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

[ceo]

I have a pair of Sennheiser HD280s that I'm very fond of. They're the circumaural type and do an excellent job of blocking outside sounds, so, good for the office, not so good for biking. About $100.

http://headphone.com is an excellent place to get headphones from.

[mizarchivist]

Good luck finding a set you like.
I do use ear buds, but the kind with the flexible inserty bits. The default type that come with iPods are totally unusable for me, as I either have mutantly small ears or... something.
My Sony set just died and the warranty finally is gone. (I think). So I got a set of "Wicked Little Buds." I like Sony better, but they're in the 50 range rather than the 25 range. Either way, I get the extended warranty, as it tends to pay off for me.
Let us know what you end up getting

[qwrrty.livejournal.com]

Oh, good point, I should have addressed that. Edited the entry. Thanks for the rec!

[qwrrty.livejournal.com]

I don't think I've used earbuds with flexible inserty bits. You mean these? (http://www.thetwistergroup.com/product/wicked-wi-2301-blue-little-buds-noise-isolating-stereo-earbuds/WI-2301%20D54982.html) They sound intriguing.

[mizarchivist]

Yep- those are the ones I have now.
http://www.scansound.com/Graphics/Sony2sm.jpg
These are like the kind I like better: http://tinyurl.com/d2zvx7. One feature I particularly like is the extension part of the cord: when I am using my shuffle, all I need is the short bit. Then I don't get tripped up with extra slack when on the bike or at the gym.

[randysmith]

With the exception of the bike riding, I'm with you, but what I use is exactly what you picture. So I'm no help at all. Hey, at least I'm being true to form! :-}

[fengshui.livejournal.com]

These look good, although I haven't tried them:
Sony Mdr-As20J Active Style Headphones with Soft Loop Hangers (Black) (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0015AHRFK?ie=UTF8&tag=cabeenorg-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0015AHRFK)

I am going to obnoxiously ignore your criteria and tell you what I do

[inseriatim.livejournal.com]

Casey pointed me at the these in-ear headphones (http://pro-audio.musiciansfriend.com/product/Shure-SCL3-Sound-Isolating-Earphones?sku=270696) a while ago. The white ones are cheap, for some reason, and they're pretty uber. They come with a million different eartips. You're welcome to try mine out if you want. However, they block ambient sound very effectively, so if you wear them cycling you might die. (I wear $10 Radio Shack headphones in one ear only while I'm out biking.)

[d3l1r1um.livejournal.com]

Ooooh I have those too. Definitely not the right choice for biking though :)

[ifman.livejournal.com]

Sennheiser PMX 80 (http://www.sennheiserusa.com/newsite/productdetail.asp?transid=502542) is my current set. Pretty happy with them. Work for sports and do not go in the ear (which I also dislike), but achieve a certain amount of occlusion of ambient sounds.

[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.

[ckd]

I have a different pair of Sony over the ear headphones, the body of which doesn't include the model number. I'll look it up when I get a chance though. These last pretty well for $20 or so IIRC.

[catya.livejournal.com]

Employee sale :)

[qwrrty.livejournal.com]

Right, that answers the questions of "how" or "why" to buy but still not the question of WHAT. :-)