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Topic: Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones (Read 12135 times) previous topic - next topic
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Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #25 –
@ ff123
I read on a Archos forum that putting tape over the three holes on the EX-71s improves the sound.  I tried holding my fingers over them and didn't notice much difference.  (Unless they were kidding)  Maybe outside though it would cut down on the wind noise?
  BTW-My Plane Quiets have the two prong plugs as well as the single one.  Interested in buying them?

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #26 –
I just came back from buying a pair of Sony EX51LP. Cheaper than the 71 model and supposedly the same drivers. I'm satisfied with them from the half hour listening I've done so far. Sony's recommended price for these is 25% lower than for the 71s. Anyone knows why?

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #27 –
Quote
I brought the EX71's on my recent trip to Thailand thinking to use them on the plane, but the airlines foiled me by using different headphone jacks -- one plane used dual mono subminiature jacks, and the other used a 1/4" full-size headphone jack. I discovered that I could wear my foam earplugs (29 dBA) and use the plane's headphones with the volume turned up very loud. Sort of like Dolby noise reduction in that it reduced the lower frequency droning but still let in the critical frequencies. Worked great.


Bet the people sitting next to you didn't think so!    Then again, the plane noise is pretty loud..

In case you or others don't know, there is a company (Etymotics) that makes very good  in ear type headphones.  They have about 23db attenuation,  so nearly as good as a set of plugs,  and world class sound.  Not cheap at $250 (there is a $140 version) but if you want to make the outside world REALLY go away...

And I'm getting away from the original question..

Here's a link to HeadRoom's guide to types of 'phones:  HeadRoom Guide
They cover a lot,  and rate them as well.  Be aware, they sell them too..  so there may be a bit of bias towards their suggestions,  but overall it seems pretty honest.

Also links to big discussion boards much like this(Head-Fi and Headwise)..  with lots of opinionated people..  much like this,  there you can get your questions answered without much bias.

Jon

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #28 –
Maybe the accessories?  Did they come with three different sizes of ear pads?

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #29 –
The Etymotics are incredible. I'm listening to ER4P's as we speak, but way outside the original post.

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #30 –
Quote
Maybe the accessories?  Did they come with three different sizes of ear pads?

Yup. They come with three different sizes. The one thing it doesn't have is a 1m extention cord, but since you can choose 0.5m or 1.2m chord for the 51 model (SP vs LP) I can't see that as a very big benefit for the 71s. Definitely not worth the price difference.

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #31 –
I notice a little "microphone effect" with the EX-71.  I've heard that the Etymotics also suffer from this.  If you plan on moving around alot while listening this could be a factor.
 

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #32 –
Quote
1.  In most budget devices, (especially portable CD players) economics defines that the cheapest parts to make just good enough sound are used.

I think a decent output headphone amp stage can be quite cheap. Of course, cheap or mediocre quality devices most probably won't have a good output stage.

Quote
2.  The laws of electronics determine that if you only have 3V available, (most things run off of two AA cells) you will only be able to make 3V (actually somewhat less) of signal out.  With some headphones that are "harder" to drive, due to higher impedence,  that just might not be enough to develop good volume.


Not really. 2.5 Vpp is enough to drive at good levels headphones such as the HD580. Make the calculations: HD580 sensitivity: 97 dB/mW. HD580 impedance: 300 ohm.min, 600 ohm max.

Quote
Also, for the same reason, high dynamics are compromised,  as in you suddenly need many times more power to properly reproduce that drum hit, or other short and loud sound in the music, and the little amp in the CD player "runs out of gas".


Not necessarily, if the amp is well designed.

Quote
So a headphone amp that's built out of better parts, that can deliver more power at a higher voltage if needed,  will help some on even cheaper, low quality 'phones,  and a lot with the higher quality, higher impedence ones..


High impedance headphones are more difficult to drive just in the sense that they will usually produce a somewhat lower sound level, and for this reason they demand more output voltage to reach same loudness than a low impedance headphone. On the other side, they demand less current than low impedance headphones.

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #33 –
For microphonics and the Etys, the ER4 series were often criticized for this, but the ER4P's (not ER4S's) have a new braided cord and a moved pod (where left and right cords meet) that reportedly decreases the problem significantly. I haven't heard the old 4P or 4S cord so can't compare, but the current one doesn't suffer microphonics much. I wear them walking often and it's not the issue that's usually mentioned. 

Haven't heard the ER6's, but they are rumored to have lower cord problems also.

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #34 –
Quote
They sound awesome to me but most people tend to complain about them being a bit "bass heavy" and this is very true in some respects. 

Koss PortaPro are outstanding cans in many respects. Can be easily driven by any portable, very light, very comfortable (much better than 'behind-the-ears' type), outstanding warranty (if something goes wrong, they just replace them).  Been using them for about 5 years.

Saying that, YES, they are a bit bass heavy which is perfectly allright for rock/pop and jazz which is what I mostly listen with a portable CD player, but less than adequate with classical music. By less than adequate I mean that the chamber music for instance sounds a bit unnatural. At some point I've decided to get another pair, just for listening classical music, heard that Byerdynamics DT231 has 'fairly flat response' and easily driven by portables. Got these cans. True, it is not 'bass heavy' and perfectly allright for classical music, but not as easily driven as PortaPro, that is, can't reach the same volume level on those cans as with PortaPro. Got a portable headphone amp to remedy the problem, but then the whole setup got a bit too complicated, I just don't like to carry around both cd player and headphone. Oh well, unless you listen mostly classical music, go for Porta Pro.

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #35 –
I think I forgot to mention that I'd rather not buy something that I have to stick into my ear (I find this to be quite annoying).

So if I'm not going to buy an amp, the lower imedance the better, right?  So it looks like my current cheap 'phones have an impedance of 16 Ohms, the PX100's and 200's have an impedance of 32 Ohms, and the PortaPros and KSC50's are at 60 Ohms.  If my current headphones can go more than loud enough, 32 Ohms shouldn't make much of a difference right?  I'm thinking with 60 Ohms though, that I would probably have to buy an amp?

[span style='font-size:8pt;line-height:100%']Edited because I forgot something![/span]

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #36 –
The PortaPros will run fine without an amp. They're pretty efficient. It's not just an impedance issue when discussing requirements of an amp. And even if it was 60 ohm's is still considered pretty low. Nonetheless the PP's are made for portable unamped use. I ran them off an unamped iPod and they sounded really nice. They're maybe the ugliest phones ever, but the sound for the price point is great.

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #37 –
Quote
The PortaPros will run fine without an amp. They're pretty efficient. It's not just an impedance issue when discussing requirements of an amp. And even if it was 60 ohm's is still considered pretty low. Nonetheless the PP's are made for portable unamped use. I ran them off an unamped iPod and they sounded really nice. They're maybe the ugliest phones ever, but the sound for the price point is great.

Yes, PortaPro are very efficient. If I remember correctly, Byers DT231 has a lower rated Ohm, at least according to specs, and yet they are much harder to drive than Koss.

They certainly won't pass a beauty contest, for sure, but why should I care. What I *really* like about them is that they sit on my head fairly tight, and yet don't put any pressure on earlobs (mine are very sensitive ones). Really nice and intelligent construction. Can wear them for hours with no problems, no headphone listening fatigue syndrom.

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #38 –
If the Koss PortaPro's are too ugly for you, get the Sennheiser PX 100's, they have about the same frequency response.

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #39 –
Quote
They're maybe the ugliest phones ever, but the sound for the price point is great.

Haha, no doubt about that.  The SportaPro is the same thing though, right?  Just in a prettier package?  Do they sit on one's head as well as the PortaPro?

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #40 –
Quote
So if I'm not going to buy an amp, the lower imedance the better, right?  So it looks like my current cheap 'phones have an impedance of 16 Ohms, the PX100's and 200's have an impedance of 32 Ohms, and the PortaPros and KSC50's are at 60 Ohms.  If my current headphones can go more than loud enough, 32 Ohms shouldn't make much of a difference right?  I'm thinking with 60 Ohms though, that I would probably have to buy an amp?

Well,  don't judge phones just on their impedence..  It's just one aspect.. and I may have over emphasized that aspect as Kike points out.  It is a concern,  but primarily go with how they sound..

Some of the lowest impedence phones are the ultra cheap and ultra crappy ones they throw in the box with the player.  Some of the "best" phones have a very high impedence..  but that dosen't neccicarily mean low=crap, high=quality.

Sensitivity varies too, due to design,  so a lower or higher impedance isn't neccicarly connected with how many dB / mW they will put out.

My KSC-35's play pretty darn loud off my 2 cell portable CD, without an amp.  They (and the Sporta and Porta) have very nice drivers, and sound a lot better than most other phones in their price range.

Jon

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #41 –
Quote
I just came back from buying a pair of Sony EX51LP. Cheaper than the 71 model and supposedly the same drivers. I'm satisfied with them from the half hour listening I've done so far. Sony's recommended price for these is 25% lower than for the 71s. Anyone knows why?

Really, please, could you please tell us how bad is the "microphone effect" on those?

I am considering getting a pair, but if it's going to sound like an stethoscope I might think twice (I'm a medical doctor, you know, and I listen to music TO ESCAPE FROM MY DAYJOB  )
I'm the one in the picture, sitting on a giant cabbage in Mexico, circa 1978.
Reseñas de Rock en Español: www.estadogeneral.com

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #42 –
Koss Porta Pro

www.koss.com
shopping.yahoo.com

mpepper

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #43 –
Quote
Quote
They're maybe the ugliest phones ever, but the sound for the price point is great.

Haha, no doubt about that.  The SportaPro is the same thing though, right?  Just in a prettier package?  Do they sit on one's head as well as the PortaPro?

Sporta Pros have different drivers, they sound worse...

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #44 –
Quote
1. KSC 35 (30 dollars from Koss.com) - have pretty much defined cheap portable headphones.  For the price might very well the best sounding headphone. Nice controlled bass

I just got a pair of these. They're still available from koss.com, though apparently discontinued everywhere else. Man, these are sweet sounding phones, incredible sound for the price. None of the harsh sound of most small headphones, just comfortable and warm.

g
Glauber Ribeiro
Yoyodine Propulsion Systems - The future starts tomorrow!

Portable, Comfortable, Inexpensive Headphones

Reply #45 –
Oh and a warning: when i bought the KSC35 at koss.com, their system suggested i also buy a preamp/EQ unit called EQ50. I wasn't sure about it but it though, for $20 i could take a risk.

Bzzt! Complete piece of junk. It introduces hiss that's as loud as the music you're trying to listen to. So unless you want to use it as a spent cassette tape simulator, stay away from the EQ50 from Koss.

g
Glauber Ribeiro
Yoyodine Propulsion Systems - The future starts tomorrow!