Headphones for $100

I will use them primarily for acoustic jazz. I see thousands of threads on headphones but they are all pretty old. What would you go with if you were me. Note I am buying blind as we have no high end shops around here where I could go listen.

I like comfort so I would probably opt for over the ear type cans.

Thank you.....

 

Audio Technica ATH M50x is pretty good and you might find it for cheap. And since it's got low impedance (for headphones) so you should be able to use it with your phone with no problem and you definitely will not need an external headphone amp for the hi-fi.

 

I just bought the industry-standard Sony MDR 7506 — closed back, over ears. $80. I like them and find them to be comfortable and very easy to drive. Best to try before buying but I bought these without auditioning so I understand how it is.

 

I second the Audio Technica ATH M50x. I have the ATH30x and love those so the M50x would be really nice.

 

Grado SR-80 Read some reviews, buy them from Amazon and you can return if you don't like. They were my first entry into the audiophile headphone game and I still own them all these years later. The HD60's are my go to headphones nowadays, but they are a bit above your budget.

 

Where are you going to use the headphones? At home? On the go?
Would open headphones that allow sound to leak in an out work for you, or do you need closed headphones?
What are you going to plug them in to?

My go-to recommendation for lower cost headphones that are generally neutral and good for acoustic would be the Sennheiser HD 5xx series. Sennheiser keeps updating and changing the HD 5xx lineup. Go on Amazon and find a headphone in the HD 5xx line that is currently available at a price you want and buy it. For example, the HD 579 is $103 on Amazon right now. I haven't heard that exact model, but it will be good. Note that open headphones like this aren't going to have an extended bass. The bass will start rolling off at around 100 Hz for most neutral sounding open headphones in this price range.

 

I'd look at Sennheiser, AKG and Grado headphones within your price range. I'm not a fan of the M50s at all.

 

I've read good things about Phillips 9500 (under $100) but haven't heard them. The m50 didn't work for me: too bassy and not refined enough for Jazz/Classical/Acoustic.

 

I have the step up in the Grados—which I got for less than $150–and I love them!

 

SR-80’s. Unless you need some bl9ated bass. Then get the sr-80’s anyway.

 

Grados aren't known for comfort. Grados aren't going to work for anyone who values comfort. I can manage wearing the SR series Grados (with either the comfy pads or bowl pads) for about two albums. After that I want them off my head and then slip into something more comfortable like the Senn headphones.

 

Have you looked at the Sennheiser Urbanite? I don't know what they go or in the US, but in Europe these sell for about €120.
Innerfidelity seemed pretty impressed by its performance: A Great Headphone for the Kids: The Sennheiser Urbanite

 

The Urbanite won't work for acoustic jazz. I've heard them. The treble gets shelved down 10 dB too much. The result is bass heavy and a mid-treble that sounds dead. Dead treble is death for acoustic music. That kills the sound of what it means to be acoustic. You can get away with using headphones like the Urbanite with processed rock and pop and electronic. But won't work with acoustic or well recorded classic rock. The Urbanite does have nice bass extension down to 20 Hz and low harmonic distortion in the bass, but the treble performance makes the headphone something I would not recommend for acoustic.

Here's a line from the InnerFidelity review that I agree with:

Where these cans fall a little flat is a treble response that starts rolling off at 2kHz and remains some 5-10dB too low through the bulk of upper octaves resulting in a veiled sound. However, it might be back on track between 10kHz and 20kHz giving these cans enough top-end sparkle to prevent them from sounding dull.​

 

I listened to Jack Johnson's In Between Dreams (a primarily acoustic album) and it sounded great! The detail was superb and I never felt I needed to turn the bass down. (I guess it depends on your system, of course, I've got a CMT-CP101 micro hifi.)

 

There is a difference between detail and refinement. I've heard recommended headphones that get touted for good detail but sound just sound unmusical or unrefined or just awful with acoustic music. Acoustic music needs a special style of sound. That's a reason why audiophiles interested in jazz and/or classical and/or bluegrass end up with different systems that people interested in only rock and pop.

 

I'm also into buying headphones around $100..for all sorts of music. Come down to Sony MDR7506 or even cheaper, AKG K52. Tried the K52s in the shop and although I couldn't concentrate that much on the sound because of plenty of people, I must say that they are super comfy.

 

The Sony 7506 and V6 is one of the headphones I was hinting at that is touted for good detail and good neutrality but ends up sounding unmusical, unrefined, and just awful with acoustic music. It measures well, but there is something wrong with the way it images and does transients that just makes well recorded acoustic music sound awful. It is the worst "good" headphone I have ever heard. You may not notice its faults if all you listen to is EDM. But with good acoustic recordings I consider it just awful. The 7506 was designed as a monitoring headphone out in the field. It works very well for that. For actual audiophile music listening it does not work well at all.

 

They made a lot of Pop music sound good in an over rich way. Winehouse Back to Black. In reality the recording quality is quite poor on that one. Classical just sounded Wrong.

 

I was just in this same situation. I needed a set of closed-back headphones for the office so I don't disturb my co-workers and wanted to stay under $100 for the set. I purchased the Audio Technica ATH-M40x and couldn't be happier. They sound great with all sorts of music and have a much flatter and more neutral response than the ATH-M50x (albeit, with a slight to moderate bass boost). I managed to get them new for $80 and it is money well spent.

The Sony MDR7506 have an accentuated treble and midrange, and sounded a bit blaring to me. The Audio Technica ATH-M50x have a very rich bass, but it is way too boosted for me. The mid-bass thumping gave me a headache and obscured a lot of details in the music. I considered the Grado SR-80s (even though they are open), but could not find a set to audition. I tried my friend's SR-200 instead and hated them. They sounded like a ball-peen hammer was drilling directly into my brain.

Only problem with the ATH-M40x is that they are not the most comfortable headphones in the world. Small ear pads and high clamping force. It has taken me a little while to break them in to the point where they are a little more comfortable. They are still OK and the sound quality more than makes up for it.

 

Sennheiser 5xx. I have many of those recommended here, and some nicer ones, and my 558s are often my go-tos.

 

Yeah, a buddy of mine has those and recommends them. Haven't heard them myself though.

I had the SR-60's and they sounded great, but the plastic where the metal post slides for adjustment broke after only a year or so and it wasn't from dropping them. This was back in the late 90's and the design doesn't look to have changed at all so I'd be wary of buying another pair.

 

In this price range I would go for Sennheiser HD25-II for its overall polyvalency

 

I've been using Sony MDR-V6's (2 pairs) for close to 20 years, and I don't hear any of your of your negatives.
I listen to ALL types of music, and for a roughly $70.00 they still sound sensational. I will always recommend them. And they are perfect for when I do needledrops.
Here's an in depth review of them and the 7506's. Worth reading if you're a buyer.
Sony MDR V6 vs. MDR 7506 -

 

I've owned the SR60 and 80e. Both kind of fell apart but I was able to fix the 80e with some gorilla glue.. So I guess u have to baby them !

 

Another contrary vote for the Sony V6. I've owned mine for ages, long enough to be sure they aren't counterfeit (lots of those around), and long enough to have replaced the awful pleather earpads with the vastly better Beyerdeynamic ones with velour. My listening these days is mostly acoustic music or classical, and they sound just fine to me.

Once in a while I'll switch off to my AKG K422s, but I always come back to the Sonys.

I wonder if some of the folks who don't like their Sonys are unwittingly listening to one of the many fakes?