For all the Audiophiles!?

[Kush]

I'm an avid music listener- listening to hip-hop, pop, electronic music, rock, R&B, and even stuff double my age like Quincy Jones and James Brown. I also game a lot!

I love my Klipsch Image s4s, but they're not durable. I wanted a sturdy over-ear pair of headphone that isn't too big. I wanted something foldable, removable cable, and including a case. The sound quality, instrumental and vocal separation, bass punchiness (if that's a word, lol), and frequency range are all very important to me-- I want something with equal or superior sound quality to the s4s.

My range doesn't go past $150, best if around $90.
I was looking at models such as AKG K450s and such, to give an example of kinda what I want.

I really want to know your recommendation on what I should purchase in the over-ear category, which will sound better than the s4s, fit nice and comfy-although portable, and not break the bank! Thank you.

 

[DAVE]

Hey.

Since you seem pretty knowledgable in the field of audio, you have probably heard of Audio-Technica, one of the most prestigious audio companies in the world.

If your budget is around the $100 mark, your specifications are very very hard to meet, but I think I found something that fulfills all of your requirements, the ATH-ANC29's.

Let me break it down.

Detatchable Cable, check.
Carrying Case, check.
Folds, check.

As with any audio-technica product, you can expect the very best in sound quality.
The bass in these headphones is "punchy" as you say, but not boomy or overbearing even in hip-hop or electronic music.
Seperation is quite good, and the frequency response is the usual 20-20k for this range of headphone.
The 40mm drivers also help to achieve a nice tight bass sound, and provide great acoustics as well.

Another bonus is active noise cancellation which would be great for you since you game often. As I'm sure you know, active noise cancellation is when the sounds around you are recorded and played back (inverted) to cancel out ambient noise and giving you an amazing clarity of sound.

That being said, if you want to use this feature, you will need one AAA battery (included with purchase), but you can always choose not to use the feature and you will still experience the great sound quality without the battery.

The ath anc29's also come with a 1/4 in. adapter for high quality audio devices, as well as an airline adapter.


Here's a link if you want to check them out. I can't reccomend them enough.

http://www.audio-technica.com/cms/headphones/d26e48cf01385a50/index.html






Best of Luck
-Dave

 

[Steven]

in all honesty, the bose IE2 in ear headphones are actually really good. I also have a pair of Sony MDR noise cancelling ones that are also excellent. the bass is a little more punchy, but the ie2s have slightly clearer range

both have proven durable, in the sense that there parts last a long time. the IE2s might deteriorate quickly if you handle them too roughly. The sonys have proven to be more durable with the removeable cable and what not, but the IE2s have a clearer sound

 

[Blake]

I also have the s4's and they are great. Klipsch also has over ear headphones as well, and their most affordable pair is probably the Image ones. You should be able to find the Klipsch image ones for around $100. I believe they will soon be coming out with a newer version of them however they will probably cost more.