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
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.
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?
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
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.
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.
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.
Being a Juilliard graduate, I have a need for pure music reproduction. Living in New York City, I also have an absolute need for sound isolation in earphones, which can only mean sound-isolating earbuds.
Being a bit of a connoiseur of earbuds, I own the Shure E5C and SE530, Westone UM2, ER4 and 6. Because of the Klipsch legend in speaker design, I took a flyer on their Custom 3. They are superb.
I chose the Custom 3 over the Image because I prefer the buds that fit the ear like a hearing aid, sitting in the ear canal, rather than the type that stick out of the ear. I never seem to feel comfortable with the latter type, get a good fit, or feel they sit securely. For that reason, I find that I never use either of the ER's. Without all of these re requirements, good sound reproduction is not possible in a bud.
The Custom 3's are warm, bright, and offer resonant bass -- not to mention a spacious sonic field and beautiful instrument placement. For me, as one experienced in earbud fitting, they required no special attention to fit except to substitute the large eargels for the medium which come attached in the box. I don't generally care for the double-flange type as they seem to make for an artificially dampened sonic field and collect earwax inordinately.
The Custom 3's are very lightweight, are no more prone to microphonics than any other bud, and seem very sturdy. I love the hardwire around the ear which makes finding the right ears a breeze. Love the E5C's for the same reason: no fumbling!
I would say the sound of the Custom 3's equals or surpasses both the Shure and Westone models, for significantly less money. I have already ordered a second pair (also have two of the E5C's). Like to have backup!
Bravo to Klipsch for giving us such another beautifully engineered product. Love the demo video, too. Very droll!
I originally purchased the Audio-Tehnica quiet point ATH-ANC7 headphones most because of it's overall positive rating vs. Bose Quiet comforts. However, once I received them I viewed some ratings for the Panasonic RP-HC500 and decided to purchase one of those as well in order to compare the two.
My observations:
Cost: Panasonic was ~$7 cheaper.
Appearance: Both are pretty much the same form factor. The slight nod goes to Audio-Technica for it's looks. Both carrying cases are similar in shape and appearance.
Comfort: Both headphones were equally comfortable on my large ears.
Noise cancellation: Panasonic wins by a substantial margin. My wife verified this in our noisy car.
Sound: Both sound the same to me. However, my main focus was on noise cancellation.
Battery: Panasonic indicated that some models come with rechargeable battery (mine came with standard battery). However, using rechargeable batteries is important to me. Audio Technica explicitly stated to NOT USE rechargeable batteries. Panasonic wins.
Accessories: Both brands came with identical accessories except that the cord that came with Audio Technica was about 2" longer. No advantage either way.
I ended up returning the Audio Technica headphones and am very happy with the Panasonics.
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.
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)
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.
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.
I own two pairs of QZ-2000 headphones and use them every day on the bus to listen to the radio or Cds. Sometimes I record spoken radio programs on a CD-RW to play back on the bus journey. Basically they reduce the low frequency sounds so that you can listen to spoken voice, very useful when studying languages. Classical music still doesn't work, but most Jazz does, again sitting as far away from the engine as possible helps as well.
When flying I used to use ear buds and heavy ear defenders. The Koss headphones are much better and not nearly as tiring to wear. They aren't much use at the high screaming kids frequencies but even so they do take the edge off it. Although they are useful at reducing noise the normal technique of getting a seat in the center block as far forward as possible should still be used since these tend to be the quietest seats. They are considerably cheaper than upgrading to business class on longer trips. I notice that I am fresher when I wear them than when I do not. I have noticed they don't make so much difference on trains though. I think trains are just quieter.
The reason I have two pairs, well they have a life time warranty and I find that the wires tend to break inside with use. Then I send them off to be repaired and use the other pair.
Could I image life without them? No. Could they be improved? I think so. They are a considerably higher priced unit than other noise reduction headphones which sort of balances out the life time warranty. At ...U.S. I think the factory really should match the headphones and noise reduction units better so that they do sell a mixture that is very sensitive to a feedback loop. Also I think they should do something about the cables between the headphones and noise reduction box.
All in all an excellent first generation product.
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!
I have been using these headphones for over an year now and have done lot of air-travel, both domestic & international. Bose sound quality is the best, without any second thoughts. I own Bose PC speakers and couldn't settle on anything else when it came to headphones.
The high-price was surely a concern, even for a few months after I got these ($375 for headphone..why ..???), but with the quality of sound and the comfort in use during air-travel made it worth. However, I feel that these are not good for everyday use like in gym etc, but are superb for those who travel a lot, either airplane, trains or buses.
Battery life is amazing and it just goes on and on. I have taken direct 15 hr flights and it never ran out of charge. Note that, I did not used it for 15 hrs continuously, but did for more than 6-7 hrs. Headphones come in a nice case with an extension cable and connectors for multiple headphone jacks.
So, if you have decided to buy these but are holding because of price, I'd recommend to go ahead and order them. Save somewhere else as these headphones will prove their worth.
You hear music like a professional does with tremendous detail, clarity and across the whole sound spectrum. Bass is precise and effortlessly well defined, mid range is rich and treble is crystal clear. These are easily the Porsche of headphones. Not everyone's cup of tea, though everyone simply respects and admires their performance, design and quality.
PROS + :
Sound clear and well defined with a variety of music, and are very comfortable to wear for long periods. Outstanding ergonomics mean the cups can effortlessly fit a wide variety of head shapes. However, people with very small heads may find them too large. The protective carry case has gold plated airplane and larger socket adapters, good for travel. My iPods work very well, though you start to notice imperfections of MP3 encoding in your favourite tracks recorded in lower resolution. Build quality is absolutely outstanding, headband, critical hinges drivers and the cord are built to last. They feel and look good when wearing them, avoiding the exaggeration of the "aircraft-marshaler-ear-muffler" look and feel of other brands.
CONS - :
Expensive (but easily worth it). Don't suit smaller heads/ears.
In conclusion, I would challenge anyone in the market for this type of headphone to be anything less than truly delighted with the PXC 350. I don't do the audiophile BS, but I will say the sound is "brilliant". For the price you are getting standard setting technology, solid build quality and fresh enjoyment of your music, as well as comfort in noisy environments (aircraft, bus, trains...etc.). Which all equals very good value for money.
I would recommend the PXC 350 to anyone who wants to hear music professionally, on the move as well as at home or in the studio too.
