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For people who are obsessed with music—no matter what kind—the gear they use to listen to hot tunes is sacred. Good headphones, speakers, and accessories make a big difference when it comes to sound quality. And that stuff doesn’t have to cost a fortune! Here’s a batch of Giz-approved gear for your audiophile friends and family.
Maybe you’re cool using Apple’s pathetic buds are good enough for your lame ears, but your music loving friend is going want something a little more robust. Cramming big sound into little in-ear monitors is a challenge and Shure nails it. We also really like that the cables on all of their headphones are replaceable because it’s a shame to lose a great buds over a wasted cable. £130 from Play.com
A good USB digital-to-audio converter helps turn all those bits on your computer into sound waves as accurately as possible. You absolutely need a good DAC to take full advantage of high-resolution audio files. Help your nerd friend swap the crap DAC on their MacBook for this affordable little box. £140 from Amazon
This AirPlay speaker is everything a wireless system should be: Battery-powered, portable, excellent sounding, water-resistant, easy-to-setup. Oh and it sounds spectacular. £250 from Amazon
These super clear sounding headphones are some of our favorite new cans this year. The Harman Kardon CLs sound good with practically every kind of music. Plus, they’re light, comfortable, and portable enough to carry around as an everyday set of headphones. £170 from Apple
Pro-Ject turntables have a minimal and effective design. But don’t let that gorgeous simplicity fool you. The Austrian company precision tunes their tables for low-vibration to achieve accurate sound reproduction. £175 from hifigear
Polk makes some of my favorite speakers I’ve ever owned. The company has got a long history of creating well-built speakers with exceptional clarity, balance, and fullness. £320 from Amazon
These studio quality headphones are perfect for your desk. Their flat frequency response curve represents music exactly the way it was recorded. £112 from Amazon
We discovered this incredible portable speaker in the ghetto of mid-range crap Bluetooth speakers. It delivers one thing that no other wireless speaker in its class can: Convincing bass. £105 from Amazon
This Christmas, take comfort knowing we’re doing all the hard work for you. Check out all of Giz UK’s gift guides over here. All you’ve got to do is cough up the cash!
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Shure headphones earphones need to have replacement cables because they are always the first thing to go. Had 2 pairs now that barely lasted 12 months. Very common fault with Shure.
Highly recommend the HD-280 Pros. Had a pair for years. They’re a little battered now due to getting carried pretty much everywhere I go but still sound great. And every part can be replaced fairly inexpensively for when they do end up a bit battered.
Yeah, I’ve had to replace the cable on my SE535′s once because the ear loop wire snapped. That was a £37 expense, but I suppose it’s better than £240.
Agreed. Shure need to sort out their build quality, I won’t have another pair until they do.
I fancy an Audieengine D1, but it’s have to be sub-£100 before I’d buy it.
No Objective2? Probably the best DAC money can buy costs 100 quid and the design is “open source”.
The designer: http://nwavguy.blogspot.co.uk/
UK manufacturer: http://epiphany-acoustics.co.uk/our-products/dacs/e-dac-24bit-miniature-usb-dac/
There’s also a headphone amp which can be either standalone or plugged into the DAC.