Samson CH700 Closed-Back Studio Headphones

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List Price: $64.99
Sale Price: $49.99
Today's Bonus: 23% Off

• Headphone Type: Closed
• Driver Size: 40mm, Plug Type: 1/8-inch to 1/4-inch adapter
• Fit Style: Circumaural, Cable Type: Straight
• Frequency Response: 20Hz-22kHz, Cord Length: Approximately 3 meters
• Impedance: 64 ohms, Weight: 1.1 pounds

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Not only are these the most handsomely packaged headphones you're likely to find (gold lettering proclaiming: "Samson Stereo Reference Headphones Dynamic Output Design"; "for Studio Reference"; "Accurate Monitoring"; "Maximum Isolation and Extended Low Frequency Response with Close Ear Design"--all this on a transparent box displaying the phones as well as two gold-plated stereo plugs--full-sized and mini), but once you put them on, they pretty much live up to the production values and hype. One thing's certain: you'll never find anything better at this price. I considered this a "justified purchase," since I work in a studio, where I do public announcing and music broadcasting.

For the record, these compare favorably to the studio's Sony MDR-7506s, even though the latter are about six times the price. The bass is "extended," to be sure, but never heavy, boomy or muddy. With all controls on the amp or sound source set "flat," the treble is a bit soft for my tastes, but nothing that a minor EQ adjustment can't fix. The all-important middle-range is present, definitive, clear--for both vocals (spoken and sung) and instrumentals. Perhaps compared to the studio Sony phones, these are a trifle bigger, a little bit heavier and slightly more loose-fitting but, as advertised, they're constructed with a "closed-ear design providing maximum isolation." Away from the studio I prefer my Sennheiser PX-100s or Koss Portapros, but either of these is too open and lightweight for working close to a microphone. Feedback becomes a problem shortly into a broadcast. Although I'm a fan (apparently, one of the few) of the Koss UR-40s (about twice the cost of the Samsons), the Samson CH700s certainly appear to be better made--rugged, strong and, most likely, more durable than the UR-40s (the Koss webbing broke loose during the first several months of use). Moreover, the Samson CH700s have a generous and relatively thick cable (expecially compared to the thin, short wire of the Koss UR-40s) PLUS single-cord attachment (usually found only on costly phones yet practically mandatory for the sort of scrambling I do while broadcasting and operating as many as 4 decks at the same time).

One more A-B comparison: the Sennheiser Evolution EH-150 full-sized headphones vs. these Samson CH700s. Initially, the EH-150s seemed large to me (especially after the PX-100s), but alongside the Samson CH700s they appear relatively trim. In other words, some individuals may be turned off by the size of the Samson phones; others, most likely, will be drawn to them because of their solid, engulfing appearance. (My guess is that they would not be a big hit with many female listeners or, for that matter, individuals with heads any narrower than mine). As for the sound, the Sennheiser EH-150s are likely to impress many young listeners--instantly. The bass is not merely "extended": it's prominent, and it's punching. For that reason alone, some listeners may judge them worth the price (which is more than twice that of the Samson CH700s). Not this listener, however. The bass from the Samsons is far more "natural," clearly-defined, and pleasing over the long stretch (it doesn't take long for the bass from the Sennheiser EH-150s to wear out its welcome, becoming muddy and uninteresting--at least to some experienced ears).

In short, Samson is a good name and can only get better, thanks to the quality and value of products like the CH700s. The company has practically cornered the market with the world's most popular (not to mention effective and affordable) personal digital audio recorder (Zoom H2), and they've impressed the most fastidious critics with a slightly more sophisticated (and expensive) successor (Zoom H4n). They're currently taking a lot of flak for their latest product, the Zoom Q3 (basically a Flip videocam attached to an H2). They goofed big-time by completely (and inexplicably) ignoring the public's current obsession with "HD video," but look for that oversight to be corrected in short order.

Heck, if you decide not to purchase these phones, you could do far worse than invest the money in a share or two of the company's stock.

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These are great headphones for the price. We use these mainly for our protable keyboard when someone wants to play/practice and others don't want to listen. I would not recommend these for DJs, it does not block out enough sound for loud speakers playing in the background. For playing keyboard though it does it's job nicely. Also, it's great for kids since it blocks outside noises and they won't raise the volume too high and damage their eardrums.

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Well, i've been working with an old pair of A/T studio headphones (ATH-M20), and their performance was jus great, clear sounds, perfect bass, not 2 much middles, a bit of bright, but just great for studio monitoring, the only problen is that they're a bit wide, and the sound sometimes went out with the vocals... for that reason i bought the Samson CH700, nice appearance, strongly built, long cable and stuff, but when i put them on, i noticed that the sound wasn't as clear as expected,too much bass, midle frequencies not so clear, and high frequency response very poor. So, I kept my old but powerful and affordable ATH-M20

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My son's friend is always buying different gadgets and devices and bringing them over to try them out/show them off. He had a pair of these and was talking about how good they were. I have a pair of Audio Technica ATHM40FS Precision Studio Headphones, some old Koss Pro-4AA Studio Quality Headphones, some Sony MDR-V900HD Studio Monitor Type Headphones HD Driver, some Koss Hi Fi Stereophone with Volume Maximum Durability (158445), and a few others. I'm not going to tell you that these were as good as the A/Ts or the Sonys. I will tell you that I was impressed enough with them to buy some and some for a friend as well. After a few days of break in, they have proven themselves to be comfortable solid performers. I am more than satisfied with the quality for the price.

These were on clearance so I figured for the money I couldn't go wrong. They are much higher quality than I thought they would be. I'm using them for my iPod and Roland V drums and they work fantastic. 108db sensitivity is great for things that don't have a very loud volume. I'm very pleased!