Headphones you own; why you love them

[Enkay78]

I think now I'm just showing off so I'll stay away for a bit
Cheers!!
PM me if you need any details on the amps or HPs

No I don't think that's showing off. Rather can understand the passion behind it.

Please carry on. I find it enlightening and an insight to headfi.

Would love what are your favourite amps etc. And why you love them.

I am gauging the water. And thinking of getting a Sabaj D5 to test .....and will later shift to premium stuff.

Thanks!.
Yes, those were with pink drivers. I still have a pair of RS1s which John Grado confirmed are from the very first batch of RS1s.
But I preferred the HP1000s which were Joseph Grado's creation. Still got a pair

The AKG K1000s were also one of my favourites but like the HE6, need a speaker amp to sing.

You have a nice setup yourself!
Kartikay, are you a member of Head-fi?

This all sounds Greek to me currently. But will try to catch up within a year or two.

You really are a afficionado ....a connoisseur of headphones.

 

[rksingh1]

This is becoming a thread for elite's.

Let me put my humble thought in here and see if I can embarrass myself.

I spent my whole life thinking headphones worth 500-1000 INR provide great VFM. While I am not wrong - I have started to appreciate what quality of music is. After those polks and infinity at home and in car respectively - my current earphones have started disappointing me.

I bought many BoAt, JBL, Soundmagic, Mi and sony earphones costing me less than 1000 every other year for me and my wife to use as our daily driver. We both come from humble families and spending more than 1k on earphones was not justified by our own values/standards.

Oh - 6 years back, while buying the Sony 42in TV - I had gotten a free Sony headphone - I guess the model was XB450 - silver color. I thought those to be very expensive and premium and didn't use them for one year - keeping it only for special occasion. It took me some time to understand that the special occasion is me.

Anyway - I used it with great fun for over 4 years before giving it away to my US born nephew. He thought it to be the best gift given by me to him - ever. That was free stuff, so lets discount it out.

After all the years of budget listening - I took a leap 2 year ago when my wife's BoAt earphone stopped receiving her voice and I bought a Soundmagic E10C for 1500 bucks. Boy - I was thrilled when it came. While the sound signature of E10C didn't impress me (it is flat - I like U shaped) - my wife totally digged it.

Last year - when my earphones gave up too - I got myself Sony MDR-XB55AM in-ear phones. They sounded good enough - nothing that blew my mind away. Then came the stage of trying CHI-FI bluetooth earphones. Got myself Bluedio TN2 for 10 dollars on last years Chinese singles day sale. They came with noise cancellation and they work like a charm. They a good u-shaped audio spread, a functioning noise cancellation (surprisingly, it works) and an acceptable microphone. Those were a great 10 dollars spent on a pair of bluetooth earphones. I am still using them. Surprisingly - I find them sounding better to my Sony XB55APs.

Bluedio and XB55APs are doing their job fine and they are with me all the time - but I am looking for an upgrade now. I have started feeling that in-ear phones are not helping my sensitive ears - so headphones with long battery life is what I have my eye on. Things I checked:

1. Sennheiser 4.50 BTNC : I was getting one on OLX for 4k, one year used. Not sure if it was a great deal. The reviews are mixed -some say it is great - others say it is ok. I also felt that it has a flat audio graph. I may not like it if it has a flat signature.
2. Sony XB650BT : No NC - I can live with that. Costs 5k new. Used available for 3-4k. Has that curve to audio and good battery life. Good price. Seems like a decent choice.
3. Sony XB950B1 : No NC, great audio and acceptable battery. Costs 10-11k depending upon the sale.
5. Wait for Black Friday sale and directly jump to Sony 1000xm3s - they currently are industry leader and retail for 300 dollars. Black Friday can bring it down to 200-250 dollars range.

What would you suggest for my upgrade?

 

[Enkay78]

This is becoming a thread for elite's.

Let me put my humble thought in here and see if I can embarrass myself.

I spent my whole life thinking headphones worth 500-1000 INR provide great VFM. While I am not wrong - I have started to appreciate what quality of music is. After those polks and infinity at home and in car respectively - my current earphones have started disappointing me.

I bought many BoAt, JBL, Soundmagic, Mi and sony earphones costing me less than 1000 every other year for me and my wife to use as our daily driver. We both come from humble families and spending more than 1k on earphones was not justified by our own values/standards.

Oh - 6 years back, while buying the Sony 42in TV - I had gotten a free Sony headphone - I guess the model was XB450 - silver color. I thought those to be very expensive and premium and didn't use them for one year - keeping it only for special occasion. It took me some time to understand that the special occasion is me.

Anyway - I used it with great fun for over 4 years before giving it away to my US born nephew. He thought it to be the best gift given by me to him - ever. That was free stuff, so lets discount it out.

After all the years of budget listening - I took a leap 2 year ago when my wife's BoAt earphone stopped receiving her voice and I bought a Soundmagic E10C for 1500 bucks. Boy - I was thrilled when it came. While the sound signature of E10C didn't impress me (it is flat - I like U shaped) - my wife totally digged it.

Last year - when my earphones gave up too - I got myself Sony MDR-XB55AM in-ear phones. They sounded good enough - nothing that blew my mind away. Then came the stage of trying CHI-FI bluetooth earphones. Got myself Bluedio TN2 for 10 dollars on last years Chinese singles day sale. They came with noise cancellation and they work like a charm. They a good u-shaped audio spread, a functioning noise cancellation (surprisingly, it works) and an acceptable microphone. Those were a great 10 dollars spent on a pair of bluetooth earphones. I am still using them. Surprisingly - I find them sounding better to my Sony XB55APs.

Bluedio and XB55APs are doing their job fine and they are with me all the time - but I am looking for an upgrade now. I have started feeling that in-ear phones are not helping my sensitive ears - so headphones with long battery life is what I have my eye on. Things I checked:

1. Sennheiser 4.50 BTNC : I was getting one on OLX for 4k, one year used. Not sure if it was a great deal. The reviews are mixed -some say it is great - others say it is ok. I also felt that it has a flat audio graph. I may not like it if it has a flat signature.
2. Sony XB650BT : No NC - I can live with that. Costs 5k new. Used available for 3-4k. Has that curve to audio and good battery life. Good price. Seems like a decent choice.
3. Sony XB950B1 : No NC, great audio and acceptable battery. Costs 10-11k depending upon the sale.
5. Wait for Black Friday sale and directly jump to Sony 1000xm3s - they currently are industry leader and retail for 300 dollars. Black Friday can bring it down to 200-250 dollars range.

What would you suggest for my upgrade?

Hahahaha.......your story is very similar to mine.


In fact I was totally naive about this headfi world till recent year.

I thought my Sony wh1000m3 was excellent.....till I tried few balanced CHI-FI IEMs. My current favourite is CCA C16 with 8 drivers in each phone. The Sony is relegated to when I require noise cancelling. I had tried T2.....but did not like it.

I have Tinhifi T3 (better sound then T2) and CCA C10 also.

The CCA C16 sounds very transparent and neutral. The mids and highs are very clear.


Having thus bitten, I now am thinking of owning a good can.....maybe a planar type.



By my experience of Sony 1000m3, I would rather suggest you select a more audiophile one in that price range. If you want noise cancelling then go for it. My .2

 

[kartikay]

Thanks!.
Yes, those were with pink drivers. I still have a pair of RS1s which John Grado confirmed are from the very first batch of RS1s.
But I preferred the HP1000s which were Joseph Grado's creation. Still got a pair

The AKG K1000s were also one of my favourites but like the HE6, need a speaker amp to sing.

You have a nice setup yourself!
Kartikay, are you a member of Head-fi?

Would love to demo those HP1000s, have read that Joseph Grado version was quite different than other Grados.
I am on headfi, my handle is "kartk". Here are my current favourites:

 

[Enkay78]

Is that the kaldas rs1 you mentioned?

What's the price?

 

[kartikay]

Is that the kaldas rs1 you mentioned?

What's the price?

yes thats Kaldas RR1, its being sold at ~41890 (35000 + gst/shipping). But right now they are only fulfilling pre-orders, not yet there for open sale.

 

[ONEMANARMY]

This is becoming a thread for elite's.

Let me put my humble thought in here and see if I can embarrass myself.

I spent my whole life thinking headphones worth 500-1000 INR provide great VFM. While I am not wrong - I have started to appreciate what quality of music is. After those polks and infinity at home and in car respectively - my current earphones have started disappointing me.

I bought many BoAt, JBL, Soundmagic, Mi and sony earphones costing me less than 1000 every other year for me and my wife to use as our daily driver. We both come from humble families and spending more than 1k on earphones was not justified by our own values/standards.

Oh - 6 years back, while buying the Sony 42in TV - I had gotten a free Sony headphone - I guess the model was XB450 - silver color. I thought those to be very expensive and premium and didn't use them for one year - keeping it only for special occasion. It took me some time to understand that the special occasion is me.

Anyway - I used it with great fun for over 4 years before giving it away to my US born nephew. He thought it to be the best gift given by me to him - ever. That was free stuff, so lets discount it out.

After all the years of budget listening - I took a leap 2 year ago when my wife's BoAt earphone stopped receiving her voice and I bought a Soundmagic E10C for 1500 bucks. Boy - I was thrilled when it came. While the sound signature of E10C didn't impress me (it is flat - I like U shaped) - my wife totally digged it.

Last year - when my earphones gave up too - I got myself Sony MDR-XB55AM in-ear phones. They sounded good enough - nothing that blew my mind away. Then came the stage of trying CHI-FI bluetooth earphones. Got myself Bluedio TN2 for 10 dollars on last years Chinese singles day sale. They came with noise cancellation and they work like a charm. They a good u-shaped audio spread, a functioning noise cancellation (surprisingly, it works) and an acceptable microphone. Those were a great 10 dollars spent on a pair of bluetooth earphones. I am still using them. Surprisingly - I find them sounding better to my Sony XB55APs.

Bluedio and XB55APs are doing their job fine and they are with me all the time - but I am looking for an upgrade now. I have started feeling that in-ear phones are not helping my sensitive ears - so headphones with long battery life is what I have my eye on. Things I checked:

1. Sennheiser 4.50 BTNC : I was getting one on OLX for 4k, one year used. Not sure if it was a great deal. The reviews are mixed -some say it is great - others say it is ok. I also felt that it has a flat audio graph. I may not like it if it has a flat signature.
2. Sony XB650BT : No NC - I can live with that. Costs 5k new. Used available for 3-4k. Has that curve to audio and good battery life. Good price. Seems like a decent choice.
3. Sony XB950B1 : No NC, great audio and acceptable battery. Costs 10-11k depending upon the sale.
5. Wait for Black Friday sale and directly jump to Sony 1000xm3s - they currently are industry leader and retail for 300 dollars. Black Friday can bring it down to 200-250 dollars range.

What would you suggest for my upgrade?

I would recommend a Grado SR80. Great VFM.
Once you like the Grado sound you could move on to their wooden cans.

 

[rksingh1]

I would recommend a Grado SR80

Thank you. Any recommendation in bluetooth cans category? Would mostly be using it during travels. No wire will be preferred.

 

[ONEMANARMY]

Oh sorry. In any case these are open backed so not the best for travelling.
No idea on bluetooth headphones, never went that way.

 

[docharsha89]

Hi,
My primary headphone is an Audioquest Nighthawk Carbon. I love it for its deep bass, Captivating mids, precise imaging and smooth butter like tonality. On top of everything, it's the most comfortable headphone I've ever worn. I can easily go 5-6 hours before needing a breather. It retailed for 700$ new, but I found it at a discount price of $299, which was a steal IMHO.

 

[Enkay78]

Hi,
My primary headphone is an Audioquest Nighthawk Carbon. I love it for its deep bass, Captivating mids, precise imaging and smooth butter like tonality. On top of everything, it's the most comfortable headphone I've ever worn. I can easily go 5-6 hours before needing a breather. It retailed for 700$ new, but I found it at a discount price of $299, which was a steal IMHO.

Where you got the discount...Amazon? eBay?

 

[docharsha89]

Where you got the discount...Amazon? eBay?

amazon.com right now its available at the same price too.

 

[rksingh1]

same price too

Its listed at $249 now. Seems like a great headset for its price.

BTW - I ordered a Sennheiser BT 4.40 from amazon this weekend - costed me 7500 or so. I was looking for a good sounding BT headset and this seems to be a good one in market.

 

[hifitoaster]

audioquest nightowl, because its a big headphone which imo sounds better than the hd 650 in terms of detail, bass timing, soundstage but still keeping the weight in voice like the hd 650. I take it out for work, use it in a train without disturbing others still not being small like a portable marketed headphones. Also, comfortwise, hands down, as comfortable or if not better than hd 700. Plus nowadays u can pick it up around 300 dollars or euros which is great for something which is a normal competitor for a class above.
I am convinced that if I want a COMFORTABLE(this is important) headphones better than this its in the league of 1000 bucks, which again needs another 1000 bucks to do justice with amplification. Considering the time I spend with headphones, 50k is not even justifiable, which makes me think not spending on the next level of headphones not a viable option. Also Nighowl, can be run easily from most sources, though I have a mojo.

The best cheap headphones I ever owned still have something to be called audiophilic will be AKG k550. detailed and huge soundstage and objects due to its huge drivers all for 100 dollars or euros or pounds.

 

[gururanga]

A brief description of some of them
In terms of resolution, nothing comes close to the Stax009. It just blows everything away.
The most comfortable were the Grado GS1000s.
The JVCs had the biigest bass impact.
The HD800 seemed to heve the biggest soundstage(headstage)
The LCD3s had are very nice textured quality.
Grado PS1000s were just great fun.

Will try to put some more thoughts but this was some 10-12 years ago and have since moved on to speakers.
Don't think I'll ever go back to cans.

How do you rate HE6,

I have them too and drive them via Devialet amp directly from speakers tabs. For me HE6 resolution is on par with Stax and have wonderful bass slam, did try Stax009 but they are very thin and bright for my taste. HE6 driven by speaker amp gives body and soul to music.

 

[docharsha89]

Its listed at $249 now. Seems like a great headset for its price.

BTW - I ordered a Sennheiser BT 4.40 from amazon this weekend - costed me 7500 or so. I was looking for a good sounding BT headset and this seems to be a good one in market.

I feel it's the best headphone you can buy under 1000 dollars for overall sound and comfort..Some may have a better soundstage and an airier sound (Hifiman Ananda), but none of them have the character the Nighthawks have. I'm at a fix right now, because if I need to upgrade, I have to spend more than 1500 dollars to see significant improvement. I've read a lot of good things about the Ether 2, So I may consider that in the future.

 

[sunand777]

I feel it's the best headphone you can buy under 1000 dollars for overall sound and comfort..Some may have a better soundstage and an airier sound (Hifiman Ananda), but none of them have the character the Nighthawks have. I'm at a fix right now, because if I need to upgrade, I have to spend more than 1500 dollars to see significant improvement. I've read a lot of good things about the Ether 2, So I may consider that in the future.

is it have more sound leak to outside as it is semi open type...?

 

[docharsha89]

is it have more sound leak to outside as it is semi open type...?

Well, Its not entirely open, like a HD650 or a HD598, So its doesn't leak sound to that extent, but some noise can be heard outside.

 

[Enkay78]

I am mulling over Hifiman Sundara to start my headfi journey (the planar type )

It's around 25k right now in AliExpress

 

[ONEMANARMY]

How do you rate HE6,

I have them too and drive them via Devialet amp directly from speakers tabs. For me HE6 resolution is on par with Stax and have wonderful bass slam, did try Stax009 but they are very thin and bright for my taste. HE6 driven by speaker amp gives body and soul to music.

I agree with you that the HE6 are very resolving and full bodied when mated with a good amp but the Stax009 in my humble opinion never sounded bright or thin. Which amp did you try them with. They are in fact very revealing to source and amp.
I had them paired with Esoteric K01>>Woo WES and they were the finest headphones I have had the fortune of owning.
YMMW