Good enough for the pros, good enough for me

After doing much research on headphones, even purchasing similar brands, I headed out to my local Sam Ash Music store and purchased these headphones to enjoy my music from my Ipod, computer, and Home Theatre System while at home reclined back relaxing.

The unfortunate thing about going out and purchasing headphones is that you I can't seem to find anywhere to try them. I can only go by other people's experience, recommendations, and reviews, and hope for the best.

I currently own a pair of Shure E3C's which are great for my sound and portability needs outside and exercising, however, I wanted something over the ear for the home. I looked online for various models and types at or around $100 and broke it down to 2 types. Sennheiser 280's or the Sony 7506's. There seemed to be more information and reviews available for the Sennheiser 280's, so I went out and purchased them. I was less than satisfied. They were great on my Stereo, but underwhelming and quiet on my portables. So out for Plan B.

After exchanging the Sennheisers for these, I was initially impressed by the packaging. It was a plastic box sitting nicely presented in a satin style molding. Opening the box sitting under the mold was a larger threaded plug for my home stereo, and a nice leatherette bag to store my new headphones. The cord wasn't ridiculously long either, if I am doing chores around my house, it's not necessarily getting in the way. There were no instructions, just an exploded view of the headphones in case you need to replace any parts (Who needs instructions for the obvious anyway?)

Putting these on my head I found them to be very comfortable. They are light, the pads surround my ears nicely and don't clamp too hard so they sit nicely cushioned feeling like they were custom made for me. The top has a long thin slightly padded strip to comfortably sit on top of my head, I barely felt they were there after awhile.

So my first test equipment was my Ipod. Sitting back and playing Bruce Springsteen, I listened to The Rising. Simply put, I was blown away. I love the sound separation of my Shure's, but even at the quality they put out, they are limited by size. The 7506's pick up where my Shure's leave off. There is a lot of flavor to these Sony's. I noticed excellent sound separation from the highs, mids and lows. These take it a step further. You can break down individual instruments with precision. When listening to these, it almost feels like I am sitting in the perfect seat at a concert. The breakdown of balance and volume was excellent, there has been no distortion at any point and this is just coming from the initial listen on my Ipod. I am fairly new in the realm of higher end music equipment, so my opinion may not be as discriminating as a professional or a true Audiophile, but I am so impressed by these headphones.

Having listened after Bruce to Pink Floyd, System of a Down, Tool, Nine Inch Nails, and Miles Davis, I experienced the same level of excitement and feeling of validation for my purchase. These headphones handled the music brilliantly. Now for my next test, screwing the larger plug and trying it on my Home Theatre System. I went to Howard Stern On Demand and played an episode. The novelty of these phones still blowing my mind, I got a kick out of 2 things. First of all, I could be wrong, but it appears everyone on the show is wearing these same headphones, I couldn't see the model number but I got a kick out of that. I also again admired this ability of these headphones to have an effect that the voices seem to be talking next to your ear. It was almost like I was sitting in the studio while the show was going on.

So 4 hours later I finally ended my initial test and know I had gotten exactly what wanted and paid for. They stayed comfortable through the entire time I listened to them, and 1 week later I have tried many forms of music on all of my equipment and sit impressed over and over again. I am pressed to find anything I don't like about these headphones. The highs are perfectly high with zero distortion, the lows are perfectly low and they seem to handle all lower tones of bass, and everything in between seems so detailed and defined. I am going to purchase an extension cord so I can listen across the room instead of sitting on my chair very close to my TV, and I don't mind that because the short cord is the perfect length for my portable equipment. I can't emphasize enough how perfect these headphones are for the features I looked for before I purchased them. For a newby in the market for higher end headphones, you can't ask for better for your money.