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[Audioworm333]

So far, every single pair of headphones I've owned has gotten fucked up in some way. Every single one.

My most recent pair now only plays in one ear and nothing I can do can fix it. Right now, all I want is a pair of headphones that's actually reliable and won't break down within a year after getting them. I am fed up with this bullshit. Can anyone recommend a pair that's not too expensive? (Maybe I'm really just asking for too much..)

[Bumber]

Do you mean like the large kind? I use Sony MDR-ZX100 headphones. They were like $20 at Target and work pretty well.

[Mech#4]

I have a pair of Logitech USB Headset H390. Generally around $40 AUD from JB HiFi, they're apparently $40 USD as well.

They've lasted really well, having gone through one other pair that broke due to dropping, and I've been using them constantly for the last 2 years or so. Being careful not to drop headphones is probably the best way to make them last, wires get jolted loose from the solder lumps inside if done too often.

$40 is more than I would've liked to have payed but Logitech, in my experience, make good devices that aren't held together with masking tape.

I can't say anything for the quality of the sound, as I'm not interested in that but it doesn't sound tinny or muffled.

[miauw62]

I second Mech's suggestion. I also use that headset and it's pretty good. Logitech in general makes good-quality products that aren't overpriced.

[LordSlowpoke]

Do you mean like the large kind? I use Sony MDR-ZX100 headphones. They were like $20 at Target and work pretty well.

can confirm, these are pretty much unbreakable

[gimlet]

Just about every pair of headphones I ever owned has gotten the "only plays in one ear" - usually it seems to be from wires breaking in the part of the cord that flexes near the plug, because for a while if I rotate the plug juuuuust right it will work again.   Til it moves    My attempts to fix these were never very successful.  And NEVER very pretty   The best headphones I had were some Sennheiser HD280-PRO that had an easily replaceable plug-in cord, those really rocked.  Wait for a sale or they're $100 though :p

[Thief^]

I 2nd Sennheiser. I still use a cordless set (RS 120) I got for £50 in a sale, many many years ago. Of course, those are only any use near a desk, not out and about...

[Playergamer]

Yo. SteelSeries coming through.

((not actually mine, got it with the job in lieu of paycheck.))

[timferius]

I have a pair of Bose over ear headphones. They, uhh, aren't cheap, but sound delicious.

[Sappho]

I've been using the JVC HA-S600BE for a couple of years and I absolutely love them. They work brilliantly, great sound, lightweight, and they block a reasonable amount of incoming sound so I don't have to turn them up too loud. They were only about $35, I think, would probably cost less in the USA. I don't think you can still get that exact model, but in general, I recommend JVC for headphones. I tried Sennheiser once and the sound was really weak, especially in the bass range. Never used Logitech.

I do have a RadioShack headset with microphone that I use for the computer which I must have bought at least 8 years ago and still work flawlessly despite years of heavy use. No idea if you can still get those. I don't think they cost more than about $20.

EDIT: Stay away from ear buds, by the way, if you value your hearing. They do massive damage to your ears. I'm only 29 and have had tinnitus for 2 years... : / And I never even used headphones / ear buds that often. Any headphones are bad for you, really, but if you need to use them, stick with over-ear ones, and invest in good quality so you don't have to turn the volume up too loud.

[nenjin]

Yeah, I just want a pair of headphones that don't shit out somewhere near the input jacks. At this point it seems like an industry-planned tactic of planned deterioration, for how often it happens. Or do they honestly still not understand that the thinniest point of the cable cannot be the section that bends and crimps.

[Aptus]

I'm using a pair of sennheiser pc363d which are quite incredible. Might not be classified as "not too expensive" though, depending on your audiophile level. (Soundstuff can get REALLY expensive, really quickly).

I do recommend you look at "audio"-brands like sennheiser instead of "computer"-brands like steelseries and corsairs and stuff, you will get more bang for your buck that way in my experience. (I have owned two pairs of logitechs and a pair of corsair headsets, all of which broke far too soon and the latter of which had some real bad issues with feedback).

[MaximumZero]

I know they're overhyped, and I know that a lot of people hate them because of their name, but my Beats headphones (Solo HD) have worked wonderfully over the past few years. They've taken a shitload of abuse (I demo'd them to customers and have a small child,) and still sound amazing. The only issue that I've faced with them is that one of the hinges broke when a customer pulled them apart too hard. Also, they're not exactly cheap, although they are cheaper than the Bose and Sennheiser sets listed above.

[dwarf_reform]

Just saw this from the front page and had to come here to report my bit of info, even though its directly contradictory to what MaximumZero just said, haha..

I hung around my local Wal-Mart's tech section and went in looking for the best headphones I could find for under 10 bucks and eventually the guy told me "You wouldn't believe how many of those Beats headphones come back in broken or defective.."

I didn't buy headphones that day; I'm still using a 20 dollar pair of Phillips I got about seven years ago, that go around the back of your head instead of over the top (can't seem to find earbuds that don't attempt to kill my ears, either via discomfort or making a creepy air-tight seal..) I have no personal experience with Beats myself, only what a Wal-Mart goon told me in confidence, and this was last year sometime, and I'm sure there are more than one version of the headphones anyway (guy didn't specify)..

I'd ask the Googlenet about any highly expensive [INSERT_PRODUCT], though, just to make sure the quality matches up with the price There's at least one positive review sitting above this post :>

[Carnwennan]

These are damn good for the price