Good quality headphones to recommend?

RPGFool said:
What it is, is :) :

the closed headsets have an impermeable plate/element between the exterior of each earphone and the outside world. This prevents any sound from the outside world from getting into the earphone, but more importantly from a health standpoint, it also prevents any dissipation of the headphone energy. All energy of the headphone is focused onto and received by the user's eardrums. And headphones can produce a lot of energy as it turns out. Lots of radio announcer types -- who wear headphones all day long -- end up becoming literally deaf as as result. The open headphones allow the mini-speaker in the headphone to produce the same level of high quality sound without the massive changes in air pressure that can occur within the environment of closed headphones.

Regards.

__
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I knew some of this information, such as the debate between open and closed sets and how the energy is dissipated in open sets vs. closed, etc. That has been the crux to the debate of which style sounds better.

What I did not know, is that the closed design is leading to hearing loss. That makes perfect sense when you say it, and I'm surprised this hasn't been made clear earlier.

I'm now a bit wary of using my closed audio-cancelling set. Hmm.
 
Asdraguuhl said:
Open headphones tend to generate better sound quality so it is very common among high-end headphones to be open.
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Interesting. I saw an article about the Sennheiser set I owned, and how many people would add extra foam as a modification to make them more "closed", because that made them sound better.

I don't know much about that stuff other than personal experience. I have owned several sets of "entry-level" or low-price audiophile headsets throughout the years, with the most expensive being just $300 or so. I know they get a lot pricier and much more subtle past that range, but I've never had the luxury of being able to spend $2000 on a pair of headphones.
 
Fluent said:
What I did not know, is that the closed design is leading to hearing loss. That makes perfect sense when you say it, and I'm surprised this hasn't been made clear earlier….
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Perhaps because it isn't necessarily correct? At the very least there's no consensus about it- I've checked a couple of (professional) ear-nose-throat sites.

pibbur
 
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Back when I researched headphones many years ago, sound quality was supposedly better with closed headphones, but I guess it depends on your definition of "better" and on what you want. I still have some old Sennheiser HD590. The cord and ear pads have both been replaced two times over its life time. They are open, which was important to me so I would still hear the telephone ring while gaming.


The pros of one type is the con of the other (personal subjective opinion):

Closed:
+ stronger bass
+ can hear more in noisy environments
+ good if you don't want to disturb nearby people in quiet environments
- bad if you want to hear what's going on "outside"
- need to vent your ears regularly due to lack of air flow
- sound stage appears very close to your head

Open:
+ can be worn for longer periods of time
+ wider experienced sound stage
+ can hear what's going on near you
- can possibly be heard from the outside, which may disturb other people
- bass not as full
- not as good in noisy environments (need to increase volume)


Other things I remember:
- good quality headphones may require headphone amplifiers, if they have high impedance (Ω). There are sounds cards that offer this built into the headphone jack though, otherwise they'll sound really quiet and won't live up to their potential.
- good headphones may need to be broken in before they sound like they should (? run some diverse music or noise on it for a night or two or more? *shrugs*)

Last, but not least, I also found it important to me that the headphones enclose the entire ear and are very comfy. Wearing my pair feels like gently pressing cushions to your ears and the ventilation is good enough so that I can wear them for hours without detriment.


Ah, here's a nice short video explaining the main differences between closed and open.

 
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@arhu: That was an excellent overview. There are some minor details which might need a bit more clarifying, but that's peanuts and I won't go into it. Besides I'm not sure I agree with myself. Very good.

good headphones need to be broken in before they sound like they should (run some diverse music on it for a night or two or more?)
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Yes, I've heard that too. Do you know why?

pibbur who thinks his music-playing-on-ear-plugs is within safety limits. Because the wife, who doesn't listen much to music has worse hearing than him. And who of course repeatedly mentions that to said wife.
 
pibbur who said:
PS. I'm not too concerned about closed vs open headphones at home. The important issue is the volume, of the sound, which you control. In noisy environments open headphones can be worse, because you tend to turn up the volume to drown out (correct english?) the background noise. Closed headphones, by partly eliminating the background allow you to play your music at a lower volume, noise cancelling headphones are even better. Assuming that you actually do play your music at a lower volume. DS.
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I'm sure that's right, and I don't think closed headphones pose any greater risk to one's hearing. The significant factor is the sound pressure level, and that won't be any more or less harmful, at the same level, in an open or closed headphone. As you say, in many cases the closed are likely healthier, since there is less temptation to turn them up. The idea that closed headphones cause an unsafe build-up of air pressure doesn't make much sense - the sound pressure level would become intolerable long before it could generate dangerous levels of overall air pressure.

Fluent said:
What I did not know, is that the closed design is leading to hearing loss. That makes perfect sense when you say it, and I'm surprised this hasn't been made clear earlier.

I'm now a bit wary of using my closed audio-cancelling set. Hmm.
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I really don't think you need to worry.
 
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Fluent said:
Interesting. I saw an article about the Sennheiser set I owned, and how many people would add extra foam as a modification to make them more "closed", because that made them sound better.
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Funny, I read about people taking out the foam to improve the sound and get rid of the so-called "veil" :).

pibbur who said:
Arhu said:
- good headphones may need to be broken in before they sound like they should (? run some diverse music or noise on it for a night or two or more? *shrugs*)
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Yes, I've heard that too. Do you know why?
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Apparently there is no general consensus about this. Some swear by the existence of burn-in whereas other say it is complete bollocks.

From what I understand, there is not a generally "accepted" scientific explanation for the burn-in phenomenon. Some explanations of perceived sound changes attribute it to the brain that is getting accustomed to the new sound.

Arhu said:
Back when I researched headphones many years ago, sound quality was supposedly better with closed headphones, but I guess it depends on your definition of "better" and on what you want.
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I find that quite an odd conclusion and contrary to my own findings. Considering the obvious practical disadvantages of open headphones, I'd say that sound quality is their raison d'être.

Although I have a hunch that you equate bass-heaviness with sound quality ;).
 
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I think from my own, somewhat limited, experience in closed vs. open, I have preferred closed, myself.

The open sets I've used tend to sound very "airy", which could be a preferred preference for many, but some sets could even come across as a bit thin-sounding overall.

The closed sets I've used seem to be more intimate and the sound seems closer. I've preferred mixing my own musical creations on good sets of closed headphones (which, I already know that it is not recommended to mix music on headphones, but I disagree). Of course, more bass as well, naturally. The open set I've used have been a bit light on the bass.
 
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