Popped into HMV yesterday and whilst in there my lad (14) suggested that he might like some new headphones for his iPhone to further isolate him from the other teenagers on the school bus.
I decided to consult the awards issue before making a purchase (Soundmagic E10s now ordered), but while we were there we took the opportunity to listen to the various on- or over-ear offerings that were available to play with.
The first thing that impressed me was that the boy had Goodbye Jumbo on his phone to use for comparison and the second was the performance of the £50 House of Marley "Positive Vibration" Jammin headphones in the nice and subtle (ahem) Rasta colouring.
I was expecting them to be all marketing and no hifi, but much to my surprise that wasn't the case. OK, they were a bit light on bass, but the tonal balance made listening very easy.
The £250 Denon AH-D2000's that were sat alongside were definitely more accurate, but sounded a little flat by comparison.
Swapping to Duffy's Rockferry that my my chosen listening (sorry), the difference between the two was even more distinct, with the Marleys being a pleasure to listen to, and the Denons by contrast getting the blance completely wrong with Duffy's distinct vocals sinking badly into the background. I felt I was having to struggle to listen rather than just relaxing and enjoying.
Of the two, we both agreed that the budget Marleys were the preferable headphones, and at the price the choice would be easy. The only headphones that we both preferred in the shop were the £350 Pro Beats by Dr Dre by Monster (or whatever they're called).
Oh and as closing thought, I was considering suggesting that the lad had over-ear headphones instead of in-ear, but after seeing a chap looking like a right pillock walking round Sainsburys with a big pair of Boses on this morning, I'm glad I didn't!
I decided to consult the awards issue before making a purchase (Soundmagic E10s now ordered), but while we were there we took the opportunity to listen to the various on- or over-ear offerings that were available to play with.
The first thing that impressed me was that the boy had Goodbye Jumbo on his phone to use for comparison and the second was the performance of the £50 House of Marley "Positive Vibration" Jammin headphones in the nice and subtle (ahem) Rasta colouring.
I was expecting them to be all marketing and no hifi, but much to my surprise that wasn't the case. OK, they were a bit light on bass, but the tonal balance made listening very easy.
The £250 Denon AH-D2000's that were sat alongside were definitely more accurate, but sounded a little flat by comparison.
Swapping to Duffy's Rockferry that my my chosen listening (sorry), the difference between the two was even more distinct, with the Marleys being a pleasure to listen to, and the Denons by contrast getting the blance completely wrong with Duffy's distinct vocals sinking badly into the background. I felt I was having to struggle to listen rather than just relaxing and enjoying.
Of the two, we both agreed that the budget Marleys were the preferable headphones, and at the price the choice would be easy. The only headphones that we both preferred in the shop were the £350 Pro Beats by Dr Dre by Monster (or whatever they're called).
Oh and as closing thought, I was considering suggesting that the lad had over-ear headphones instead of in-ear, but after seeing a chap looking like a right pillock walking round Sainsburys with a big pair of Boses on this morning, I'm glad I didn't!
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