Recommend me simple over-the-ear headphones with good sound quality

Headphones Headphone Discussion / Help
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Hello!

Not sure if this is the right category to post this in…

To start, I am a complete beginner to things related to headphones that include audio quality and all those terms related to music. All my life, I have been listening to music with these shabby wired-in ear headphones that you get when you buy a new Samsung phone, for example. About a year ago, I bought the WH-1000XM3, which so far has been great. And they have changed the way I look at headphones and music. Though, they have a lot of features that I do not use such as NFC, Bluetooth, and ambient sound. As such I am looking for headphones that do not have these features. To be more specific,

I am looking for wired over the ear headphones with the following characteristics:

Good sound quality. For comparison as to what I think is good sound quality: I currently have the wh-100xm3, and I think their sound output is great. However, since I never had any other proper headphones other than the sony ones I think that my perspective of sound quality is pretty one-sided. If you would ask me: “Hey, what is it that you like in specific about the sound quality”, I would answer: “Don’t know. The only thing that I know is that these headphones have upgraded my listening experience”. PLEASE tell me if there is even better sound quality available.

I plan to use these headphones for daily things such as listening to music while studying, watching YouTube videos, or just chilling while listening to Spotify songs. I also plan to use them while doing some mediocre exercise (think elliptical trainer or jogging, for example). I have been listening to a variety of genres. So, can’t specify anything there (Pop, kpop, classical, rap, dance, and so on).

The design of the headphones doesn’t matter to me, but they should be comfortable.

Very important: The headphones shouldn’t have any battery in them. I do not want to have headphones with extra functions like mic or noise cancelation or ambient sound or Bluetooth or NFC. I simply want to have over-the-ear headphones with, which I can listen to music from my Phone or laptop wired.

No Amplifier/DAC should be needed (as said before, I am not an expert regarding headphones, I have seen this term while searching on the Internet and as far as I have understood it you would have to plug your headphone into the amplifier and the amplifier into the device that plays the music. This would be very inconvenient when I am using the elliptical device or when I am jogging. Please feel free to correct me if I understood this wrongly)

Since I am not very knowledgeable as to what the prices are for such headphones, anything is fine as long it is below 500? 400? dollars (My budget is flexible so anything higher as long as it is justified is welcome though I still prefer if it is below 500)

Looking forward to your recommendations!

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The forum at The Headphone Community (headphones.com) included a post with the same question yesterday. Maybe you’re the same person? If not, here’s my response from over there, which I hope helps:

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Almost any quality mid-fi ($350-$500) audiophile headphone will be a shock to your ear canals after using the WH-1000XM3. Those Sony cans are stuffed with bloated, booming bass and have a V-shaped (big bass and treble, no midrange) sound signature common to most consumer-brand headphones.

Audiophile headphones have much more controlled and, in most cases, less bass than consumer cans like the Sony WH-1000XM3. So, I’m betting you will say, “Where’s the bass?” immediately after you try most of the headphones we recommend here.

Please don’t interpret that as haughty dickishness by arrogant audiophiles. No, sir. It’s the truth. We want to help you, and truth is the first place to start.

If you want something with a lot less bass than the WH-1000XM3, I’m sure you’ll get some fine recommendations in this thread. But if you like the bassy signature of the Sony’s, here’s my wired headphone recommendation for you: Meze 99 Classics – for many reasons.

One, I like to call the 99 Classics an audiophile headphone that has a “consumer sound signature in a tuxedo.” In other words, the 99 Classics have a lot of bass. And it bleeds into the mids, just like consumer headphones with V-shaped sound signatures. But the bass isn’t quite as flabby on the 99 Classics as the Sony’s, and the mids are present if obscured a bit by the bass, unlike the Sony’s. Finally, the treble on the 99 Classics isn’t nearly as grainy, hot and crispy as the Sony’s.

The 99 Classics have an elegant, V-shaped sound signature that’s a really good gateway drug from consumer-oriented headphones to audiophile headphones. You’ll notice the difference in the sound quality of the 99 Classics right away, but there still will be some comfortable similarities to your Sony’s.

99 Classics sound signature, in a nutshell: Nowhere near neutral, but fun.

Second, the 99 Classics are EASY to drive. They’re one of the few audiophile cans that don’t need an amp and don’t really benefit that much from one. Low impedance and high sensitivity – the perfect recipe for an easy-to-drive can.

Third, the 99 Classics have some of the best build quality of ANY headphone. There’s not a centimeter of plastic anywhere. The headband and suspension pieces are metal and leather. The cups are gorgeous wood. The pads are lovely leather.

The Meze 99 Classics are $310 new. I think you would really enjoy them since you’re coming from the Sony WH-1000XM family.

Good luck!

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Yup, it’s me. lol. Thx for the reply though. I posted it here to get some more opinions.

Also, I did some more research on the 99 Classics and they look great so far. Nevertheless, I’ll still have to do some more research.

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Start with Koss KPH30i or 40 or Samson SR850 or 950 would be my suggestion & focus more budget into your source & amplification. Cheap headphones can sound fantastic on a high quality source & amplifier.

YMMV

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Some of it is the journey to get there, and sometimes the collection is part of what you want. That said, If you force me to a $500 budget and only one headphone, my pick would be the Hifiman Sundara, plus a Qudelix-5K DAC/Amp. You probably want a better cable for the headphones, because Hifiman sucks at cables, I bought the balanced one from Youkamoo for $24 and it works great.

I have stayed with affordable open backs because they are mostly a free time thing for me, and I don’t have much of that. I use IEMs for work.

My open back collection includes ( in the order I bought them )

  • Philips SHP9500 - a recommendation from a former coworker
  • Hifiman HE400se - I wanted a magnetic planar, and yes
  • Koss KPH30i ( with Grado pads ) - great for blues and any live music
  • Drop HD58x - I wanted something in that Sennheiser style, but with some more bass

I highly recommend an amp, but it could be something cheap like a Fiio E10k. I use the Fiio BTR5, but would probably buy the Qudelix-5K today.

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Just remember the 99 Classics are WIRED. I know you said in a previous post you don’t like the idea of wires connecting your headphones to a DAC-amp and then a source device.

The 99 Classics don’t need an amp, but they are wired, so you will have a wire going from the headphones to your source (phone, DAP) while jogging, etc.

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welcome to HFG, CC!

the trip through audio is more important than the destination. if you don’t learn about what quality audio means you will find yourself really liking the sound of $500 headphone but have absolutely no clue / idea why you like it.

you don’t know what soundstage is, imaging, separation, what micro and macro dynamics are or what timber, slam, presence mean.

you will learn this quickly tho and as odd a recommendation this may be, I think the Grado GW100 v2 would be a good option to look at. v2 is Bt 5.0, u don’t want the original with Bt 4.2.

a lot if your use scenarios involve movement and wired over ear are not condusive for that. note, IEMs are best when excercising because few things are as uncomfortable as hot, sweat soaked ear pads…even on ear are terrible.

if you’re okay to look at a more stationary solution, then I’d say get the ifi Zen DAC and the Drop HiFiMan HE-4xx and a Drop / Sennheiser HD6xx and you’ll be laughing!

and dont be afraid to buy used to save…this will help you get some balanced cables for them.

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One thing that hasn’t really been confirmed: open-back or closed-back need?
@CuriousCat - is it okay if the sound you’re listening to easily bleeds out into the environment you’re in? Likewise, is it okay if you can hear the outside environment whilst listening?

Big distinction that is often missed when coming from consumer-focussed ANC/wireless world - closed-backs are virtually a given in that world.

Marzipan brings up a good point with the Grado wireless rec. Merging that functionality with some of the other recommendations in this thread: Koss PortaPro Wireless. Hifiman Deva R2R. These are all of the interesting open-back and wireless category that has some limited use-cases, but smart if they work for you.

I type this wearing a pair of headphones I forget about a lot. Shure 1540. If you want a rather lightweight, well-made pair of closed-backs that are well-tuned if for a bit of exuberance in the mid-bass: not bad. The Focal Elegia can still sometimes be had in the $380-$400 range brand new.

If you go a wired route, which will dominate the recommendations until you tell us otherwise: I’d pursue at least a little dongle dac to run out of your phone. Very fond of ddHiFi TC35B for myself in usb-c applications.

Tell us more…

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There’s definitely cans in that price range that sound good without DAC/Amp, but if you wanna dip your toe, start with the AKG361. Just because you CAN spend $400, Id say wet your beak with those. If they’re end game, great, if not, you’ll be addicted, and we can woo you over the dark side and maybe, just maybe, one day you’ll be here asking for the best power supply to feed your R2R DAC

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If you want to use them for exercise, I think you should probably be considering IEMs. I can’t imagine anyone jogging in 99 Classics. A lot of overears, they are going to be jumping around your head and possibly even falling off if you are trying to exercise in them. Your ears will also heat up and you’ll sweat into them.

I know in your post title you specify “over-the-ear” but for exercise? Have you thought that through? Is there a specific reason you want to avoid IEMs or is this just not something you really thought about? If it’s about sound quality, you can get extremely good quality from IEMs if you buy an actual audiophile-oriented set, good IEMs are better than your experience. And at the lower end of the scale, you get better sound for the money out of IEMs than you do overears, stuff like the Moondrop Aria ($80), 7Hz Timeless ($220), even the Blessing 2 Dusk ($329) are phenomenal in those price brackets.

Over-ears like the Meze will be fine for all the other stuff and more secure over-ears are fine for walking around but exercise, not ideal.

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Let me preface this: the XM3s are great headphones. BUT, they have a couple shortcomings.

a) bloated bass (basically too much mid bass which clouds the midrange)
b) no soundstage (how far away different instruments sound)

They are conventionally very good headphones, but you can get even better sound for cheaper with wired.

Next, I want to take aim at the Meze 99 Classics: anyone who likes the 99 classics, basically waives the right to criticise anything Beats and Sony have ever done with their tuning. Freaking Bose tunes better than Meze.

Now that we’ve got the badly tuned stuff out of the way, time to get to the bit about jogging: I would seriously consider wired IEMs instead of over-ears. Almost no recommendation you’ll get here is suitable for jogging. Quality options are the Moondrop Blessing 2 Dusk, the Moondrop Starfield, the Etymotic ESR4, the Tin Hifi T2

If you really want full size options, check out the Koss KPH30i, the Koss Porta Pro, and the AKG K371. Also you could get an Iem and a full size, keep the IEM for outdoors and the full size for around the house.

Lastly, before shelling out a bunch more cash, try using one of the fixed band EQs available online for the XM3. It makes a big difference.

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Im new too. In the last couple years I’ve started to set up a halfway decent 2 channel stereo with a separate over ear station. An in home IEM station and a portable IEM setup. So Im kind of all over the place at the moment. I only have two over ear headphones. A Sennheiser HD8XX with Dekoni pads. And Linsol gold planer GL2000 with double magnets. The 8XX sound great but even with the aftermarket pads, a huge improvement over stock, long listening sessions end up with serious fatigue. The GL 2000’s are comfortable as is but are monstrous in size. But you can listen to the GL2000’S all night comfortably and have zero listening fatigue. They also cost less. WIN WIN

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I think the headphones that really got me addicted to this hobby is beyerdynamic dt770 (or dt990), and grados sr60 (or sr80). They really showed me how big of a difference headphones can have and what kind fun stuff they can do

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I only have two sets of over ear. The Sennheiser HD8XX with Dekoni Hybrid pads and Gold Planer GL2000. The Sennheiser sound good but… long sessions equal ear fatigue. The GL2000’s actually sound better, are comfortable all day with no fatigue. They also cost less. The only neg is they’re giant. Like princess Leia big. I always wondered what the hell she had on her head. Lady was groovin to the tunes.

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If you are after the 99 Classics that were mentioned in the first response. This version is available on DROP right now, which means they are a pretty good price at 180$ - yes I know these are not exactly the 99 Classics, but they are the same sound according to the comments i’ve read on them, and Zeos seems to like the way they sound, which is good enough for me.

I’ve learned over the years to trust what Zeos says, the one thing that will take some time to decipher is how to zone in on how he describes the sound. From your description of your experience, and what you want in a headphone, I would personally say, this Meze 99 Noir Drop version will probably work well for you.

Here is the Zeos review

Here is where to buy them

Now, when it comes to headphones that can really “wow” you - I am so incredibly tempted to point you toward the Argon Mk3. But they are not the type of thing you could run properly without some sort of dedicated amplifier. The Argon Mk3 is, by far, my personal favorite headphone, followed very closely by the Argon T60RP. The problem with both of the Argon’s, they require proper amplification, you can’t run them properly just off a phone or a normal MP3 player (more commonly known as a DAP ‘Digital Audio Player’ among the audiophile types of folks).

I was in the same boat as you for many years, I had a pair of V-Moda M100’s, they were pretty good, but I wanted more, so I eventually sprung for the Argon Mk3’s and a passable dedicated headphone amplifier, and that changed my life. Since then I have spent well over another thousand dollars on a high quality amplifier, extra pads, fancy balanced cables, another set of Argon’s, etc.

Now I am stuck, I can’t live without Argon’s on my head. Practically all ‘normal’ headphones sound like shit to me. - and i’m not exaggerating, I literally put on a normal pair of typical cheap headphones by accident recently, and I was trying to figure out why the same music I had been listening to for years, suddenly sounded so horrible. I thought something was wrong with my audio system. I checked all my connections, and started troubleshooting my hardware. Then I realized I wasn’t wearing my Argon’s. I promptly hid the crappy ‘normal’ headphones deep in the closet where i’ll likely never touch them again. Actually, I may have just thrown the crappy headphones in the garbage now that i’m thinking about it…

The downside is, I now have very little recent personal experience with headphones that are easy to drive. I’m forever hooked to my amplifiers. It does make things like visiting the gym less enjoyable, because I can’t really wear the headphones I love while working out, and if I want music at the gym, I have to listen on crappy ear buds or just live with whatever is pumped in over the local speakers.

  • So - do I suggest the Meze 99 Noir? Well - yes. I think they are a great place to get started they will offer what you are after, while also giving a window into a much bigger world.

From writing this up I also just bought one of these Meze 99 Noir cans from DROP. Mostly because I wanted a decent present for my brother for christmas. The price was right. These should be a good choice, something he likely wouldn’t buy for himself, but will improve his life, and he shouldn’t need a special amp to make them work.

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I would second your recommendation. I used the 99’s as my on-the-go and at work headphones for a few years. Just out of my LG V30, they were great.
I have gone through many under $500.00 headphones and these are the only ones that I would
recommend without hesitation.

They are a coloured headphone with some prominent bass, but they are a ton of fun for music lovers.
Audiophiles will never appreciate them and that is fine with me.

They are light, comfortable, beautiful, sound great, very easy to drive, are affordable and parts can easily be replaced, should the need arise.

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How did your search for headphones go? i’m curious where you ended up =)