Recommend me some hifi headphones!

[Frederik S]

Completely forgot an obvious candidate. The Head-Direct HifiMAN HE-300s are now sold for just $249 which is very low for a set of headphones that sound like they do.

Link to review: http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Head-Direct/HE-300/

[AhokZYashA]

HE-300 is a very good choice for its price,
its very fun sounding with a forward upper mid and punchy bass

[travva]

love my sennheiser 595's. had the 555's previously, and the difference is subtle but there.

[BumbleBee]

guys, he needs to find some licensed dealers first.

[Maelstrom]

I've found two potential places that sell some of the headphones y'all have recommended. Will call them up when I get the chance and to check to see if they have them in the store and I can demo them. I will continue to search for more (a lot of the places listed in the yellow pages don't have websites). Unfortunately it's finals time so it might be a while before I can test them. Thanks again for all the recommendations guys!

[NinkobEi]

Originally Posted by AhokZYashA

if you listen to a lot of rocks, Grado SR225i or even the 325is is the way to go,

for Rock listening, i find that the HD598/HD600/HD650 is too laidback, and too wide, so the energy from the rock music is not translated properly, but with proper setup, HD600/650 will shines on almost any genre of music,

Denon D2000 is bassy, quite the V-shaped sound that most rock recordings are,
ATH-AD900 is another choice, but it lacks bass and the soundstage is too wide to enjoy rock properly, for classical or pop, AD900 shines.
K701 also is another option, soundstage is very wide, the imaging is good, but, its very hard to drive.
DT880/600 is very good, great dynamics, nice rounded bass, excellent highs though a bit sibilance.

but, if you listens to a very wide range of genre, I strongly reccomends you to get the HD600,
its more neutral than the HD650 which is more laidback and bassy, and it doesn't as demanding as the HD650 on the amp or DAC, its should sounds very good out of your essence.

and not to mention, its also very comfortable on the head.

All of those headphones are going to require some sort of amplifier to make them sound good. Decent amps will cost anywhere from $100-$200.

As an owner of SR225s I will suggest not getting them if you plan on doing movie watching/gaming. They are good, no, great, at ONE thing. Alternative Rock/Metal/Acoustic. Using them for anything else will only disappoint

My suggestion: Grab some AudioTechnica ATH AD-700s or M50s for $100, or grab Sennheiser HD595s and spend the rest on something else.

The AD-700s are light on bass, but ridiculously comfy and great soundstage. the M50s are more bass centric, very good deal they are next on my to-buy list. The 595s are an All-Rounder also on my to-buy list

[Ra97oR]

The thing is the OP will pair the headphones with a Essence, which have a headphone amp built-in.

It is not good for low impedance headphones, so HD600, DT880/600 will pair it better than AD700, M50s, HD595 (HD598 is better anyway). Without the Essence the they won't be on the list.

[NinkobEi]

Originally Posted by Ra97oR

The thing is the OP will pair the headphones with a Essence, which have a headphone amp built-in.

It is not good for low impedance headphones, so HD600, DT880/600 will pair it better than AD700, M50s, HD595 (HD598 is better anyway). Without the Essence the they won't be on the list.

Those who have the card combo say that an amp is still desired to bring out the best in the headphones.
http://www.head-fi.org/t/553085/asus...nnheiser-hd650
http://www.head-fi.org/t/513249/senn...nar-essence-st

Why spend $350 on some phones that will only sound like $150 phones without a proper amp

[Ra97oR]

Originally Posted by Ninkobwi

Those who have the card combo say that an amp is still desired to bring out the best in the headphones.
http://www.head-fi.org/t/553085/asus...nnheiser-hd650

Those who have the card < me
Have headphone amps < me
Old time Head-Fier with 1000+ post < me
Have heard nearly all the headphone out there < me
Have less than 5 post < them

Bringing out the best and sounding great is totally different. Some headphone sounds great from the Essence already as it pair well, but there is always something better. I am still using my Essence as a source for both my STAX and Audio Technica setup, so you can always buy a headphone amp later on.

You decide who to trust, I don't care as it is not my setup.

[v12dock]

No one has postedThis Yet?

[NinkobEi]

Well I guess if you try the HD650 and are disappointed (you shouldnt be) then just buy an additional headphone amp in a year or so when you have enough money. At least that leaves room for upgrades.

[Ra97oR]

No, it is helpful to a certain point, but it doesn't cover enough headphones. Also ratings by numbers is not what I call helpful as sound is extremely personal.

EDIT: ninja'd

@Ninkobwi: You won't be more disappoint by running a HD650 off an Essence than running a AD700 off it. The Essence's chip have good voltage swing for the Senns but not "enough" current to run the Audio Technica. Running my AD1000PRM off the HA5000 sounds so much different than running off the internal amp, it is just not made for low impedance headphones.

[AhokZYashA]

Essence have plenty of voltage swing to drive the HD650/600,
and it will drive the HD650/600 to a certain level thata you will be satisfied with it,

[Maelstrom]

Originally Posted by Ra97oR

No, it is helpful to a certain point, but it doesn't cover enough headphones. Also ratings by numbers is not what I call helpful as sound is extremely personal.

EDIT: ninja'd

@Ninkobwi: You won't be more disappoint by running a HD650 off an Essence than running a AD700 off it. The Essence's chip have good voltage swing for the Senns but not "enough" current to run the Audio Technica. Running my AD1000PRM off the HA5000 sounds so much different than running off the internal amp, it is just not made for low impedance headphones.

So pretty much if I want to get the most out of my setup I'll want to be looking at Sennheiser or Beyerdynamic? Any others?

[AhokZYashA]

you can look for Ultrasones, but i dont think you'll like the sound signature too much,

but a really recommend the HD600

[BumbleBee]

Originally Posted by Maelstrom

So pretty much if I want to get the most out of my setup I'll want to be looking at Sennheiser or Beyerdynamic? Any others?

just find a license dealer and see what they have.

[NinkobEi]

Originally Posted by Ra97oR

@Ninkobwi: You won't be more disappoint by running a HD650 off an Essence than running a AD700 off it. The Essence's chip have good voltage swing for the Senns but not "enough" current to run the Audio Technica. Running my AD1000PRM off the HA5000 sounds so much different than running off the internal amp, it is just not made for low impedance headphones.

Eh, AD700 are low impedance and can be run straight out of the sound card with no amp.

[Maelstrom]

Just as an update guys, I got myself a pair of DT 880s (600 ohm version). Really liking them. Thanks again for all the help guys!

[BumbleBee]

make sure you invest in a nice amplifier.

[LightningJR]

Originally Posted by BumbleBee

make sure you invest in a nice amplifier.

^This. 600Ohm is beastly.

[Ra97oR]

Lots of facepalm here. Ah well.

The amp chip on the Essence is designed for driving higher impedance headphones. It can provide very decent voltage swing. However it have high output impedance and low current output, making it unsuitable for low impedance headphones. The so call "no amp needed" headphones will be affected by the high output impedance even if it is not drawing more current than the chip can provide.

I am not saying a good dedicated amp will not be better, it will almost always be better. But just the internal amp is not build for low impedance headphones at all.

Also, gratz on the DT880. Great detailed headphones, even better with the 600Ohm version too. Combined with it's good soundstage, it is nice for gaming too.

[BumbleBee]

Originally Posted by Ra97oR

Lots of facepalm here. Ah well.

The amp chip on the Essence is designed for driving higher impedance headphones. It can provide very decent voltage swing. However it have high output impedance and low current output, making it unsuitable for low impedance headphones. The so call "no amp needed" headphones will be affected by the high output impedance even if it is not drawing more current than the chip can provide.

I am not saying a good dedicated amp will not be better, it will almost always be better. But just the internal amp is not build for low impedance headphones at all.

Also, gratz on the DT880. Great detailed headphones, even better with the 600Ohm version too. Combined with it's good soundstage, it is nice for gaming too.

he knows. I talked to him.

[Ra97oR]

Originally Posted by BumbleBee

he knows. I talked to him.

Not directed to the OP, he knows the Essence is doing fine for the time being seeing that he really bought the 600Ohm version. Just NinkobEi kept thinking the AD700 will sound better than DT880/600 out the the Essence. The amp chip really makes it sounds different paired with a good amp, objective better or not.

[NinkobEi]

Originally Posted by Ra97oR

Not directed to the OP, he knows the Essence is doing fine for the time being seeing that he really bought the 600Ohm version. Just NinkobEi kept thinking the AD700 will sound better than DT880/600 out the the Essence. The amp chip really makes it sounds different paired with a good amp, objective better or not.

Man when did I say anything about a DT880? From all I have read 600ohm is rough to drive. If the Essence can drive them, then good for it. I'm welcome to be proven wrong. But my money is on him needing to buy an Amp to get the most out of those 'phones. Technically an iPod can drive them, but its going to sound a lot worse than an iPod + a good amp

[BumbleBee]

Maelstrom asked for separates but didn't specify a budget so I recommended the HRT Music Streamer II and Little Dot MKIII.

HRT Music Streamer II is properly isolated, very little jitter, no drivers, neutral tonality with a little bloom and a wide soundstage. it's powered by USB so it doesn't have any of the common problems that plague cheap switching power supplies.

Little Dot MKIII is properly isolated, runs on it's own power and will output 350mW into a 600ohm load which is about 4x the driving power of a stock Asus Xonar Essence STX, he can roll tubes if he likes. not much else to say really.

total cost should be under $350.