Question Closed Back Wired Headphones

[SeaJay68]

Hey all

I'm in the market for a good set of over-ear, noise cancelling earphones. I don't want wireless and I can spend up to £200. I only need them for listening to Netflix. The trouble is, I don't know which to get.

After some research, I ordered the Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro for £109 and was surprised at how poor they sounded. Tinny, no base, and too quiet. Honestly, my £20 Sony headphones which are a good few years old, sounded much better.

I'm hesitant to order another pair so I was hoping someone might be able to recommend something.

Over Ear
Noise Cancellation
Closed back (is that the same as Over Ear?)

Thanks all!

 

[kanewolf]

Hey all

I'm in the market for a good set of over-ear, noise cancelling earphones. I don't want wireless and I can spend up to £200. I only need them for listening to Netflix. The trouble is, I don't know which to get.

After some research, I ordered the Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro for £109 and was surprised at how poor they sounded. Tinny, no base, and too quiet. Honestly, my £20 Sony headphones which are a good few years old, sounded much better.

I'm hesitant to order another pair so I was hoping someone might be able to recommend something.

Over Ear
Noise Cancellation
Closed back (is that the same as Over Ear?)

Thanks all!

There are multiple versions of those headphones. I bet you bought the 250 ohm model. The reason they sound poor is that you need a headphone amp to provide enough power to drive them.

 

[SeaJay68]

There are multiple versions of those headphones. I bet you bought the 250 ohm model. The reason they sound poor is that you need a headphone amp to provide enough power to drive them.

They were 32 ohm and were recommended for laptops, smart phones, that kind of thing.

 

[hang-the-9]

They were 32 ohm and were recommended for laptops, smart phones, that kind of thing.

You may want to make sure that is what you got because what you describe is not at all how any Beyer headphone sounds when working properly.
Try them on another system, especially if you know someone that has an external amp or amp/dac

You may want to get a lower end good amp/dac, I would recommend a FX-Audio DAC-X6, it's probably the cheapest good unit you can get. If for some reason you are not happy with the headphones on that, you can return them and at worse you have a better soundcard with a headphone amp built in to use with something else. For a portable setup you can use with a phone or tablet, Fiio makes nice units https://www.amazon.com/FiiO-JadeAud...ocphy=9001834&hvtargid=pla-1656877535894&th=1

Keep in mind the noise cancelation in those and other normal closed back headphones is just due to the earcups blocking out the noise, it's not noise cancelation that is active that many people think of such as bluetooth wireless sets use.

 

[CompuGuy71]

Can't give enough praise to the Sennheiser HD 559s. Great sound, great price.

 

[SeaJay68]

@hang-the-9 To be honest, I just wanted to plug in some headphones and be done. I'm not that well versed in audio technicalities. Using the amp/dac seems a simple enough process, but it's quite a pricey add on at £42.

@CompuGuy71 I see the Sennheiser HD 559 are open-backed. Does that mean they don't completely cover the ear?

 

[CompuGuy71]

@CompuGuy71 I see the Sennheiser HD 559 are open-backed. Does that mean they don't completely cover the ear?

No it just means the cups don't have a hard plastic backing to block sound. Helps give a truer tone to what you're listening to and keep your ears cool if you have swamp ear like me.

Sennheiser makes a closed back with the same profile as the 559 called the 569. Pricing is similar I believe.

 

[SeaJay68]

No it just means the cups don't have a hard plastic backing to block sound. Helps give a truer tone to what you're listening to and keep your ears cool if you have swamp ear like me.

Sennheiser makes a closed back with the same profile as the 559 called the 569. Pricing is similar I believe.

Do you use an amp/dac with the Sennheiser HD 559, or, no need?

 

[CompuGuy71]

Do you use an amp/dac with the Sennheiser HD 559, or, no need?

I use a DAC but it works pretty good right out of the box like with a phone or other device.

 

[hang-the-9]

@hang-the-9 To be honest, I just wanted to plug in some headphones and be done. I'm not that well versed in audio technicalities. Using the amp/dac seems a simple enough process, but it's quite a pricey add on at £42.

@CompuGuy71 I see the Sennheiser HD 559 are open-backed. Does that mean they don't completely cover the ear?

Well if you were going to spend 200 on a set of headphones and have the 770 set that cost 100 but seem like they need more power, you are still under 200 and have a good quality sound card and headphone amp as well.

You don't want open back headphones if you are looking to block outside noise, that is why they are "open", the cups are not sealed.

 

[SkyBill40]

I'm a fan of Audio Technica and they have a wide array of choices to suit your budget.

 

[SeaJay68]

Thanks all for the recommendations. I've settled on a second-hand pair of Beats 2, wired. Tried them the other day with my buddy, and they sounded brilliant.