What headphone(s) do you own ?

[595Giuse]

Just curious ...
What headphone(s) do you currently own ?
Which one(s) is(are) used the most, or is your favorite ?

I own a Shure Aonic 50, Beats Studio 3 and Shure SRH-1540 and they are the best

 

[AirDuern]

I use Moondrop S8 (thanks to Crinacle), Beyer DT880 250, Ultrasone Signature Studio, Grado RS2, Beyer T70p
Also own : Alessandro MS2i, NAD HP50 1st gen, Ultrasone Proline 20th Anniversary, VSonic GR07 Bass Edition, Goldring NS 1000 (ANC), Koss PortaPro

E1DA 9038D with my phone (thanks to ASR), Focusrite Scarlett 6I6 1st Gen, Topping D10S (thanks to ASR) and A50S (thanks to ASR) on PC.

 

[student of history]

I never had any until 2 years ago. I then had to buy a set to make the wife happy. She was tired of knitting to space explosions, gunfire, car accidents, and other movie sounds from my home theater. She was getting Home Theater PTSD. So I bought a pair of Mobius that Amir tested. All in all, I find headphones lacking. I want serious bass and I can't get it with headphones. I think I'm just used to a big subwoofer and the headphones are just weak in comparisons. I even tried using the Equalizer APO I think it is. I had to have a computer whiz come over and get it working. after he had it all working correctly I had him boost the bass up as far as he could without it clipping. So from flat on the bass to max unclipped bass I could NOT hear any difference. He claimed he could. I then had my ears checked professionally and my hearing is very good 12k and below. So, the EQ programs for headphones seem very weak to me. Now, this is a sample of one though. Explosions and other stuff just is not right in headphones. I need to feel the explosive blast and not just hear it. Oh, and having my butt vibrate is really, really bad so I would never get a butt vibrating device to simulate an explosion! I guess I could have the wife hit me in the chest with a 2X4 but I don't think she can get the timing to match with the onscreen explosion. Oh well, until headphones get much better or someone can send me a pair to try that really, really does serious bass, I will stick with speakers. Well, unless she is knitting, then its Mobius and they do a fairly good job, better than TV speakers or my soundbar. It's a good thing I'm the man of the house and don't let her push me around! She did give me permission to post this on ASR!

It's not "audiophile" by any means, but you might try experimenting with something like Dayton Pucks. I have them mounted to my desk chair. If you attach them to a subwoofer preamp, or filter out all but the low frequencies some other way, they allow you to feel much of the bass impact that headphones don't deliver. And they're dirt cheap! I've been thinking of adding them to my sofa in the home theater room. They are basically inaudible if you set them up right.

 

[Blank Verse]

Over ears:

• Sennheiser HD600 - bought in 2017, my current go-to. Very happy with the sound and comfort.
• EMU Teak - haven't put them on recently, but I will revisit soon. Always thought they were fairly bassy, but oddly my son (13) found the treble offensive.
• Sennheiser 560s - pretty solid (comfort, sound), although redundant with (and less impressive than) the HD600. Looking for a short 3.5mm terminated cable to make them more portable friendly.
• ZMF Classics - were my work pair for a long while. They're generally fine, inoffensive, but feel a bit meh sometimes. Lacking... something... Certainly I don't get any "wow planar" feelings.
• Creative Aurvana Live! SE - actually deeply flawed FR. But they EQ well. You can get used to the stock sound, but switching back and forth from a neutral EQ, the effect is mind-boggling. Also my pair don't seem to agree with any published FR I've seen. Had to EQ by ear and sine sweep.
• Philips Fidelio X2HR - didn't like the fit or sound. Never really nailed down what exactly I didn't like about the FR, but my son is happy to use them for gaming.
• Bose QC25 - more or less strictly used when flying, which has been a while, I remember thinking they sounded decent for what they are for. Also v. comfortable.

In ears:

• Etymotic ER2SE - recent purchase, v. happy with the sound, getting more used to the fit, but they never "disappear", I'm always aware of their presence. Best case scenario, they are not causing discomfort.
• Google Pixel Buds A Series - more or less only used while working out. They do their job well.
• Earfun Free Pro 2 - bought recently to test Oluv's Patreon EQ. Seems good, but haven't had them long enough to come to a conclusion, right now I would prefer the reproduction of the Etymotics. The app used to apply the EQ is among the least intuitive / user friendly I've ever encountered.
• Bunch of chi-fi stuff, hardly worth mentioning any. Most of them are too bassy. Some have serious fit issues. I don't see myself dropping any big money on chi-fi. I may pick up the odd interesting low budget pair.

Earbuds:

• VE Monk + - there are times when this form factor is convenient. These are inoffensive.
• Yincrow X6 - a bit like the Monks except overblown bass. Worse than the Monks IMO.

Others:

• Koss Portapro - warm, but generally enjoyable to listen to. Not comfortable for extended periods, even with Yaxi pads. If they were more comfortable, I could ditch the earbuds probably.
• Aftershokz Aeropex - when I'm out cycling, or running (not very often). The technology seems to be quite limiting with sound reproduction, so these don't sound great compared to more or less anything above, but they have a very specific use case, for which they do a passable job.

I've only started using the ER2SE this week, although I bought it last year. I was expecting it to be much more uncomfortable than it has ended up being (with the default, smaller three flange silicone tips), and the silicone tips have already started to soften or mold to my ear canal.

What surprised me most about the earphone is the quantity and quality of bass. I was expecting something truly anaemic based on people's comments, but it is actually more than sufficient, and very articulated. It makes me wonder how many people are listening to these earphones with incorrect insertion. If there is no good seal, the bass is extremely weak and the tonal balance of the headphone becomes trash.

I have also gotten a set of Comply P foam tips, but I have yet to try the ER2SE with these.

 

[Blank Verse]

Yet another update to my headphones list:

Sennheiser HD520
Sennheiser HD520 II
Sennheiser HD530
Sennheiser HD540 Reference I (600 ohms)
Sennheiser HD540 Reference II
Sennheiser HD580
Sennheiser HD600 (Ireland blue marble version)

AKG K240DF
AKG K240M

Sony MDR-7506

These are my IEMs:

Etymotic ER2SE
Etymotic ER2XR

Sennheiser CX-300 ii (these are exclusively for traveling, not the best sound quality by far, but great soundstage and elevated bass for relaxed listening)

I am thinking of getting rid of some of these to make room for something else. I will be probably selling the Sony and the HD 520 II.

I am interested in the AKG K501 and the Sennheiser IE600, but they are hard to come by for different reasons (one is rare, the other one hasn't been released in the US yet), plus the price tag of the IE600 might be more than I want to dish out for an IEM unless it is proven to me that it is worth it.

 

[david.aj.silva]

Just added a preowned ZMF Blackwood Auteur to my recliner potato stable

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

Audeze LCD-5

I come from Utopia, and thought I'm not easy to impress.
But the LCD5 skin me around...
Definitely a upgrade to the Utopia!

 

[DesEsseintes]

I've only started using the ER2SE this week, although I bought it last year. I was expecting it to be much more uncomfortable than it has ended up being (with the default, smaller three flange silicone tips), and the silicone tips have already started to soften or mold to my ear canal.

What surprised me most about the earphone is the quantity and quality of bass. I was expecting something truly anaemic based on people's comments, but it is actually more than sufficient, and very articulated. It makes me wonder how many people are listening to these earphones with incorrect insertion. If there is no good seal, the bass is extremely weak and the tonal balance of the headphone becomes trash.

I have also gotten a set of Comply P foam tips, but I have yet to try the ER2SE with these.

Yes, similar experience here. Did initially use with shure foams, which I found relatively comfortable. But now I am quite happy to use the smaller silicone tri-flange. For interest sake, I am currently running them EQ'd to match ER2XR. Haven't made my mind up which I prefer, the overall tonality is similar, and the boost is mostly sub-bass focused. I would say with regards to the bass that the roll off around 20-30hz is the major criticism of the ER2SE performance.

 

[Blank Verse]

Yes, similar experience here. Did initially use with shure foams, which I found relatively comfortable. But now I am quite happy to use the smaller silicone tri-flange. For interest sake, I am currently running them EQ'd to match ER2XR. Haven't made my mind up which I prefer, the overall tonality is similar, and the boost is mostly sub-bass focused. I would say with regards to the bass that the roll off around 20-30hz is the major criticism of the ER2SE performance.

I don't listen to a lot of electronic music with subbass like Trance, and I think the bass has just the right amount right now for everything else. What I do miss, depending on the source, is a little more sparkle or air in the treble. I am planning on getting the Etymotic filter tuning kit to try the brown filters mostly, as some people have commented that they open up the treble nicely. In any case, these are minor nitpicks, the ER2SE is amazing as it is, a true gem for discerning listeners who value natural timbre in their headphones. As for the soundstage, the ER2SE doesn't add anything that isn't there, so if the recording already has a sense of soundstage (as in well engineered classical music, or just acoustic, records) you will get that too.

Besides the filters, I am also going to experiment with different tips. I already got a set of Comly P foam tips, and I was thinking about getting Medium or Small Shure olives. How did you find the effect those have on the sound?

BTW, speaker simulator plugins (or crossfeed simulators) might be an option to add some soundstage for recordings which don't have it.

 

[DesEsseintes]

The shure foams sounded fine. Honestly, I haven't tried to A/B them much with the silicones, so I don't feel I could give you a reliable comparison. These are pretty hard to A/B, due to the time it takes to insert, change tips, go again. If the insertion depth is not identical etc... By the time everything is back, would my impressions be reliable? To me, the sound of both was good. If I was only had one or the other, I would be satisfied. My choice now is comfort (pretty close) and ease of insertion / removal (the silicones I can get in and out faster now).

Re your sound stage comment, well it is close to being a single point in the inside of my head. True 1 dimensional sound (jk). But I kinda don't care. Not sure I own any headphones or earphones that give me any great impression of soundstage. I'm more interested in whether the sound reproduction is natural, musical, enjoyable (the latter 2 are probably redundant with the first).

I did try the built in crossfeed with the Qudelix thingy, but I would say the implementation is not particularly effective.

On a similar note I also tried out some of the Dolby Atmos stuff via Apple Music. This is a more noticeable effect, though again, the implementation is not consistent (at least when it comes to whatever algorithms they are using for headphones).

 

[Alomar012]

Just curious ...
What headphone(s) do you currently own ?
Which one(s) is(are) used the most, or is your favorite ?

I own the Sennheiser HD 25, 58X, 650 // Audeze LCD-1, GX // Apple Airpods Pro // Bose NC Headphones 700. My favourite right now is the Audeze LCD-GX especially after I EQ'ed them. My DAC/AMP setup is the Sabaj D5 + S.M.S.L SP200.

 

[Erdbeergeist]

DT1990 Pro (Eq'd) - Daily Driver at home
AudioTechnica M50x - I use them in the office since they are closed, but will replace them sooner or later
Samsung Galaxy Buds + - I use them for listening to Podcasts and Audiobooks while Im doing other stuff or commuting

 

[napfkuchen]

As I enjoy music mostly on speakers nowadays most headphones are gone:
Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro
Beyerdynamic T1.2
Dan Clark AEON 2 Noire
Hifiman Sundara is left for "enjoyment listening"
Sennheiser Momentum 3: for listening to audiobooks and as a headset when working from home
Shokz Openrun Pro: for running (sound quality is not that good but being aware of what's going on around you is a huge plus for me)

 

[raistlin65]

As I enjoy music mostly on speakers nowadays most headphones are gone

Blasphemy!

 

[don'ttrustauthority]

Just added a preowned ZMF Blackwood Auteur to my recliner potato stable
View attachment 197057

That is an endgame system my friend!

 

[TheBatsEar]

Sennheiser HD-650, TV and stereo
Beyerdynamic DT990, 250 ohms: Cable broken, new one waits to be soldered in, then i'll sell this one
Beyerdynamic DT990 Edition, 32 ohms: Laptop, daily driver because it's very comfy

 

[sprellemannen]

HD800S - For me the true endgame... I can keep them up for hours uppon hours of listening and never get tired, just love the sound of them (EQ'd), they just put a smile on my face every time I fire them up...

Great headphones indeed, I miss my HD 800 now and then (sold only because I wanted a closed headphone), amazing sound and maybe the world champion in comfort. Furthermore very well built, and excellent regarding replacement parts. Thumbs up for Sennheiser! Hard to resist buying HD 800 S, and you do not make it easier for me

 

[Ricardus]

AKG K271.

I bought them from the Pro Sound Rep at Victor's House of Music in NJ (it's a guitar center now, I think) and he had sold a pair to Les Paul the week before, so I had to go with them.

I've had to replace the earpads in them once, and will be doing it again this week. Don't order the replacement foam pads from AKG because they're like $60. I found some amazing memory foam ones with soft calfs skin covering on The Bay of E for like $12.

 

[juliangst]

I'm mostly using my new Aeon Noires. I also own Dt1990 and nighthawk carbons but I don't feel any need to use them anymore because the Noires are just that much better. Might be some kind of honeymoon phase but if not, I might sell one of my other headphones.
For outside I mostly use Koss headphones or IEMs and the Noires as well because they're surprisingly good as portable cans.

 

[SlothRock]

ZMF Verite Closed, ZMF Atrium (just ordered), HD660S. These days the 660S is mostly sticking around for gaming duties.