Man it's awesome how he could listen for a couple of a seconds and immediately come up with clinical analysis of the sound. Meanwhile i be like "hmm yes there are sounds, some bass sounds but mostly sounds"
It's all about doing it a LOT. Also where most people have a good memory for visual things, my memory works for sound. I can hear your audio rig, come back two years later and tell you what changed. Makes it very easy to reference audio once you have heard enough. There's a brand new review on here I did on the AKG K52. If you are looking for cheap headphones you may want to check that one too!
@@rollingtroll hey, nice that you reply. I'm actually waiting for my samson sr850 to arrive hence why I'm here. But thanks for the suggestion! I was interested in the K52 too, since it's also within my budget. But i've never tried openbacks and wanted to know what the fuss is about so i opted for samson instead
@@MrBlitzpunk You are welcome! It's only half open though, a real open back is in a different league but you usually don't really find them in this price range.
@@MrBlitzpunk It will be! The Samson are just 'really decent'. Just don't use them as a reference for what open back sounds like as the definitely don't sound like that. You will love them!
I'd like to add guys, I did the modifications recommended online (remove the logos on the side and replace them with coins, in my case 20 eurocents) and it definitely made them sound less agressive. Worth your time, it's an easy fix :).
I own sr850 for almost 2years,this cans is very harsh to ears, usually i use my m30x to listen, i use it mostly for movie, youtube, and music, one day my sr850 have the cable broken, then i find someone to reterminate it After reterminate, the harsh is gone, now i love my sr850 than my m30x
Hi, I'd like to test this mod, can you tell me how you did remove the logo caps? Did you damaege them in the removing process? They are pretty tightly placed and there's non space for inserting any kind of tool without damaging them. Did you simply went through and forced them out? Instead of replacing those logo caps with coins I'm planning to insert some blu-tack under them so I don't want to damage\scratch them. Thank you friend.
IF you want to play game "how much you think those cost" try Superlux HD-330+Beyerdynamic velor pads. BTW I had Sennheiser HD201 then converted them to open back (center panel can be unscrewed and you need to permanently remove small housing attached to drivers) + HM5 angled pads. Those 20 euro HD201 suddenly sounded like ~100 Euro headphones. Getting rid of inner driver housing is big step up for them. Those driver have like 0,8 cm thick acoustic chamber, when you throw it away they can work with entire capsules.
Straight out of the box I do find them a bit harsh. I've owned the SR-950 for 4 years and the SR-850 for 8 months. I found with both my pairs they settled in after a couple of weeks. I shared a workspace with a man who fixed speakers, he used to seat speaker coils with DC voltage before the glue had set. Most manufacturing processes just use shims to place the coil and it's not ideal. if you run some current through the speaker once everything is seated before the glues set and the electromagnetic field will center the coil under the driver perfectly. That's what's happening with the Samsons. They improve once the coils seat themselves correctly, which takes longer because the glue holding them in place has already set and teh EM field takes longer to move the coil, but it will move. Once they're perfectly aligned, they're very good. Out of the box they're about 80% of how good they will sound. Give them a few weeks.
I am coming from a $10 Gaming headset. So these pair looks like a huge upgrade. Got them on Amazon but sadly the price increased to almost €50. Anyways with my old phones I wasn't able to mix my audio for my YT videos. What happened is that music drowned the voice etc. So I send my video to my TV and mobile just to get a reference if the levels are working out. Terrible. I hope this stuff belongs to the past now.
Thanks for the review and test! and the ability to listen to the sound of headphones! I would like to advise you to select fragments of music from different genres and always use the same ones !! in tests of different headphones, and then, even despite the distortion of the microphone and recording, the difference in sound will be audible, and users will be able to decide for themselves what they like best. There are few such reviews here, please continue and you will have a good audience. Good luck!
What I would say is exactly the same, no matter the music I choose, so it shouldn't matter for the audience :). I am a very (very, extremely, utterly) trained listener. You should see me do audio shows. I walk into a room, listen to an entire rig I don't know and then go 'oh that must be an idler drive record player'. It's a bit insane, but my memory for sound is ridiculous. Other than that my memory is pretty bad so hey, at least i got that!
Hey man I've been really confused between these and the akg 240s studio (not the marks IIs) there're a ton of conflicting reviews shits crazy, what would you recomend?
Hey, are you familiar with the "AutoEQ project"? I've downloaded a Parametric EQ preset for these cans from there but I'm not too sure about it. With the EQ applied the sound went from overly bright to weirdly muffled.. It is supposed to be an EQ targeting the Harman Curve but, to me, it just sounds really odd. Donno if this is a great EQ for them. Any advice? *EQ:* Preamp: -7.0 dB Filter 1: ON PK Fc 25 Hz Gain 6.8 dB Q 1.68 Filter 2: ON PK Fc 653 Hz Gain 4.1 dB Q 1.07 Filter 3: ON PK Fc 4534 Hz Gain 5.8 dB Q 3.85 Filter 4: ON PK Fc 5664 Hz Gain -8.0 dB Q 2.63 Filter 5: ON PK Fc 20171 Hz Gain -11.5 dB Q 0.16 Filter 6: ON PK Fc 35 Hz Gain 2.0 dB Q 2.67 Filter 7: ON PK Fc 99 Hz Gain -2.3 dB Q 0.85 Filter 8: ON PK Fc 1581 Hz Gain 2.4 dB Q 4.23 Filter 9: ON PK Fc 2844 Hz Gain -1.9 dB Q 3.67 Filter 10: ON PK Fc 8361 Hz Gain -1.3 dB Q 4.51
No point in that kind of stuff. You can't polish a turd I'm afraid. EQ'ing does more wrong than it does good and can really only be used for a very limited amount of frequencies if you have a particularly difficult space to deal with, or so. The gains I see here are massive, way bigger than any half decent pair of headphones should need. You're probably better off setting it up yourself. If you want to get the most out of them, get a proper preamplifier. Also, maybe check the AKG K52 review I did if you find these a bit bright :D.
@@rollingtroll Yeah, I wasn't expecting any miracles, just tried it to see if the claims were true. Turns out, they weren't, as usual. I've heard about the K52's before, I'll check it out. Thank you for replying, much appreciated.
I recently bought this headphone, yeah the treble is too much. Adjusting the EQ for this headphone really helps to tame that piercing treble. Amazing soundstage and imaging if you compare it with IEM or earbuds (I usually use QKZ VK4)
Thank you for a good review, i think i'm going to be getting these, i've been scouring for a review that doesn't compare them to headphones that cost more than triple the price and say get the more expensive ones cause they are better, no shit.
@@rollingtroll I'm using them on my pc, gonna by a sound card for em because my pc's on-board sound card sucks, i'm just using them for general use and gaming really, i do make music sometimes so it'll be nice for that as well
@@vgaggia Not sure what it costs there but here it's around 50usd (in the euro equivalent). With it being so close to the price of the Samson I would go for that, but of course it's still almost double the money :)
The 206 are 'all right' but these Samsons are absolutely better. In 2020 though I would go for the AKG K240 studio. They were once 200 USD headphones but these days you buy them for 50, now that AKG Is part of the Harman Group, which has now been acquired by Samsung. They still sound amazing, possibly better than before, and they are ridiculous value for money. The really 'big name' brands like Sennheiser, Bose, Dr. Dre Beats are generally never worth your time, though Sennheiser made some relatively nice headphones they are all over 1000USD and even at that price bracket there's way better ones.
@@dhavalvyadav Do keep in mind though; It's really not meant for use with a phone, the impedance is way off. But that really goes for most hi-fi headphones.
Thanks for a very interesting and informative review. I wonder if I could get your advice? I want to get some very comfortable over-ear headphones in the 60-80 Euros (or maybe a little more) range, that I will primarily use to practice my bass guitar with (I hope to get an electric guitar too later). I don't have an amp - I plug into Garageband through a Behringer Audio interface and play along either with tracks imported into Garageband, or through UA-cam/Spotify. I was going through the various comments for this video and was wondering if the AKG K240 studio would be something you would recommend for this use, or something else? Many thanks.
Absolutely! You could be looking at the Audiotechncia AT-M50x but I'd be tempted to go for the 240, they sound a bit more 'honest'. They will need a little time to wake up though. Make sure you get the actual 'studio' model.
@@rollingtroll Thanks so much for replying - and so soon! Could I check what you mean by 'time to wake up?' I'll make sure I get the 'studio' model, as you advise. Many thanks.
@@downtime900 they need a little burn in time before they have all their highs and lows. It sounds a bit flat and mid focused when new, so don’t be disappointed when you first get it. Quickest solution is to just let it play pink noise for two days straight
first you saved me and i love you because i was searching for a comparison between the hd201s and the sr850 and i wasnt finding nothing until i found your video thanks AND SECOND what you did with the coins on the headphones??
It's not too hard to drive so that should work. That said; The Sony walkmans don't sound great, at all, and the Fiio's sound amazing, but the software is a mess. I honestly wouldn't invest too much in that kind of stuff, there's phones out there with proper DACS though, may be something to look into. Other than that, just get a nice mp3 player that supports wav/flac. From what I understand the Sandisk Sansa Clip Zip actually can do that. As for FLAC; Try comparing FLAC to WAV. Even though the files are identical, the work a computer has to do to play them (decompressing them as it goes) is audible. I personally would stick to WAV, even though the difference is obviously minimal.
These are 32 ohms ouput, rated at 8 ohms input. A $1.00 iPhone 3.5mm output jack will do them no justice at all. It can't deliver enough grunt to fuel the drivers. Yes you can use them, but you will not notice much difference
Is the range flat enough to do voice-over editing? Or is the aggression a bit much to get a true representation out of these? And are they tolerable to wear for hours?
Hmmm, it's a bit mid-heavy but not ridiculously so. For voice I'd recommend the AKG K141 though, or maybe a pair of Beyer DT100. They are very much tolerable to wear for yours.
Yes they are more than satisfactory for voiceover. I have been broadcasting for 30 years, and these are our studio second choice. When used in perfect flat EQ environment with clean A class pre-amps, they are not that bad at all. The finished recordings on air over FM sound quite similar to what we heard through our pre amps. For price, these do kick arse.
At this price point? Nothing. If you want to go a little higher, look at AudioTechnica. Otherwise just stick to this. Alternatively you could buy the SuperLux HD681 EVO which is supposed to be a slightly better version of this Samson. Haven't tried it though!
The problem with this headphone is that everyone says it’s good for the price. But that doesn’t mean they’re actually good enough to actually do anything worthwhile. Just wondering whether you actually use them. At all. And if so for what. I have a pair and want to justify my expense :) Thanks.
I use them a lot. They are good enough for general music listening and even for some monitoring. Wouldn't use them for mixing or critical listening. But they are rugged, comfortable and sound very acceptable. I know many 70-100 euro headphones that I think are worse. The grado sr60, any Dr Dre beats, any Bose or any affordable Sony, or Sennheiser. They are really value for money, and they are my most used pair of "quick I need headphones"-headphones. I also used to take them to record stores, but have a pair of JBL tune tws120 for that now. These days though, if you are half serious, go for the new akg k240 studio for a little more money. Not for a phone though, it won't be able to drive them. As for the sr850's; anyone who spent 200 bucks on Apple airpods will be very depressed after listening to these Samsons ;)
@@rollingtroll Sure. I get it. I think I bought them as mixing headphones because of the open back design. But I find the sound a little harsh for that purpose. I think if I look at it as just a nice pair of daily headphones I’d find them useful. So, yeah, that’s a take I never considered. They’re low impedence too so they’re great for phone use. Tell me though, is open back recommended for daily use. Actually why not eh :)
@@accentontheoff honestly, no headphone is good for mixing. You need a proper pair of monitors for that. Also remove the little branding plates and glue coins in their place, they rattle, makes it a lot less harsh. And let it play for a few days, the harshness will disappear. If anything mine are a bit on the wooly sounding side now. I personally don't like closed headphones so for me half or fully open (these are definitely not completely open, with my akg k601 I sometimes forget I wear them because my environment sounds exactly the same) always sounds more spacious
@@accentontheoff they are really not bad. If the new akg k240 wasn't that good I would still recommend them. As for cheap monitors; keep your eyes open for a pair of Wharfedale Diamond III. Careful with the low end though as these little ones obviously don't have a lot of it
The AudioTechnica ATH-AD300. They are really as good as headphones that cost hundreds yet they cost 70 bucks when new. You don't often find them second hand but if you do, grab 'em.
Never heard the k92. It's definitely more expensive here. If you can get the new K240 studio for that amount too though, go for that one. I can assure you it's better. With the K92 I assume it is but I can't be sure.
If mixing just means balancing, sure. If you are also planning to do EQ'ing/Multiband compressing and mastering of sorts, go AKG K240 studio. Lot more flat/balanced. This is not a monitor headphone :)
@@rollingtroll I just ordered the Samson SR-850. I think it suits my needs best and it also comes under my budget. I was also looking for AKG 240 but I can't afford it now (cuz of the pandemic). It is more than thrice the price of that of Samson's in my country. My main usage will be very basic mixing and mastering home-made songs, covers, etc. Also I also want to listen to music in a 'semi-open' and flat/natural way with my smartphone and PC. Forgot to mention that your review covered all of my questions, and that too in detail and awesome way. Thanks 🥰👍
Yes. But. The new "Samsung owned" AKG K240. 45 Bucks. Spend the little extra, it is so, so much better. No worse than the original k240, possibly even better, and less than 1/3rd of the price.
@@Jonathan-fs8cl I might be crazy enough to buy one, that's how much I like it. But I just invested in wireless earbuds so it may take some time. It's the K240 studio I recommend, to be exact. Don't use it with a phone, it's too power hungry for that. But to use with any sort of (head)amplifier or sound interface, it's a gem. Absolutely worth the gamble :)
@@Jonathan-fs8cl thank you very much! The channel is slightly lacking structure, but I hope there's things on it that make your subscription worth while!
@@TheShmrsh very decent for the money. I just can't think of a reason to buy them now the k240 are so cheap. I daily k121's though, they are lovely, unless you want a really hyped up boomy crisp sound, then akg isn't for you. But if you like it balanced with a slight emphasis on midrange and vocals, the k121 is a safe bet.
The Takstar looks like a fake AudioTechnica and the ISK looks like a fake AKG. I haven't heard either, in this price range I'd buy this Samson really :).
I'd love to man, but I just reviewed my own pair of headphones, I don't make any money doing this and no one is sending me free headphones, so I have no way to teset the K52. I did just look them up, they look quite promising for so little money!
I thought yr review was good but then i saw you recommending the ath 50s so yr opinion is garbage. My fear is the eternal cable. Once it's fucked adios headphones. I didn't found or hear any simbilance or high end s sound 4 to 10k gz frequencies. Be noted i had the superlux 681, and i couldnot stand how sibilant they were. But that's was 10 year before owning the sr850 And yes good bass for an semi open (practically open) set.
I wouldn't recommend any headphones for that, but if you have to; they are a bit sharp sounding in the lower midrange so you do need to make sure you don't mix that out. Other than that they would do quite well. But then using headphones you don't know yet is tricky for mastering at the best of times. You need a reference
@@rollingtroll yeah ofc, im trying to get some money for some monitors but good god they are expensive af, I'm also looking towards a camera and other stuff so the budget is very tight. I've worked in very very very bad headphones for a while now and cross referencing is what I'm used to do anyways.
@@tento3555 I'd like to recommend you hifi speakers for monitors but that just doesn't work quite right. Still if you want an in between option that I would prefer to headphones, find yourself a pair of Tannoy M2. They do a good job.
@@rollingtroll I don't use any preamp. My amp is my cellphone :-). It delivers very good results at the Sennheiser HD 58x. But the SR850 and also the Superlux HD 681 had too much energy in the highs. I don't think that an amp changes anything about that. Maybe after a while one get used to it.
As far as I understood there's now an updated version of the HD681 that's supposed to be better than these. I only found that out after I bought these though ;).
How loud is the bleed on them being semi-open? I need some new gaming headphones, but I keep my mic really close. I can get away with having a fan in my face and my mic not picking it up, but still a little nervous.. Never used open headphones before and that needs to change haha.
They're not dead quiet. If you want that, stick to closed back headphones. Or maybe even in ear monitors. I'm afraid that's always the trade off, open headphones sound a little better in general but they will bleed and you will hear your environment. For this money though, if you are not ridiculously poor, I'd just give it a shot. Although, as I said below somewhere, I did understand that the new improved Superlux equivalent (may want to google, I can't remember the model number) is a tad better even.
Man it's awesome how he could listen for a couple of a seconds and immediately come up with clinical analysis of the sound.
Meanwhile i be like "hmm yes there are sounds, some bass sounds but mostly sounds"
It's all about doing it a LOT. Also where most people have a good memory for visual things, my memory works for sound. I can hear your audio rig, come back two years later and tell you what changed. Makes it very easy to reference audio once you have heard enough. There's a brand new review on here I did on the AKG K52. If you are looking for cheap headphones you may want to check that one too!
@@rollingtroll hey, nice that you reply. I'm actually waiting for my samson sr850 to arrive hence why I'm here. But thanks for the suggestion! I was interested in the K52 too, since it's also within my budget. But i've never tried openbacks and wanted to know what the fuss is about so i opted for samson instead
@@MrBlitzpunk You are welcome! It's only half open though, a real open back is in a different league but you usually don't really find them in this price range.
@@rollingtroll i've only been using a 10$ offbrand 'gaming' headphones my whole life lol, so anything will be a major step up for me
@@MrBlitzpunk It will be! The Samson are just 'really decent'. Just don't use them as a reference for what open back sounds like as the definitely don't sound like that. You will love them!
I'd like to add guys, I did the modifications recommended online (remove the logos on the side and replace them with coins, in my case 20 eurocents) and it definitely made them sound less agressive. Worth your time, it's an easy fix :).
The Rolling Troll How would you compare the Samson SR850 to the AKG K240 Studio headphones?
I own sr850 for almost 2years,this cans is very harsh to ears, usually i use my m30x to listen, i use it mostly for movie, youtube, and music, one day my sr850 have the cable broken, then i find someone to reterminate it
After reterminate, the harsh is gone, now i love my sr850 than my m30x
Hi, I'd like to test this mod, can you tell me how you did remove the logo caps? Did you damaege them in the removing process? They are pretty tightly placed and there's non space for inserting any kind of tool without damaging them. Did you simply went through and forced them out? Instead of replacing those logo caps with coins I'm planning to insert some blu-tack under them so I don't want to damage\scratch them. Thank you friend.
IF you want to play game "how much you think those cost" try Superlux HD-330+Beyerdynamic velor pads. BTW I had Sennheiser HD201 then converted them to open back (center panel can be unscrewed and you need to permanently remove small housing attached to drivers) + HM5 angled pads. Those 20 euro HD201 suddenly sounded like ~100 Euro headphones. Getting rid of inner driver housing is big step up for them. Those driver have like 0,8 cm thick acoustic chamber, when you throw it away they can work with entire capsules.
I bought this & planning to do this as well. can you show the modification pics?
Nice to see someone who knows what's talking about.
Straight out of the box I do find them a bit harsh. I've owned the SR-950 for 4 years and the SR-850 for 8 months.
I found with both my pairs they settled in after a couple of weeks.
I shared a workspace with a man who fixed speakers, he used to seat speaker coils with DC voltage before the glue had set. Most manufacturing processes just use shims to place the coil and it's not ideal. if you run some current through the speaker once everything is seated before the glues set and the electromagnetic field will center the coil under the driver perfectly. That's what's happening with the Samsons. They improve once the coils seat themselves correctly, which takes longer because the glue holding them in place has already set and teh EM field takes longer to move the coil, but it will move. Once they're perfectly aligned, they're very good. Out of the box they're about 80% of how good they will sound. Give them a few weeks.
so.... just use it for a while? I knew this as burn-in...(?)
Hey you are someone who used SR950 for that long, do they have good sound insulation? They are supposed to be closed back headphones.
Really good review, i'm glad you plugged them into some good audio gear so this is definitely a review i can trust
That said; they do work relatively well on a phone :)
@@rollingtroll yay!
This is an excellent review.
I have these, they do improve after burn in.Still get sibilance from time to time but just fix with eq. Still love them.
Better than ATH m40x?
Worth 40 dollars or not?? Because I wanna buy this.
Thank you for this review man! Very straight to the point and with comparison. SUBBED!
Very welcome! The channel is random though, not just audio reviews so it may not all be for you. Still hope you enjoy your stay!
I am coming from a $10 Gaming headset. So these pair looks like a huge upgrade. Got them on Amazon but sadly the price increased to almost €50. Anyways with my old phones I wasn't able to mix my audio for my YT videos. What happened is that music drowned the voice etc.
So I send my video to my TV and mobile just to get a reference if the levels are working out.
Terrible. I hope this stuff belongs to the past now.
Thanks for the review and test! and the ability to listen to the sound of headphones! I would like to advise you to select fragments of music from different genres and always use the same ones !! in tests of different headphones, and then, even despite the distortion of the microphone and recording, the difference in sound will be audible, and users will be able to decide for themselves what they like best. There are few such reviews here, please continue and you will have a good audience. Good luck!
What I would say is exactly the same, no matter the music I choose, so it shouldn't matter for the audience :).
I am a very (very, extremely, utterly) trained listener. You should see me do audio shows. I walk into a room, listen to an entire rig I don't know and then go 'oh that must be an idler drive record player'. It's a bit insane, but my memory for sound is ridiculous. Other than that my memory is pretty bad so hey, at least i got that!
Hey man I've been really confused between these and the akg 240s studio (not the marks IIs) there're a ton of conflicting reviews shits crazy, what would you recomend?
Are u retarded or is it me who have brain disease?! Akg is double or triple the price
amazing review very detailed
Thanks! Glad you like it!
Hey, are you familiar with the "AutoEQ project"?
I've downloaded a Parametric EQ preset for these cans from there but I'm not too sure about it.
With the EQ applied the sound went from overly bright to weirdly muffled..
It is supposed to be an EQ targeting the Harman Curve but, to me, it just sounds really odd.
Donno if this is a great EQ for them.
Any advice?
*EQ:*
Preamp: -7.0 dB
Filter 1: ON PK Fc 25 Hz Gain 6.8 dB Q 1.68
Filter 2: ON PK Fc 653 Hz Gain 4.1 dB Q 1.07
Filter 3: ON PK Fc 4534 Hz Gain 5.8 dB Q 3.85
Filter 4: ON PK Fc 5664 Hz Gain -8.0 dB Q 2.63
Filter 5: ON PK Fc 20171 Hz Gain -11.5 dB Q 0.16
Filter 6: ON PK Fc 35 Hz Gain 2.0 dB Q 2.67
Filter 7: ON PK Fc 99 Hz Gain -2.3 dB Q 0.85
Filter 8: ON PK Fc 1581 Hz Gain 2.4 dB Q 4.23
Filter 9: ON PK Fc 2844 Hz Gain -1.9 dB Q 3.67
Filter 10: ON PK Fc 8361 Hz Gain -1.3 dB Q 4.51
No point in that kind of stuff. You can't polish a turd I'm afraid. EQ'ing does more wrong than it does good and can really only be used for a very limited amount of frequencies if you have a particularly difficult space to deal with, or so.
The gains I see here are massive, way bigger than any half decent pair of headphones should need. You're probably better off setting it up yourself.
If you want to get the most out of them, get a proper preamplifier. Also, maybe check the AKG K52 review I did if you find these a bit bright :D.
@@rollingtroll Yeah, I wasn't expecting any miracles, just tried it to see if the claims were true. Turns out, they weren't, as usual.
I've heard about the K52's before, I'll check it out.
Thank you for replying, much appreciated.
I recently bought this headphone, yeah the treble is too much. Adjusting the EQ for this headphone really helps to tame that piercing treble. Amazing soundstage and imaging if you compare it with IEM or earbuds (I usually use QKZ VK4)
Are these really are good for audio monitoring and mixing? I'm looking for a budget flattest over ears or inears
Thank you for a good review, i think i'm going to be getting these, i've been scouring for a review that doesn't compare them to headphones that cost more than triple the price and say get the more expensive ones cause they are better, no shit.
I mean, there's plenty of more expensive ones that are shite but I don't own those :D.
What are you going to use them with? Phone?
@@rollingtroll I'm using them on my pc, gonna by a sound card for em because my pc's on-board sound card sucks, i'm just using them for general use and gaming really, i do make music sometimes so it'll be nice for that as well
@@vgaggia if you have the money to shell out, consider the new AKG K240 Studio :)
@@rollingtroll Yeah that's out of my range, but i'll 100% look at it if i plan on upgrading in the future!
@@vgaggia Not sure what it costs there but here it's around 50usd (in the euro equivalent). With it being so close to the price of the Samson I would go for that, but of course it's still almost double the money :)
I ordered this pair cause of your video. I found them on sale for just €20.
Well done! Got a link?
Same!
Jonathan Davis is that you? :D Nice review, it is obvious that you know what ur talking about.. cheers!
Thanks man! You are more than welcome. I like to think I do :D.
Thanks for the in depth review!
You are very welcome!
some samson sr850 come with velour ear pads and some come with leatherette ear pads
I love this review. Very detailed and helpful. Also thanks for mentioning the coin mod.
And can you please do a review on your Sennheiser HD206?
The 206 are 'all right' but these Samsons are absolutely better. In 2020 though I would go for the AKG K240 studio. They were once 200 USD headphones but these days you buy them for 50, now that AKG Is part of the Harman Group, which has now been acquired by Samsung. They still sound amazing, possibly better than before, and they are ridiculous value for money.
The really 'big name' brands like Sennheiser, Bose, Dr. Dre Beats are generally never worth your time, though Sennheiser made some relatively nice headphones they are all over 1000USD and even at that price bracket there's way better ones.
@@rollingtroll saw they're 55ohm and has a 3.5mm plug.. does that mean I can use it on my phone/computer??
The AKG k240 i mean
@@angelicaamora11 definitely!
I've been watching reviews for this headphone and I think you are the fourth one.
If you want to use it with a real amplifier and not a phone, right now consider the akg k240 studio
@@rollingtroll but akg k240 is selling for double the price, is it worth double the money?
@@dhavalvyadav YES!
@@rollingtroll Thanks I'll go with the AKG then
@@dhavalvyadav Do keep in mind though; It's really not meant for use with a phone, the impedance is way off. But that really goes for most hi-fi headphones.
Thank you my friend, I found this video very helpful
@geofferzh79: you are very welcome!
Thanks for a very interesting and informative review. I wonder if I could get your advice? I want to get some very comfortable over-ear headphones in the 60-80 Euros (or maybe a little more) range, that I will primarily use to practice my bass guitar with (I hope to get an electric guitar too later). I don't have an amp - I plug into Garageband through a Behringer Audio interface and play along either with tracks imported into Garageband, or through UA-cam/Spotify. I was going through the various comments for this video and was wondering if the AKG K240 studio would be something you would recommend for this use, or something else? Many thanks.
Absolutely! You could be looking at the Audiotechncia AT-M50x but I'd be tempted to go for the 240, they sound a bit more 'honest'. They will need a little time to wake up though. Make sure you get the actual 'studio' model.
@@rollingtroll Thanks so much for replying - and so soon! Could I check what you mean by 'time to wake up?' I'll make sure I get the 'studio' model, as you advise. Many thanks.
@@downtime900 they need a little burn in time before they have all their highs and lows. It sounds a bit flat and mid focused when new, so don’t be disappointed when you first get it. Quickest solution is to just let it play pink noise for two days straight
@@rollingtroll Thanks very much!
Thank you for your review 😄
excellent review!
This exceeds my expectations! Got them in Hong Kong for US$50 for 2 pairs!
They are still an absolute steal. But in 2023 I would grab the akg k52 instead. See my review on those!
@@rollingtroll cool, thanks
Great review!
Awesome! Check my akg k⁵2 one!
Are you still using them? How does your ears feel after long sessions with them?
their not too bad, their ok it could be better my only complaint is that it looks ugly
@@21A_ are you kidding? they look sick! they look better than the hd 600 even!
@@daa2622 ikr
first you saved me and i love you because i was searching for a comparison between the hd201s and the sr850 and i wasnt finding nothing until i found your video thanks AND SECOND what you did with the coins on the headphones??
Just remove the caps and glue them on, pretty amazing result :D. Glad I could help!
Which is best for mixing audio and mastering samson sr850 or the audio tecnica ath20x???
You know, for a guy reviewing headphones, I was not expecting a whole forest of background noise in this videos audio.
Good review though
Doesn’t hurt the review :)
hd681 evo or samson rs850??
Between this one and the AKG K72, which one is better for its price?
samson
Solid. Thank you.
Would these be something good to use on a portable FLAC player? Such as something made by Fiio? Or even the higher end Walkmans
It's not too hard to drive so that should work. That said; The Sony walkmans don't sound great, at all, and the Fiio's sound amazing, but the software is a mess. I honestly wouldn't invest too much in that kind of stuff, there's phones out there with proper DACS though, may be something to look into. Other than that, just get a nice mp3 player that supports wav/flac. From what I understand the Sandisk Sansa Clip Zip actually can do that.
As for FLAC; Try comparing FLAC to WAV. Even though the files are identical, the work a computer has to do to play them (decompressing them as it goes) is audible. I personally would stick to WAV, even though the difference is obviously minimal.
Need a review Dolphin ds 70, it's under 60 USD, nearly flat sound.. Thank you.
If you buy it for me I will happily review it 😁
What amp are you using to plug these into?
Audio-Technica ATH-M20X or ATH-AVC400 or Samson SR-850? or sennheiser HD206?
M20's at any time, but they are twice the price.
@@rollingtroll I found the M20X and SR850 around 50dlls, I would use them mainly to listen to music and for some guitar or bass
@@j.asalazar9534 Ah, my sr850 was much cheaper. I would definitely go for the AT in that case
btw whats the song he tested in about 5:30. sounds like mac miller
Can I listen to music on my phone with these?
If your phone has a headphone jack, yes.
These are 32 ohms ouput, rated at 8 ohms input. A $1.00 iPhone 3.5mm output jack will do them no justice at all. It can't deliver enough grunt to fuel the drivers. Yes you can use them, but you will not notice much difference
sony mdr xd 150 or phlips shp 1900 those nomal headphones can use for mixing ????
Never heard them, don't know!
Is the range flat enough to do voice-over editing? Or is the aggression a bit much to get a true representation out of these? And are they tolerable to wear for hours?
Hmmm, it's a bit mid-heavy but not ridiculously so. For voice I'd recommend the AKG K141 though, or maybe a pair of Beyer DT100. They are very much tolerable to wear for yours.
Yes they are more than satisfactory for voiceover. I have been broadcasting for 30 years, and these are our studio second choice. When used in perfect flat EQ environment with clean A class pre-amps, they are not that bad at all. The finished recordings on air over FM sound quite similar to what we heard through our pre amps. For price, these do kick arse.
Do you think the SR990 r better & don't need the coin fix thing?
I can't tell you, honestly. Haven't heard them. But honestly right now I'd consider the new AKG K240 studio. It's cheap, and it's great.
Hi guys, hope you can help me in this one. Is that real leather in the headband?.
For 30 bucks? ;). It's definitely not, haha.
Oneodio pro studio VS Samson SR850 VS KZ ZS10?????
Not a clue! Haven't heard the KZ but honestly, that much tech in earbuds, not sure if I'd like that.
Great video!! Also your lamp looks like a toilet plunger
I swear it’s not!
what else do you recommend besides this at the same price point im looking for well balanced sound
At this price point? Nothing. If you want to go a little higher, look at AudioTechnica. Otherwise just stick to this. Alternatively you could buy the SuperLux HD681 EVO which is supposed to be a slightly better version of this Samson. Haven't tried it though!
Do you think it is good for gaming fps games to be more specific
Placement of sound is quite good but I would go for something a bit lighter and more cushioned for long gaming sessions
@@rollingtroll can you suggest me q good pair of headphones at this price range for gaming and recording
Superlux hd 681 vs Samson SR850 ?
Whichever is cheapest, it's the same thing with a different brand :)
@John Nada you are very welcome!
The problem with this headphone is that everyone says it’s good for the price. But that doesn’t mean they’re actually good enough to actually do anything worthwhile. Just wondering whether you actually use them. At all. And if so for what. I have a pair and want to justify my expense :) Thanks.
I use them a lot. They are good enough for general music listening and even for some monitoring. Wouldn't use them for mixing or critical listening. But they are rugged, comfortable and sound very acceptable. I know many 70-100 euro headphones that I think are worse. The grado sr60, any Dr Dre beats, any Bose or any affordable Sony, or Sennheiser. They are really value for money, and they are my most used pair of "quick I need headphones"-headphones. I also used to take them to record stores, but have a pair of JBL tune tws120 for that now.
These days though, if you are half serious, go for the new akg k240 studio for a little more money. Not for a phone though, it won't be able to drive them.
As for the sr850's; anyone who spent 200 bucks on Apple airpods will be very depressed after listening to these Samsons ;)
@@rollingtroll Sure. I get it. I think I bought them as mixing headphones because of the open back design. But I find the sound a little harsh for that purpose. I think if I look at it as just a nice pair of daily headphones I’d find them useful. So, yeah, that’s a take I never considered. They’re low impedence too so they’re great for phone use. Tell me though, is open back recommended for daily use. Actually why not eh :)
@@accentontheoff honestly, no headphone is good for mixing. You need a proper pair of monitors for that. Also remove the little branding plates and glue coins in their place, they rattle, makes it a lot less harsh. And let it play for a few days, the harshness will disappear. If anything mine are a bit on the wooly sounding side now.
I personally don't like closed headphones so for me half or fully open (these are definitely not completely open, with my akg k601 I sometimes forget I wear them because my environment sounds exactly the same) always sounds more spacious
@@rollingtroll Interesting, all the points you make. Will also try your suggestions. You’ve probably made me relook at these headphones. Cheers. :)
@@accentontheoff they are really not bad. If the new akg k240 wasn't that good I would still recommend them. As for cheap monitors; keep your eyes open for a pair of Wharfedale Diamond III. Careful with the low end though as these little ones obviously don't have a lot of it
Do you recommend this for watching intercourse videos for my thesis?
what isthe name of the left headphone that you recommended?
The AudioTechnica ATH-AD300. They are really as good as headphones that cost hundreds yet they cost 70 bucks when new. You don't often find them second hand but if you do, grab 'em.
Saw your comment on a techquickie video
Thanks for checking out my channel! Feel free to browse around and if you have any questions or remarks, I'll be hearing from you!
Oneodio pro studio vs Samson SR850???
Haven't had the chance to try the Oneodio
Akg k92 or sr850? Both cost the same here.
Never heard the k92. It's definitely more expensive here. If you can get the new K240 studio for that amount too though, go for that one. I can assure you it's better. With the K92 I assume it is but I can't be sure.
@@rollingtroll thanks a lot!.
Holy sh*t this guy in the video's thumbnail looked so much like Jonathan Davis (KoRn) lmao
I swear in am not
:D
Do you recommend them for mixing youtube covers ?
If mixing just means balancing, sure. If you are also planning to do EQ'ing/Multiband compressing and mastering of sorts, go AKG K240 studio. Lot more flat/balanced. This is not a monitor headphone :)
@@rollingtroll I just ordered the Samson SR-850. I think it suits my needs best and it also comes under my budget. I was also looking for AKG 240 but I can't afford it now (cuz of the pandemic). It is more than thrice the price of that of Samson's in my country. My main usage will be very basic mixing and mastering home-made songs, covers, etc. Also I also want to listen to music in a 'semi-open' and flat/natural way with my smartphone and PC.
Forgot to mention that your review covered all of my questions, and that too in detail and awesome way. Thanks 🥰👍
Hey there, feedback after almost two years ? Still on your shelf ?
Yes. But. The new "Samsung owned" AKG K240. 45 Bucks. Spend the little extra, it is so, so much better. No worse than the original k240, possibly even better, and less than 1/3rd of the price.
@@rollingtroll Let me dig into it , thanks. Any chance that you review them on your channel ? Cheers
@@Jonathan-fs8cl I might be crazy enough to buy one, that's how much I like it. But I just invested in wireless earbuds so it may take some time. It's the K240 studio I recommend, to be exact. Don't use it with a phone, it's too power hungry for that. But to use with any sort of (head)amplifier or sound interface, it's a gem. Absolutely worth the gamble :)
@@rollingtroll hahaha Ok,thanks for the recommendation anyway. For what it's worth, you earned a new sub
@@Jonathan-fs8cl thank you very much! The channel is slightly lacking structure, but I hope there's things on it that make your subscription worth while!
O ZS10 é melhor que o Samson SR850??
Acho q não, procurei e não tem quase nada de review do Samson
Korn vocalist does reviews, cool
Hahah, in his younger years. I won't respond if you call me Jonathan though ;)
@@rollingtroll since you're replying, can you eleborate on k121? are those decent pair or again something there sacrificed?
@@TheShmrsh very decent for the money. I just can't think of a reason to buy them now the k240 are so cheap. I daily k121's though, they are lovely, unless you want a really hyped up boomy crisp sound, then akg isn't for you. But if you like it balanced with a slight emphasis on midrange and vocals, the k121 is a safe bet.
Would you buy Takstar PRO82 in that price range?
or ISK HD-9999 ?
The Takstar looks like a fake AudioTechnica and the ISK looks like a fake AKG. I haven't heard either, in this price range I'd buy this Samson really :).
Buy the takstar its really2 food
Kind sir, can you please review Akg K52?
I'd love to man, but I just reviewed my own pair of headphones, I don't make any money doing this and no one is sending me free headphones, so I have no way to teset the K52.
I did just look them up, they look quite promising for so little money!
You know what, I found a cheap pair online and I'm curious as well. I ordered them and will give them a shot. Stay tuned!
@@rollingtroll Thanks a lot, can wait to watch it! why don't use the SR850 as a rough reference point, seem to be ideal?
ua-cam.com/video/FAIp44OGA1Y/v-deo.html
Here's the review :)
"They're Samsons for fuck's sake" 😅
Yup, and there's loads of headphones in the same price class that are shite, and these are not.
What kind of speakers are you using there?
None in this video, hah! But they are Tannoy SRM10B
@@rollingtroll Pricey.
they cost 20 euros now
Even cheaper! Where?
@@rollingtroll aliexpress
what song was he listening to at 5:41
Eels - Grace Kelly Blues
@@rollingtroll thanks man, what where the other ones as well?
I thought it was Jonathan Davis from the thumbnail
Hah, with glasses!
youre a cool dude
Thanks man! Happy you think so!
I thought yr review was good but then i saw you recommending the ath 50s so yr opinion is garbage.
My fear is the eternal cable. Once it's fucked adios headphones.
I didn't found or hear any simbilance or high end s sound 4 to 10k gz frequencies.
Be noted i had the superlux 681, and i couldnot stand how sibilant they were. But that's was 10 year before owning the sr850
And yes good bass for an semi open (practically open) set.
somic v2 vs samson sr850 ?
Haven't had the chance to try the Somic V2
@@rollingtroll Thanks for reply :)
You should have more subscribers
Thanks! They keep coming though :)
how would these work for mixing/mastering?
I wouldn't recommend any headphones for that, but if you have to; they are a bit sharp sounding in the lower midrange so you do need to make sure you don't mix that out. Other than that they would do quite well. But then using headphones you don't know yet is tricky for mastering at the best of times. You need a reference
@@rollingtroll yeah ofc, im trying to get some money for some monitors but good god they are expensive af, I'm also looking towards a camera and other stuff so the budget is very tight. I've worked in very very very bad headphones for a while now and cross referencing is what I'm used to do anyways.
@@tento3555 I'd like to recommend you hifi speakers for monitors but that just doesn't work quite right. Still if you want an in between option that I would prefer to headphones, find yourself a pair of Tannoy M2. They do a good job.
The hights of this headphone are absolutely pearcing! Much too much! 10 dB too much, I would say. The high mids are also too high. The rest is okay.
Gets way better after some time. Also, remove those brand plates! What preamp do you use?
@@rollingtroll I don't use any preamp. My amp is my cellphone :-). It delivers very good results at the Sennheiser HD 58x. But the SR850 and also the Superlux HD 681 had too much energy in the highs. I don't think that an amp changes anything about that. Maybe after a while one get used to it.
@@jorgbornefeld1689 It may just not be powerful enough to drive it. Not sure, it wasn't that bright here. Just a little pointy
@@rollingtroll maybe there are differences in different pruduction batches.
These are the same cans as Superlux hd681
As far as I understood there's now an updated version of the HD681 that's supposed to be better than these. I only found that out after I bought these though ;).
@@rollingtroll hi, nice review video. Did you mean these m.thomann.de/gb/superlux_hd_681_evo_bk.htm
@@pranji108 Exactly! Worth a shot :)
How loud is the bleed on them being semi-open? I need some new gaming headphones, but I keep my mic really close. I can get away with having a fan in my face and my mic not picking it up, but still a little nervous.. Never used open headphones before and that needs to change haha.
They're not dead quiet. If you want that, stick to closed back headphones. Or maybe even in ear monitors. I'm afraid that's always the trade off, open headphones sound a little better in general but they will bleed and you will hear your environment.
For this money though, if you are not ridiculously poor, I'd just give it a shot.
Although, as I said below somewhere, I did understand that the new improved Superlux equivalent (may want to google, I can't remember the model number) is a tad better even.
Got it. The HD681 Evo.
Cost about the same and are supposed to sound even better. I haven't heard them myself but I think it may be worth your bet.
I brought the SR-950 (the closed back version of these,) and I had no bleed into my Rode NT USB condenser mic when streaming.