Hello guys.
I could really need some help in deciding which headphone I'm going for because I tested a few ones and still wasn't able to came to a conclusion yet.
Also talked to some people and asked for their opinion and had contact to a few people on reddit who also made some suggestions but all came to the result that it's hard finding the right headphone for me.
I know that this is the most important part so the main genres I am listening to are Metalcore, Deathcore, Japanese rock and normal rock. Stuff like Currents, Shadow of Intent, Within Destruction, ERRA, Resolve, Crystal Lake and also stuff from Sleep Token, Dayseeker, Bilmuri or Valiant Hearts.
My budget is at 300€ (I'm from Germany). I know that this is not much for this hobby but if there is something good and affordable at this price range I would also take it from a b-stock/ open box.
So here is my story: Initially when audiophile headphones were not part of my life I was able to listen to a Fostex Purpleheart from a friend. If I remember correctly he was using a Schiit Magni/Modi stack and I absolutely loved that sound. Although I can remember that the bass was a bit too present and was bleeding through the mids the rest of the sound really was great to my ears. But they are discontinued for about 3 years now and I have never managed to get a pair of them for a good price. Also I read quite a few times about the hinge issues because only a single screw holds the cups and the headband together and I wouldn't be able to repair it. The only shop that has spare parts is Fullcompass and they don't ship outside of the US.
Now at the beginning of this year my old audio-technica ATH-M30 headphones began to slowly fall apart after 12 years of usage.
Because of that I started investing more time into researches for a new headphone and started to find some audiophile places.
The first headphones I read quite often were the HD 600/650 and 660S and also the HD 560S.
So what I did was to visit a music center in my region to search and listen to them.
In my experience they do lack in sub-bass and especially the 560S was too analytical to my ears.
I can understand that this could be important if it's your job and you need to record stuff but for casual listening it's nothing I personally would like to use. The 650 was a bit better in the bass area but sounded veiled and a bit dark to me. I already heard that majority of people would say that they are a bit warm and almost neutral but that's not what my ears told me. I didn't liked them either.
After that some people suggested the Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro to me.
So I went to a music store again and were testing them out.
They were pretty comfortable but the harsh treble was painful to my ears (sibilance).
I already heard that this beyer peak is pretty much typical for beyerdynamic models except for a few models like the 700/900 Pro X or the 177x GO. Speaking of them: I asked a YouTuber if he would suggest the 700 or 900 Pro X to me and he told me that beyerdynamics in general are not suited for casual listening and more for studio work. He couldn't tell me the reason for that but I guess it has something to do with the tuning of them? Because of that he suggested the Audeze Maxwell to me and said to me that I shouldn't be shocked about them being called a gaming headphone because they sound very good in his opinion. The 177x are from Drop and we don't have those here in Europe so I don't know how these sound but I heard from others that they are lacking in sub-bass.
I was also able to test some Meze 99 Noir and Classics but they also were very sibilant to my ears. The bass was maybe even a bit too much.
Then I got recommended the Denon AH-D5200 from some people. The problem with those is that there must have been some kind of revision for these models. Some people who owned these over a different time span told me that the actual ones have a way thinner bass now compared to 2 or 3 years ago and that the bass is now more delayed to the high frequencies. Also female vocals don't sound that well.
Then I heard about the Fiio FT 3. They came out this year (I believe in April) and at the moment they are not available but they should be coming back soon with a 32 Ohm version (at least I heard of it). They sounded really interesting. Maybe a little bit harsh sometimes but this could be fixed with EQ. Only problem with these is that they are open backs and I prefer closed backs because in my environment there are a lot of surrounding sounds.
The Focal Elex sounded interesting to me. It was like a Sennheiser HD 600 with better punch and fun but I heard they have some driver failures with this model which is a shame.
Hifiman is something I want to strictly avoid. Maybe you will now roll with your eyes because you've heard and read it quite often but the quality control issues (especially the dying drivers) are really concerning me. And 300€ is a lot of money for me. I want my next headphones without any issues for the next 12 years just like my old audio-technicas.
IEM's are also a no-go. I already tried some a while back and they hurt my ears. Different types of tips haven't changed that either.
So I'm at this point now where I really don't know which headphones could be suitable for me.
If you have any idea or useful informations I would really appreciate that.
Thanks in advance.
I could really need some help in deciding which headphone I'm going for because I tested a few ones and still wasn't able to came to a conclusion yet.
Also talked to some people and asked for their opinion and had contact to a few people on reddit who also made some suggestions but all came to the result that it's hard finding the right headphone for me.
I know that this is the most important part so the main genres I am listening to are Metalcore, Deathcore, Japanese rock and normal rock. Stuff like Currents, Shadow of Intent, Within Destruction, ERRA, Resolve, Crystal Lake and also stuff from Sleep Token, Dayseeker, Bilmuri or Valiant Hearts.
My budget is at 300€ (I'm from Germany). I know that this is not much for this hobby but if there is something good and affordable at this price range I would also take it from a b-stock/ open box.
So here is my story: Initially when audiophile headphones were not part of my life I was able to listen to a Fostex Purpleheart from a friend. If I remember correctly he was using a Schiit Magni/Modi stack and I absolutely loved that sound. Although I can remember that the bass was a bit too present and was bleeding through the mids the rest of the sound really was great to my ears. But they are discontinued for about 3 years now and I have never managed to get a pair of them for a good price. Also I read quite a few times about the hinge issues because only a single screw holds the cups and the headband together and I wouldn't be able to repair it. The only shop that has spare parts is Fullcompass and they don't ship outside of the US.
Now at the beginning of this year my old audio-technica ATH-M30 headphones began to slowly fall apart after 12 years of usage.
Because of that I started investing more time into researches for a new headphone and started to find some audiophile places.
The first headphones I read quite often were the HD 600/650 and 660S and also the HD 560S.
So what I did was to visit a music center in my region to search and listen to them.
In my experience they do lack in sub-bass and especially the 560S was too analytical to my ears.
I can understand that this could be important if it's your job and you need to record stuff but for casual listening it's nothing I personally would like to use. The 650 was a bit better in the bass area but sounded veiled and a bit dark to me. I already heard that majority of people would say that they are a bit warm and almost neutral but that's not what my ears told me. I didn't liked them either.
After that some people suggested the Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro to me.
So I went to a music store again and were testing them out.
They were pretty comfortable but the harsh treble was painful to my ears (sibilance).
I already heard that this beyer peak is pretty much typical for beyerdynamic models except for a few models like the 700/900 Pro X or the 177x GO. Speaking of them: I asked a YouTuber if he would suggest the 700 or 900 Pro X to me and he told me that beyerdynamics in general are not suited for casual listening and more for studio work. He couldn't tell me the reason for that but I guess it has something to do with the tuning of them? Because of that he suggested the Audeze Maxwell to me and said to me that I shouldn't be shocked about them being called a gaming headphone because they sound very good in his opinion. The 177x are from Drop and we don't have those here in Europe so I don't know how these sound but I heard from others that they are lacking in sub-bass.
I was also able to test some Meze 99 Noir and Classics but they also were very sibilant to my ears. The bass was maybe even a bit too much.
Then I got recommended the Denon AH-D5200 from some people. The problem with those is that there must have been some kind of revision for these models. Some people who owned these over a different time span told me that the actual ones have a way thinner bass now compared to 2 or 3 years ago and that the bass is now more delayed to the high frequencies. Also female vocals don't sound that well.
Then I heard about the Fiio FT 3. They came out this year (I believe in April) and at the moment they are not available but they should be coming back soon with a 32 Ohm version (at least I heard of it). They sounded really interesting. Maybe a little bit harsh sometimes but this could be fixed with EQ. Only problem with these is that they are open backs and I prefer closed backs because in my environment there are a lot of surrounding sounds.
The Focal Elex sounded interesting to me. It was like a Sennheiser HD 600 with better punch and fun but I heard they have some driver failures with this model which is a shame.
Hifiman is something I want to strictly avoid. Maybe you will now roll with your eyes because you've heard and read it quite often but the quality control issues (especially the dying drivers) are really concerning me. And 300€ is a lot of money for me. I want my next headphones without any issues for the next 12 years just like my old audio-technicas.
IEM's are also a no-go. I already tried some a while back and they hurt my ears. Different types of tips haven't changed that either.
So I'm at this point now where I really don't know which headphones could be suitable for me.
If you have any idea or useful informations I would really appreciate that.
Thanks in advance.
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