How are those headphones? (Destiny)

by dogcow , Hiding from Bob, in the vent core., Monday, June 13, 2016, 13:42 (3083 days ago) @ cheapLEY

I have a set of HD 280 Pros that I love, but they're worn out and due for replacement soon. I've been debating just getting another set since they're only $99 now, or if I should look at a higher end set.

http://headphones.specout.com/compare/356-357/Sennheiser-HD-598-vs-Sennheiser-HD280-Pro

I think it comes down to if you prefer open-air or a closed headphones.

280: 8-25kHz, 64Ω, 102dB sensitivity, closed
598: 12-38.5kHz, 50Ω, 112 dB sensitivity, open

I've honestly never even used an open-air set. I'm like you, in that I'm enough of an audiophile to want a good set of headphones, but I don't actually know all that much about the differences. All the numbers mean absolutely nothing to me.

This much I know about the #'s...

kHz - the frequency range the headphones will play. I'm not sure the limits of human hearing, and I know as you age you lose the ability to hear higher frequencies. When you're talking 8 & 12 hz you're talking pretty dang low. Music really doesn't get that low. 25kHz - 38.5kHz is really really high, as in you probably can't hear it. We're talking the highest pitch whines you might hear coming from electronics.

Ω - Ohms of Resistance (AKA Impedance). This is the electrical resistance of the speakers. The higher the # the more power it takes to drive them.

Sensitivity - The is similar to impedance. I'm not entirely sure how this is measured. I think this is the volume produced with a certain amount of power. Portable electronics can't drive as much power as an amplifier like your receiver on your home theater. So I guess more sensitive is better for portable devices. I don't know if lower sensitivity is better for devices able to put out more wattage.