Looking for an open headphones with smooth sound (500 USD)

Headphones Headphone Discussion / Help
1

Hello everyone, I post this on reddit, so I will copy/paste this

Budget - My funds are 500-600USD max but if is less is better, because in my country I will need to spend a little more for products from another countries

Source/Amp - I wanna pick an Ifi Zen Dac (is enough for drive a variety of entry level headphones), but if necessary pick another one, your recommendation are welcome

How the gear will be used - Only for music and maybe movies, I don’t play competitive games so is 97% for music. This is only for home use and maybe in the office

Preferred tonal balance - I need an headphones with chill, excellent and smooth bass, with balance and rich mid’s and high’s but with smooth and relaxing tone, like a warm but without turning muffled and darking tone, I love when the sound is vibrate and make an living atmosphere, I want a nice soundstage and good imagination with decent detail

Preferred music genre(s) - I like jazz, trip-hop, funk, downtempo, drum and bass, chillout, lo-fi, loung, ambient, synth pop and synth ambient, dream pop, IDM, EDM, Baroque pop, bossanova, core, wave, progressive trance, dub, rock, blues and classical/orchestal

Past gear experience - I’ve still use my WH1000XM2, for the price is not the best sound headphone, is so dark and muffled with a low detail in all, I don’t like it when I hear bossanova, jazz, classical and synth pop but with an EQ in the high mids are good headphones, the sounds improves a lot, I will use now only for travel. And now I want an excellent headphones for more genre like I say and more comfortable

My options are: HD6XX, HD58X, Meze99 Noir

This not stock in official store but: E-MU, MK3, NightOwl, NDH20

Thanks!

2

Hello,
Spontaneously Hifiman Sundura,used Lcd2c,Grado maybe,Sennheiser yes but if then 58xx not the 600.
Maybe the Dt990 from Beyerdynamic.
If you can get hold of the Gl2000 for a good price, it’s certainly not a bad choice.

Since you have the ify zen dac with true bass, it’s not a bad idea to use something neutral, otherwise it’ll be punchy in the vass range, which isn’t great for jazz.

The Lcd 2c would almost be the better choice for your music style.
There are other Hifiman than the Sundura but you like Hifiman or not.
The Aeon Rt also comes to mind spontaneously.

3

I’ve heard LCD 2 is good for that taste but is out of my price range, maybe the 58X is an good option, I’m not sure DT990 is good for my taste but maybe I consider it

In case of amp, are best option for the price?

4

Maybe the Dt990 from Beyerdynamic

God no. That isn’t a chill or smooth in the slightest.
Sounds like LCD2C is your best bet. Its a bit higher than your stated budget but most things are. Used Denon ah-d5200, Fostex th-x00, and Fostex 610 are good options a bit closer to your price point and you should be able to find them used well within budget.

5

It seems to me you want the 6xx, or the 58x that has better bass but less detail.

6

Yes, maybe an Fostex is my kind of headphone, I see the EMU-Teak and have a good bass and maybe I consider it, I have the budget for buy them but I don’t know if necessary an good amp for drive these and is possible the price range of an amp is out of my budget
What amp is compatible with them?

7

I consider buy the 6XX, is more easy to drive but I don’t know is the safe way

8

Not a firm recommendation but gonna throw this out there - Koss ESP/95X.

Mid-centric, slightly relaxed treble, flat/slightly recessed bass. Takes EQ well, so you can bump up bass if it is not enough for you.

A very non-fatiguing and effortless sound. For some, it’s too “boring” but that is what makes it great for extended listening, along with the light weight. Despite relaxed tonality, it’s very detailed. Not the widest soundstage, but has a good sense of depth and height that makes the soundstage kind of like a spacious sphere of sound that surrounds you.

Alas, there are QC issues. If you’re unlucky, dust from the factory will cause the drivers to make a persistent squealing noise. Had this issue with my first one, but Drop was kind to send me a replacement. My replacement 95X still squeals once in a blue moon, but it goes away with a gentle tap on the side of the headphone.

9

The Denon is basically the same as the Fostex (i believe its the same driver?) but doesn’t have the build issue where the cup can snap off at the yoke if handled roughly. Just about any $100 amp should be good enough. (JDS Atom, Schiit Heresy)

10

all in all it completely depends on what sound you want

Emu has superior clarity, bass and detail compared to my 58x, ESPECIALLY exceeding it in clarity. so if the 58x’s are very close to the 6xx, of which i have not heard, its a nobrainer, unless you are 100% in for the vocals and the timber that the sennheisers produce, which are great.

i would go as far as to say i would rather have EMU teak Ebony than my Focal Clear just because of the bass and the focals are know for their bass. could be because i remember my EMU fondly and that my taste has just changed but i felt like the EMU Ebony was really really good, but im pretty sure the focal clear bass is cleaner if i recall correctly. besides, i dont see a 58x playing better on the genres you play anyway just because the bass is so central to those genres, just my opinion.

EMU is just outright a better headphone, its far far removed from what could ever be conceived as smooth however, so if thats your goal i think a sen would be a better fit

12

If you’re looking for a smooth sounding warm headphone the HD650/HD6xx is perfect.

13

I suggested the headphones because your headline was more in the direction of Open phone.
That’s why I also brought the Dt990 on board.

With the Ify you have reserves as far as the bass is concerned.
But that can also be too much in the end.
If you take something like Emu Teak, it can be too much but also good enough.
I can imagine that Ify has done something to the bass and raised it slightly in the basic tuning and at the push of a button.

It’s also supposed to be really good with a Hifiman He400i.
Because the Hifiman is supposed to play with a bit of restraint in the bass sound.
So it makes sense to activate the true bass.
As well as with more neutral headphones.

Emu, Meze, Fostex have a relatively strong bass signature, which again has a positive effect on neutrally tuned amps.

A Denon Ah D5200 is certainly not wrong either, it would even fit very well, as well as the Emu Teak.
With the Teak, you are once again flexible in terms of the cups, which are interchangeable from Emu or Lawton.

Because of the Lcd 2c, with a little patience and time you can also get one on the aftermarket for your asking price.
It is also often offered here in the forum.

14

I will consider that option, I’ve heard the sound demo, sounds clean but the bass is awesome, the mids and highs are rich, but I don’t know Fostex have the same driver, if this real maybe I can buy another with less budget

15

I’ve heard great things of him, i heard the sound demo of zreviews and I like it, maybe is clean but the bass is solid and euphoric, but I don’t know is necessary a good amp for drive these

You tried the Emu with genre like jazz, orchestal, pop, EDM and with female voices?
I will consider it between the 6XX and Denon

16

Are my best option, is neutral and soft

17

Maybe in a future can consider it, I’ve heard excellent things about him, but for ones is too dark

Is real that?

18

Neutral/warm and smooth without lose too much detail, it has a capacity to smooth the edges of the sound that is pretty unique, I didn’t find another headphone capable to sound so smooth on a solid state amp even more than the hd600 (I didn’t try a lot of high end stuff). After owning both for a while (650 and 600) with no really valid reasons, I decide to sell the 650 because recently I bought a tube amp and I prefer the hd600 on tube but in solid state the 650 is my favourite. The 650 is a little to soft and warm on tube but in solid state is pretty awesome imo.

19

Let me put it this way
I had the Denon D7200 which I liked at first but later got annoying because it was too bassy for me and the quality wasn’t quite up to the old Fostex generation.
And in comparison with the Lcd2 c, apart from the fact that there are different drivers, it is simply softer in the bass range and does not bleed into the middle.
And I find it a little brighter than the Denon.
It is more fatal if you are in possession of a Fostex. It becomes clear that the bass with the Lcd2c is marginal.
Especially with hip hop, sometimes the last punch is missing.
Apart from that, the Lcd2c is a piece of cake in all music genere.

If you listen to a lot of hip hop, the open back phone will not deliver what you would expect in terms of bass than when it is closed, even if there is a lot of bass depending on the tuning.

The Emu Teak is clearly a silver bullet.

I recently had the Hd600 there because it reacts well to tube amplifiers.
But personally I didn’t think so, I found the Lcd2c much better.
I haven’t had the Hd58xx yet.

Basically you can’t go wrong with the Emu Teak. It’s a very good all-rounder. But if it’s more towards jazz, blues, r & nb, everything that is a bit quieter, the Lcd2c is a nice to have in the collection I haven’t heard anything better so far from a personal point of view.

1 Like
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I’ve heard the 6XX sounds similar an 600 but more fatiguing and is more loud in the highs, but I don’t know this is correct because like you say, much people say is warm and smooth like a 650, because have the same driver, so maybe I will choice them, between them and EMU-Teak

21

The LCD2C I see is a great headphone, too dark maybe for much people but I like the sound, maybe I the future when I’ve more budget I will consider it, the sound is natural and clean in the bass, maybe is the reason him works on all genre

And the Emu Teak is one of my option and I though the same, is more safe for more genre, is more clean and less smooth but works in genre like orchestal, classical, synth pop and is pretty good with female vocals, maybe I gonna pick them, because is more clean and more vibrate than the 6XX
So my decision is between them and 6XX