Have your say & ask the experts

Looking for a pair of earphones for an ipod touch .Looking at Igrado ,but they look a bit cheap !what

are they really like?

Akg /Senheiser seem to offer what looks like better quaility for not much more money , but will they sound better .Anybody recomend a specific make model?

Theres that many on the market it hard to know whats best!

Thanks Mark 

I use the Sennheiser PX200s for portable listening, They are closed back so dont leak sound and keep sound out pretty well. They are comfortable and have the trade mark Sennheiser dynamic to them. They cost around £25-30 and got 4 stars from What Hifi.

I have not heard them, but the Koss Portapros have been very highly rated on other forums and by Amazon purchasers, where they are presently under £20. They are open backed so there is less isolation from commuting noise.

I have a pair of Sennheiser PX 100s which are open backed and a pair vof I grado's

The Igrado's apparently have the same drivers as the £100 SR60's in a cheaper construction. They are superb

The Sennheisers are also very good, slightly less so that the Igrado's but more comfortable

If you like open backed hphones then i would go for the Igrado's (they have a neck band rather than resting on the head which is what makes them less comfotable

The awards issue of WHF state that they are the best portables available and I would agree (for sound)

PS the Igrado's do look quite cheaply made but are very robust

Ok thanks for replies

Basicly got it to 4 choices

Sennheiser px100

Sennheiser px200 {whats the difference with the PMX range?}

Igrado

AKG 450

But also seen SR60is very cheaply priced ,i take it these are not really designed for the portable market as they look a fair bit bigger

Mark

The PX100 are open backed and the PX200s are closed back so they dont leak sound as much. In fact they hardly leak sound out and are quite good at insulating from outside noise. I wanted the PX200s for the lack of sound leakage.

The SR80s have the same impedance as the SR60s and I dont think that the ipod has enough power to drive them properly. Others disagree as both are 32ohms, which puts them in the no need for additional amplification range. But after using a FiiO amp, they sound much better amped.

I cant comment on the iGrado or AKGs other than to say both are well rated.

I'm looking at  buying a pair of portable phones for my ipod touch just now.

Take a look at the B&O A8 earphones not too stupidly priced (£90) had some excellent reviews and look fantastic. I'm gonna try them out this weekend and will let you know my findings. 

http://www.bang-olufsen.com/earphones

Hopefully WTH will review at some point soon 

I think we actually reviewed the A8s yonks back, when they were first released, but at the moment I can't lay my hands on the review.

FWIW both my wife and my sister use these headphones – one for computer browsing, the other while running – after I gave them to them as gifts, and both really love them.

bemahler1:

....  I have the Senn px100,Senn px200,Senn pxc 250,Koss Prota Pro, IGrado and the Grado 60's.....

Nice collection. Could you place them in an order of sound quality preference? Thanks.

Just one look at our Awards issue or the Awards section of
our website (awards.whathifi.com) should be enough to tell you that regardless
of the way the iGrados look, nothing else in the portable headphone category
sounds as good. The only question you really have to ask yourself is whether
sound leakage is a concern for you. If so, opt for something like the
Sennheiser HD 218s, as they’re probably the best, affordable, closed-back
headphones we’ve heard in a while. If you can live with an open-backed design,
though, it simply has to be the iGrados – they’re more robust than they look,
too!

Thanks for replies ,picked up a a pair of Igrado off Ebay All in £32!

They are not really for me they are a present ,but i will neatly get them out of the box and try them with my xfi ,if i like them ,i might keep them ,and buy some more ,or maybe senns or Ak450 .If not they will be back in the box!

Mark

Hi idc.  In order, I forgot to add my Alessandro MS1 but as they are only available direct from Alessandro I left them out, so Grado 60's, iGrados, PXC 250, Koss and the other Senns, each one has it's high and low points but the Alessandro's are just amazing and cheaper than the Grado 60's.