In this box ya got yer tweeter...

So, I was looking around for headphones today, since I really need to start hearing what other phones can sound like, I guess. But I thought I'd give up a few words on headphones used in anime and games, in case anyone out there wants to replicate the style of their favorite shows or whatnot. I don't have much but the most popular stuff, but eh...

So, we really can't talk about headphones in games without talking about the Audio Technica hype phones, otherwise known as the EM-700's (SV variant). The protagonist in Persona 3 is constantly depicted with these cans, although I suppose when the artist gets lazy drawing them, they turn into EM-7's, which us people in America can actually buy. Occasionally you'll see the hype phones pop up on Yahoo Auctions Japan for like $100 or so, the things were released in 2006 and have been discontinued (I think they were $110 MSRP on release, though the exchange rate's changed since then). The gimp phones on the other hand (okay, they're actually a good pair by all accounts) go for $50 in the States. The MSRP on them are $80.

Another set of phones in the Persona series are again, Audio Technicas. This time, it's a pair of ATH-FC700's sported by Yosuke Hanamura from Persona 4. He wears the red version, but again, this version has been discontinued. If you're in the States, you can pick them up in only white or black for like $30. Audio Technica is a very venerable brand, known for their really good audiophile stuff, but for some reason I get the impression they don't focus as much on the budget end of the scale. Maybe I'm wrong, some people seem to like these, but I remember seeing a few reviews where cheap Technicas get hedged out at that price range. The expensive stuff's all good though, just pump up the price into the higher double digits.

Of course, there's the famous pair from K-On as well. Mio Akiyama is wearing a pair of AKG K701's in one scene, and hey, they're still being sold! They're quite good from what I hear, but they're like $280 at the very least. However, during K-On's run, oh man. AKG sold the darn things for like eighty frickin' thousand yen at Sofmap. EIGHTY FRICKIN' THOUSAND YEN, THAT'S LIKE NINE HUNDRED AND NINETY NINE US DOLLARS! (/Kaz Harai voice) Holy hell, everyone loves 'em, but do not pay that much for these please.

Finally, in the manga Bakuman, we have Akito Takagi (otherwise known as Shuujin), wearing a pair of cheap Sony MDR-XD100's. You can find these in the States for $20. My impressions of Sonys are that the high-end stuff can be good, but their low-end offerings tend to be easily beaten out by other brands. I think they focus more on the guys that need a quick set of stereophonic sound systems on their ears without looking at reviews for their low-end lineup - I can't imagine other factors besides brand and style that'd drive a purchase decision in that case. There might be one or two Sonys that are good for the low, low price of $25, however in this case, I hear the Koss KSC75's do wonders for the same amount of cash. I actually kinda want some of those.

I've been poking around a bit, and it seems as though my musical tastes tend towards the Technicas. One guy recommended the AD900's, and another guy said the ESW9's, or a pair of Sennheiser HD580's or HD600's.