AT ATH-TAD400 vs CAL! or something else?

IC3 · 22 Apr 2014 at 16:17

I know there tons of threads about headphones, but people have different budgets and expectations...

Budget: £60 (Do you reckon, you could stretch your budget? If you give a good reason to, then possibly yes.)
Music: Rap, soul, reggae, acid jazz and some old house songs from 90s.
Expectations: COMFORT (They'll be used for long sessions approx 5hours) and I would like to hear the bass in there places where it kicks in.
Source: Asus D1 (Do you plan on buying an amp in the future? Nope :rolleyes:

)
Construction: Over ear and I don't really care if they're open or closed. But they'll be also used for gaming (mainly FPS).

At the moment from my research, I've found AT and CAL! to meet my requirements.

Cookeh · 22 Apr 2014 at 17:38

Toughie. Ive personally not heard the TAD400s but they're meant to have monster, tight bass which would make them suitable for the house and rap. But seeing as you mention fps gaming it has to be the CAL! - anything with a lot of bass is inferior for gaming as it makes positional accuracy (footsteps, doors, weapon swaps etc) take a backseat.

IC3 · 22 Apr 2014 at 20:34

Cookeh said:
Toughie. Ive personally not heard the TAD400s but they're meant to have monster, tight bass which would make them suitable for the house and rap. But seeing as you mention fps gaming it has to be the CAL! - anything with a lot of bass is inferior for gaming as it makes positional accuracy (footsteps, doors, weapon swaps etc) take a backseat.

Are CAL! comfortable? It really matters to me, as most of my previous headphones were terrible...

Cookeh · 22 Apr 2014 at 21:18

I found them to be, certainly. But I never wear them for much more than 2-3 hours.

IC3 · 22 Apr 2014 at 23:16

Cookeh said:
I found them to be, certainly. But I never wear them for much more than 2-3 hours.

Do you own these headphones, if yes what type of music are you listening to and what is your final opinion on them? I don't game as much, as I use to. So the ratio would be 35% gaming and 65% music, as for movies I use speakers.
But comfort is on the first place, the last headphones I had were SL 668b and my ears were all red after 1.5h. In between ownig them I bought Koss ur40, 2 pairs when on sale for 15.

P.S I'm opened to other suggestions, but please remember about comfort being the main factor.

Edit:

5 hours seems a bit extreme for the budget, but if the headphones give the comfort to seat with them on for 3.5h. Than I'll consider them!

Cookeh · 22 Apr 2014 at 23:31

I had them for a few months a year(-ish) back. I mainly listen to 'classic'/heavy metal and jazz/swing for which they were well suited. They have a fun sound to them, due to a slightly boosted bass and rounded off treble. Makes them excellent for EDM/Dub/Rock/Metal genres. This same bass also limits their positional accuracy to an extent - but unless you are playing around a high/d1 skil level in games like CS/COD/BF then its not going to be much of an impact.

Comfort wise, I have small ears so found that they sat very well - some, with larger ears, have complained that the cups could sit on the very tip of their ear. They have a moderate clamping force that is far from uncomfortable and the pads are nice enough.

For the budget, they are hard to beat. If you were able to up the budget and/or were willing to look second hand, you might manage to find some Beyerdynamic DT770s for around £80, with a spot of luck - and they are excellent. Similar sort of sound, but more refined, greater soundstage, greater separation and more comfortable still. These same cans will cost you ~£120 new.

IC3 · 23 Apr 2014 at 02:30

I've bigger ears so they might be a bit too small... what about Audio Technica closed back ath-a500x http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/171241876755?nav=SEARCH

Cookeh · 23 Apr 2014 at 10:26

It would be worth trying them to see, I honestly would be very surprised if they didn't fit

The TAD-500 is a more balanced headphone than the 400, but its bass is slightly weaker - fine for gaming, good infact, but you might miss out on some depth and punch in the house/rap/reggae tracks.

IC3 · 23 Apr 2014 at 13:17

Cookeh said:
It would be worth trying them to see, I honestly would be very surprised if they didn't fit
The TAD-500 is a more balanced headphone than the 400, but its bass is slightly weaker - fine for gaming, good infact, but you might miss out on some depth and punch in the house/rap/reggae tracks.

What shops allow you to demo the headphones? Most stores locally don't give the opportunity to, I live Hertfordshire, very close to London.

Edit:

Thanks for you time, appreciated

Cookeh · 23 Apr 2014 at 21:12

SuperFi, RicherSounds, any real audio 'specialist' should, although I cannot guarantee they stock demo sets of these particular headphones - depends on the shop and the location. I imagine, being close to London there will be dozens of places around (I'm Notts based and there's quite a few here, so must upscale for London).