Good Inexpensive Phones

[sharebyaku]

What would you guys recommend for an in-ear with good bass? I can't use anything too expensive as I break everything within 6 months

[CrowdAds]

[steinburger1109]

JVC Marshmallows are good for the price. Or Sennheiser CX 300, but as dfkt's original post says, there are a lot of fakes, so be careful.

[jmwreck]

Hello, i'm new to this forum and to the audio equipments. Since i'm focus on guitar and effects pedals, I don't know the full depth of audio hi-fi. I have a sansa clip+ and a fiio e5, I have read a lot about both gears and i'm quite impressed. However, I use the clip+ & e5 with my sony mdr-ex50 and tried it with a sony mdr-zx100 monitoring headphones (both came as a gift) and both didnt came out good. I know it's all about the impedance and stuff, then I tried using my laptop - e5 - tried both headphones and the ex 50 did great, zx-100 not so good maybe because of its flat response.

I would like to ask for your recommendations on what other headphones will be compatible with clip+ & e5, for the price, maybe less than $100. I would like to use both with a new headphones.

Thanks

[renno61]

Meelectronic m9 with balanced sound tips(grey) sound good and well made.
dissapointed with other ear tips if your like bass these are good,the smaller tips are
especially strong in that department.to me they overpower the mid range and treble.
i paid £20 ebay uk dont know if i got a good deal?


the ear buds or tips pick up lots of noise from the sound of wind

[xaolindragon]

I see the Sennheiser HD 201 on the list. Is this still fairly relevant?

I'm thinking of buying another pair of headphones. I want to get another pair. It's mostly going to be for listening to music on my Sansa or laptop and a bit of gaming. I want a bit of portability, so I can take them out if I want.

I got Phillips earhooks right now.

[skip252]

Originally Posted by dfkt

The HD 201 sound better when played through a stronger amplifier.

I'd take that part seriously. There have been several reports from people who had to crank their DAPs just about to maximum to get decent sound from the HD 201.

Instead of tacking your questions onto the end of this thread it may be better to check here and post that info in a new thread here in Headphones and see if anyone can help that way. Listing your location and what's available you've looked at can also be helpful in a hunt for decent, cheap cans.

[Marvin the Martian]

Originally Posted by dfkt

The HD 201 sound better when played through a stronger amplifier.

Originally Posted by skip252

I'd take that part seriously. There have been several reports from people who had to crank their DAPs just about to maximum to get decent sound from the HD 201.

I am one of those people Skip refers to there. My Sansa Clip and Fuze that I had when I had the HD201 had trouble powering the 201.

[koolkat]

correct me if I'm wrong but Sennheiser usually lists their headphones' sensitivity ratings in db/mV. 112 db/mW is a lot more sensitive than 112 db/mV right? That might explain why some low impedance Sennheiser headphones (32ohms) need to be amped.

[electron]

I picked up a pair of JVC marshmallows this summer. They are not audio bliss, but they are very respectable (and surprisingly durable) considering the price.

[xnor]

Originally Posted by koolkat

correct me if I'm wrong but Sennheiser usually lists their headphones' sensitivity ratings in db/mV. 112 db/mW is a lot more sensitive than 112 db/mV right? That might explain why some low impedance Sennheiser headphones (32ohms) need to be amped.

Not exactly. They usually rate their headphones in dB SPL / 1 Vrms at 1 kHz.
This means that a 300 ohm HD650 with 103 dB/V has a sensitivity of 98 dB/mW.
A 32 ohm PX100 (114 dB/V) has a sensitivity of 99 dB/mW.

In terms of power needed these headphones are very similar, but for the HD650 you need higher voltages (and less current obviously). Especially with battery-powered devices voltage output can be very limited (about 0.5 V on a sansa clip for example).

[monsterseram]

how bout now ?? are px100 still the leader for the cheap portable headphone ?? or are you guys finding the better one ?? AKG k24p is no longer exist now, how bout AKG k402 ? is it have the same sound ?

[JK98]

The PX100 is gone, replaced by the much more expensive PX100 MK2. I think the PX100 MK2 is around $50-60, so not that cheap. For around $15, the JVC Flats HAS 160 sounds great. I think the JVC HAS 160 is almost as good as the Sennheiser PX100. The Sennheiser MX580 at around $25 looks like a good earphone.

[Marvin the Martian]

I had the Flats and the old PX100's at the same time. While I did think the Flats had a little better balance of sound, the PX100 were much more comfortable, and had a better soundstage. Too bad the newer model PX100 is so much more expensive.

[JK98]

In addition to being much more expensive, many people greatly prefer the original PX100, saying the the MK2 is too bassy and lacks the detail of the original PX100.
The Sennheiser CX300 mk2 is also much more expensive than the original CX300. At least many of the reviews of the CX300 mk2 show a slight preference for it over the original. The much higher price doesn't seem to be justified. I like Sennheiser stuff, however Sennheiser seems to be pricing some of its newer products much too high.

[monsterseram]

actualy in my country the old px100 is discontinue and they release sennheiser px80 for the substitute.. they said that the px100 and the px80 is still same, just different name.. so if the px100(px80) still exist in my place , am i must to buy it ?? because right now im looking for a good and cheap portable headphone

[JK98]

Some websites claim the PX80 is the same as the original PX100, while others say it isn't. Even if it it isn't the same, it might not be worse, just different. If you can buy it at a place where you can return it easily if you don't like it, then try it.

I saw the PX100 MKII recently on the B&H website for $41. Not that expensive.

The JVC HAS600 is nice relative compact bassy closed headphone for around $30. The JVC HAS160 is much more neutral than the HAS600. The HAS160 has bass, but not the impactful bass of the HAS600.

I found frequency response charts of the HAS150 flats and the PX100 MK2. I would have preferred having charts of the HAS160 and PX100 as well. The comparison of these still shows what I hear when comparing my PX100 to my HAS160. The PX100 has tighter bass, however the HAS160 has much better highs. The highs on the PX100 sound recessed. I also listened to these next to my Portapro. Imo either of these sound better than the Portapro. Several reviews clain the PX100II has too much bass, and is missing the detail of the original PX100. I guess ignoring price, I like the PX100 a bit better than the HAS160, however when comparing the two, I keep wishing the PX100 would have better highs. Based on the reviews I read, the highs on the PX100 MK2 are even more recessed than on the PX100.

http://www.head-fi.org/t/425759/jvc-...o-im-not-crazy

http://graphs.headphone.com/graphCom...Type=0&graphID[]=1823

[OriginalGusBus]

Hey guys, have any of you had any expeirance with the SoundMAGIC PL30's? I'm getting ready to pull the triger on either the Cowon J3 or (Don't murder me, I'm just a fanboy!) iRiver K1 and I don't want the phones outa the box, so I was looking at these as an option, seeing as they are only $24.95 on amazon right now. I normaly don't buy anything with out reading about it on this site, but I haven't seen any post on these so I don't know if they are wroth my time or money. What's your guys' opinion on these(If anyones uesd em')?

Thanks!

[l2ob]

i know these are cheap but i still love them!

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-pla-_-NA-_-NA

just giving a short review on these things cuz after 2yrs im still impressed.

lil background since im new here: i am not a sound engineer. i do however DJ and consider my self to be a low budget audiophile. music is pretty much my life so please take my opinion for what its worth in that regard.

i haven't found anything that sounds as good as these (and stay on my ears) for under $100. they have very nice & tight low end with some solid response for freq below 200hz. mids & highs are decently accurate with out getting distorted at higher volumes. ive been rocking the same pair for about 2 yrs now (mostly thru my ZunHD) and they are still going. i get a pair in my stocking each yr for Christmas and i still have yet to take ether of the other sets out of the packaging. one thing that does suck about them is the foam tips seem to get hard after a lot of use (or exposure to air?). its a catch 22 for me cuz the tips might be what make these so awesome. the tips are made out of the same material as ear plugs you would use at the gun range. they have a nice memory effect that provides the best isolation ive experienced, just twist emm in your fingers like you would normal earplugs and pop emm in. this might add to why the low end is so rich. the SPL in the ear canal is probably higher since its sealed off from atmosphere? so even tho the tips seem to "go bad" after a yr or so, at under $20 price point you cant be angry.

bottom line, they are the best "disposable" head phones ive ever owned. almost all of the use they get is during active times. working out, mowing the lawn, washing the car, etc... on hot days i even rinse my head off with the hose while these things are still in and they just keep banging away.

now please dont get me wrong. i dont doubt that there are better headphones for under $100, in fact im sure there are. but originally i bought these on a whim to upgrade from the stock buds that came with my ZuneHD and was just looking for something "cheap" that would stay on my ears to get me by till i found the time to research and get some "real" headphones. well after using these i liked emm so much i didnt bother...

another cool thing was these seem to save me some battery life to. reason being they just sounded louder. i normally use the max volume of "30" with all other headphonse (even my huge over ear DJ ones) and things were just too quiet, songs just weren't loud enough. after using these i was having the volume tuned to 22-27. again probably due to the great isolation and not the actual drivers, but whatever. if it works it works, right?. also, noise from rubbing on the cords doesn't seem to be as bad with these as others ive used.

hope this helps someone.

[Santatution]

I have a pair of m6s and I use Monster foam earpieces for them. They isolate noise better and they fit better than the included silicone tips.

[jmwreck]

Originally Posted by Santatution

I have a pair of m6s and I use Monster foam earpieces for them. They isolate noise better and they fit better than the included silicone tips.

I also have the M6 with comply T-500 on them