Demoing Headphones

[Indraneelan]

I went to a nearby general music equipment store and the guy behind the counter insisted they couldn't, by law, have customers try headphones due to risk of infections - is that true? I'm talking about circumaural headphones here, not in ear.

Basically, I'm looking for circumaural headphones with decent isolation (not sure whether to go the whole hog and get a noise cancelling pair), that I can get hold of for around £120 or (preferably) less. Been looking at reviews for Ultrasone 580, Audio Technica M50, Sennheiser 280 or 380, Beyer DT770 and Shure 440/840 and they all sound pretty good so I'd really like to find a place where I can listen to at least a few of them.

So finding a place where I can demo headphones (I live in north London) is the main request but if you've any comments about the choice of headphones then feel free to add.

Thanks,

Indie

p.s. I don't know what the introduction etiquette is here but - Hi, I'm Indie, not a heavy audiophile but I love my music and I'm looking for my first decent set of headphones.

[ShaunG]

I'm not quite sure what law they might be referring to. I think they simply don't want to be bothered with offering demonstrations to customers. A bit poor in my opinion.

There is obviously a hygiene concern with in-ears, but I don't see the problem with over ear headphones. We actually offer a 30 day money back guarantee on all products that can opened and returned 'as new', which means you can demo the headphones in the comfort of your home.

We do offer headphone demonstrations to our customers at our Hove office/warehouse facility for higher end headphones (over £100). This is by appointment only (for a 1 hour slot) and does not cover in-ears. Give us a call the day before to book.

All of the headphones you mentioned are worth considering, although they do have very different sound signatures.

What are your musical tastes? That will help give some idea of what to recommend.

[Indraneelan]

Thanks for the reply Shaun, my tastes are reasonably broad but aimed at less electronic or urban sounding music I guess.

So Rock, Acoustic, Folk, Jazz, Chillout and, if the terms are helpful though I've never been able to pin them down, "Indie" and "Alternative". Not really Rap, RnB, Hiphop, Dance, Electronica etc.

I'm also looking at the Audi Technica A500 btw, forgot to add that one. Do you stock all of those? Also, is there a store I can go to to try these? I'm guessing ordering a whole bunch of headphones to demo at the same time with the intention of sending all but one back is frowned upon...

[Indraneelan]

Just wanted to keep this enquiry open.

[ShaunG]

The Ultrasone HFI-580 and Shure 440/840 are all quite bass dominant, so may not suit your tastes that well. The Beyer DT770 is also relatively strong with bass response, but is more balanced and offers excellent instrument separation (this is a HiFi Headphones favourite).

Another one well worth considering is the AKG K-240 MKII. This is semi open, so does leak a little sound, but sounds really very good indeed.

The headphone that I would say suits your tastes the best would be the Audio-Technica ATH-A500. As with the rest of the ATH range the A500 has a real strength with mid-range, but remains very balanced. Definitely not for portable use though!

[nickharambee]

Hi Indie,

Did you find a good place for demoing headphones in London as I'm also looking to do so.

Thanks

Nick