New ipod, included headphones suck! Advice needed

Ollie's Gadgets

Ollie's Gadgets

Ollie's Gadgets

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I am loving the new ipod but can't live with the quality of the headphones.

How much am I looking at to get a good set of headphones? I would ideally like in ear headphones but if it is not possible to get a good sound from these then I am perfectly happy to go to proper headphones but they can't be too bulky as I will be taking them travelling.
 
Well this is the thing I don't really have an idea of how much I need to pay to get a "good" sound hence no budget. Thanks for the link.

I am taken by the Sennheiser PX100 which seem to get really good ratings. Am I going to see significant improvements if I went for say a £70 pair?

At what points will I hit diminishing returns on this type of headphone?
 
Ollie's Gadgets said:
Well this is the thing I don't really have an idea of how much I need to pay to get a "good" sound hence no budget. Thanks for the link.

I am taken by the Sennheiser PX100 which seem to get really good ratings. Am I going to see significant improvements if I went for say a £70 pair?

At what points will I hit diminishing returns on this type of headphone?
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ummm thats a hard one, tbh for £70 there are headphones out there that I'd recommend that would give you a much better sound but do you want to look like an aircraft pilot :D , mate if your used to using standerd headphones ie ones that come free with portable music players etc then the PX100's will blow you away I have £180 pair of headphones but still use my PX100's with my ipod and enjoy what I hear.
 
I think it depends on the listening conditions.

If you are just using them for portable use, you want a pair of earbud type 'phones. In this case i recommend the Sennheiser CX300 in ear, which can be had for under £20 now. If you want to spend a bit more some Shure E3C's or E4C's are both great.

If you need it more for home listening maybe or on your own, you can't go wrong with PX100's. If you want to spend more, some grado or sennheiser cans are great.

For traveling you probably want some closed back comfy ones. Maybe PX200's, you don't want to look silly in massive cans do you ?
 
Well it looks like PX200s are the way to go, and I have found them for the bargain price of £22 delivered which seems very reasonable. The clincher was the fact that they fold neatly into the case which is perfect for traveling.

I will keep the standard ipod headphones for times when ultra portability over sound quality is the priority.

Thanks for the advice. I will post back with my thoughts when they arrive.
 
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Ollie's Gadgets said:
Well it looks like PX200s are the way to go, and I have found them for the bargain price of £22 delivered which seems very reasonable. The clincher was the fact that they fold neatly into the case which is perfect for traveling.

I will keep the standard ipod headphones for times when ultra portability over sound quality is the priority.

Thanks for the advice. I will post back with my thoughts when they arrive.
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Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo, I've used the PX100's and the PX200's and the PX200's are awfull, truly truly awfull compared to the 100's, there is no bass at all on them, very harsh sounding also, the mids are far to tiny sounding, you say that the clincher is the fact that they fold away neatly into a case which is perfect for traveling but the PX100's do the same also, If you've already brought the PX200's then I hope you get along with them but the PX100's are definitly better, it's hard to beleive because you natually think being a higher model number that they would be better,

http://www.avforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=243123

also check this offical review of 'Koss PortaPro vs. Sennheiser PX100 & PX200 Portable Headphones' http://www.goodcans.com/HeadphoneReviews/porta.htm

This is a direct quote from the review,

"Sennheiser PX200: Many of you have thought that since this model has a higher number, that it must be better than the PX100. In fact, it’s the other way around. The PX200 is actually a “Closed” headphone in a portable version. Closed headphones are handy when you don’t want sound to leak in or out as much, (handy when using in public and leaking sound can be bothersome to those around you or some noisy environmental sounds interfere with your listening experience). But, sound quality generally suffers with closed headphones and the same is true here. Sound quality wise, the PX200 is no match for either the PX100 or the Koss Portapro. It sounds muffled, and not as natural as the “Open” PX100 or Portapro. But, if your portable listening needs are better served by a “Closed” headphone, the PX200 is worthy of your consideration. Like the PX100, it’s well made, and folds down nicely, (also into it’s included hard plastic case)."
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just a few of the many quotes from all around the net,

"Expected much more...Bass perfomance is very poor...
Standard iPod headphones give better perfomance in bass range... "

"I've just purchased these phones and found the bass response to be very disappointing. There was hardly any improvement in bass response when setting the EQ to bass boost. "

"The PX 200's are uncomfortable which I could forgive if the sound was OK, but unfortunately there is no bass or midtone. I tried ramping these up with the equaliser but got nowehere near what I was hoping for."

I left the thread earlier thinking you had your heart set on the PX100's.
 
Thanks for posting again. I am reading through the links atm.

I was kind of swayed for the PX200 due to this rave review http://www.pcreview.co.uk/reviews/Audio/Sennheiser_PX200_Headphones/

Also I thought as I will be using them whilst traveling e.g. a long train/bus journey in mexico, that the closed design would be better suited.

Thanks for pointing out that they both can fold. :)

I have yet to order, there are a few auctions ending soon, but if you think the 100s are significantly better I will take you word for it :p
 
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I've been a fan of Koss Porta Pros for years - absolutely fantastic headphones for the price.
 
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