fact: if you throw the 900's pads on the 2900, they sound almost identical to the 900 (and vice versa; I think the 2900 pads on the 900 is actually the better way to go, because you get a fairly fun and balanced sounding can that isolates - I think it's still ~$300 for the cans, and ~$50 for the pads). The SA5000 are extremely thin sounding by comparison, and based on the used prices I've heard reported (apparently ~$500 for a used set isn't unreal these days), I'd probably look elsewhere. The K701 are more rounded, and you shouldn't have worries about cable failure, the earpads are much cheaper to replace, and they cost around $250 brand new. Sure, they're a bit insensitive, but they aren't the dragon most people make them into - throw a Fiio E9 or similar/equivalent into the mix and you're set.

 

[Graphicism]

The Ultrasone PRO series use heavier drivers that are made to pair with a desktop amp, the HFI while perhaps not as refined will sound better without a dedicated headphone amplifier.
 
The K701 shouldn't even be mentioned in the same thread as the word bass, there is none.
 
The Sony SA5000 aren't bright or thin when amped, in fact they're a tad warm if anything. The Sennheiser HD800 are brighter for comparison.

 

[obobskivich]

The Ultrasone PRO series use heavier drivers that are made to pair with a desktop amp, the HFI while perhaps not as refined will sound better without a dedicated headphone amplifier.

"Heavier" ??

They use the Ti plated drivers, as opposed to the Au plated drivers in the HFI-2400 (and if you haven't heard the HFI-2400, how do you know what they'll sound like?). They're all relatively easy to drive, the PRO900/2900 run around half the nominal impedance of the 2400s, and roughly similar sensitivity (as in, 1 mW is enough for any of them).

Data:
http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/UltrasonePRO2900.pdf
http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/UltrasoneHFI2400.pdf
http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/UltrasonePRO900.pdf

The K701 are harder to drive - portable devices will have no trouble with the 900 or 2900. Oh, and I've owned all of them for a reasonable period of time and confirmed this. :rolleyes: I've directly compared most of them too.

 

The K701 shouldn't even be mentioned in the same thread as the word bass, there is none.

They were mentioned elsewhere in the thread, and since you mentioned the SA5000 I figured that was a direction the thread was going. The K701 have more bass (and don't take my word for it (it's not like I've owned both for years or anything :rolleyes, they measure that way too!), and are overall a more rounded headphone (less cold/bright, more forgiving, etc). It should really be a preference debate with the Sony SA5k, but given the recent (and abhorrent) gouging that has gone on with the SA5k since their discontinuation, they're not something I suggest as a result.
 

The Sony SA5000 aren't bright or thin when amped, in fact they're a tad warm if anything.

I did put "by comparison [to HFI-2400, PRO2900, PRO900]" - the SA5000 are bass-light (and dumping a bucket of cash into an amplifier isn't going to change that - they aren't basshead headphones, and never will be). Not that any of this matters - the recent gouging has put them so far over the ~$300 budget that it's not worth really mentioning them.