Shure SRH440 Professional Studio Headphones (Black)

I'm the type who likes to hear every detail in the music. When listening to an old analog track from the 70s I actually think it's cool to hear the increasing "hiss" as each instrument is punched in as the song builds. Or to hear the singer(s) take a breath just before committing their lines. Both the Sennheiser HD-280 Pro(which I have owned since 2007) and Shure's newer SRH-440 enable me to do that very well, and at *reasonable* not too loud volumes.

I looked up both headphones at headphone . com. The graphs of their freq response correspond well with how they actually sound to my ears, hence the title to this review. Both phones are very close in performance in the lows to mids, and in the high frequencies. I have next to no sensitivity above 12kHz, so I cannot comment on either in that respect.

Where they differ, and you will see this at the website I referenced, is in their handling of deep(below 80Hz) bass and of the high-midrange section (3-4kHz)...Read more

The Shure SRH440 is the best set of over ear monitors I've ever heard for critical listening in the price range. I don't think you can buy a better set of non-noise canceling cans for around $100. I think many headphones that cost $200 or less fall short of the sound quality. The build quality is sturdy, and I can tell I will have these headphones for a lifetime. Even not extended, they hug my very average sized head just right, and there's plenty of slack for people with bigger heads. And they are comfertable for hours at a time, and the pads are soft pleather but, not the cheap stuff. Plus they are replaceable.
They keep a fairly decent amount of sound out, if they were a little more snug they would keep more out, but even so walking down the street you have to try to get distracted by cars going by. If you're from or have ever been on the T in Boston, you know how loud it is. With these things on my head, I can still hear the very muted grinding of the rails, but its hard to...Read more

In running a professional studio finding the right headphones has always been a problem. They need to be durable, true sounding and isolating. We always used the AKG 141's and 240's but they are not very robust and need lots of TLC to keep running. They sound great but are open backed so the isolation is not optimal. But now a new pair of 141's are close to $150.The Beyer Dt 770 are better isolating, though they sound a bit "canny" not very natural in the vocal range. But they are $199 a pair.The Audio Technica ATH 50's sound great but are also in the $200 range

Enter Shure, the makers of the revered 57 microphone. The SRH 440 Headphones sound excellent,isolate well,are rugged and best of all I found them for $80 on Amazon. Now when they get thrown across the room I don't worry.

The only thing I don't like about them is the coil cord they come with. Straight cables are much more practical for studio use. But the cables are detachable.

We've been...Read more