Headphones question

[Spewk]

Hi all
a friend of mine gave to me a pair of Sennheiser hd238, and i wanna know if they're better or worse than my ep-630 that creative gives with the zen x-fi2
here are the links for the 2 headphones pairs
Sennheiser HD238
Creative EP-630

and btw, is in-ear really better?

[CrowdAds]

[lestatar]

Hey Spewk:

Almost an apples vs oranges question here IMO. The Senns are normal over ear cans while the Creatives are IEMs. Tough to make comparisons like this IMO.

I don't have much experience with Senns, though I do own a pair of Senn CX300 IEMs. I can say with confidence that generally speaking, Sennheiser makes some pretty good sounding headphones for the price.

I also own the EP630. Until fairly recently, I thought they sounded OK. That is, until I expanded my horizons and tried stuff like the Hippo VBs, Maximo imetal590s, some AudioTechnicas and cheapo Sony IEMs from a friend and even a pair of surprisingly good elcheapo SoundMagic Pl-21s. Interestingly, i recall the EP630s being compared to the CX300 from Senn years ago...not sure if I agree with that as my CX300s sound a bit brighter and fuller than the EP630s.

After all of the above, my once OK sounding EP630s now sound pretty dull and lifeless to me. They have now been relegated to underneath my pillows where they serve on occasion as my sleeping IEMs.

As for in ear being better, this is highly personal and subjective. No such thing as best in the world of headphones - only what YOU like best...

Lots of folks here can help you with some solid suggestions re: cans and IEMs. But we need some more info:

- what kind of music you listen to
- your budget

cheers and good luck!
-lestatar

[Spewk]

hey lestatar, i mostly listen to rock or hardtek
i've always loved the ep-630 for their in-ear thing, but i've always been curious about the sennheiser quality
so, what can you advice to me?

[klaust]

Hi,

i think, the the EP630 are very well, but the cable is to inflexible (hard, stiffy? don't know the right word) (same with the CX300).

I like my AKG K324 - a little bit better tone and a smooth cable!
Price is currently $79.95 at amazon.com - uaah! Nice price in europe (amazon.de) - €22,95 ($30,32).

[dfkt]

Originally Posted by Spewk

a friend of mine gave to me a pair of Sennheiser hd238, and i wanna know if they're better or worse than my ep-630 that creative gives with the zen x-fi2

If you have both, why not simply listen to them and decide which one sounds better to your ears, which one you personally like better?

Either way, simply speaking of "better vs. worse" - full-sized phones are pretty much all the time better than in-ear phones, in most aspects. Especially in that price range.

The EP-630 probably isolate you a bit from outside noise, while the HD238 are open phones and let noise in.

[Brett_val]

Yeah since you have both you should tell us which one sounds better

I like my EP-630's because they isolate me from outside noise, which is especially good when travelling in public transport.
They also give me a very good bass-experience, I feel I hear more detail in the subs when I'm outside. And I think that's most important when it comes to hardtek. (freepartys rule )

[Spewk]

well. from what i've experienced today, the creative ones can isolate me from other noises and have more bass expansion, but the sennheiser have a "rounded" sound if you can understand... they're just 2 different types
i think i'll use the creative ones for long travels and the sennheiser for pc or when i go walking here in my town

[lestatar]

Spewk: Great! See? No need to buy new headphones, at least not yet...enjoy your stuff for a while! :-)

Sounds like you got a good plan...

[Spewk]

Originally Posted by lestatar

Spewk: Great! See? No need to buy new headphones, at least not yet...enjoy your stuff for a while! :-)

nobody said i wanted to buy new headphones i just wanted a comparison and... it worked