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Earphones - What are your reccomendations?


Flaglore
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Greetings :-D

I've been in need of a decent pair of earphones for a while now, since I lost the pair that came with my mobile phone. I like to listen to music (especially OCR) on the go, but the audio quality of my old pair somewhat inhibited my enjoyment. Now that I have an excuse to buy a new pair, I was wondering what you people use, and what you would recommend in terms of value and audio quality. I understand many of you will swear by headphones, but for the sake of my own convienience I really do need earphones. I'm willing to pay a decent amount, but only for good quality. Some sort of basic player controls would be nice as well.

I look forward to reading your reccomendations.

Flaglore out.

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My answer depends on what exactly you want to use the headphones for. I use AKG K240s for all my music making stuff, and I've loved em for the whole 1 and a half years that I've had them. They won't break the bank either, which is nice.

That being said, if you'r looking for something just to listen to music to, then you could probably find something a bit cheaper. I used some Sony noise-cancelling headphones for a while that did the job for recreational listening. Unfortunately, since I got them as a Christmas gift, I'm not sure how much they cost.

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I've used Lenntek earbuds for years and I love them. They're awesome for working out, great sound, and they stay in my ears. They're also really tough to tangle, and when one of the ears went out 3 years after I bought them, Lenntek sent me a brand new pair for free.

It's been long enough, though, that I don't remember the model exactly. sorry!

EDIT: This was assuming a non-studio application. For studio application, specifically mixing, I recommend Beyerdynamic DT880s.

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For studio application, specifically mixing, I recommend Beyerdynamic DT880s.

Seconded.

For an awesome middle ground between casual listening and studio monitoring, try Sony MDR-7506. I've had mine for a few years, and they still work great. I only use them for all my listening while I'm away from my studio, but even when I was using them for studio monitoring, they did an alright job. They're not as balanced as the DT880s, but they served their purpose when I was first starting out without having to drop a ton of money. I think they're like $75.

For earbuds, iono :<

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Seconded.

Thirded.

Anyways, for semi-casual listening I'd recommend the Grado SR-60i. $80. They look retro but they sound great. Clear bass, crisp treble. Not as good as the Beyerdynamic DT880's, but the difference between the two is minimal (big difference to me, minimal difference objectively speaking). On the go, you still have to take good care of them. Maybe buying headphones that cost more than $50 will motivate you to treat your headphones carefully. :)

http://graphs.headphone.com/graphCompare.php?graphType=0&graphID[]=393&graphID[]=963&scale=30

Typical earphones, like the store-brand ~$15 Skullcandy/Sony earbuds... don't have that much of a range of good/bad audio qualities. I've found them to be from "eh" to "okay". Makes sense---they're not clunky and so they're made for casual listening. If earbuds are more your thing, then these Skullcandies are not bad at all. They give pretty decent bass, and only slightly too much treble near 16000Hz or so as a very minor resonance. Quite sturdy. Slept on them twice before and they're still fully functional. Just don't do that so often. :lol:

Edited by timaeus222
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For earbuds, I have a pair of Skullcandy Smokin' Buds that I bought in a hurry at the campus store for $45 two years ago. Considering how long they've lasted me and how decent they sound, that actually wasn't terrible. I've carried them around the world and around campus, and they're still in excellent shape.

They're only $10.xx on Amazon though, so for that price I can absolutely recommend them.

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For earbuds, I have a pair of Skullcandy Smokin' Buds that I bought in a hurry at the campus store for $45 two years ago. Considering how long they've lasted me and how decent they sound, that actually wasn't terrible. I've carried them around the world and around campus, and they're still in excellent shape.

They're only $10.xx on Amazon though, so for that price I can absolutely recommend them.

Ditto. For portable buds, they are quite adequate; unlike old Skullcandy wires that were rounded and easily broken, the flat wire casing has proven to be much more long-lived on my pair. I've been using these for at least a year and a half, now, with no signs of wear.

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I don't know terms very well, but does earphone mean the same as headphone or is earphone another word for earbuds?

Anyhow, the headphones I use are audio-technica ATH-M35's, which are probably some of the best quality headphones that aren't killer expensive (about 75-ish bucks).

As for earbuds, Apple surprisingly has fairly new (in meaning of like a year and a half since release) earbuds out that are like 30 bucks which have the quality of $100 earbuds.

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i can't recommend etymotics iem's enough. i bought a pair of these a couple of months ago and they are amazing. i get incredibly clear sound and none of the annoying sibilance that happens with most in-ears. don't really need a portable headphone amp or anything with them and while the triple-flange tips do take a little getting used to (took me less than a day and then i stopped noticing they were there), the isolation you get is incredible. you dont bother the outside world and it doesnt bother you. this is also great since you wont have to blast your music to actually be able to hear it, saving your ears in the end. the tips are also sold separately in case you prefer the sound of different headphones and just need better tips.

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