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Are the Vmoda's an overall better pair than the M50's? I'm probably going to go with the Fiio E7 or E11. The Vmoda M-80 is about $170 on Amazon and the M50's are $130. Do you know a place where I could get the Vmoda M-80 for a better price?
What exactly are you looking for? You can't just expect to buy a bunch of good sounding headphones without knowing what you want (other than sound quality, obviously).
First of all, noise isolation is pretty much a must if you are going to use these outside. 1) others can't hear you 2) you can block other noise, which leads to better enjoyment of the music
That said, the M50s have "okay" noise isolation and the M-80's, from what others told me, are a bit disappointing when it comes to noise isolation. But it is a bit of a compromise, since they do have vents in the ear cups that give a larger soundstage. You do realize the M50s are circumaural (around the ear) and the M8-0s are supraaural (on-ear). Once again, you gotta consider these things since supraaural designs are more uncomfortable but are usually smaller, making them more suitable for portable use. Both are decent portability wise though, though with their own pros and cons. For instance, the M50s fold nicely while the M-80s can't fold up but they are more durable, lighter, and smaller.
Apparently the Koss DJ1000/2000 have a nice midrange but a somewhat disappointing soundstage. Would work well for vocal oriented music from what I presume, but maybe not as diverse with other genres. That's just what I think though. Never heard them.
I recently tried out a Philips Citiscape Uptown at Best Buy. I was just amazed by the noise isolation (best I've heard next to the Bose series, which sound like crap) and the soundstage (fantastic for a closed phone). They look decent as well, coming in two color combinations. I personally like the black/ brown but apparently people also like the gray/ brown... looks ugly to me though. I couldn't really test out the sound spectrum but judging by the reviews, it's well balanced for a headphone of this price. The M50s sort of pissed me off because the bass leaked into the midrange. For classical music genres and vocal-oriented music, this was a turn-off. They're decent cans but for the price, I think the Philips Uptown Citiscape is more worth the money, for their sheer versatility - only 110 dollars currently on Amazon! The M-80s are very nice as well, coming with a nice package and phenomenal durability. But are they really worth the money? Hmm. Not to mention the new M-100s are coming out (around the ear version).
