My Portapros. When I got them for $40!! I thought the sound was excellent; at least until I got the M50's which wiped the floor with them, and my friend's Lil Jamz which threw it into the metaphorical garbage can.

  Quote: Right out of my own mouth. It's not bad, strictly speaking, but it is just way overpriced.

Sounds shifty. Just pick the good you know, over the good you don't. In my experience brandless items indicate either a counterfeit model or a crappy one. Both are not good.

I think the M50s appeal to so many people because of its inherently neutral nature as monitor headphones. That, combined with it's excellent sound is where its ubiquity here on HeadFi comes from.   Lots of people claim it has too little or too much bass but I think that they are mostly...

This might be heretical but I would actually recommend switching to the much smaller earphones. Much more portable, and the small sacrifice in sound is easily worth not having to carry around the headphones on your neck or bag all the time. I'm also a student who travels constantly, and although...

1) You're getting ripped! $200! 2) You'll regret it once it goes out of fashion. Think 1980s outfits VS the timeless Tuxedo. 3) Too many people have the Beats already.

I've found that there is almost no variation in price wherever you went for the Beats. It's like buying Apple stuff: they all cost the same everywhere.

Shure SE535. Not only because of the sound, but the portability as well.

I had someone claim that the Beats sound was better than my M50's once. I didn't want to believe it, probably because it probably wasn't true.

I don't understand how something that isn't nearly as mainstream as other more well-known headphones can match up. Is it the looks, or the lack of promotion? It goes against the laws of demand.

If you care about how you look when you're at the gym, I would pass on the KSC75. And if there is no budget limit to what you want, there is plenty of better alternatives.

Quote: Yes, it isn't necessary at all. My attempt to drive them provided only a minimal improvement in sound to my iPod Shuffle.

It is possible to further improve the sound of the M50 with the right amp, but like others have said before me, they are not needed. The difference in sound is not exactly awesome.

Yeah, I bought my M50's from the Sound Professionals also and I really don't think you can get any lower than $120 anymore. Sorry.   In fact I remember reading about people buying them even earlier for around $80-$100 but now demand has sent prices soaring.