[midfi]

I'm not a gamer, music only.  My musical tastes are all over the map (Howlin' Wolf, Pink Floyd, The Smiths, Enigma...) and I don't play my music loud. Eventually I want a little tube headphone amp but for right now I'm be using the output on my ADCOM GFP-565 in my bedroom.

[PMAT]

I have these and love them. I also have more expensive models but there is something so right about these. the 280's are indestructible. I have abused them severely and the just keep working. http://www.sennheiserusa.com/professional-dj-headphones-HD-280-PRO_004974

[roscoeiii]

If it is for bedroom listening and you don't need sound isolation (for you or others) I'd go with open backed headphones. Generally better sounding than closed.

If need closed cans and you want to get very tweeky, check out the Fostex T50RP. And the megathreads on mods to these on Headfi.

[eclein]

Open style and several units in your price range- Grado's if you feel they are too bright or afraid they may be I know ways to tone them down but its tweaky for sure. Get SR-125i's....

Some of the new Beyers-AT's there are alot in your price range--go here:
http://www.headphone.com/headphones/
down on the left side pick your dollar range and see some options.

Would you consider IEM-In Ear Monitors there are a ton of very good ones in that range-I have a pair of UE-700..Ultimate Ears UE-700's that can be found for $149ish...but IEM's are very much try some until you find your brand, flavor, style, sound sig. whatever you want to call it....so thats an option.

If I had $150  for cans I'd get ATH-M50 Audio Technica phones....I have not heard them but they always are presented from several folks for this range- They are in Headrooms Top 10, here is a link:
http://www.headphone.com/headphones/audio-technica-ath-m50.php

Headphones I think are tough to recommend, there are so many unique styles of sound...if you got a place where you can try some by all means do it...comfort is a consideration, there are a lot of things to consider...Good luck enjoy, if you get AT's let me know how they sound...Thanks!!

[Lyndon]

Midfi,
If these are for bedroom use, and you don't need total isolation, go for the most comfortable cans you can find.  I think for this purpose that is your number one priority.

That said, after reading eclein's and other people's posts about their HiFiMan phones, I had to bite the bullet and ordered those Fostex T50RP which are a different type of headphones, somewhat like the HiFi Man's expensive ones, and as roscoeiii mentioned, there is a ton of mods for these $75 rascals, though I am not going to go to the $500 extremes of the Thunderpants mods. They come in Wednesday from B&H Photo, and I'll give them extensive listening vs. my Sennheiser HD-650's.
But, to repeat, COMFORT is your number one priority for bedroom phones.
Have fun,
Lyndon
Fostex basic



Thunderpants mods, with fancy wood cans $550

[roscoeiii]

I also think Smeggy is selling Thunderpants kits now for those that can DIY, around $200 I think. Perhaps something that the OP or the rest of us can think about down the road.

[Lyndon]

roscoeiii,
Did Smeggy have some models for show at the CanJam at RMAF?
I think with this video that Head-Fi made, he is just simply swamped with orders.
I wish I had been able to catch that group buy they had.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPLAkehj8d8&feature=player_embedded
Still would like to hear those HiFiMan HE-5's or 6's sometime.  People say they are the cat's meow.

[roscoeiii]

Don't know if Thunderpants made it to RMAF. I am crossing my fingers that a pair makes it to the Chi Uni Fi headphone meet-up here this weekend. Would love to check some out (maybe they will motivate me to get around to modding the T50RPs I have in the closet).

I love on my HE-5LEs with the Little Dot MkVI. A great combo that never fails to put a smile on my face. Well worth checking out.

[SET Man]

Hey!

    Grado SR125i Well, I do have the older version.... yeah the one without the i

    I don't  use headphone much now but I'm a bit of Grado headphone fan. I used to have SR60 for over ten years before I got the SR125. Not the most comfy headphone but I do like the sound.

Take care,
Buddy

[cujobob]

I've heard very different views on the Grado sound, but I have to say, I loved my SR60s back in the day if you like open headphones. They were just more fun to listen to than the more expensive closed back headphones I've had since (Senn HD25-IIa? or something...and M Audio Q40s). All very good for the price, but Grados are just really fun cans... I'll probably go back in the future and will stick with open vs. closed...for closed I'm staying with my JH13s...closed headphones aren't awful but a bit disappointing to me.

[roscoeiii]

Sorry for going OT there Ed.

Now back to the topic at hand...

[wagnju]

When you can stretch your budget to $175 this is what I can recommend for all sorts of music with nice bass and sweet highs direct out of a Amp or CD player , no headphone amp needed , just great sound and very comfortable.
http://www.amazon.com/Beyerdynamic-Open-Studio-Headphones-Ohms/dp/B0011UB9CQ/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1320727524&sr=8-2

[Bemopti123]

I have had a pair of Sennheiser HD-25 Is...they do take a beating, everyday commuting with daily yanking cords etc....still working fine.  Less than 110 shipped from Ebay.

A nice improvement to that was my Beyer DT770 32 ohms that I bought to relieve the HD-25s...but they are large, sealed, overbuilt for the road...never really took them anywhere but they sound extremely detailed, etched from regular headphone outputs.  They reveal details I have NEVER heard from shitty tracks to nice audiophile recordings.  They do sound 100% better than the AKG-701s that I have been using with a Naim Headline amp. 

[midfi]

in house/bedroom use only, not a high noise area. For some unknown reason I have very sensitive hearing (I can hear a mouse pee on a cottonball in the closet!). I guess open wouldn't be a bad thing.  The closest thing I've had to a pair of "good" headphones was the $39.99 Sony's I bought at Best Buy!  I got a LCD flatscreen in the bedroom and now "Mama" sits up and watch Lifetime, Stories for Women until the wee hours and I need something comfy and good sounding to keep my sanity!    I guess I shouldn't lean towards a "bright" sounding pair being ADCOM stuff tends to be on the bright side already.

[Lyndon]

"Mama" sits up and watches Lifetime, Stories for Women until the wee hours and I need something comfy and good sounding to keep my sanity!

Holy Cow, midfi
You need more than just headphones!

[saisunil]

Shure 840 or 940
Easy to drive and very good sounding ... amped or unamped ...I regret selling my 840s ... I practically gave them away ... 940s are better but 840s had warmth and magic that I have yet to find in 940s ...

ATH-M50s are long time favorites ... can't go wrong with those

[timind]

The Audio Technica ATH-A700 listed on Amazon for $122.99 with free shipping.
http://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-ATH-A700-Audio-Technica-Headphones/dp/B000E9VKUQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1320753176&sr=1-1

[Mike Nomad]

in house/bedroom use only, not a high noise area. For some unknown reason I have very sensitive hearing (I can hear a mouse pee on a cottonball in the closet!). I guess open wouldn't be a bad thing.  The closest thing I've had to a pair of "good" headphones was the $39.99 Sony's I bought at Best Buy!  I got a LCD flatscreen in the bedroom and now "Mama" sits up and watch Lifetime, Stories for Women until the wee hours and I need something comfy and good sounding to keep my sanity!    I guess I shouldn't lean towards a "bright" sounding pair being ADCOM stuff tends to be on the bright side already.

Given your description of the environment (and your hearing) I would go with a closed headphone. I would also recommend spending a bit more on the headphones, and not worry (yet) about a separate amp.

Beyerdynamic DT 150 will run you $250-$300 USD (can be found online at Sweetwater, etc.). Plenty of isolation, excellent, wide-band response. I use them for live music mixing, location audio recording, and plain ol' home use.

They are built to take a hit, and the cord is easy to replace:

http://north-america.beyerdynamic.com/shop/hah/headphones-and-headsets/studio-and-stage/headphones-for-live-applications/dt-150.html

[randytsuch]

If you're willing to buy used, and have some patience, check the head fi classified ads.

http://www.head-fi.org/f/6550/headphones-for-sale-trade#page=0&Filter%5Btype%5D%5B1%5D=true&Filter%5Btype%5D%5B2%5D=true&Filter%5Btype%5D%5B4%5D=true&Filter%5Btype%5D%5B5%5D=true&Filter%5Bstate%5D%5BOpen%5D=true&Filter%5Bstate%5D%5BSold%5D=false&Filter%5Border_by%5D=Classified.bump_at
Guys there tend to turn over cans alot, and you can find good deals.  Then, if you don't like the can, you should be able to resell it, and take little loss, just shipping if you get a good deal.

But, for the better cans, you would probably need an amp.  They tend to be harder to drive.

Also consider impedance.  Grados are low, I think around 32 ohms
The T50RP is also at the low end, at 50 ohms.

Senns tend to be higher, I think around 300 ohms

Lower impedance will need more current to drive, higher will need more voltage, some amps are better at current, some are better at voltage, and some do both.

If you don't have an amp, I would probably go with a higer impedance can.

Randy

[adydula]

Audio Technica AT M50's are the best to me in this area....got a set for $110 , 6 months ago.
I have a set of Audeze LCD2's , well there not in that league but these are $1k.

the 50's are a really nice set of low cost cans...sealed and I wear them listening and mostly gaming for many hours.

Alex