100$ Headphones vs 1000$ stereo setup

[ps_sonic]

I always thought no matter how much you spend on HT, headphones always had the better sound without the need off acoustics.Recently I bought a pair of sennheiser hd 428 headphones and am going to do a detail comparison of the headphones with my NAD Dali stereo setup. Meanwhile would I like to know the views of experts on this topic.

 

[ps_sonic]

I am not an audiophile anyhow I would list out the difference I was able to find

1. Headphones had excellent detailing I heard sound which I have I had never heard in my Dali but unfortunately It never felt real for me It had artificial tonality:sad: where as my speakers would sound like a live concert.hyeah:

2.The Headphones had better bass but I only heard it, With my speakers I would feel the bass.

3.Headphones causes fatigue but with I had never felt that in my speakers.

Looks like speakers wins here. Remember I am comparing 100$ headphone with a 1000$ stereo setup.Guys with more expensive headphones can share your views

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

I assume that the $1000 and $100 examples are hypothetical?

If not, then there is only one answer: there is no "vs." $1100 gets you both. Go for it.

Practicality forced me into headphones. I never liked them. Now I love them, and hope to move up to $1,000-plus spend on them. I do suspect that the result within the limitations of headphones might well rival $10,000 on a speaker setup.

I do not find my headphones fatiguing in the audio sense, but it does get a bit steamy in there on a hot night! Apart from this, they are entirely comfortable, and I could forget I'm using them.

Headphones put the music inside your head --- and give the feeling of being inside the music. It is a different experience. Headphones cannot give you the music spread out in front of you, although our imaginations do help a lot with that.

If you want to go for headphones, do the headphone-specific research. Open or closed? Light-weight, or can you stand half a kilo on your head.

Do remember: with headphones, you can never share your music.

Unless a person is aiming for some really high-end 'phones setup, this just not have to be an either/or question anyway: have both


my setup:

PC --> ODAC --> Pre-amp (allows other sources with easy switching) --> ifi iCAN --> Audio Technica AT-ADH900 open-back, light-weight 'phones.

 

[karthick raja]

Even I wondered about the same sometime ago. What I feel is inorder to get the same quality you have to shell out couple of times the worth of headphone. One thing in which speaker leads in terms of sonic abilities compared to headphone in similar price level is soundstage. Even if its open back ones it cant have the same soundstage as like the similar priced speakers. Well, that depends upon the system but you can get better soundstage and sense of airiness in speakers of comparable price range. If one cant afford a 1000$ speaker setup then he may opt for lesser priced headphone which can have comparable or better quality. I am really interested to do a comparison of my dali and ATH-M50 hope I do them.

 

[vkalia]

I always thought no matter how much you spend on HT, headphones always had the better sound without the need off acoustics.Recently I bought a pair of sennheiser hd 428 headphones and am going to do a detail comparison of the headphones with my NAD Dali stereo setup. Meanwhile would I like to know the views of experts on this topic.

Headphones may have a better frequency response, but speakers typically tend to sound more lifelife (assuming, of course, that you use live sound as a reference - which doesnt apply to a lot of musical genres).

That doesnt mean headphones are bad - i have a fairly high-end headphone rig which i use more than my speakers for a bunch of reasons, and i really enjoy the music on them. But with them, I cannot close my eyes and get the feeling that the performers are in the room with me, the way i can/could with a properly set up speaker rig.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

i have a fairly high-end headphone rig

You have several very enviable 'phones! (Green = a touch of envy :lol

I cannot close my eyes and get the feeling that the performers are in the room with me, the way i can/could with a properly set up speaker rig.

It's more like dreaming the music than watching it! These days I do not have a properly-set-up speaker system to compare; I've almost forgotten what it is like; otherwise I guess I might fully agree!

 

[cyber_cat]

Headphones have come a long way since Walkman days, these days expensive headphones sound far superior to 1000$ speakers IMHO.

 

[ranjeetrain]

Portable vs full scale systems

Out of necessity, I have lived with headphones for a long time. I have used a number of cans and HPAs. I also have full scale system capable of reference grade sound reproduction. Here are my observations based on experiences from both ends:

• Headphones are a great way to discover what high-end (reference grade) sounds like.
• Portable is cheap to own, takes less real estate, goes where you are.
• To get the same level of fidelity that a USD 500 portable rig can get, a full scale system needs to be at the very least 4-5 times more expensive.
• In portable audio it's fairly easy to judge the characteristic of each equipment in the chain. In a full scale system it's not as easy.
• You must work on the room acoustics (unless you are born lucky) to get the sound right in a full scale system.
• A portable system sounds the same everywhere (except lets say home vs battle field).
• Detailing and sound-staging are strengths of a portable system. Scale and dynamics that of full scale system.
• Tonal purity is easy to attain in a portable system.
• Tonal purity is an extremely difficult to attain attribute in a full scale system.
• In a full scale system, it's very easy to get immersed in the music; speakers disappear, wall vanish, only sound remains.
• With headphone, it's extremely hard to forget you're wearing something.
• Contrary to what most people believe, placement plays as important a role in portable systems as it does in full scale. Especially, with IEMs.
• Cost no object full scale systems sounds way better than cost no object portable system.
• Going from an entry level portable system to an entry level full scale system is a trade of fidelity for convenience.
• Going from an entry level full scale system to an entry level portable system is a trade of convenience for fidelity.
• Wearing headphones and listening loudly is a sure shot way to get scolded by missus (or father as the case may be).
• Being a portable music junkie can make you introvert and socially disconnected.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Within the last day or two, I was reading a similar conversation on Head-fi.com, only they started out with a $10,000 dollar system.

I got several posts into it before I realised that they were comparing a 10-grand speaker system with a ten thousand dollar headphone system!

eek.

 

[vkalia]

I am not sure if soundstaging is really a virtue of a headphone-based system. No matter how much they play around with positioning, it still sounds like 2 drivers right next to your ear. A speaker-based system does a much better job of re-creating a proper soundstage where, say, the brass and strings come from the appropriate locations.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Absolutely. And the soundstage is inside your head or in an ark over your head. Speakers create a much, much more realistic illusion. Can headphones ever seem to have depth?