budget headphones? ISK HF2010s or Phillips SHP9500?

[Ulfrinn]

after doing a lot of research, i've learned that there are quite a few budget headphone options out there with damn good sound, rivalling $200+ headphones from bigger brands.. for example, samson SR850s, AKG K240s, ISK HF2010, phillips SHP9500s, etc

i think ive narrowed it down to the ISK HF2010s (formerly the takstar HI2050s) and the phillips SHP9500

both have really good sound stages and good sound, i tend to prefer the more oval cups of the HF2010, but the phillips have the detachable cable you can use a boompro with, although im already using a condenser lavallier mic that works well, and the HF2010 can be easily modified for a detachable cable

can anyone say anything about either headphones to sway me to one side or another? or maybe have a better sub $100 open-pack headphone recommendation?

[JP.]

HyperX Cloud II perhaps?

[Ulfrinn]

no, no crappy gaming headsets, and strictly open back or semi open

[Rumpelcrutchskin]

I need new ones too and gone get the Samson SR850 next week, seem to be a lot of value for €30.

[Ulfrinn]

yeah, they seem good, one thing i dont like about them is i do not see how to get a detachable cable or even mod one that'll work with a boompro later on, thats about my only complaint.. also, i kind of like the more oval shaped ear pads.. i know theyre not the best headphones, but before they broke, i found the old turtle beach X11/X12s to fit my ears and head quite well, the ISKs remind me of that but with way better build and sound quality from what i hear

i think having the biggest sound stage is what i'm interested in though, and im not sure if the ISKs, samsons, or phillips will provide the largest sound stage

[Talby]

Having the Samson SR850 and the Philips SHP9500s, I prefer the SR850s for gaming and action movies since they have a slight V shape and have better bass response. The velour pads are much more comfortable over time than the pleather pads on the AGKs and Superlux, which get a bit hot after a while.

The Philips are also awesome, ended up keeping them mated to my Onkyo AVR for late-night non-action movies and music and yes does have better sound stage. They do fit a bit loosely and fall off sometimes so thats a bit of annoyance (and why I stopped using them on PC, kept happening too much lol)

The ISK HF2010 look pretty good, takstar build quality, velour pads and semi-open - pretty close to the SR850s. Seen it for $40 so it's not a bad deal from aliexpress. Not sure what happened to the SR850 price, they used to be $35 but now they are $50 and now the only low prices are from Ebay :(

There is also the LyxPro OEH-10[www.amazon.com], full open-back and comes with a lot of stuff like pleather & velour pads, cables, bag and adapters. Pretty good for $60, but the SHP9500 can be had for $70 and most likely has better sound quality - they may be your best bet.

[Ulfrinn]

Originally posted by Talby:

Having the Samson SR850 and the Philips SHP9500s, I prefer the SR850s for gaming and action movies since they have a slight V shape and have better bass response. The velour pads are much more comfortable over time than the pleather pads on the AGKs and Superlux, which get a bit hot after a while.

The Philips are also awesome, ended up keeping them mated to my Onkyo AVR for late-night non-action movies and music and yes does have better sound stage. They do fit a bit loosely and fall off sometimes so thats a bit of annoyance (and why I stopped using them on PC, kept happening too much lol)

The ISK HF2010 look pretty good, takstar build quality, velour pads and semi-open - pretty close to the SR850s. Seen it for $40 so it's not a bad deal from aliexpress. Not sure what happened to the SR850 price, they used to be $35 but now they are $50 and now the only low prices are from Ebay :(

There is also the LyxPro OEH-10[www.amazon.com], full open-back and comes with a lot of stuff like pleather & velour pads, cables, bag and adapters. Pretty good for $60, but the SHP9500 can be had for $70 and most likely has better sound quality - they may be your best bet.

aah, i was just thinking.. didnt these samsons used to be like $30?.. i guess i wasnt imagining it.. ill take a look at those you posted.. its too bad more people dont have experience with the takstar/ISK to compare though because theyre probably a good set, and easily modded

another concern of mine is durability.. which of these will actually last long enough to be worth modding

something else i like about the ISK and phillips is that the grills easily come out, or in the case of the ISK, theres a disc inside the pro-80s which is the closed back version, so it'd be fairly simple with either one to set up something of a convertible mod as well

[Ulfrinn]

the phillips have a piece that can come out inside the ear cup which houses the mesh piece... the mesh piece could easily be replaced with a solid piece to convert to a closed back, should for any reason the openness of them be problematic

[Ulfrinn]

i went with the SHP9500s.. low impedance, high sensitivity means they can easily be driven by my 7.1 adapter, great audio, large sound stage, fantastic imaging, and lightweight with little clamping force translates to all day comfort.. i'll figure out some system to keeping a boompro from twisting