Grado ALMOST Best Headphone
By paying $500, it may seem like you should get the top of the line of a companies headphone. With the Grado RS-2, you nearly do. The RS-1 sells for $200 more but the difference is minimal. Most people who listen to them side by side would probably choose to save the extra money......unless money is no object.
These headphones are classy from the getgo. They arrive in a wooden box. They are made of real mahogony wood. The wood is treated not just for great looks (which it has) but for performance. The headband is real leather.
The sound?
Outstanding!
The highs are great, the midranges are tremendous and the bass is realistic and tight. They, in my opinion, outperform all other competitors. Those who cannot afford this much for a headphone may wish to consider a less expensive model from Grado. The SR-80, which sells for $95, is probably the best buy of the entire line. But if you can afford these, they are worth the investment
Phiaton MS 400 Premium Carbon Fiber Headphones :
A New Experience
I couldn't be happier with the product. This thing is just WILD!!!
I previously used Bose TriPort and Sennheiser HD 595, and the Phiaton catches all the sound that the others couldn't. It's definitely a new experience that all hardcore music lovers deserve.
Outstanding!!!
I decided to get the v-moda vibe once again after reading the stellar reviews on Amazon. I mean, a product with 4 stars after 312 reviews has got to be good, right? I got the earbuds and decided to try them on (skeptically). I was completely blown away! So much so, that I decided to write my first review ever on Amazon. So here are the pros and cons of these earbuds.
Pros:
1. Phenomenal bass response. It doesnt have the "please make me deaf" kind of "super bass", but has a rich uniform bass - much better than the Shure and Creative buds.
2. Mid range and highs are also great and crisp
3. The fit and maintenance are both super easy. No clogging, not 'ear wax cleaning tools' etc
4. The "seal" is also great - and importantly, consistent. Also, the seal pretty much isolates most sound. So you definitely want to be careful when wearing these. (For example - I couldnt hear the tap running when I was in my kitchen. I couldnt even hear my phone ringing right in front of me)
5. Fits right, no slipping even when you are walking or running
Cons:
None really. The packaging, presentation etc could be better. The "leather" bag it comes with looks kinda cheap, etc. But all of this, in my opinion is purely incidental and immaterial. I mean, do you buy earbuds for the sound or for the way its packaged/accessories?
A Superb pair of closed cans
I decided to take the plunge and take a chance on this relatively new brand and purchase my first real set of headphones (had an akg k26 p before). Got it on Monday and I've been very pleased with it thus far. Bass is right there and should be comparable to many sub $150 headphones (except the DT770s) judging from other user reviews at head-fi.org. I use it primarily for movies and so sound detail is important and the Q40 definetly delivers on that aspect. The build is sturdy (Not a fan of flimsily made headphones... ahem Grados, Senns, Denons) and its not too heavy. My ears started to get warm after about 1 hour but that's expected with any closed style headphones. Isolation is excellent and sound leak is minimal... although certainly no IEM .
The kicker for me was the price of course. at around 100 bucks incl shipping. I don't know any comparable headphone out there at that price range.
Great for
-hiphop, heavy rock, movies, gaming
Look elsewhere if you're into (Denon D1001?)
-classical, techno
Comfortable, Durable, Excellent sound
Love these head phones....Nicely made, very comfortable and durable. I love the self adjusting head piece, it eliminates the pressure points you would get in a typical headphone. The headphones rest across the whole top of your head. I chose the closed style to eliminate outside noise which does a very good job. I use them with my ipod and macbook, they work great for both. I do have a portable headphone amp which I use every so often with the ipod, but it is not really needed for everyday listening. My only complaint, if I had one, would be I was hoping the head band would have been leather(like the AKG K701), not a big fan of vinyl/plastic. But I will say, they did a good job with it regardless.
Best I've found, though a bit pricey
I've been looking for decent in-ear headphones for quite a while. I've tried Sonys, and eventually bought the Bose offering, which was disappointing given Bose's reputation and price. Still, they were better than the ones that came with the iPod, so I had just about resigned myself to the fact that I was never going to get from earbuds the kind of sound over-the-ears headphones provide. Then I tried these, and the difference was night and day.
The first thing a good pair of headphones has to do of course is isolate the sound from the ambient noise, especially in a car. The Monster turbines do this better than any I've ever heard, even nearly obliterating the sound of a competing car radio. (I worry about hearing sirens while driving, they're so good).
Once the background is taken care of, the sound is superb -- clear, balanced, and finely detailed. I'm a fairly eclectic listener, and everyone from Puccini to Sigur Ros sounds good through these. It remains undistorted even at high volumes, but high volumes are less necessary with these. Finally, these are comfortable to wear. The soft rubber tips (a variety of sizes and shapes provided) fit comfortably in my small ear canal, and hardly ever fall out.
The only reason I give these 4 stars instead of 5 is the price, which I find to be a bit excessive for ANY earbuds. But it may be a case of getting what you pay for.
Excellent, listenable in-ear phones
I received these in-ear phones from RoadDogOnline through Amazon about a week ago. I have been using Shure E-4's for about 2 years, and Koss over the ear headphones for about 5 years. This is my first review. The Atrio's are so good I thought I would share my thoughts.
Unlike the Shures, these do not loop behind the ears. Using the foam tips, the Atrios stay in place fairly well, though the Shures felt more solidly in place. Construction is sturdy. They don't feel like they'll break apart in your hand. Out of the box, the Atrios provide a variety of silicone and foam ear tips (I'd be very surprised if you could not find a comfortable fit)and a case that's large enough to carry a small DAP along with the phones. The Atrios are considerably more comfortable than the Shures and the over ear headphones.
I drove all three sets of phones from my iAudio X5. I listen to 60's and 70's rock, folk, and classical ripped with a high sampling rate. The Shures are very solid performers, and I don't regret owning them in the least. However, they are a bit light on the bass and almost too crisp in the treble range. The Koss over ears sound very good as well, but are not portable. The Atrios are an absolute pleasure. The bass in comparison to the Shures is excellent, and the higher frequencies are gentler, more mellow. You can just leave these things in your ears forever and listen and listen without tiring. The brightness of the Shures is excellent for critical listening but for just sheer pleasure the Atrios win hands down.
The one significant negative for the Atrios is that they do not block noise nearly as well as the the Shures. My E-4's will go on the plane with me, and the Atrios will be at my desk at work.
Excellent, Even Surreal, Once EQ is adjusted
These are excellent headphones, with unbelievable bass(read-accurate).
As equalized they are not particularly accurate though-no doubt to the intention of having them used in noisy environments. Though lacking a documented frequency curve, I would guess it has a pronounced dip in the upper midrange to lower high frequency region, combined with a slightly heavy midbass band. No doubt many people will find this exciting, I am sure this was done again to compensate for an expected noisy external environment.
I am a sound engineer, and I have been looking for very high quality noise reduction headphones for mastering purposes. I suspected when I first auditioned these, that with a little tweaking, I could get them "perfect".
In mastering, one of the biggest problems is dealing with any extraneous noises that may "mask" details in the recording you are working on. traditional headphones simply cannot block all of this noise out. You would be amazed at the noise that creeps into your audtioning that you aren't aware of. The headphones do the finest job of removing this noise that I have ever heard. It is simply amazing. I never realized, even in a controlled listening room, just how much noise was present. In silence with the headphones powered off, then on, I realized I could hear my breathing! Yes, even the smallest amount of noise can effect the quality of music, and how wonderful to have almost everything eliminated.
As stated earlier I had to adjust my eq when using these for mastering, involving listening to hours of reference recordings to get it right, but I got there.
Now I have to say I almost listen exclusively to these headphones for all my audtioning. I have B&W speakers for my reference-anyone who knows anything about speakers, know these are the best, and I still prefer my headphones. NOW this is primarily because of the noise elimination, you simply will not believe the details in music that are buried beneath a noise floor that you don't even perceive.
I can even plainly hear differences between 16bit and 24bit when I am mastering! Its almost frightening.
One last thing. they are VERY comfortable. mastering can often take hours, and its wonderful to have a pair of cans that you can leave on without any ear pain.
Highly recommended. I will be happy to write another review with the supplied eq settings in the future if anyone is interested.
The outer difference looks small, it's time to hear the difference.
We were able to audition D7000 with the D5000 side by side. I brought my faithful SR-71 and iMod 5.5 to hook it up.
To my surprise, the look is similar but the sound has drastically changed from D5000. I'd say the former D1000/D2000/D5000 share the same sound signature but the D7000 is not on the line of the predecessors. I auditioned with two friends and we all share the same impression.
The sound of D7000 is noticeably darker, deeper and laidback. I felt it something like Senn so I thought the impedance has increased or effeciency has lowered. Actually I have to raise the volume to match the D5000. I told this finding to Denon people but they did not have enough technical information about that.
Next, I was amazed by the bass quantity and quality. The bass is huge, deep and much detailed. Wood bass note is realistic and impressive. So my first impression was something like an L3000 blended with Senn.
Sound staging is not only wider than D5000 but it's fairly expansive as if I were in a large hall.
The housing is made of wood but I did not notice remarkable wood resonance like wooden Grados.
As for mid range, the vocal is articulate, rich and full. It's just stunning especially with warm SR71. S-sound harshness could be a little exists but not prominent anyway. The mids to highs are clear and crisp, the timbre of this portion may be similar to the predecessors. But I did not feel it is so airy as it is darker overall.
Some may prefer D5000 rather, as the sound signature is so different. However, I think D7000 is a better can in general. D7000 has better resolution, sounds bigger and the bass is so impressive.
In my opinion, D7000 is a bit expensive and comes to the playground a bit late. But it's surly the new king of Denon cans and well comparable to other kings.
Credit: Sasaki (www.head-fi.org)
More Review @ Head-fi: (1),(2)
Awesome Cans!
I got a chance to hear these as a local Guitar center and they sound awesome! I WAS headed in to buy the Sennheiser HD 280's (Pro) until I heard these. The 380's completely blow the 280's away. There is JUST no comparison.
The Bass response is amazing for closed ear headphones. This is quite rare from what I understand.
You can hear all the detail in the highs and mid-ranges and everything sounds crystal clear. Close your eyes and you might think you're sitting in a concert hall. The sound isolation these things provide is SECOND To NONE (Except maybe the 280's)! Even with the volume extremely low I could not hear people talking who were standing 3 feet away from me! I was listening to Guns N Roses when one of the sales guys fired up a Bose system in the same room... it was so loud that (without the 380's on my head) I couldn't hear people talking but with the 380's on I barely heard the music coming from the Bose system.
These are totally worth $200!!!! And I'm not even a hardcore audio guy. If you don't believe me just demo these things are your nearest Guitar Center! Take your current headphones with you so you can compare them.
Impressive
These headphones are very impressive. First, let me admit that I don't JUST use my ipod. I regularly check head-fi.org for reviews and consider myself a intermediate audiophile, as pretentious as that may sound. I was WAY past Bose(the most overrated, overpriced headphones on the market), and wanted something that was actually a great value and sounded great; The ES7's do not disappoint. However, I have been burning them in, and lets just say that these need a LOT of burn in to sound their best. I have been burning them in since Friday at 12 pm, and I have read on headfi.com that these headphones need 300 hours of burn in to start sounding optimal, preferably done with pink noise and not music. When I first purchased the phones, I was somewhat disappointed. They sounded just like the overpriced Bose triports, without the boomy bass(although, it was muddy). With burn in, these are already starting to sound great. The bass is slowly tightening up, while the vocals are clearing up and the highs are starting to shine. I can officially say that I am a fan of Bob Marley's song " Exodus" and " No Woman, No Cry" and a few other songs, songs I never liked in the past. The ES7's sound pretty good with my ipod, but VERY good with my headphone out on my PowerBook G4. And this is all in less than a week's time of burning in these phones! Although these phones don't require an amp, I am probably going to purchase an amp/dac combo to optimize my listening experience. This way, I don't have to deal with the sound-card on my powerbook, and my sound experience can truly be called great. Also, when I'm on the go, my ipod--after I amp it up and Rockbox it--will sound a lot better! However, these headphones do not disappoint by themselves, and they will continue to impress someone the longer he/she uses them. Highly recommended.
So far, great headphones!
The headphones sound wonderful, full response, and a nice mix of lows and his. They can take a bit of time to put into your ear. Not as simple as putting on/in a "normal" pair of headphones, but once they are in you do not want to take them out. I have had no problem what so ever with them not fitting securely. You may need to find your right tip size for maximum ear comfort, but the headphones come with several tips for you to do this.
These headphones are a bit expensive, but it is my hope that they will last me several years. I love that the main cord can be replaced!! In fact, that is why I went with these headphones.
Comparing the two, Shure e4c and ultimate ears, I think the ultimate ears sound slightly better, seems like the lows come out better and the his and mids are about equal (best I can tell). I think the lows come out better because the ultimate ears are bigger compared with the Shures, thus allowing more lows (just a guess). All in all I am happy with ultimate ears, they are also a great headphone and better sounding then the Shures. My only hope is that they last a long time! If the cord does go it will be a cinch to replace (and 20.00 later). Here is hoping I don't need to find out about ultimate ears customer service.
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May be right for you...
HOW USED: primarily for flying, but also at my desk w/ my laptop.
COMPARISONS: Before settling on the Bose QC-2's, I tested (on flights) the following noise-cancelling headphones: Bose QC-3's, Sennheiser PX-250's, and Solitudes (LINX, ver. 3). All had good-to-excellent sound, plus individual pros & cons.
CONCLUSION: which headphone is "best" depends on your tastes, physique, and priorities.
PROS (vs. other models): more comfortable for long periods than on-the-ear phones; have the deepest (more comfortable) over-the-ear cups; use normal batteries--you're not compelled to use expensive, proprietary batteries; noise-cancelling component is built-into headset (vs. awkward capsule on wire).
CONS: clunky when turning head to side or trying to sleep; ears may sweat in sealed-off cups. Though not perfect, the Bose QC-2's are the best noise-cancelling headphones on the market (for me). Though pricey, they're worth it, making frequent flying far more pleasant!
Superb Earphones
I have actually re-evaluated how I feel about these earphones. Initially, I did not like the way that they sounded or how they felt in my ears. I have large ear canals. I have to wear the largest set of tips on every earphone that I have worn. Sometimes they are not big enough.
These earphones fit differently than so many other earphones. They sit just inside the opening of my ears. The body of the earphones definitely stay outside. They do not feel snug like the Shures. In trying to "achieve a sealed fit" in my ears, I would try to insert them too deeply. They were not comfortable, and I did not achieve the necessary seal in order to get a solid bass response.
What I found really works is to obtain some foam earpieces manufactured by Comply. They are available through Amazon and on their own website. When I inserted these "memory foam" tips onto the end of these earphones, I was able to achieve a very comfortable, "light touch" fit. I found that there is no need to force them to fit snuggly like a Shure earphone. The sound is full and rich. The bass is excellent. I cannot help but think that the aluminum casing and shape give these earphones some of their resonant bass.
Now, I really love these earphones. I have the Denon AH-D5000's which are an over the ear headphone. They are superb. I could not figure out how they could have missed the mark on their earphones. I have found that if you are willing to invest in some foam tips for those earphones that seemingly do not perform as you would like, you can really improve the sound.
Hyped, but they really do deliver HD audio....
Replacing my trusty 5 year old V700's I wanted something more "audiophile". Finding quality headphones that you can use as home monitors, on the move interfacing with your iPhone or Blackberry with a mic and call/skip button, and for air travel with active noise cancellation, without draining your mp3 player battery with impedance north of 50 Ohms, was fruitless, until Beats.
However it is not the range of technical features and quality that surprises, it is the sound. They really do excel at providing a completely balanced and wonderfully rich and warm sound stage, at all volume levels. I would recommend these to anyone looking in this price bracket who is not averse to their super-slick-styling.
Listening to a bit of house, breaks, electronica, acoustic, rock, classical and country (I like Taylor Swift...) I found myself smiling and enjoying worn favorites all over again.... Beats are going to be really, really hard for the competition to beat, for a while at least, in this price class.
If you are in the market for noise canceling headphones, home monitors, or smart phone headphones, that provide an engaging sound stage and don't mind a bit of size, these are the phones you've been looking for. However, be warned you will require another $100 or so for Platinum Notes to re-master all of your mp3 tracks, as you will start to hear stark, but subtle differences between the recordings that will become apparent thanks to the excellence of reproduction in these cans. Monstrously Good/Dope/Sick!
One of the best single balanced armature IEM
SA6 is a great example of how single BA transducer can sound great. Though the overall quality (both on sound and build), I believe there is still room for improvement as SA6 is the first IEM for Sleek Audio. The custom porting (VQ system) works well. For people who love a warm, full, detail yet musical sound, SA6 just might be the one for you. To me, SA6 is on the warm side, but not dark. The mid has a full body that is especially good with vocal. The treble (T++ port) reaches quite far and gives enough detail to show some sparkle but not to a point of fatiguing. Bass (on B+ port, pin hole mod) is accurate and fast, though not the best or biggest impact I heard and lack a good resolution on depth, it seems to well suit the full mid. The soundstage is better than most but not the best I heard. All and all, SA6 presents a very musical sound that can easily make most music more engaging. I'll say SA6's sound signature is a combination of all the nice characteristics I'll be looking for in a pair of IEM. As of why it falls short of being the best is because, though SA6 is really good sounding, it can still be a bit congesting on busy passage. I think it is because SA6 still lacks the best resolution and the body of sound to be ranked as the best. With the new price of $200, SA6 are now one of the best value IEM in the market IMO.
Credit: ClieOS, www.head-fi.org (More reviews)
