ON-EAR HEADPHONES
Sheryl Crow climbs inside your head!
You wouldn't BELIEVE how many choices you have in on-ear headphones. And I bet you won't believe what you can spend, too.
The first thing to figure out is if you need headphones while you are moving; i.e., jogging, biking, hiking, etc. Or if you just want to sit in your own little world as an escape from the pressures of the job and all the other demons that come back on their demon merry-goround to jab you with those soul-busting jabs and stabs....! Whoa. Easy. We'll cover both.
But this section will discuss and guide you through ON EAR headphones. Generally these look more like a traditional headphone. Some are large, yet confortable.
Open air.
These babies have a foam surround that allows sound in and out. That means your bass response won't go as low, but the foam makes them very comfortable.
I am going to cut to the chase right away. For under $100 (Like $69) these have been, and are most highly regarded:
The Grado SR 60
Serving up liquid mids and solid bass performance, the only blemish is a slight sparkly sound rather than the smooth highs of a well extended headphone. The beast looks a bit ancient, but you'll have your eyes closed and you can't see it anyway. This is our cheap pick for sitting at home. For most people it'll be the best sounding headphone you've ever heard.
They are easily driven by the output of a portable player or inexpensive home equipment.
I won't tell you about their $700 model.
Closed. Sealed. Snug.
Underlined links will take you to more information on select headphones and an opportunity to purchase them at great prices through our affiliation with Amazon.com
But another likely candidate is the
at about $90. They are sealed and much more stylish than the Grados.
And at the Hundy mark:
Great sound, well balanced, slight rolloff at frequency extremes. Sealed headphones, A very enjoyable pair of headphones for: planes, trains, automobiles, and movies in bed.
Great sound with punch. Clean. Comfortable. You rock. The Cameron Diaz of headphones.
Basically the same headphone as the Sennheiser HD600 and HD650. For quality listening around the home and office. For home theater and computer uses in quiet environments. Smooth and articulate, the HD 580 will challenge your gear for who's best. The most comfort allowed by law. So, stop reading? No, you DO want to know about other options, don't you? How do the rich and famous do it? What about the - ahem - professionals?
And by the way - WHY would you want headphones anyway if you DON'T need the escape? Well, for one, you eliminate all the room acoustical problems that darn near every room HAS. That's major. And Number TWO, you can't get speakers this good this cheap! What else do you need to know?
Let's keep going as long as we're in the Sennheiser stable. There's a thoroughbred over there.
Some say yes, indeed. Smooth, relaxed, quick, liquid, enveloping - all has been said in high praise. Did I mention the price at $500? But you get to keep it.
Like Angela Jolie in that dream you have. (Ladies, I can't call this the Brad Pitt but you can probably translate what I am trying to get across. Enjoy the fantasy.)
No, it isn't the $20,000 set of speakers in the Robb Report, but you'd never get them onto an airplane or to the cabin or onto the back deck. How many bests of anything can you buy for so little?
And hey, later we'll tell you how to spend more to make them sound even better.
Meanwhile, let's look into some other top brands.
Tight, impactful bass in a small headphone perfect for rock. They also fold into a lump that goes into the velvety zippered pouch.
Here's natural, organic sound - the trick is the pads position the transducers (nice word, but for $850 that's what you call them) away from your ears. Maybe a bit otherworldly-looking, these aren't subtle. But you get to play with angle to the ear and that can influence apparent image depth. These babes also need power - maybe 10 watts, so you won't get it out of that portable CD player.
An open air design. Surrounding noise gets in and you leak sound out. That didn't sound right. Ummm, you share a taste of your internal symphony - that's better.
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