headphones

[topaz]

My headphones are dying.  I currently wear a set of inexpensive Sony over-the-ear type things.  What do you like?  I'd like something that gives a little better sound, but I'm not going to drop $300 on a set of titanium uranium molybdenum jobs with hand-carved rosewood contacts.

Note: I have always hated earbuds, Bluetooth headsets, and other things that you are supposed to actually stick inside your ear.  Ugh!  These things have always caused me a good bit of pain.  Feel free to recommend one of these things, but keep that part in mind.  I'm willing to believe that some clever person has invented an earbud that does not cause pure agony, but you'll have to convince me.

Edit: Forgot to add that I am one of those annoying gits who, yes, sometimes wears headphones on his bike. Sorry. The phones I have now allow me to play music or the radio at a volume that I can hear without blocking out ambient noise, so I'm not unaware of the traffic around me. My ideal headphones would satisfy those criteria too.

Comments

[n2mlq.livejournal.com]

Well my $0.02

Etymotics does custom ear inserts that are pretty spiffy, and my headphone choice for almost all common uses for the past several years have been Bose QC2. I can play them at a low enough level that I can hear people sneaking into my cube and still enjoy the music and isolation.