Recommend me some headphones

[TigerhawkT3]

I just got an A2 (by Cowon, not Surefire! ) and I'm looking for some nice headphones to go with it. I don't like earbuds, but I don't want anything enormously bulky. Something that folds up or is otherwise easily portable would be nice. It's a standard headphone jack.

Price range is around $30-100. If necessary, I can go up to around $150.

[VWTim]

For some decent and amazingly cheap phones check out the Koss KSC-75's Radio Shack puts them on sale regularly for under $20, or Amazon.com has 'em for ~$15 normally. They really do have the sounds of $60+ headphones.

When I'm not using those I have a set of Shure E2G's, but by mentioning earbuds I'm guess IEM's are out of the question too.

[Chris201W]

Also check out the Sennheiser PX100s. They are light, on-ear headphones with very nice sound. They fold up into a nice compact package, and come with a pretty good case to store them in. They're about $60, and definitely worth it.

[wmirag]

If you can stretch to $200 retail, try the Etymotic ER4P's. I'm really picky about sound and I tried a lot of small phones before I got up the courage to buy these. I use them for FM. I think they really need the "bass boost" that a lot of the better sound boxes have nowadays. They get the most out of my Sangean 210V AM/FM radio. They make casual FM listening a near-hifi experience.

http://www.headphone.com/guide/by-ma...otic-er-4p.php

[Loomy]

Audiophile forum at http://www6.head-fi.org/forums/forum...p?s=&forumid=2

You're probably looking for KSC75 or K-81 DJ.

[BVH]

Koss Porta-pros are Excellent! Go to Goodcans.com, a site heavy into headphones. They rate these higher than the new Sennheiser PX100's. I've used them for about 4 years. I've given them as gifts and get nothing but great comments from those who have received them from me. Ipods power them great. If memory serves, you can find them from $35 on up.

[kc2ouf]

I've been using Sony MDR 7506's for years. They are about 100$ and have a screw off 1/4" adapter to use the 1/8" adapter for small devices. They are foldable and comfortable, and have nice, bright sound.

The only possible drawback (or safety issue) may be isolation from outside noise as they have closed-backs (exactly why they were perfect for my home studio).

I used these phones at the NYC Marathon last year with my ham radio, as I was in front of the stage speakers and wouldn't have heard my radio otherwise.

[VWTim]

Good post above, more than you'd ever want to know at www.headfi.org It's the CPF of headphones.

[Pumaman]

these are awesome for the price, VERY comfortable, two versions, single cord and two part, black and white as well.

http://www.amazon.com/Sony-MDR-EX71S...&s=electronics

[TigerhawkT3]

Here are some more specifications:

I prefer leather/vinyl/etc. over foam. Foam gives me goosebumps.

I have a pair of Sony w.ear earphones that I thought would be good, but found lacking. The foam cushions are disintegrating (after several years) and their ear clips are so uncomfortable (for me) as to be painful after more than half an hour of use. I would prefer not having ear clips.

I want something extremely tough and long-lasting.

The Porta-Pros are looking good, but I don't like the idea of the foam cushion. Do they have the same size cushions in different materials? Are the Porta-Pros comfortable and easy to forget about while wearing for long periods? Are they built like an Arc AAA?

EDIT: Almost forgot to say THANK YOU to you all for your replies!

[BVH]

I've only seen them with the foam cushions. For me, once they were broken in, I could wear them for hours and not notice them. I would say I am in the middle of the road when it comes to being good to my stuff. Not tough, not easy. I have not broken anything on them. I would guess the thin wires are the most vulnerable parts. The ear pressure adjustment is actually effective.

[bobisculous]

Also check out the Sennheiser PX100s. They are light, on-ear headphones with very nice sound. They fold up into a nice compact package, and come with a pretty good case to store them in. They're about $60, and definitely worth it.

I second this. Someone I know has a pair of these and they are incredible. My pair are on the way as we speak, due to arrive Thursday from Newegg. $40 plus shipping, so $45. Very light and are comfortable unlike my current pair of Sony's. When I first tried these out, I couldn't believe the amount of bass produced by it. Its awesome to say the very least.

-Cameron

[beautifully-stupid]

+1 on the Sennheisers
+1 on the PortaPros... very comfy.

I'm not sure that you could go wrong with either one. headphone.com has great reviews, you can even check their B Stock for better prices on higher end models.

[frisco]

Sony MDR-V700DJ Studio Monitor Series

These fold down pretty small and fit into a nice bag.

Great sound.... Great value.....

frisco

[the fuzz]

Sennheiser PX100s. with out any doubt
IF you here this you want go back to any other phones.( for the price range)

PS Sennheiser PX200s stay away from them.

[TigerhawkT3]

After wavering between the PX100 and the Porta-Pro, I think I'm going with the PX100. Does anyone know a good/inexpensive place to buy them?

[bobisculous]

TigerHawk,

I JUST recieved my PX100's from Newegg

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16826106333

$40 plus shipping, a very reasonable price.

We had some shipping issues with getting them. I recieved 2 of 3 packages from Newegg on this order by, or before expected date. The UPS guy said though that a sorter messed up thus my headphones came a day later.
In case you haven't used Newegg before, dont worry. They are freaking awesome. Check out resellerratings.com if need be. Plus you are in CA which is where the warehouse with the headphones came from. You would likely get them in a day or two, not three like me. But, I guess you would have to pay CA sales tax...

Either way, Newegg rocks, PX100's are nice, life is great.

-Cameron

[Manzerick]

Sennheiser i believe model 650 has been mine of choice for years!

Lov them... so crisp and affordable

[Over_the_hill]

For some decent and amazingly cheap phones check out the Koss KSC-75's Radio Shack puts them on sale regularly for under $20, or Amazon.com has 'em for ~$15 normally. They really do have the sounds of $60+ headphones.

Yes, the Koss KSC-75s are good headphones. They are clip-ons, but otherwise the speaker elements are supposedly similar to those in the PortaPro. (I don't have a PortaPro to compare with them.)

They need more power to produce the same sound level than some other little headphones, but the nice sound makes up for the reduced battery life. In quiet surroundings I set the volume on the MP3 player at about one third, and in very noisy places at two thirds of the way up.

They don't need much bass or midrange equalization to sound good, either. (I have quite a bit of hearing loss at high frequencies, so everything on the highest band of the equalizer on my MP3 player is missing for me, when I describe anything here.) They don't sound quite as good as my Grado SR-60s, which also take less power from the MP3 player to drive, but those are bulky and cumbersome and aren't the thing to use out of the house.

Each side has a separate eyeglass-like wire-reinforced nylon piece that fits behind the ear. There is no headband. Wearing them with glasses isn't a problem, at least for me. Wiggling them onto my ears wasn't very easy at first, but after a little practice they are pretty quick to take on and off.

The clips have snapped out of their gimbals under stress a few times when I've carried them in a coat pocket, and skittered around on the pavement and almost got lost. They snapped back in place and seemed no worse for wear afterward. One of the clips was fairly easy to bend back into shape after I stepped on it.

I've had them for about a year and they've held up well.

To see whether I could hear higher frequencies a little better with these, with the equalizer already at the highest level on the second highest frequency band, I took the pads off and listened to the headphones without them. The sound was harsh and unbalanced, but I imagined that a sound halfway in between what I heard with the pads off and with the pads on might be about right. So I placed a dime in the center of each foam pad and traced around it with an X-Acto knife to make a donut hole, and then put the pads back on. That was almost it. Tracing around a nickel made it a little better. Removing more foam than that would have left some of the pointy bits of my ear whirlies unsupported. Afterward, to me the sound seemed improved, but that might not be true for others.

[Trashman]

Sennheiser PX100s. with out any doubt
IF you here this you want go back to any other phones.( for the price range)

PS Sennheiser PX200s stay away from them.

Ok, why stay away from the PX200's? I don't really use headphones, but my uncle does. I had the PX100s in mind, after seeing the good feedback they've received on this thread, but then I saw the PX200s and wondered what the difference was.

I thought the Sennheisers would be good summer headphones for him, as he was complaining the the large over-the-ear type headphones he currently has get hot during the summer. What do you guys think? Good choice for summer?

[Solstice]

My 2 cents:

I'm not an audiophile, but I have had the PX200's for some time and have been very happy with them. I know that for very serious audio folks, an "open" design is very important and the PX200 is "closed." However, open phones leak sound so that everyone around you can hear. I haven't had an opportunity to compare them directly, but the PX200's sound pretty great to me. Also, it is rare to find nice leatherette pads instead of that awful foam that starts to itch (which is on the PX100s) in headphones this size.

[UnknownVT]

Try looking at -

Headphone Reviews - Best Headphones

at ConsumerSearch.com where they claim to be Reviewing the Reviews.
They look at numerous reviews and rank them by their credibility rating - then from this "survey" they pick a short list by application type.

ConsumerSerach liked the reviews at CNet.com -

Editors' top portable headphones

may also be useful - it would seem that the

Sennheiser PX100

and possibly the -

Sony MDR-710LP
if you like more bass....
may be suitable.

[Southernwayfarer]

Check out Grado - http://www.gradolabs.com. These are probably too bulky but I always like to recommend them because they're American (Brooklyn, NY!) and the classic look can't be beat. The SR-60's are the bottom of the line but are always very well reviewed. One thing to note is that they are open air type headphones so you get some ambient noise.

[MarNav1]

+1 Sony MDR-7506. +1 Koss Pro 4aa or Pro 4aaa, I'm not sure if Koss makes these
anymore. These headphones are not open air type. I don't personally like open air
style but other folk's do. AKG also makes very nice headphones. I very important
item to look at is a headphones effeciency. The Sony's are quite good in this area.
The AKG phones although they will sound great need a strong amplifier to drive them
to an acceptable level.

[bobisculous]

From this review here http://www.headphone.com/guide/by-ma...iser-px200.php
I get the feeling the PX200s arent as nice as the PX100s.

Not incredibly comfortable, but like they say. Everyone hears what you hear.
I dont listen to music insanely loud so, I have little to worry about. Plus everyone should like what music I am listening to, so it shouldnt matter in that respect either

After more use with my PX100s, I have come to love them even more. I can hang them around my kneck, turn it up a bit louder and hear the music just fine. Its great.

-Cameron

[Frangible]

My PX100s are my favorite headphones. They are comfortable and have good sound quality, but as they are an open-air design others will hear what you are listening to, which may or may not be a problem.

I also have a PortaPro variant, that while being pretty good for the price, isn't as good as the PX100s imo.

The Sony MDR-EX71s have a severe reproduction distortion problem at about 4-6khz and very muddy bass. The muddy bass I can live with, but without an equalizer to attenuate the massive spike at 4-6khz the sound is harsh. However, if you have an equalizer, the sound is acceptable and they are the most comfortable canalphones I've used.

The most expensive headphones I have are my Ultimate Ears Super.Fi 5 EB (extended bass)... the sound quality is very good... but not good enough to make up for the very uncomfortable fit. With the best fitting eartips there is no immediate pain but over time they become more and more uncomfortable. It feels like your ear canals have been violated after using them. Not pleasant. My friend has some higher-end Shures and says similar things about them, and has ended up not using them. Just too uncomfortable.

My recommendation would be the PX-100s, overall, unless you need isolation or don't want to bother others with slight headphone sounds.

[Coop]

Koss has some pretty decent headphones at a good price. I have the UR-40, great sound, but maybe a bit too bulky for your liking. I also have Koss the Plug earphones, amazing sound, but you really need to get used to them and they are not the easiest to get in/out of your ear. So I replaced them with Philips SHE9500 on the EDC mp3 player. Sound is not as good, but a little easier to use.