Headphones for Drumming

But the hd280's are very tempting, but are they really worth $80-$100? I read a review online somewhere saying that they had no bass at all, all highs no lows.

Geez Dips....what I wouldn't give to pay US$80-100. They retail here for about A$350 (although I'll do better from my local drum store when I walk in with a smile and an open wallet!!)........and the Shure's retail at A$400 (again, I'll do better....but, you get the point).

From my limited understanding, when it comes to studio or monitor quality headphones. It's not that there's 'no bass' as such, but that the frequencies are not enhanced. The idea being that you get a completely true signal coming through the phones. I may be wrong, and perhaps Audiotech or someone with better knowledge than I might like to chime in......but I've tried both the Senn's and Shure through my ipod and I was so blown away by the pure clarity of sound that any reduced bass or low frequencies was not noticeable to me.

My only coin toss, still remains cans or in-ear!!
 
Geez Dips....what I wouldn't give to pay US$80-100. They retail here for about A$350 (although I'll do better from my local drum store when I walk in with a smile and an open wallet!!)........and the Shure's retail at A$400 (again, I'll do better....but, you get the point).

From my limited understanding, when it comes to studio or monitor quality headphones. It's not that there's 'no bass' as such, but that the frequencies are not enhanced. The idea being that you get a completely true signal coming through the phones. I may be wrong, and perhaps Audiotech or someone with better knowledge than I might like to chime in......but I've tried both the Senn's and Shure through my ipod and I was so blown away by the pure clarity of sound that any reduced bass or low frequencies was not noticeable to me.

My only coin toss, still remains cans or in-ear!!

So should I go with the Sennheiser HD280's? But then again, it could of been the song or the eq preset of the person's mp3 player or music player who said they had "no bass." I'm a sucker for bass, whether it's bass in a punk song, or bass in a hip/hop song, that's what I'm all about. :p What shure headphones would you recommend?
 
So should I go with the Sennheiser HD28's? ...................... What shure headphones would you recommend?

I'm pretty new to all this headphone stuff myself mate, so I'll stay off the recommendations if you don't mind as I like to have at least some idea of what I'm talking about when giving advice.

But I will say, I was very happy with the Senn's and won't hesitate to buy a set if I decide to go with circumaural phones. However, I really think I'm leaning towards in-ears and in this case, the only Shure models I tested were the SE210 and the SCL3. I felt the SCL3 fit my ear canals a little better (of course they did....they're nearly A$200 more....typical!!) and gave me better isolation. The only in-ear Sennheiser model I was able to try was a lower range pair. I dismissed them quickly so took no notice of the model number. I just thought the Shure's offered better sound quality.

Take your ipod into the store and get a few pairs in/on your ears and see how you go is the best recommendation I have for you.
 
Do you prefer in-ear phones or cans? From what I can see there the HD280 and Sony's are cans and the CX400 are in-ears.

I'm currently looking to buy new phones too and although I'm very impressed with the HD 280's (they've received some great reviews and props on this forum), I'm leaning towards in-ears (Shure SCL3 are my choice) due to the fact that I also want to use them for general purposes such as ipod etc. I'm just not the type to be skulking the streets of Melbourne with big bulky headphones on. May be worth consideration when making your choice.


Big and bulky is exactly what HD280 are.

Try audio technica M30: half the price and some say they sound better (more natural). Sennheiser is very coloured and bass heavy.
 
I was at BestBuy the other day and saw these: http://www.skullcandy.com/shop/configable/index/links/id/953/cid/8/

Some of the models are a little too "glam" for me but the amplified bass was really nice. Snug fit seemed to block out unwanted noise very nicely and the sound was great...especially for the money.

I have those, and I only listen to them when I want to listen to rap. Not the best sound quality, all it has is loud bass or, what they call "bass vibration" on the headphones.
 
Last edited:
For isolation, Metrophones are the best I've found. They're VERY effective.

After a few years, mine broke and I went cheap and bought the Vic Firth ones. They're decent, but not nearly as much isolation.
 
Back
Top