Suggestions for portable comfy closed-back under $250... maybe $300

Headphones
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Dang, that’s rough. I do have an old pair of T1s waiting for the purchase of a better amp than my ifi to drive them(which had them clipping, which I was told meant that the ifi just isn’t good enough to drive them properly). I quite liked the sound of them when I heard them at T.H.E. Show.

I did see these before. At that point though I figured it was better to just go up a bit in price to the DT770. But the build quality is better on these you say?

Also side note but has anyone ever tried any of these models? If so, thoughts?
Sundara Closed-Back ($150 on Amazon): from what I heard these sound nothing like the open version but some say they are great.
Final Audio Sonorous II & III: closed back but perhaps not very portable?
I know I already mentioned the 770 Pro X Ltd Ed… did anyone try the MMX 300 first or 2nd gen?
Any other recommendations are welcome.

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fair. honestly these days as I learn to simplify my life a bit. for portables I’ve been using TWS IEMs for the longest time now. samsung nails fit so well for my ears I generally dont even miss my wired IEMS anymore. I do drive everywhere though maybe if I were to take public transit I would be more into wired solutions for travel liek I used to.

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Warm headphones, fun sound, great value, not the most precise approach to audio. Id also change the pads to zmf for more comfort.

The emu walnut were because you mentioned the aurvana and the emu are like an improved version of those, they probably suck in build quality too

The emu teak on the other hand is very serious business tho if u want something higher tier, semi closed tho not best isolation but some still

I have not read the post so I dont know what gear ure rocking lol I can recommend more stuff if u want me too ill look it up

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Ah, I see. That sounds cool. Maybe not the most efficient portable now that I think about it considering they are planar.

That does seem interesting that they are improved. Build quality is certainly important to me though, I want these things to be able to go through a good bit of abuse. My gear always tends to get more worn down than most people’s despite my efforts to be careful and gentle.

Yeah I remember looking into those a long time ago. They seemed like fun biodynamic (I think?) drivers with still good technicalities. I do already have a capable biodynamic though in the Nighthawk.

Well, I currently have Nighthawk OG (which I just received a little bit ago and I am still trying it out) to replace my Nighthawk Carbon which the rubber suspender broke on. Those are my favorite headphones. They are so unique in their presentation and dynamics. I also have some worn down 1more triple driver over-ear that are falling apart. I love their unique signature and presentation, awesome bass with very pristine and airy clear treble with a hollowed out midrange, but they are not comfortable or isolating. I use my KSC75 the most out of anything as it is the most easily accessible and portable. I absolutely love their presentation and detail for the price, it is just ridiculous how cheap they are for what they deliver. And they scale so well too. With my ifi Micro iDSD Black Label they make a great combo. Honestly if I could have something that has their presentatiion in a closed back that would be incredible.

I’m still trying to troubleshoot the 177x Go. I’m going to test out a different cable to see if that is causing the issue.

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Shoutouts to the nighthawks, for me the emu teaks were a rather large upgrade but the signature is very different, brighter, a bit more fatiguing, and the build q. not very good

Theres a audio technica ew9, closed back woodies that hang from the ear just like the ksc75 but I have never tried them, I dont know if the comfort would be similar just throwing it out there

It would seem that you are in a testing out stuff and figuring out what works phase

The thing with comfort on closed backs (and others) I find is varies a lot from person to person and also the fit sometimes doesnt seal on random headphones

I have a large head as in XL cap and helmet size, idk how useful this metric is as other big brained individuals have gotten or not better comfort and seal

A vast majority of the cheaper closed backs I find have a lot of clamp to help with the seal, for me gradually going up in price with headphones the comfort is usually better but the seal is more of a problem when its not there

Comfy portable closed backs I like, sony cd900st with yaxi stpads, the ath m40x, ws1100, and msr7b with anything other than the rock feeling stock pads, zmf oval and yaxi comfort pads are my go to, sennheiser hd25 (on ear) with yaxi pads although stock are okay and their a bit clampy but im that guy that likes on ears, shure 1540, focal bathys might be my favorite yet, other closed back focals may work as well

Ath wp900 and ath ap2000ti are what I currently use, if anything this list is probably overly expensive so id try to use what I have already if I were you…

I couldnt get the 177x with the pads I tested back then but zmf pads would be my go to if I were to try now, they are very expensive but they have proven their worth to me in comfort and durability

Theres a wide variety of them and they sound very good if you pick the right material which is usually hybrid perforated for a neutral-ish zmf pad sound, most materials without perf will probably result in more bass, the default zmf pad for beyer they sell might not improve things too much as its the most similar to stock pads but its thicker than stock, theres exact measures of the pads on their page most of them will fit just throwing it out there

As you can see I like to change pads a lot, keep in mind its an option

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46

And many months later, I still am… heh.
I tried the Dt 770 Pro X and could not stand them. Absolutely unbearably harsh sibilant treble. It made me miss the good old DT770… Actually to be honest, in an ideal world I would just get the 250ohm DT770, mod them to have a balanced detachable cable, and use those. I would not want to get the 80 or 32 ohm, I found the 80 ohm treble to actually sound worse than the 250 ohm. The only issue with portability for the 250 would be amping them properly. But I don’t mind carrying around my ifi Micro BL in my hand despite it being chunky.
The 770 250ohm check off just about every single box though. Good isolation, comfortable, durable, and fun. So yeah, that would be ideal.

That is basically what I ended up doing with the 177x. I just put the other leather pads back on them since I ripped the velour. Better seal and isolation, comfortable too. I mean, they still kinda suck sound wise imo. I have grown to dislike them more and more over time, but that really is not something I can fix necessarily. Oh well.

I would love to hear your thoughts on these. It seems like a good price point, and I wouldn’t mind getting new pads for them. How is isolation/sound leakage?

I cannot remember if I have heard the M40x in the past. I think I did at some point, but I could be imagining that. I do not think I was impressed with them. The ws1100 seem interesting considering their “fun” factor people talk about with bass. Again, I am starting to realize one of my biggest concerns is the isolation/leakage factor. I think that’s most important at the end of the day.

This one actually seems interesting, I see them on sale used for about $350/best offer on ebay these days.

Honestly at this point I am seriously just considering getting some boring clampy monitor headphone (like Takstar Pro or the HD25 you mentioned) that’s cheap and calling it a day. I just want a rough and tumble thing that I can walk around my campus with pretty much. I know I should probably just stick with the 177x but their tuning is just so… I’m not sure how to say it any other way, but bad and veiled.

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These new beyers sound awful, they went all in with commercial bad sound

As a beyer fan the brand is dead to me. Unless they go back to what they were doing

I agree, theres also a discontinued 600ohm version that has even better treble, with beyer it has been a constant the more ohms ones have better treble but theyre also really hard to drive

Is it? Depends on you but I have found succes in every price range, but there were so many mistakes before

To me, for my my ears focal has had the best isolation in every model, specially the bathys that also has active noise cancellation but their other closed backs also had great passive

Yeah, theres like one at that price or 400 at most every single month which is an amazing price for those in mint condition, but they do have that very v shaped signature and the isolation isnt their forte, id say their use is specialized for v shape enjoyers and thats why theres so many for sale

If you truly have given up, audio technica ws1100 would be my pick with optional yaxi pads or change them when they peel off, also they look very good for walking

Though the name is solid bass its not basshead, a bit misleading but pretty well balanced sounding

A used bathys could also be the play, they are not super rough but its the best isolation to me that keeps the audiophile spirit, and you can get a case thats good for transporting and a headband protector thats good enough for high durability

Disclaimer theyre the only headphones I use eq with, because you set it in the app once and it gets saved in the headphones, the default tuning sounds aggresive and commercial, but with eq they sound like elex which I love, also the default tuning has eq already so its kind of a no brainer eqing em and theres also presets you can modify so it was a lot easier to get a great sound

Like I said I couldnt get the 177x to fit my head so im not sure what they sound like, is there an example (or several) of headphones with a tuning you really like? And maybe possible changes youd like on them

Im getting mixed signals with the treble from what you have described, im still not sure what the right amount of treble is for you and thats very key to get the tuning right

Id normally recommend used ath a1000z because everyone thats heard em has liked em a ton, but the seal is not for everyone, its a light seal, also im not sure that the amount of treble is right for you but the seal might be an issue

Also theyre not very portable and will get scratched if not cared for, they come with an attached cable but the mod for dual 3.5mm is super easy

Its difficult but I hope you can find something

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48

I know they’ve been mentioned, and it depends on your definition of portable to some extent…

I think Audeze Maxwell is a pretty great sounding bluetooth closed back, very hard to top in audio quality alone at the $300 price. They also have fantastic battery life.

But they are pretty heavy, though I think they’re comfy enough. And no ANC if that’s a dealbreaker.
They do have pretty good isolation though, and go course they’re a phenomenal gaming headset and have a removable boom mike that’s pretty damn good.

Definitely worth considering. :+1:

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49

That’s good to know. I actually have never tried any Focals save for a couple higher end ones that I do not remember at T.H.E. Show, but the setups they had them on were definitely not ideal. They might have been the Utopia and the Stellia. I just remember them sounding very thin and airy, but again, the source gear was probably not good. I mean, they were trying to power these things off of midrange tubes and solid states with Dragonfly DACs…

Anyways, the only Focal that seems to be in my price range is the Elegia. It looks like they sometimes sell for under 300. Perhaps those could be something to consider. I’m less interested in buying wireless headphones that cost over $300, I’m just not sure I want to put that much money into that technology. I like my wires. I know, I’m a bit picky I suppose.

Ah, gotcha. Well, I’m honestly not as concerned about sound signature as I am about presentation, discounting harsh newer beyer model treble, as you mentioned earlier in your post. I enjoy lots of different signatures. I mean, I do love good bass, but I often find that something such as the KSC75 are very enjoyable because of their presentation despite lacking some bass. I know presentation is not as good at lower end levels compared to the higher tiers, but I think it can still be somewhat good. That’s too bad the wp-900 don’t isolate very well though.
Things I tend to like are those that give unique presentations or have specific strengths that really stand out to me. Anything that sort of just gives the music that extra magic, if that makes sense. It is what I love about my Nighthawks for example. Their presentation is so unique. Nothing else really sounds like them. I also loved my 1More Triple Drivers for the same reason (they are broken now and were not comfortable for longer sessions anyways).
I am really not sure what tuning I can say I like, but perhaps this makes some sense.

Of all the closed-backs I have tried so far I would say the MDR1-AM2’s probably had my favorite tuning. They did not isolate well unfortunately, and I actually found their treble to have some harshness and hotspots for my ears personally.

Yeah, maybe it would be better to describe which headphones’ treble I am okay with, and which ones I am not…
My Nighthawks are generally good, but every once in a while there’s a tiny bit of sss that is annoying. KSC75 are good, not offensive. 1More Triple Driver are great. Only the 250ohm DT770 to me had bearable treble that wasn’t harsh like the lower ohm versions. The DT 700 Pro X had good treble that was not harsh (I assume this was designed slightly differently than the 770 Pro X because that was horrific). The MDR1-AM2 were almost perfect except that I found their treble a bit hot at times.
Looking at some of the graphs for these (I know this is generally not a good idea…), it seems that I may be sensitive to peaks around 8k-9k? That’s just a guess though. Or it could even be in the lower treble range. I’m honestly not sure. I wish I knew more exactly, sorry.

I guess looking at the options and ideas now…
Put some money into getting some DT770 250ohm and get them cable modded
Look into Focal models such as the Elegia
Check out the A1000Z, tentatively
Another one I was considering was the Campfire Cascade. I see those used for around $300 now. It’s hard to find info on isolation and comfort on most of these headphones though.
EDIT: Forgot to mention the E-MU Teak, and any other variations of it, if they might be worth considering. Similar price point as above.
And thanks again for all the advice and help, I really appreciate it.

I have heard about these, that is not a bad price point either.

That is my main concern with them. If I’m walking around with them will they easily fall off my head.
Thanks for the recommendation though! Is there anything specifically about their tuning or presentation that you really liked?

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I have the Sennheiser Momentum 4 for out and about listening to music. I was sceptical of having anc closed backs but I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. The tuning app is decent and lets it have a sound as good or better than similar non active headphones of a similar price - the anc is super useful too. Good battery life and not too heavy.

If you do go the bluetooth route then they are worth a look.

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51

Thank you for the rec! I’ll check them out. I actually used to have the OG Sennheiser Momentum as a teenager, and I enjoyed them. I actually bought an OG pair for my sister since she really like the old ones and lost hers a long time ago. It’s basically the only thing she uses now. They sound a bit muddy to me these days when I tried them, but very inoffensive and decent enough. But those were wired. I have not heard any of their newer bluetooth models.

After doing some more research it seems that some of the lower end closed-backs still do not isolate all that well. However, I am really starting to get interested in looking at a used pair of Focal Elegia (they are going for under $300 used sometimes now, I think they used to be around $700 new?). I have read that their isolation is pretty good, and as you said @MacDLaw Focals have good seal for you. Have you tried the Elegia by chance?

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I have the Elegia. I like them but for very specific music genres. They seem very mid focussed to me. Electronica and vocal music work best in my opinion and they do tend to be a little amp dependant to get the best out of them. They are not very light and feel heavy after a while. The seal is pretty good.

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Oh cool! I’m one of those people that generally does not like mid-focused stuff, but if the presentation is good then that’s probably okay.
I listen to a lot of metal and more aggressive and harsh experimental music. I am not sure how they would work for that, but I have heard the treble is very pleasant and smooth.

That’s good to hear!

Hmm… do you find them too heavy for walking around?

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I would say I do. I bought the Momentum 4 after the Elegia when I was looking for something more mobile and with anc.

Edit to add I don’t like the Elegia for metal but I do for acoustic guitar.

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Yeah, thats another issue with my recommendations, I dont really feel the weight even when walking around, I had no problems with the LCD XC thats 700 grams

Also the elegias have forward presentation

Im starting to think I might not have anything in store for you since I really like very forward presentation

Also the momentum were very aggresive to me, Idk about the first ones though

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Wow neck of steel haha! Do you train your neck muscles for boxing or something? :sweat_smile:
I mean, I can walk around with the DT177x Go and those are only 10-20 grams lighter than the Elegia supposedly, which are about 430 grams according to online sources.

Well, I suppose worst case scenario I could find some for a good price and then if I don’t like them, just sell them. I’m sure people are always looking for a good value on closed-backs in today’s market, given that finding quality closed-backs is often difficult. I might just pull the trigger if I find some for a good price.

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I used to do a ton of sports, neck training actually exists but its used more for body building

Weight distribution, thats what the LCD XC does, for example the LCD2pf is about 600grams but feels a lot worse with the og headband

Im starting to think the beyer t5p gen 2 is a better pick, more familiar tuning

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Oh nice! What sports did you play? Do you still play any for fun?
I still do some tennis, I just finished my college career with it. I really like racquet sports, but looking back and realizing how difficult they were and how I am less talented and built for how hard tennis is on the body, I kind of wish I had chosen something less physically demanding in regards to endurance such as baseball or american football, lol. And honestly I wish I had gotten into more rough and tumble sports like wrestling, it probably would have done me some good. I would still love to start learning some MMA soon once I’m done with my undergrad.
Anyways…

Oh! I didn’t realize these were an option. It seems like they go for about $350-$500 currently. Perhaps I could snag one if I stay updated on them. How do you think they compare to the Elegia?

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Naaaah

Be careful with combat sports, sparring accidents are the worst

Also I suck at racquet sports, I dont know why that is I tried so hard

I did basketball for a long time, cross country mountain biking, gymnastics and skating, a lil bit of boxing

Im trying to get back but its tough

Yeah 500 is too much for those, 350 is more like right specially considering that most are a bit older

Theyre not like the elegia I wouldnt make that comparison, its a lot more like old beyers in every way

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Oh I bet. Still want to try them though!

It’s really a matter of being naturally talented in all the right things and lots of blocks falling into just the right places to be good at it, along with ridiculous amounts of practice. I trained since I was 6, and during my teens for about 5 hours a day, and that is not counting all the yoga and off-court training I did too, and mental toughness exercises. I just wasn’t athletic enough and my parents couldn’t afford coaching (which is horrifically expensive for tennis) to make it further than college. I still had fun though. I think other racquet sports come more naturally to me because I just grew up playing tennis.

Oh wow that’s a lot! Basketball is tough, you have to be in such good shape for that. The cross country people I know have ridiculous stamina. I hate running long distances like that, Idk how you guys manage to enjoy it. Mtn biking looks exhilarating, if a bit scary. Gymnastics and skating is impressive, and you did boxing too?? Talk about being a well-rounded athlete, haha.

Yeah definitely, being consistent is the toughest thing about staying in shape, and especially when you are not being forced to by a school commitment or your parents are paying for you to do a sport. It takes so much mental effort to force myself to get up and work out.

I see.

Ah okay. Well, as far as my experience goes, old beyers are good beyers! I’ll keep an eye out for them if I see a good price.