Best headphones for under $200? (1 Viewer)

[KeithH]

The subject says it all. I am looking for a good, but not overly expensive pair of headphones. I will not use them too often, so I don't need something like the Sennheiser HD-600 or something in the same price range from Grado. Basically, I want something that will allow me to listen to music when my girlfriend is still sleeping.
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[John Garcia]

Open or closed? What about the Sennheiser HD500 or HD570? I'm using HD 470s and they are much better than I expected for under $100.
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[Andy W]

IMO, Grado makes fine headphones at every price point in which they sell products. Grado’s least expensive headphone, the SR60, which retails for approximately $70, is a world beater at its price point and works great with portable CD players. For me, Grado headphones’ primary downside is they are uncomfortable to wear for long listening sessions. Of course, you may disagree as headphone comfort is often perceived differently from person to person.
For additional resources, go to Link Removed , a dedicated headphone forum.
Andy

 

[KeithH]

John,
I haven't decided if open or closed headphones would be best as I haven't researched it enough. Thanks for the suggestions. I figured Sennheiser would make something suitable in my price range. At under $100, I'll consider the HD-470. $200 is what I set as the upper limit, but I don't have to spend that much. The only concern I have is that I will probably want to use headphones for SACD, and I worry about how well an inexpensive pair would work. They would probably work well, but like speakers, something more expensive would most likely be better.
Andy,
Thanks for the Grado suggestions. I've heard good things in the past about the SR60. I'll look into them and others from Grado.
EDIT: Andy, I erroneously referred to as 'John' initially. Sorry for that.
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[Edited last by KeithH on September 09, 2001 at 08:08 AM]

 

[MarkO]

IMO These are the best you can get for 199.00 http://www.jandr.com/JRProductPage.p...=Current_Price

 

[KeithH]

Mark, thanks for the suggestion. That's two votes for Sennheiser.
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[Andy W]

Keith, I meant to mention I have also read good things about Sennheiser’s headphones in your price range, although I have not personally auditioned these specific models.
For your reference, I own Sennheiser HD-600 (primarily used with my main system, powered by Musical Fidelity X-Cans and X-PSU outboard power supply), Grado SR60 (primarily used with portable CD players), and an old Stax SR-Sigma with the SRD-7 adapter electrostatic headphone (used on my secondary system in the office). Given their respective price points, I am very pleased with both the Sennheiser and the Grado. (I purchased the Stax in the late 1970s, and they were very good in its day. But IMO, the SR-Sigma has been surpassed by some of today’s less expensive dynamic headphones).

 

[Ken Seeber]

I managed to score a pair of HD-600s for $134 during an Express.com clearance sale (they arrived yesterday and I can't take them off!). While waiting for them to arrive, I did a lot of research and discovered that Sennheiser headphones have a much lower MSRP in Europe than they do in North America.
Have a look at www.musicians-gear.com . They have a currency converter and they sell the HD-600s for $201.51. I've talked to a few people who give the site high marks.
[Edited last by Ken Seeber on September 09, 2001 at 06:25 PM]

 

[Jack F]

I picked up a pair of Sennheiser HD535's at Tweeter for $89.99
They sound wonderful.

 

[Patrick R. Sklenar]

Keith,
If you're looking at open phones, you might want to check these out http://www.headphone.com/ProductsHeadphones/AKG501.asp
I'm not affiliated with Headroom or AKG, I'm just a satisfied customer.

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[James D]

Ken,
Could you tell me what day did you order the 600's at Express? I also ordered these phones from them at the end of July and have yet to receive them. The order status said pending and now they have completely removed the order from the status page. I'm just hoping that I still have a chance.

 

[KeithH]

Andy, Ken, Jack, and Patrick, thanks for your suggestions. The options are piling up.
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[FrankC]

KeithH:
I've been pretty happy with my pair of Sennheiser 570s. I can't remember exactly how much I paid for them, but I think it was less than $100. Caveat: I mostly listen to jazz, classical, and acapella music, and I think the headphones do a pretty good job with those genres.
If you're a big fan of synthesized bass or hip hop, I should point out I think the bass isn't as booming with this model as with some others...
Good luck!
--f

 

[Ken Seeber]

quote: Ken,
Could you tell me what day did you order the 600's at Express? I also ordered these phones from them at the end of July and have yet to receive them. The order status said pending and now they have completely removed the order from the status page. I'm just hoping that I still have a chance.[/quote]
James,
I placed my order in the early morning hours of July 27. The headphones went into my shopping cart just fine and I went through the checkout procedure. Later that day I received an e-mail stating the headphones were on backorder.
I e-mailed customer service and got a personal reply stating that Express would not get any more headphones in to fulfill backorders. For some reason I left my order in place, just to see how long it would stay in Express' system.
Then last weekend, my order status switched from backorder to pending. The headphones shipped on Wednesday and I received them Saturday, Sept. 8.
I have no idea how I got this lucky. I may play the lottery this week!
What date did you order your Sennheisers and when did your order say "pending"? Pending means they are getting ready to ship. If your order has shipped, it won't show up on your open orders page. You need to click on "complete order history" or whatever to see the order. The headphones may already be on their way to you!
Keith,
Let me put in an additional vote for AKG. I've owned two pair, the K240D and K260 (no longer made), and loved both of them. There's a reason AKG are used in most recording studios.
[Edited last by Ken Seeber on September 10, 2001 at 12:51 AM]

 

[KeithH]

Frank,
I don't want overly pronounced bass, so maybe the HD-570 would work for me. They may be O.K.
Ken,
I am not too familiar with AKG. Interesting. I didn't know they are used so often in recording studios.
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[KevinQ]

HD-570 is open air.
Can somebody suggest a closed headphone around $100?
Thanks.

 

[Alfonso_M]

A few weeks ago I picked up the Sennheizer hd 580 for 149.00 + shipping from this guy/shop, brand new in the box and no complaints.
http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI...tem=1273507074
http://www.hififorless.com/acatalog/...ONES_2083.html

 

[John Garcia]

Sennheiser sells remanufactured, warrantied headsets for about 60-70% of MSRP, right on their site. I bought a second pair of 470s directly from them and I cannot tell them from brand new.
Personally, I listened to the Grado's and the one thing that I didn't like was that they were not comfortable. All of the Sennheiser's I've owned or auditioned are extremely comfortable. The 470s are not fatiguing, even over longer periods of wearing them (hours). This is one reason why I picked them.

[Edited last by John Garcia on September 10, 2001 at 10:49 AM]

 

[Ken Seeber]

Sorry, multiple posts. I've never had one appear after more than four hours in limbo, though!
[Edited last by Ken Seeber on September 10, 2001 at 04:25 PM]

 

[Ken Seeber]

Keith,
You can find some good information at www.headphone.com . Just click on Buy Stuff and then Headphones.
I'm surprised more people around here don't listen to AKG. They're excellent quality for a reasonable price. My K260s are 15 years old and still sound great. The only reason I'm replacing them is because they're physically starting to show signs of wear.
Sennheiser, Grado, AKG, you really can't go wrong with any of these.