Best headphones for about $20

I just need some headphones for use at school, either around the back type or ear canal type. Mostly for watching instructional videos, PPT's, streaming vids/audio ... and for the occasional LAN Partys our Tech Club hosts at school.

Thanks,
Joshatdot

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My friend and I used to buy the Sony ones, the ones that look like a boomerang and goes in your ears. We dont get them anymore because every 2 months, the left side would stop working for some reason. Happened to both of us. Those are $10, maybe the reason why they were so undurable.

He got some white ones from Sony too that were $20 and had better quality and never had a problem with those. Those might be a good choice.

Reply to slim142

Yeah, I don't like those clipon earbud types, I like the ear canal type better, but I think I'll like the around the back of the head type for my situation.

I was just browsing thru New Egg, and the SENNHEISER PMX60 looks to be a nice cheep set, I'll give these a shot.

Reply to Joshatdot

The 2 people who bought it wrote great reviews so they might give you a good result good luck!

I also have the Sony Street Style that goes around the neck, Got it almost 4 years ago, still working. Nice purchase from Sony.

Reply to slim142

CNET user reviews avg 9.1, and Amazon users 4 out of 5 stars, no reviews found on Epinions .. most cons were that didn't produce deep Bass.

Reply to Joshatdot

Give them a try, you dont loose anything. In case you think they are not good enough. You will be able to return them. And you will know from there that the brand sucks and you will just stay away.

Reply to slim142

Usually Sennheiser makes better than average headphones, but who knows.

I am alittle tempted to try the SENNHEISER PC 140 too, for Team Speak type stuff.

Reply to Joshatdot

Then that should be a good purchase

Reply to slim142

Crap the PC 140's are Disco'ed at New Egg already!! and TigerDirect too =(

YAY ZipZoomFly still had em!

Reply to Joshatdot

Are those old headphones? I wouldnt be surprised that newegg took them out of their product list. Once they dont get no more, they remove it.

Reply to slim142

Quote :

Are those old headphones? I wouldnt be surprised that newegg took them out of their product list. Once they dont get no more, they remove it.

whoa, thats very odd, now Newegg is now showing the PC 140's again.

Yesturday when I tried to order them thru the link I posted here, Newegg said product no longer exists ..

Oh well, I got them both at ZipZoomFly for $64 shipped.

Reply to Joshatdot

hehe thats very weird, that samething happened with my motherboard. is back again, since 3 days ago it wasnt there anymore.

Reply to slim142

My first impressions of the PC 140's .. 6/10

The neck band is not like the PMX60's, its more thinner & flimsy, and the gap that between your ears & the band is thinner then the PMX60's. If you try to pull the top of your ears in the gap, they can feel pinched after a while. The On/Off mic switch is kinda cheep, it makes a clicking sound thru the mic wire, so when you switch it on or off other people could hear it (if you were on team speak or ventrilo), the volume knob is kinda cheep to, about 1/4 of a turn is all you get from full volume to no volume.

I used them for afew hours on Ventrilo, it reproduced the voices well, and MIC picked up quite well, but it could have used wind guard foam stuff. Music is not as good as the PMX60's, they are really not loud compared to the PMX60's, its at least 1/3 to 1/2 as loud, but they seem to produce alil more BASS.

Design - 6/10 (ear gap needs to be bigger, more sturdy band, better mic switch & volume knob)
Sound - 6/10 (needs more efficient/louder drivers & BASS)
Mic/Rec - 9/10 (needs foam)

My first impressions of the PMX60's .. 7/10

The neck band is thicker and more studier the the PC-140's. The gap between your ear and the band is wider and much more comfortable. The cord could have been abit longer. I agree with other reviews that they lack BASS .. it lacks it BADLY. It produces mids and highs pretty well, better then the PC-140's...but the BASS, not much there.

Design - 9/10 (could use alil longer cord)
Sound - 7/10 ( mids & highs were well, but practically no BASS)

I think I am going to return these to ZipZoomFly, and try some others. I was hoping atleast the PMX60's would be a good buy =(

Reply to Joshatdot

Hmmm, well, is you didnt like them that much, return them and try to check reviews of the headphones you see interesting before buying them so you can have an idea of what you will get.

Reply to slim142

You expect bass from 32 ohm impedance cheap headset? lol

Reply to Suzuka

I have them and yes I expected more bass, but I am impressed with the comfort factor and mids/highs. For a few bucks more the PMX100's are better sounding.

I also have the Sennheiser HD497's which sound amazing, but they don't work well for running/working out, so they stay connected to my PC in my dorm, all 10 feet of the cord

Reply to tool_462

Quote :

You expect bass from 32 ohm impedance cheap headset? lol

I expected to atleast HEAR the bass .. edit: I tried them on my parents laptop, the bass from that was better ..

They are very comfortable, and the mids to highs are nice and clean.

Compared to my Sony MDR-7506's .. the PMX60's are not to bad, my Sony's were kinda bright sounding, the bass was there, but a little bit short for what I was listening to, Drum-n-Bass.

I listened to the PC140's again...OMG they sounded so q-u-i-e-t and kinda muddy with my iPod, they are diffidently going to be sent back.

I am going to give the PMX60's afew more days/tries, maybe i'll get used to them.

What do you guys think of the SENNHEISER PMX200's or the SENNHEISER PMX100's ?

Or maybe these:
Logitech Internet Chat Headset
Logitech Extreme PC Gaming Headset
Plantronics .Audio 340 Behind-The-Head Enhanced Multimedia Headet
Logitech Premium Notebook Headset

Reply to Joshatdot

Sennheiser(sp?) makes some very nice quality headphones, my only complaint about my PC150's was the damn cord was way too thin for being so friggin long.

I owned another set when i was in the military they had bass you could hear and feel...but my moms dog literally ate them(while home on leave)......i killed that dog, unfortunately it was only while dreaming that night although i did tell her not to be suprised if it came up missing.

I loved those, even on a little portable cd player they sounded great.
They were similar to the SENNHEISER HD435's

Reply to cliffro69

Hmm..those Sennheiser PC150's got great reviews on Newegg. I think I'll send both of mine back, and try the PC150's.

But I like the behind the neck type, but I'll try these 150's

Reply to Joshatdot

Quote :

I just need some headphones for use at school, either around the back type or ear canal type. Mostly for watching instructional videos, PPT's, streaming vids/audio ... and for the occasional LAN Partys our Tech Club hosts at school.

Thanks,
Joshatdot

I've not read the entire thread above so forgive that, please.

If you can, purchase your cans from folks that know cans...such as HeadRoom.
( http://www.headphone.com/guide/by-budget/under-40/ )

Lots of knowledge there. I'm quite a can-head myself and have done some business with HeadRoom and FireStone Audio (headphone DACs and Amps). Even in the $20 range HeadRoom sales folks are quite helpful should you wish to call them.

I know these are over your initial stated budget and aren't the ear-type you've expressed interest in, but I'd recommend taking a good look at them anyways ...
http://www.headphone.com/guide/by- [...] k-26-p.php

Slim, good morning! :wink:

Reply to halcyon

Well, Ill leave this topic with the headphones pros

Reply to slim142

...and just WHO told you that you weren't a headphone pro?

Reply to halcyon

Acoustic Research Noise Cancelling headphones (ar-h500) from an online vendor [cough]buy.uknow[/cough].

Active Noise cancellation for 28 bucks shipped to your door.

Be advised that they do NOT have the largest of drivers (30mm) like some others (40mm) so they will not have TOTALLY booming bass but will give good response.

Reply to Ches111

:oops:

well you are talkin about all this models that I dont knw and super specific details :roll:

anyways, I just buy whatever I see "cool"

Reply to slim142

Oh. Well, in my case I went through a lot of headphone research last June/July...learned a lot from members like Astrallite and Choirbass. I think I spent about $1.1K on headphones, amps, and DACs...but I learned, got some good gear, and had fun.

Reply to halcyon

Oh well looks like you are into the music business ~cool~

Reply to slim142

I'm definitely into my music. There's actually one more pair of headphones I want but I keep buying all this damned PC gear. I want a pair of AKG K701's. ...maybe one day this year.

Reply to halcyon

Quote :

If you can, purchase your cans from folks that know cans...such as HeadRoom.
( http://www.headphone.com/guide/by-budget/under-40/ )

Lots of knowledge there. I'm quite a can-head myself and have done some business with HeadRoom and FireStone Audio (headphone DACs and Amps). Even in the $20 range HeadRoom sales folks are quite helpful should you wish to call them.

I know these are over your initial stated budget and aren't the ear-type you've expressed interest in, but I'd recommend taking a good look at them anyways ...
http://www.headphone.com/guide/by- [...] k-26-p.php

Slim, good morning! :wink:

Sweet website thanks! They gave the Sennheiser PMX100's best value rating for <$40 , I think I'll give those a try.

Reply to Joshatdot

Cool. Getting new headphones is always exciting! Enjoy!

Reply to halcyon

Quote :

Cool. Getting new headphones is always exciting! Enjoy!

I feel you

btw i like ur new signature

Reply to slim142

Its almost been a week since I have asked/emailed/submitted a request for RMA with ZipZoomFly.

I sent one on the 17th, and again on the 19th, and I sent a email to CS today!

Reply to Joshatdot

ZZF is a good company, they will process your request fast

Reply to slim142

Which headphones do you like the best for overall listening quality? I have Sennheiser PMX60s/PMX100s/HD 497's and Grado SR60s. The HD 497's are probably the best sounding but the Grado's are a close call. Depends what source I am listening to, my receiver gives the Grado's more power and they sound better on that, but my MP3 player makes the HD 497's put any other portable unit capable headphone I have used to shame.

Reply to tool_462

Yeah slim142, I really hope ZZF will process my RMA.

tool_462, I want to give the PMX100's a try, they got alot of good reviews. I don't want medium to big headphones, that's why I want to get behind the neck type. Though over this last weekend I tried some very nice over the head BOSE headphones, but were too expensive.

Reply to Joshatdot

I know I prefer my Grado's to my Senn's, except for long long listening sessions where the Senn's unbeatable comfort overshadows the Grado's richer sound. ...but for 2 hours or less of listening my Grado SR325i wipe the floor with the Senn HD595's and the 595's are a world-class headphone.

I don't know if that scenario remains the same with the Grado SR60's vs. the Senn HD497's.

Reply to halcyon

anything by sennheiser will be fantastic i bought a £25 pair and im very very happy

Reply to yakyb

Senn are generally good but it depends on how they like their music and what type of music they like. If you like punchy bass for rock or pop you can do better than the Sennheiser...this is an area where Grado has gathered a lot of fans.

Reply to halcyon

Quote :

I just need some headphones for use at school, either around the back type or ear canal type. Mostly for watching instructional videos, PPT's, streaming vids/audio ... and for the occasional LAN Partys our Tech Club hosts at school.

Thanks,
Joshatdot

If you want a great sounding set of cans with excellent bass, check out the KOSS SportaPro. They're the younger sibling of the most excellent PortaPro headphones. An excellent feature of KOSS products - a no questions asked lifetime warranty. Just ship 'em back to KOSS with return postage and presto - you'll have replacements in a couple of weeks. You don't even need a receipt.

In my experience - Sony products are junk. Every single Sony product that I have owned has broken - CD players, walkman, clock radio, headphones - you name it. They work well at first - they just don't last.

Sony is to electronics what McDonalds is to food.

Reply to rushfan

Quote :

anything by sennheiser will be fantastic i bought a £25 pair and im very very happy

I very doubt ANYTHING, I am not happy with my PMX60's and PC140's (thought they are pretty cheep)

I still have not heard back from ZipZoomFly yet at all!! no nothing...no emails, calls.

I am going to call them tomorrow and see WTF is up.

rushfan ... interesting I did not know KOSS had a lifetime warranty, i'll have to look into their sets.

The CS80's seem ok ... but omg their impedance is 60 ohms!
http://www.koss.com/koss/kossweb.n [...] pc^mm^CS80

The KSC24's are aight, but they are also 60ohms!
http://www.koss.com/koss/kossweb.n [...] c^bh^KSC24

Reply to Joshatdot

60 ohms is actually considered pretty low, you can drive those right out of an iPod.

Reply to halcyon

Quote :

rushfan ... interesting I did not know KOSS had a lifetime warranty, i'll have to look into their sets.

The warranty is a huge plus, in my opinion. I am on my third set of PortaPros. My wife broke my first pair while packing for a vacation in '99 and KOSS exchanged them, no questions asked. My second pair developed a buzzing on one side after a colleague cranked my MP3 player to the max while the bass was notched up about 6db. Again, they were replaced, hassle-free.

I bought a pair of the cheaper SportaPro headphones to tide me over while waiting for the second exchange to complete. They don't sound quite as good as the PortaPros but they're close, and they sound much, much better than 99% of the ear buds that are supplied with most portables.

There are better sounding, albeit more expensive headphones out there but the two KOSS products that I have described provide excellent sound and the best warranty in the business, hands down.

Reply to rushfan

Had my Senns HD280 closed cans for almost a month now and I love them. Sounds amazing, Ipod has no troubles driving it at 60ohms, can easily listen most music at comfort levl at about 60% volume. I only use them when I am outside, or work. Great in winter time because they serve as great ear muffs + great sound. Their noise blocking capability is quite sufficient. Why I got closed ones in the 1st place.
They are also awesome for FPS games.

Open are better and all, but they leak and mostly for listening at home with an amp. But why bother since I have a great 2.1 system.

Reply to Suzuka

I finally got my RMA approved Sat. Jan 27th. I just shipped em back today, should arrive in 2-3 days (Priority Mail + $75 Insurance, cost me $7.95 PLUS there's a %15 restocking fee!). No more ZZF for me, NewEgg all the way!

Once I get the refund I am going to get Senn's PMX100's.

Reply to Joshatdot

I been reading alot at http://www.head-fi.org/

The Senn's PX100's & PMX100's get great reviews, so do Koss's KSC35's & KSC75's cause they are damn cheep and sound great. Grado SR60's are also raved about, but I think those are better for music-philes.

Reply to Joshatdot

Forum CPU & Components : Sound Cards - Best headphones for about $20

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