Headphones - Forum for PhotoReading, Paraliminals, Spring Forest Qigong, and your quest for improvement

I am hoping someone can help educate me on the different headphones that are available in stores today. Why are some so expensive and some sell just for $1? I tried to ask a guy at The Future Shop and he started getting into frequencies which left me confused than knowledged.

Thus far, I have been using $1.00 headphones to listen to the tapes because the buds fit comfortably in my ears. But from what the future shop guy told me, I could be losing the benefits if not listened to, with the right earphones.

Any recommendations and explanations would be appreciated.

Thanks
D2C

Actually, most low to mid priced headphones claim to have incredible frequency response, but very few can reproduce the low low frequencies they claim. The main advantage you will notice with using good full-size headphones or high quality IEMs (in-ear monitors) is improved clarity in the midrange (voice) and treble extension (which gives a sense of "airiness"). Also, the soundstage will be dramatically better - sounds extend many feet around your head instead of inside your head, with clear positioning of the various stereo sound effects.

A very good mid-priced choice is the Sony V6 (about $65). Shure and Ultimate ears make superb IEMs (I own the Shure e4). The best inexpensive buy are the Koss KSC35 ($30). I use them all the time despite having three pairs of $$$ phones. They are light, very comfortable, and sound amazing for the price. Great bass too - music sounds excellent.

I am using Sennheiser PX-200 for all my paraliminals and hypnosis CD's.

I do also own a pair of Koss Porta Pro. Sennheiser PX-200 is more neutral with high resolution while Koss Porta Pro is more of a deep bass player.

I think I will recommend Sennheiser for hypnosis CD's and the Koss' for music.

I know that the Paraliminals are now built to contain Holosync technology produced by Centerpointe. For their meditation based upon Holosyn they recommend a type of headphones which have the widest possible frequency response (6 Hz - 23000 kHz). Although we do not hear below a certain frequency, the binaural stimulation still takes place and has an effect on the person. For the initial level of Holosync there is not specification about the headphones, but as soon as the person gets into the personalised levels, headphones do matter alot.

Upon their recommendation I bought the MDR-EX71SL, which are Sony's first closed type Fontopia� Design Bud Style Headphones. This is what they say about them: hear the powerful, resonant bass response. Additional features include a Super-light In-the-Ear Design, New, Super-Small 9 mm Drivers which are ultra-compact drivers that produce powerful sound with space left over for the sonic isolation of our newly-designed Soft Silicon Earbuds. Two Sizes of Earbuds that accommodate a full range of ears, a 400 kJ/m? a Ultra-High-Power Neodymium Magnet, a Hard Carrying Case, and Earbud Holder are also supplied.

The cost for such high quality device is only US$40 or so. This is a real bargain. Although the quality of the sound is excellent, they break easily (the plastic cover comes off at the attachment to the ear bud and uncovers the wire... i had mine replaced a few times by Sony under warranty). Go to Amazon for problems encountered by people. Here in Australia, it appears Sony has withdrawn the product from the market. They have replace it with a white equivalent, which is not yet available.

Maybe Alex can comment on the headphone requirements related to the Paraliminals. I think that ear bud models are much preferred to others since some of the Paraliminal tracks can be listened to while asleep.

Great, I have a choices now. I looked at Sennheiser and they look cute, but I still have to research the price range as the site doesn't mention price.
http://www.sennheiser.ca/main.php?node=ct_00&type=1

Thank you ALL - I will look into Koss and MDR-EX71SL as well. Hopefully it won't be too difficult to choose.

I hope they all HOLD WELL (the wires I mean) especially since I listen to other programs that are designed especially for listening while I am sleeping (Like the Universal Mind).

Thanks again!

Despite the Centerpointe recommendation, I think for the price the MDR EX71 are crap. All the cheap Sony buds just don't cut it. The KSC 35s are far superior, and although they are a clip on type, they are so comfortable, you forget they are on, and I fall asleep with them on very often. They also have a lifetime warranty. If they break, they will replace 'em for free. =)

Some links for you (I am a headphone fan!):

http://www.head-fi.org

http://www.headphone.com/

http://www.koss.com/koss/kossweb.nsf/p?openform&pc%5Esc%5EKSC35

Here's a link to Senneheiser's information page about PX 200:
http://www.sennheiser.com/sennheiser/icm_eng.nsf/root/05207

Here's a review:
http://www.pcreview.co.uk/reviews/Audio/Sennheiser_PX200_Headphones/

You guys are absolutely wonderful! Thank you. Will let you know what I decided to go with.

Cheerio

In my view, you need to ask Learning Strategies and Centerpointe which are they frequency requirements to obtain the maximum benefit from their products. If the lowest frequency goes below 15 Hz, then Koss, Sennheiser, etc will not pick it up and you will lose the benefit of the program. Maybe Alex can comment about Paraliminals, etc.

$20---that's ALL you need to buy some really nice headphones! Buy them from a place like Best Buy or Circuit City which have a 30 day return policy. I have found that the $20 headphones available today are better than the $100 headphones I bought in the early '90's.

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In my view, you need to ask Learning Strategies and Centerpointe which are they frequency requirements to obtain the maximum benefit from their products. If the lowest frequency goes below 15 Hz, then Koss, Sennheiser, etc will not pick it up and you will lose the benefit of the program. Maybe Alex can comment about Paraliminals, etc.

Not quite. The 15 Hz frequency is produced by the brain as a binaural beat which is the difference between the two different carrier frequencies used (e.g. 80 Hz and 95 Hz). It makes no difference how your headphones perform in that ultra-low frequency range (and performance is highly over-rated by manufacturers as I already said).

I'm speaking as a headphone enthusiast who owns one pair of $200+ headphones (Grado SR225), as well as several in the $100+ price range (Beyerdymanic DT531, Sony MDR V6 etc). I have also listened to some of the most expensive headphones ever made, uncluding the Sony R-10 (http://www.head-fi.org/forums/showthread.php?t=5008). The only difference lies in how accurately (close to original recorded source material as intended by the engineer) and pleasingly they reproduce the timber of various bands, like midrange, treble etc.

On a related note, the Sony V6 I recommended are an almost identical, less expensive alternative to the Centerpointe recommended Sony V600. I just prefer to use the Koss KSC35s or my Grados when listening to mind/brain programs so I can forget about the fact that I am listening to headphones. It distracts me to have on heavier phones like the Sony V6s when I listen to any Paraliminal or brainwave entrainment programs.

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In my view, you need to ask Learning Strategies and Centerpointe which are they frequency requirements to obtain the maximum benefit from their products. If the lowest frequency goes below 15 Hz, then Koss, Sennheiser, etc will not pick it up and you will lose the benefit of the program. Maybe Alex can comment about Paraliminals, etc.

Not quite. The 15 Hz frequency is produced by the brain as a binaural beat which is the difference between the two different carrier frequencies used (e.g. 80 Hz and 95 Hz). It makes no difference how your headphones perform in that ultra-low frequency range (and performance is highly over-rated by manufacturers as I already said).

I'm speaking as a headphone enthusiast who owns one pair of $200+ headphones (Grado SR225), as well as several in the $100+ price range (Beyerdymanic DT531, Sony MDR V6 etc). I have also listened to some of the most expensive headphones ever made, uncluding the Sony R-10 (http://www.head-fi.org/forums/showthread.php?t=5008). The only difference lies in how accurately (close to original recorded source material as intended by the engineer) and pleasingly they reproduce the timber of various bands, like midrange, treble etc.

On a related note, the Sony V6 I recommended are an almost identical, less expensive alternative to the Centerpointe recommended Sony V600. I just prefer to use the Koss KSC35s or my Grados when listening to mind/brain programs so I can forget about the fact that I am listening to headphones. It distracts me to have on heavier phones like the Sony V6s when I listen to any Paraliminal or brainwave entrainment programs.

I agree with you. I have listened to the Sony MDR V6 and the Bose Isolative headphones but as far as Paraliminals are concerned, headphones of that expense, as nice as they can be, are definitely not necessary. As I type this I'm listening to the sleep track of Belief and my $20 Radio Shack headphones are doing a great job (I hear all the words on both channels clearly and the Holysync tones are snowing me;0)). As a practical matter, I feel SURE that Learning Strategies would have learned about any "special headphones requirement" and as a purely pragmatic business matter, it would NOT have been in their best interest to be create a product where such an expense would have to be carried by the consumer in order to receive optimum results. From a purely business standpoint, you want the LARGEST amount of customers to have great results and they would have known that the great amount of customers aren't wearing $200-$300 headphones.
In any case, to the original poster, I get great results with my $20 Radio Shack headphones and for me, that's the 'proof in the pudding'!

Mike,

That's why my first recommendation was the $30 Koss KSC 35s (the KSC 75 are equally good and are only $20). Cheap, feathery lightweight (so I can fall asleep with them on without worrying), and they do the job very well. Can't go wrong with the lifetime warranty Koss has either (no questions asked)

Smart choices Vikram! I'll remember the Koss next time I'm in the market. I had a pair of Koss back in the '80's (bought them in the PX while I was in the army) and they did a great job for a long time!

You don't need fancy headphones. Think comfort and and reasonable quality. They don't have to dive into the low frequencies.

Alex

Update:

Keeping every advise in mind (thank you!), I settled for Philips SHE7600 which cost me $18 CDN on sale from Wal Mart. Regular price $20. The frequency response range is 8hz - 24000 hz.
http://www.p4c.philips.com/files/s/she7600_00/she7600_00_pss_eng.pdf

They had Koss and Sony too but the price scared me off. I will use it for a week to see how I like it. If I don't like it, I can return it for full refund within 90 days.

I am excited. I am expecting better results - even if just in the form of meditation if not more.

Thank you all.

Not impressed with Philips headphones. Returned them for a full refund. Settled for Sony MDR-NC11A Noise Canceling Headphones.

Will try these for a week.

Just an update, in case anyone is interested. I have been trying different headphones in the last few days. I finally settled for Cyber Acoustics HE200rb. I absolutely love the sound I am hearing through them - I wasted 6 weeks using the the dollar store headphones! Okay, maybe not quite 'wasted' but they definitely weren't the ones to use, when listening to brain programming tunes.

I had never before heard of Cyber Acoustics and I picked them up mainly because they included volume control. So for $20, I thought I will try and return if I don't like.

I don't like. I love them! So if anyone else is shopping for reasonably priced headphones, check out Cyber Acoustics website.

The ones I bought are very light weight and very comfortable around the head and ears.
http://www.cyberacoustics.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Home.ProductDetail&content_id=358

The best I have found are the Creative Labs EP-630 Earphones. They meet the 6 Hz - 23000 kHz frequency response suggested above, they cancel out all outside noise as they're ear canal phones and their cheap to buy.