View Full Version : Headphones > IEM?
Hey guys, I was just wondering if, as a rule, headphones are better than iems if they were in the same price range. Looking into getting new headphones to have in my dorm room and for plane rides, but won't really travel too much with them since I have my trusty cx300s. Thanks.
I find that in the same price range, headphones blow away IEMs by a wide wide margin. No comparison really. Take the Grado SR60 and I think you'll find it almost impossible to beat that with any IEM.
Did some googling and I'm leaning really strongly towards the AKG K81DJ, just wondering if anybody has any comments on these? good/bad. I thought about the Grado SR60s as well, but I do enough long time traveling to warrant getting closed headphones. Is the sound of the SR60s a lot better than the K81DJs?
toomtaam
03-25-2007, 12:34 AM
SR60 is a excellent phone for there price but they not a closed phone (leak sound) which can be very annoy to person that next to you. If you travel a lot I won't recommand it for that. I never heard AKG so I can't said anything about them.
Macromedia
03-25-2007, 02:26 AM
As a rule yes but IEMs do show better detail and can be driven easier. Yes the AKG 81DJ are good. Not great but for a cheap closed headphones, they're good enough. Lots of bass.
dimmer
03-25-2007, 02:59 AM
The Grados and the AKGs just sound different - the AKGs are bassier than the Grados. The Grados tend to be fairly harsh in the treble range (actually thats what makes them sound more lively than the AKGs). Because they are closed the AKGs give you more isolation and don't leak sound, for instance you can use them on a plane and cut out a lot of engine noise. The downside is that they don't have much soundstage and all the instruments tend to be closer together and not so well separated, a problem that the Grados don't have. However everyone will hear what you are listening to with the Grados, and you will hear everything around you.
In comfort both have their problems - the AKGs are a bit small for larger heads, and clamp on your ears hard, whereas the Grados feel scratchy on your ears. The AKGs are much more portable - not only do they fold flat into a smallish bundle, but their cord is not really thick and bulky like the Grados. In fact the cord is the deal killer for me with the Grados - they are not especially portable because of this. With both the cord is too long, but you can easily wrap the AKG cord around one of those plastic devices they sell, which you certainly can't with the Grado because of its thickness.
Overall if it came down to a choice between the two, I would choose the AKGs - they are a better portable sound isolating headphone, and have good sound, if overly bass dominated. The Grados sound more lively, in fact overall I prefer their sound by a margin, but they aren't a portable solution.
Sorry for hammering you guys with questions, but being a student, every cent matters. How do the AKGs compare with the Sennheiser CX300s? I'm assuming it's even bassier, which is fine with me, but are the sounds even crispier?
dimmer
03-25-2007, 08:17 AM
Sorry can't comment on that as I haven't heard the Senn CX300s!
brokentrail
03-25-2007, 05:15 PM
Take the Grado SR60 and I think you'll find it almost impossible to beat that with any IEM.
Excuse me?
Any IEM?
What price range are we talking about here?
I can easily assure you that IEMs like the Shure e4c or better will make you think twice about your statement. Working up the price range... Etymotic er-4, Shure e500, then ue10-pros, etc.
So I don't know where you're coming from with the "impossible" thing.
By the way, cx300 aren't really IEMs, they're more canalphones.
paranoidxe
03-25-2007, 06:53 PM
The only benefit IEMs have is sound insolation and bass..I mean I guess if bass is the only thing that is important to you then sure..IEMs are great.
brokentrail
03-26-2007, 04:02 AM
If you're talking about cheaper IEMs (canalphones) like the cx300 then yes, bass and isolation, but the more expensive IEMs can give amazingly high-resolution reproduction, accurate frequency response and immersive soundstage - that's why I like them.
Yes, IEMs are worse value-for-money and there are headphones $600+ which blow $500 IEMs out the water, but I was challenging the statement about the SR60 (the cheapest Grado offering) being the be-all end-all.
dimmer
03-26-2007, 07:33 AM
I have to agree as well. The E4s I have are far above the Grado SR60s in sound, being more accurate and open in soundstage, with tamer highs and tighter bass. They are not necessarily better than the more expensive Grados I now have - and they definitely cost a lot more than the Grados originally (especially as I was stupid enough to buy them from Circuit City rather than online!).
The advantage of IEMs are ultimate portability, but you pay a lot for that advantage if you want to have decent sound at the same time. Ultimately I prefer headphones as I don't like wearing IEMs, which for once works to my advantage as headphones rivalling IEMs in sound quality are generally cheaper...
Thanks guys! I stumbled onto head-fi and am now really convinced to get the ATH-SJ5. I'll post my thoughts on these when I get em some time next week.
toomtaam
03-26-2007, 12:41 PM
Thanks guys! I stumbled onto head-fi and am now really convinced to get the ATH-SJ5. I'll post my thoughts on these when I get em some time next week.
Hehe, yeh I was reading about SJ5 on head-fi also. Let us know how you think about them when you get it.