So almost 2 years ago I asked about upgrading my plantronics backbeat pro 2’s and people suggested I hold them until the wheels fall off
https://lemmy.world/post/23922174
Well, now the wheels are falling off. Headband is coming apart.
What would be a modern day upgrade you’d recommend?
Based on what I’ve seen… It would seem the momentum 4 (I’ve seen them regularly under 200 usd new on reseller sites) or momentum 5 from sennheiser would be a good choice but curious to know if this community has a different or better recommendation.
I see a lot of good recommendations in here, but it would be more helpful if you said whether you want them wireless or not. I figured the answer is yes, but a lot of the (excellent) headphones people are recommending are wired and require a DAC/amp.
For wireless, you can do a lot worse than the Sennheiser Momentum line. The current best is the Momentum 5 Wireless, but I got my wife the 4, its over $100 cheaper and quite good. Not a fan of the Bose or Sony, but they have decent noise cancelling.
For wired, I’m not even going to recommend stuff because I’ll out myself as a weirdo that spent too much on audio.
I had a pair of Beyerdynamic DT231 in the late 90s, my first decent sounding headphones.
So I looked up last year what is their best, reasonable price, current model:
( Edit: A day after this post, I researched more and ended up getting the DT 770 PRO X. 48 Ohms and can play from any source with no amp required. Also got a Beyerdynamic PRO X USB-C Cable, for phone use. Inbuilt DAC in the cable, wild. Original recommendation follows:)
Beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO 80 Ohm
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Own an ATH-M50 too, solid sound, no issues.
I have a pair of DT-770 Pro 80s that are 20 years old and still rocking. I just had to replace a few mounting pieces a couple of times for a few bucks and get a new pads every several years.
They sound sturdy as.
I blew up my 231s with DnB.
There’s only so much the budget model could handle.
Yeah, the 231s always looked kinda flimsy, but I’ve never used them so I can’t really say.
Sennheiser HD 650 with a good DAC and your all set
I second these as well
Audiotechnica ath-m50x. I bought it for 100€ in 2019 and they still make it, cord is replacable. They are super popular, tons of units sold, so there are parts everywhere.
I bought earpads replacement for them from aliexpress, theres headband too, they were not original but they fit perfectly. Maybe you should check for replacement, sometimes they go for under 10$
The original pads on the ath-m50(x) suck IMO. Most of the other brand replacements are much more comfortable. My friend swears by the Shure pads that are compatible.
I had the Sennheiser Momentum 4 and they turned into a creaking mess of cheap plastic after some months. I also had the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4, which broke and got replaced for the 5 on warranty by Sennheiser. Which was great until they also broke in the exact same way. Occasional high pitched tweeting in the right bud. They didn’t want to replace them again and now I am actively avoiding Sennheiser.
Currently I have Beyerdynamic DT 900 ProX. They are open back and I only use them at home. Amazing sound.
For on the go I now have Linsoul Zero 2 (The Crinacle colab ones) and they are cheap and sound great.
Meze’s headphones are absolutely flawless, european made, open back, hardly even need a DAC/AMP to run them, and the product support from the company is unmatched.
They even have headphones that aren’t four figures
I like Crinacle’s headphone ranking list, check it out. If it’s not on here, probably not good
The site is super cool and full of info, but I’ve never agreed with Crinacle’s list at all. Has some really weird picks/ratings that no person I have ever met would agree with, even when so many of the choices weren’t quite outdated. For example, the two highest rated Beyerdynamic headphones are the two usually poorest rated and least liked headphones in their tier (the t70 and DT 990 pro). There is a bunch of choices like that on here.
It can still be a cool site for getting a feel for the overall sound of a headphone and getting ideas. The graphs are cool too as long as you don’t get too crazy about them. Also, don’t even think about using the prices on there, they are long out of date and were only accurate at the time of his review.
If you want wireless, good sound. I am very happy with my Cambridge P100se. (I like full sound that isn’t sharp, like velvet for my eardrums). They support aptx Lossless. Not cable quality, but good for wireless :)
Hearing is a highly personal thing. I like sheinunser but I prefer a balanced audio stage some prefer more base and might wants beats or similar.
If you can get to a micro center or computer store listen to them .
Otherwise it best guess
Are you looking for the exact same featureset (wireless, closed back, anc, overear )? What about quality/pricepoint?
I also pick this guy’s dead wife
Sony MDR 7506 or similar are the best headphones I’ve ever owned. They are modular, designed to be repairable, and have great build quality. They’re wired and have no microphone, but they retail for a third the price of a bluetooth set that can match the sound quality. (~$100)
These are basically the lowest price good headphones worth actually getting. They’re the Toyota Corolla of headphones.
I loved mine but the membranes aged quickly
The replacements from brainwavz last a lot longer.
They are designed to be repairable, but iirc the parts cost enough to make it hard to justify repairing over just buying a new pair
Just hope that a different part breaks on the second pair and then you can put off ordering a third.
I have a similar approach. Keep the headphones basic for repairs. I have a fiio Bluetooth receiver and a Zen DAC at my desk. I then have a series of custom made cables for different headphones and jacks (balanced 4.4mm, stereo 3.5mm and balanced 2.5mm).
I can run any headphones with this setup, I might need a new cable made up depending on what pair I next buy.
I like my Sony XM4s
They’re a little bassy and have that proprietary app. Good contender for wireless headphones though, but a cheaper wired will outperform instantly
Well sure, it’s wired.
If that’s an option for you, it’s still worth it to buy some quality wired buds too though. There’s some really great repairable ones for under $100 out there!
With IEMs, I don’t like them as much as they always fall out and feel uncomfortable.
Had an XM3 and now an XM5, these are top notch head phones indeed!
I haven’t tried the XM3, XM4 or XM5 but I would recommend the XM6.
I’m still on my xm2 from almost a decade ago, if that helps anyone with the decision. Just had to buy new earpads from AliExpress a few years ago.
XM5 have hinge problems I hear, but my 4s have been great
MX2 was great, broke mine. Just recently realized how much better mx3 is to mx4. MX4 dropped aptx support and the mics refuse to work with macOS, mx3 hums(less) along working great (aside from the bent wired jack from more stumbling)
Beyerdynamic DT 150.
They are designed to be fixed and are built like a tank. I fully expect them to keep working for the rest of my life
I second the Beyerdynamic. I have the DT 770 myself, bought them 15 years ago and still going strong. I’d expect these to be the last pair of headphones I’ll ever need. Mine are however fully closed, which can lead to hot ears. They are super comfy and I get cold ears quickly, so I prefer them. I also really like the sound isolation and the sound quality is absolutely perfect.
A friend of mine has the DT 990 which are open backed, so they don’t suffer as much from hot ears. However the sound quality can be a bit worse as they have less isolation. It’s a bit of a trade off, both have excellent sound and in a quiet room there is no difference. So it’s just preference really.
Yeah, I’ve had two pairs of DT 770 Pros now, and they’re probably my favorite non-active-noise-cancelling headphones. Good passive isolation, comfortable, fairly light, durable.
I think that the cable used to be detachable and isn’t on current models, but my current model also cost significantly less, so…shrugs
If OP wants ANC headphones, though, which I assume he does if he’s looking at Momentum 4s, might not be what he wants.
I have some 770’s and fit a mini XLR socket on them. I then balanced them too. It’s nice to have cable options. It was years ago I did this, there were a few videos on how to convert them, probably more these days.
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Anything on this list, its a list of high quality eq curves for tons of different headphones ranging from very cheap to very expensive, its also available on github and available to be accessed by a lot of different software.
