On the go headphones for classical music?

[Scot1970]

Hi there,

My Shure SE530s are no more and so I'm thinking of a change of direction. I'm considering over the ear headphones for my next pair of travel out-and-about cans. I listen to a lot of symphonies so I prefer a neutral and organic, tending to warm, signature that has a wide and open soundstage, has great detail and natural unforced bass that extends way down.

Can you recommend a pair that would match this criteria? I was thinking perhaps of the Sennheiser Momentums. My source is a Cowon X9 (soon to be iBasso DX90 or Fiio X5) with FLAC files ripped from CD via Exact Audio Copy or high-res downloads.

Thank you.

Scot

 

[CnoEvil]

You might want to consider Bose QC15s.

 

[JoelSim]

One criteria is travel. For over-ear I have always found they let in much more ambient sounds than in-ear so if you are using the tube then unless you go for noise-cancelling then you will hear the tube.

For neutral sounds I've always found the best brands are Beyerdynamic and Audio-Technica, but it all depends on how much you want to spend to what would be recommended. I'm personally a very big fan of the Beyerdynamic DT880.

 

[Scot1970]

Thanks. I've heard some good stuff about the DT880s, but I also hear that they're semi-open backed. Wouldn't that leak a lot of sound both out and in?

Any ideas on the Sennheiser Momentum over-ears? And is their soundstage suitable for classical music (big symphonies, mainly)?

Thanks

 

[JoelSim]

I haven't heard the Sennheisers but they are highly rated. The DT880 are semi-open backed so they do leak a little sound, although not much.

Other considerations could be the Audio-Technica ATH-ES700 or the Beyerdynamic T70p, the latter of which I've been talking to a customer who just bought a pair and he is very happy indeed. I've heard both of these and they are very good.

 

[Audiofoolius]

I would suggest the Shure SRH-840 or even the 940 for you. They sound very much the way you want and they block noises out fairly well imo.

If you'd like something more compact I can recommend the Beyerdynamic DT1350 or DT51P.

 

[JoelSim]

I would suggest the Shure SRH-840 or even the 940 for you. They sound very much the way you want and they block noises out fairly well imo.

If you'd like something more compact I can recommend the Beyerdynamic DT1350 or DT51P.

The T51p is a good headphone, and there is a new one out for mobiles called the T51i which I tried last week. Same as the T51p but with a mic. Very nice.

 

[Andrew17321]

I use Bose QC15 noise cancelling over the ear earphones for classical music in trains, planes and buses. They are really good. However, Bose has just replaced this model with the QC25 (same price) which it claims offers improvements, so I would go for that.

My wife has Bose QC20i in-ear headphones which are also noise cancelling. I think they are even better at noise cancelling than the QC15. (The QC20i is a later model than the QC15, so maybe not so surprising.) If the QC25 is better still, it must be fantastic.

Andrew

 

[dalethorn]

Thanks. I've heard some good stuff about the DT880s, but I also hear that they're semi-open backed. Wouldn't that leak a lot of sound both out and in? Any ideas on the Sennheiser Momentum over-ears? And is their soundstage suitable for classical music (big symphonies, mainly)?

If you don't mind that the Momentum "over ear" fits only partly around the ear, then the other issue is the high treble, which is recessed somewhat for the 'lifestyle' customer. In my view, that's not the best recipe for classical music. For example, if your recordings have a hot high end, the Momentum could be a good match, but if any of your recordings are more like "Row M" in their perspective, they may sound rather dull on the Momentum.

 

[Scot1970]

Hello again,

Thank you. I appreciate your comments. They helped me focus on what Iwas looking for and whittle down. I eventually plumped for a pair of AKG K550s, which sound fantastic - so open and natural for closed, over-the-ear cans. Problem is, they're not great for travel. So I now use them when I need to use headphone on my home system (I have an Arcam A19 amp which has a separate headphone amp inside and the AKGs sound incredible). I would use my Grado SR80i's but the cable is too short.

After trying out the AKGs for travel I think I will revert to in-ears because they have the best noise-attenuating ability. I'll stick with my knockabout Soundmagic E10s for now whilst I save up for some Grado GR10s, mmmm.

Thanks.

 

[hybridauth_Facebook_100000759563588]

Hi there

You should have perhaps gone for the AKG K551s, made for portable use.