Philips - SHP9600

I'm a HUGE fan of the Philips SHP9600. For the money, I think it's the best headphone ever made by anyone.

shp9600. Spare parts are easy to find, build quality is great for the price. I love my shp9500 and it's still in good condition even after 7 years. I bet the 9600 is better since the treble isn't as piercing as the 9500

I’m using Philips shp9600’s.  Huge soundstage, open back. You can connect a mic to it if needed. 

phillips shp9600 has great, wide soundstage and are very comfortable. they are open back though.

They're pretty efficient so the apple usb-c to 3.5mm adapter is enough. For music the tuning is a little wonky. I recommend the EQ below. Just copy and paste it into a text file and import it into your EQ software. For gaming I don't really care and the "muddiness" could even make footsteps more audible. EQ (shp9600 autoeq to diffuse field 10db tilt) Preamp: -7.0 dB Filter 1: ON PK Fc 140 Hz Gain -4.5 dB Q 0.700 Filter 2: ON PK Fc 950 Hz Gain -2.5 dB Q 4.000 Filter 3: ON PK Fc 950 Hz Gain 1.1 dB Q 8.300 Filter 4: ON PK Fc 1900 Hz Gain 7.0 dB Q 1.400 Filter 5: ON PK Fc 3500 Hz Gain 3.9 dB Q 3.500 Filter 6: ON PK Fc 4600 Hz Gain -3.5 dB Q 7.800 Filter 7: ON PK Fc 5200 Hz Gain 1.7 dB Q 10.000 Filter 8: ON PK Fc 5700 Hz Gain -1.9 dB Q 9.700 Filter 9: ON PK Fc 6200 Hz Gain -9.3 dB Q 6.000 Filter 10: ON PK Fc 8400 Hz Gain 3.8 dB Q 5.400

Philips shp9600 over ear open back $75

SHP9600 are a very large headphones, they are supposed to have more clamp force than my SHP9500 which are a very clamp force light, but the diameter of the ear cups is huge and so I would still worry they will be just too big to be worn comfortably on a small head. There are a lot of complains by adults with small heads, particularly women, for whom SHP9500 was too big, and hence uncomfortable to wear (if it even stayed on their heads). Unfortunately I don't think I have used anything good for less. I have Samson SR850, comfort is hit and miss (might be fine for small heads, but not for large ones), but the treble are very sharp and harsh I would say it is not worth wearing out they hearing, and also the headphone's whole construction is very microphonic to the point you hear various noises when moving your head, There are also Koss headphones (I have clip on KSC75 which I like, and headband one Koss Porta Pro which I don't as I find them too muddy), but I would worry about the reliability. There are sometimes some leftovers/refurbishes of various discontinued Sennheisers on-ears from PX and PMX series available on local markets so I would perhaps look if there are any. ISK has $40 open backed model called HF2010 which is roughly based on Beyerdynamics headphones construction, it has good reviews, so maybe it is something to check.

I think sundara is under 250 now. It def needs eq, but if you have that, theyre still a great choice imo. Id shy away from sennheiser bc of soundstage and lack of sub bass. Shp9600 or similar is also a good cheap option. Look at josh valour and dms recommendations for 2025 as well.

For context, i own a pair of sundaras and gifted some shp9600s to my brother for gaming. Oh also, pc38x if its within budget

My under $100 picks: Koss KPH30i and KPH40i, Philips SHP9500 and SHP9600, Audio-Technica ATH-M40’s (on sale) Sennheiser HD 599’s (also on sale)

Philips SHP 9500 or 9600 and a v-moda boompro microphone

You specify open back but you are coming from closed back. Under USD $100 the only good open back headphones I know of are the Philips SHP9500 and SHP9600. On ebay with name your price they might sell for as little as USD $40 and should still be abundant at $60. They have good bass, but to get them to hit as hard as you seem to desire, you'd have to use EQ to further boost the bass: [https://equalizerapo.com/](https://equalizerapo.com/) Closed back, under $100 the Audio-Technica ATH-M20x used to be a great bargain and was often open box priced at $25 on [Adorama.com](http://Adorama.com) Now I see them at $60 to $70 and think they'd still be a great value if they could be found at $40 or less. Instead of purchasing them at $60, for $130 on ebay, the FiiO FT1 are a far greater value, and absolutely deliver the punch you seek. Spend the $30 more and stick with a closed back, use EQ with the Philips, or budget $300 and get the Sennheiser HD 490 Pro open backs, used or open box. They're not as punchy as the FiiO FT1, but they do have great low bass extension and everything else a great pair of open backs can provide. I've never listened to Superlux. They make a hybrid semi open back HD 681 headphone that's supposed to be nice. It's also pretty cheap, maybe $40. Because it's only partially open it might have a bit more low frequency impact than the Philips. I'd still pick either of the Philips over Superlux, with or even without available bass boost for movies. You'd like their open soundstage for how that transports you into the scene and you'd get used to the bass level and swear you never missed a beat. Open backs are my favortite and I'm glad you specified that type. The HD 490 Pro are my favorite movie headphones but out of your range. The FiiO FT1 are my second favorite and for low rumble, nothing else I own can beat them, so you should add $30 and get the FT1, for now, and then if you spot the Philips at a great price, add them and use them as trainers for the day you do want headphones like the HD 490 Pro. The FT1 are also the most efficient headphones in this bunch, so if you don't have a headphone amp, they have the best shot of making your earphone jack still seem awesome.