Recommend me.. best sub 100 quid headphones for music at home/office

[sawyen]

As title.. saw a couple of Seinhensers at Scan, but no idea which is better..

I have a Bose QC3 but then those are for my Ipod and they're 200 quid.. so Im not intending of getting another one..

Thus trying to get something of slightly lower spec but still great for music..

There's no need for noise cancelling.. just clear crisp sounds for CDs and high bitrate music I can enjoy in the office..

[Trash Man]

Grado SR 80's are awesome headphones, the SR 125's are supposed to be slightly better, you might be able to pick them up for under £100 now

SR80

SR125

[charleski]

Beyer Dynamic DT100

[Lucio]

Does it really make THAT much of a difference using £100 headphones???? I can understand not wanting a 3.99 pair but surely there's a limit to how much the human ear can distinguish?

[charleski]

Does it really make THAT much of a difference using £100 headphones????

Yes

[PeteSmith]

Yes

Thats an interesting and well balanced reply you made, care to expand on that slightly?

[TooNice]

In my opinion, Grado are -well- overpriced in the UK. AFAIK, the price of mid and upper headphones do not change much and the SR-125 is still closer to £150 than £100 new. If you want affordable Grado sound in the UK (and not keen on second hand gear), I suggest importing the Alessandro line of headphones. They are basically Grado cans rebranded (with permission) and tweaked for studio use (slightly more neutral sounding and less 'bright', but still very Grado-like; this could be a good thing if you are unfamiliar with Grado sound - some people actually dislike Grado cans because they find it too bright). For $99+postage, you can get the Alessandro MS1 which I consider a better buy than an SR-80 in the UK.

What is going to be used to drive those cans? Beyerdynamic are nice, but the ones I've tried have all been pretty demanding (sounding dull and flat out of, say, an onboard soundcard).

The Sennheiser HD-595 is relatively versatile, in your budget, and worth a consideration.

Frankly speaking, there are quite a lot of worthy headphones that can be suggested for £100... or even significantly under - the Koss PortaPro/KSC-series are a bit like 'baby Grados' and a good way to tell if you will like the Grado sound. I do not believe there is one clear winner. It would help to know what type of music you listen to. A good can may be a good cans, but I am inclined to pair Grado with rock/dance than classical/instrumental and the other way round for Senns for instance. Lastly, you say that you don't need noise concealment, but does it matter that the can leak sound quite a bit in your office environment?

What you might not like to hear, is that from a sound quality point of view, I consider most of aforementioned to be an upgrade to your £200 Bose (which, admittedly is so much more comfortable than Grado cans).

[TooNice]

Thats an interesting and well balanced reply you made, care to expand on that slightly?

In my opinion it depends on your expectations. I don't normally push people who have no previous interest towards £100 headphones. I know I'll get funny looks. Instead, I will point them towards the best bang for buck headphones that I have tried based on their music taste (either one of the Koss KSC-75/PortaPro, or the Sennheiser PX100/CX300 and derivatives). Those cost between £12-30, which I reckon is not outside most people's budget. To be honest, I don't think you will get better bang for buck, and to get the 'next step', you need to spend more than double. The Grado SR-60 is the next step from the Koss, but for me, the jump is already less significant than some generic earbuds to the low end Koss/Senns.

As you go further up, you will be faced with even more diminishing returns. If you are expecting proportional returns for the cost, then it is, in my opinion, long lost. But then again, diminishing return is something you will find in most things really, notably computer components. Enthusiast still consider Raptors, Quad-core etc. which for most part provide measurable improvements but may/may not be that great value. And worst of all, they become obsolete so quickly. Those who bought a Sennheiser HD-580 many years ago can still be assured that they still have one of the finest can.. even if most would consider surpassed by the HD-600.

[RichieLee]

sennheiser hd 212pros.

I paid £35 for them, not quite £100, but that's a good thing surely? Awesome sound quality with good bass and clarity. I had my brother's £90 sennheisers before that and to be completely honest there is little difference, in fact the hd212s had better bass. the other more expensive ones had more clarity on the high end of notes and but by no means was it better by leaps and bounds, in fact the bass levels were appalling. Definitely not worth £55 more. My mate even bought a pair of HD 212pros on ebay delivered for £9 so you might get lucky.

If you want to save some cash but not skimp on quality go for the 212s. If not of course you can spend more but I'm sure that extra money could go elsewhere, good luck.

If in doubt search for reviews on the headphones you're looking at.

Regards,

Richie

[sawyen]

Does it really make THAT much of a difference using £100 headphones???? I can understand not wanting a 3.99 pair but surely there's a limit to how much the human ear can distinguish?

Well, put it this way.. if you have a chance, try to spend 30 minutes on a QC3 and try it again on a £10 one.. i can promise you that you can't go back after that..

The effect goes like.. meh! nothing spectacular.. but put that £10 on again.. it will sound liek poo..

[charleski]

Thats an interesting and well balanced reply you made, care to expand on that slightly?

No.

[Agent]

No.

I saw that coming a mile away

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Grado SR 80's are awesome headphones, the SR 125's are supposed to be slightly better, you might be able to pick them up for under £100 now

SR80

SR125

I have used both before.The SR80 is pretty good for general usage - the SR125 has more detail and deeper base. The SR80 will be fine for normal use.
If they cost too much the SR60 would be probably be OK or even a pair of Beyerdynamic DT231 which cost under 40 quid and have got many decent reviews. Unlike the Grado headphones the Beyerdynamic one is a closed back and hence is more suitable for use in public.

[Steve B]

I have a pair of Sennies, model HD-515. They sound brilliant, and they were only around £55 I think.

[chuckskull]

Headphones are a very personal thing, personally, I'll take senny's over the rest(at this price range anyway). Solidly made, nice clear sound, good bang for buck. Since the neighbours complained about my passion for heavy metal and late night John Woo movie-fests I wear mine constantly, nice and light, very comfy.

[TooNice]

I agree that headphones are pretty personal things and the best bet is to sample them really. The Grado are the most different from the rest, which may or may not be a good thing. The difference between the upper end Sennheiser, Beyerdynamic, AKG are more subtlety different. That said, I found the AKG K501 to be in the same league as upper end Senns (HD600) and Beyer (DT880), a step up from the Senn (HD595) and just saw that they can be bought for £99 (currently out of stock). If you can get your hand on them, it's my top pick for a versatile headphone assuming a decent source. Otherwise, I am referring back to the Alessandro.