So, I have been looking for a few months and sooner or later I’m going to end up making a (large for me) purchase. My goal is to spend less than $200, because I am going off to college this upcoming year. If there is something that costs between $200-400 that would meet my goals as well, then I can try to push my budget.
First thing’s first, I have no clue whether or not I want to get new headphones or iems. Currently at home, I run Foobar2000 --> Liquid Spark --> SHP9500 or Tin T2s, and on the go I run Sony Walkman NW-A45 --> Tin T2s. I’d say I use my t2s more often, so that’s why I am leaning towards iems and I made a previous thread with recommendations for some $200-$400 priced iems. I’m perfectly fine without a stationary DAC at home, because I’ll get one eventually but I don’t need it now.
I am into orchestral music, lofi/hip hop as well as lots and lots of Anime OSTs. Even though I don’t have much experience, I would prefer a warm/bright blend with a tint of punchy bass. No pair of iems or headphones can ever be perfect, but I’m sure there’s something out there in my price range that gets as close as possible.
From the previous post I made, I have taken a look at the Tin p1s, Fiio FH7s/FH5s, Ikko OH10/OH1s, Kanas Pros, iBasso IT04 and Moondrop Kxxs. On my own, I have taken a loot at the Hifiman 4xxs, 400is as well as the Audeze LCD-2Cs (which are out of my price range atm). Thank you for reading this far and thanks in advance for any help!
Well, if you use IEM’s more often and are pretty content with your headphones, then I would go for iem’s if you end up using them more. For college portability and convenience is key, so that is also something to think about. And also if you looked at the it04, perhaps the it03 is worth looking into if you think you would like the 04
Hi again! I don’t quite remember everything about the it04s, but I know they were a very good option when I started looking earlier this year. How would those and the it03s compare to the dm6s or the fh5/fh7s? Do you know their sound signatures? I probably should watch some more reviews before I am set on anything just to try and grasp how they sound.
The IT03 is very v shaped and bassy with a close soundstage if that’s up your alley, and the it04 is as well, but personally if you are in the price range of the 04 you might as well go with the fh7s over other options. Also the dm6 and dm7 had a strange timbre that made it sound unnatural to me, but others like it.
I would say that if you were considering the FH5, you would be better off going with the oh10 or oh1 because imo they give you more at a lower price with similar signatures. Also the oh10 compared to the it03 and it04, the it03/04 would be more intimate where the oh10 would be wider sounding, but both are pretty bassy.
The Kanas pro is the older version of the kxxs, both are great
The p1 might need an amp to really get the most out of it, but it is a close aggressive sound but does lack some subbass imo
The fh7’s are on a different level with a balanced sound with great detail for the price
Ok thank you. For now, I will take a look at the it03s, the oh1s and the fh7s. The pair I end up getting will depend on what my price range ends up at, because I won’t know until I turn in my college applications.
Look up student grants that apply to you and apply to them too ton of stupid ones like their is one in Canada for tall people. I got one for being Filipino that no one claimed for all 4 semesters I was there and helped me get out of college debt free. Of course I also had savings and grants for the government, and live in Canada so it was only 2k CAD per semester. Don’t buy textbooks from the bookstore, try your hardest to find the pdfs, buy them from your college buy and sell groups. I got away with not buying textbooks period for my last 3 semesters
I remember getting a left handed scholarship so do apply to as many as possible. Also yeah these days the e textbook route is the way to go unless they lock you behind a paywall to access a service like webassign or whatever
