Headphone recommendations wanted

[markof]

Any recommendations for headphones <1K?
I've been thinking about STAX SR-L300 or HifiMan Ananda.
Musical tastes mainly jazz, classical and ambient with occasional rock/pop.

Mark.

[DaveF]

The Stax would be well suited to Jazz, Classical and Ambient music. Less so with rock. Not ultra detailed nor as good a soundstage as say something like Sennheisers. The Stax would have a very airy kinda ethereal like presentation and reward long term fatigue-free listening. They are not for everyone so a demo is a must.
I havent heard that model you mention but I'm guessing it would have a similar presentation as the higher up models.

[markof]

The Stax would be well suited to Jazz, Classical and Ambient music. Less so with rock. Not ultra detailed nor as good a soundstage as say something like Sennheisers. The Stax would have a very airy kinda ethereal like presentation and reward long term fatigue-free listening. They are not for everyone so a demo is a must.
I havent heard that model you mention but I'm guessing it would have a similar presentation as the higher up models.

Thanks for the comments, I might be able to arrange a trial with the Stax, not so sure on the HifiMan.
Would you find the Sennheisers fatiguing for extended listening?

Mark.

[tony]

I have heard a few pairs of Stax phones and Dave is describing them exactly as I found them. Think they would be ideally suited to your musical taste. CLoneys I think sell them so they might have a few available to try. I was going to link a pair for sale on PFM site in the UK but just checked and they have unfortunately just sold. They were about £1100 but I think new a lot more so sort of a bit up the range. Personally I suppose running Quad speakers I will have a preference for the Stax type sound but I think they work just fine for Rock. Sennheiser AKG etc are just if you want inflated Hifi sound ( That is probably harsh) Paddy the Headphone guru here had a really nice pair of headphones Need to google to get the make but they to me anyway were a halfway house between Senns/Stax. Really like them a lot. BTW I have a pair of AKG K701's They are fine and very detailed. A reasonably cheap option now into decent sound. Would be inclined to go with a Valve headphone amp with them to soften them a bit.

[DaveF]

Would you find the Sennheisers fatiguing for extended listening?

I found most headphones fatiguing but then again I'm very sensitive to any sort of bright treble response in general. Not so with the Stax. At first you may find them a little underwhelming, they don't excite on a first listen like traditional dynamic headphones would, but on an extended listen you'll begin to appreciate their true strengths. Now they wont make poor recordings sound any better, they''ll show them up for what they are.

I was talking to Cloney's about getting a demo of one of the higher end models very recently. They have nothing in stock at the moment and they need to order from Japan. Might be worth giving them a buzz to check.

[markof]

Would you find the Sennheisers fatiguing for extended listening?

I found most headphones fatiguing but then again I'm very sensitive to any sort of bright treble response in general. Not so with the Stax. At first you may find them a little underwhelming, they don't excite on a first listen like traditional dynamic headphones would, but on an extended listen you'll begin to appreciate their true strengths. Now they wont make poor recordings sound any better, they''ll show them up for what they are.

I was talking to Cloney's about getting a demo of one of the higher end models very recently. They have nothing in stock at the moment and they need to order from Japan. Might be worth giving them a buzz to check.

Many thanks to Dave and Tony for the great response.
I'll definitely follow up on the Stax - I think I can borrow a set locally.

I'm still curious re the HifiMan planar magnetics. If anyone has experience of these I'd be interested in hearing this as they review well too.

Mark.

[Fran]

Headphones are incredibly personal - apart from sound, they have to be comfortable on your head or else you'll get fed up of them pretty quick.

You don't mention closed vs open back headphones. Open ones like Stax, still leak a lot of sound into the room. So if you were living in an apartment and wanted to listen late at night while a partner is trying to sleep in the next room -well they might not be quiet enough. Definitely try the Stax if you can.

The other option is IEMs - preferably with custom ear moulds. The custom fitting makes a huge difference to both sound and comfort, so much so that its worth trying it out with some cheap earbuds and 2 part silicone compound. Comply tips are probably the next best thing to custom moulds. The added advantage of this route is that you can easily bring them with you anywhere so you get more use out of them.

Fran

[hudo]

I have Hifiman HE400S planar magnetic, if you would like to try them? Much much cheaper than what you're looking for, but if you want to get a taste of Hifiman sound ...

Will be selling them soon, because Audeze LCD-2 is on the way. I wouldn't replace Hifiman because I'm very happy with the sound, but I was able to get ex-demo unit for ridiculously low price from one Croatian shop ...

[markof]

Headphones are incredibly personal - apart from sound, they have to be comfortable on your head or else you'll get fed up of them pretty quick.

You don't mention closed vs open back headphones. Open ones like Stax, still leak a lot of sound into the room. So if you were living in an apartment and wanted to listen late at night while a partner is trying to sleep in the next room -well they might not be quiet enough. Definitely try the Stax if you can.

The other option is IEMs - preferably with custom ear moulds. The custom fitting makes a huge difference to both sound and comfort, so much so that its worth trying it out with some cheap earbuds and 2 part silicone compound. Comply tips are probably the next best thing to custom moulds. The added advantage of this route is that you can easily bring them with you anywhere so you get more use out of them.

Fran

Thanks Fran,
I'm not too worried about sound leakage as the main use is in my home office or in a garden seomra.
You're spot on regarding the comfort issue. I find in-ear phones tolerable only for a limited time, out for a walk say but I must give the Comply tips a try.
Mark

[markof]

I have Hifiman HE400S planar magnetic, if you would like to try them? Much much cheaper than what you're looking for, but if you want to get a taste of Hifiman sound ...

Will be selling them soon, because Audeze LCD-2 is on the way. I wouldn't replace Hifiman because I'm very happy with the sound, but I was able to get ex-demo unit for ridiculously low price from one Croatian shop ...

That's extremely generous of you and I am indeed curious to hear the Hifiman sound.
It will be at least a few weeks before I can borrow the Stax pair - travel restrictions and all.
If it's ok, I'll dm you then - it would be great to compare and contrast.

Best of luck with those Audeze phones - they look fantastic.
Mark.