Written By:
Date Posted: October 18, 2002

Everyone loves good sound, right? Well, except for deaf people, but that's a whole other review I can't do. I've been using a cheap old 20 dollar headset from Labtec for the past few years, but in the past few weeks I've been enlightened to how much better headphones actually get.

Being on a budget, I ordered some Sennheiser HD-497 headphones from . Having been told they are the best for the price range (50-70 bucks) by more than 1 person, I placed the order, and 4 days later the headphones arrived.

Here are the official specs...

Open-Aire® dynamic Hi-Fi stereo headphones
Completely new ergonomic design
Extremely lightweight and comfortable
Extended frequency response and warm, natural sound reproduction
High-efficiency drivers - great for use with portables
Detachable OFC copper cable
Two year warranty
ConnectorID: 1/8th Inch Stereo Plug with 1/4 Inch Adaptor HeadphoneTypeID: Medium-Sized, Ear-Pad (supra-aural) TransducerID: Dynamic Sealed: Open
Frequence response 24-22k

Looking very good so far :)

The headphones are very comfy after they adjust to your head for a few hours (self adjusting headband), you need to position the cups themselves right though, which is pretty simple. These are not as comfy as some other big-name headphones, but enough to wear for hours on end blasting your favorite tunes. :)

Final Words

Compared to my old headphones, the sound produced by these headphones is amazing. Whether they are being used for music or gaming the Sennheisers perform magnificently. They also produce good bass, good midrange, and good highs. These are great headphones for 66 bucks shipped :) you won't need a 200 dollar amp with these either, so you can bring them on the road, but they are open headphones, so you might make the driver mad if you're too loud ;).

The isolation (how much sound the headphones keep out, and in) isn't very good, but that's not such a bad thing, since you can hear people around you.

The only bad thing about these headphones is the dual side cord. I am a fan of only having to deal with one cord, dealing with both cords is slightly annoying, but I have gotten used to it.

Pros:
Extremely good sound quality
Comfort factor
Long cord
Price
Open air design

Cons:
Dual side cord, get use to it.
Open air design
Tight fit at first

Bottom Line: If hate your current headphones, invest in a pair of these beauties. They are worth every penny and them some.

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