Hello everyone. I hope everyone is having a great day so far. I currently have about $900 USD to spend on headphones. I would prefer it if they were closed back, and fairly neutral. They’ll be driven off a Chord Mojo. I listen to mostly late-20th century hip hop, soft rock, and pop. A list of the headphones I have had my eyes are the LCD 2 Closed, the Massdrop+MrSpeakers Ether CX, and the Focal Elegia. 2 cheaper headphones are also an option. I would prefer it if they came with a travel case.
Edit: I believe I should mention I luckily do not have to wear glasses.
Elegia plus, a Fostex, would probably cover most of your needs…or Campfire Audio Cascade with the XL pads as a guilty pleasure( it isn’t neutral though)
Allow one more suggestion from me. Just saw the Neumann NDH20 for sale on amazon at $400. I almost pulled the trigger myself, but since I already have the SRH1540, I’m not in a rush.
You could buy an after market hard case with the savings.
PS.: This is Zeos’ favorite cans as of today. Not sure if it matches your taste though. He claims it is a neutral can.
Thanks @TylersEclectic for looping me in on the convo! Based on the music you listen to @Minjun_Kim I would definitely recommend checking out the Aeon 2C. Now to be fair I wouldn’t say they are neutral to my ears. However they are for the price range my favorite closed back headphones at that price point so far. They are wonderful with POP, Rock, Electronic, music. They also allow for the the tuning of the sound with the included inserts so you can without EQ change the sound to better match the music you are listening too. They take to tone control well if desired, they are ultra lightweight and extremely comfortable @taronlissimore and @andrew will take great care of you as well when purchasing through headphones.com .The Elegia are also great headphones, excellent build, more open sounding stage however for my ears and the type of music I listen to the most I preferred the Aeon 2 C. If I was primarily listening to Jazz, Classical, or music primarily composed of wind and the higher frequency string instruments then I would recommend the Elegia.
Definitely take the Aeon2 C into strong consideration at that price point for closed back cans if you enjoy planar magnetic headphones.
Do double check the amount of current the Chord Mojo can provide as the one thing about the Aeon 2C is they do require quite a bit of volts to sound their best.
I also did a comparison between the Aeon 2 C and the Elegia if you’re interested in reading
Aeon 2 or Elegia would be my choices. The former is designed for ease of transport, with case, and sounded great when I checked out a pair recently. I have the first version of the Aeons (closed) and have gotten a lot of mileage from them (literally, traveled with them for months). I really love the Focal line, so for me at that price it would be a shoot out between those two.
Focal Elegia comes with a lightweight travel case…
Aeon 2 Closed, and Aeon RT Closed might also be worth a look. I have Aeon Flow Closed and I like them. The upgraded Aeon 2 Closed is supposed to be an improvement, but I haven’t heard them. I have three sets of Dan Clark Audio / Mr Speakers stuff. They make great headphones.
I make one, but it’s a nitpick, the headset tension is a touch tight. I’m hoping it loosens with time and use. Likelty the tension is a byproduct of the isolation from the outside world. The Elegia headphones sound excellent.
What is the amp you are using is where I would start. Find out if it likes low resistance cans or high resistance cans and start there with your budget
I demoed the Elegia but chose the Aeon Flow Closed instead. I don’t like dynamic drivers in closed headphones, as they lead to more rapid fatigue for myself than planars.
My experience with closed dynamic drivers is very painful air pressure fatigue. They constantly move in and out, which leads to discomfort over the course of hours or days. If I use “punchy” closed headphones for a couple hours per day for a week or more, I start looking at them with disdain and end up avoiding them for several days.
I remember people telling me about this way back (1980s or 1990s) – likely with regard to Beyerdynamic or other old-school brands. One strategy at that time was to insert a plastic drinking straw between the pads and head to vent the pressure.
