Headphone preference: circumaural vs in-ear

[Underseer]

Which kind do you like? Why?

Personally, I use in-ear for walking around outdoors because in-ear buds never fit me quite right and so they let in a lot of sound, which makes it less likely that I will miss something important and hurt myself (or someone else).

At home though, I use circumaural because they just sound a whole lot better.

Oh, and as for Bluetooth vs wired, I always use wired if I can. Fuck you, Apple. Bluetooth is shit.

Anyhoo, what are your preferences when it comes to headphones?

 

[Ford]

This is something I have some experience with, as I've spent my life working in radio and recording studios.

The best "bang for the buck" headphones are the Sony MDR-7506 cans.



If you've watched "behind the scenes" videos of recording sessions or movie sets you may recognize these headphones on the heads of audio pros. There's a reason for that. They sound really good, they're durable, and can be had for about a hundred bucks. If you're just a civilian and don't put them through their professional paces a pair of these will last decades.

You can buy more expensive headphones. You can buy arguably better sounding headphones. But generally speaking, these are the best headphones you can buy.

 

[steve_bank]

Audio quality is in the ear of the beholder.

For total distortion and low frequency response headphones are the best. If pure audio quality sound reproduction is what you want a quality headphone driven at low levels will get better quality than most speakers.


If you are blasting away overdriving the device it won't matter....

 

[rousseau]

For serious listening, cover the ears, for listening while I'm out or travelling, in ear.

IIRC my partner and I have one Audio Technica M30x headset, and another of the M40x headset.

 

[phands]

B&O Beoplay E8 earbuds. Bluetooth, in ear. Fabulous. Not cheap at $299, but excellent.

 

[KeepTalking]

I don't like ear buds at all. They are uncomfortable to me even after just a few minutes of use. On-ear headphones are a mixed bag for me. Your typical small on-ear headphones with the replaceable sponge covers are still uncomfortable to me, but I learned to tolerate wearing them for hours at a time in my years doing call center tech support. For sound quality, these are the worst kind of headphones you can get, but hey, they came with your Walkman for free, so who's complaining? The larger on-ear headphones that are just smaller versions of circumaural headphones are much better, both in terms of sound quality and comfort. I have a pair of Skull Candy DJ on-ear headphones that I use for traveling because they fold up for easy stowage, and have leather ear pads that are comfortable for hours. They also let more sound in than circumaural headphones, so I can be more aware of my surroundings in airports and the like.

My preference by far is for circumaural headphones. I have Sennheiser HD1s both at home and at work, they have great sound quality, and are the most comfortable headphones I have ever used. I can wear them all day long with no issues at work, except for occasional issues with sweaty ears when the temperate at the office gets warmer. They cost about $250 dollars, so not the cheapest available, but still affordable for high quality headphones (Sennheiser has audiophile headphones that retail for thousands of dollars).

 

[Loren Pechtel]

I'm another that finds ear bugs uncomfortable. I have a problem with most the over the ear types--they're not quite big enough for my ears and in time get uncomfortable.

 

[Underseer]

This is something I have some experience with, as I've spent my life working in radio and recording studios.

The best "bang for the buck" headphones are the Sony MDR-7506 cans.

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If you've watched "behind the scenes" videos of recording sessions or movie sets you may recognize these headphones on the heads of audio pros. There's a reason for that. They sound really good, they're durable, and can be had for about a hundred bucks. If you're just a civilian and don't put them through their professional paces a pair of these will last decades.

You can buy more expensive headphones. You can buy arguably better sounding headphones. But generally speaking, these are the best headphones you can buy.

Thanks for the professional recommendation.

I currently use a set of Skullcandy headphones that have a small amp built in for bass boost. I may replace them with what you recommended.