[Yukicore]

Hello everyone, I've been using the Audio-Technica M50's, after help of fellow members of Head-Fi, very popular and well priced headphones, and nice sound for the price. But after years of usage, they have stared to break down, not sound wise, but no improvements too, of course
 
I'm looking now for a balanced Full-Sized, Closed headphones.
Looking for a upgrade, after research I've found
V-Moda M-100, but reviews say they are rather bass-heavy, so I'm not too sure about that, since M-50's have just enough bass for my tastes, more than that would be too much.
Focal Spirit Professional, but I've read that they seem to have some build-quality concerns.
 
What are other options? Or what can someone tell me about the two headphones I've mentioned above?
 
For every day carry in-ear earphone's I've settled with TTPOD T1S, which kinda sound even better than M-50's to me, well sound signature wise, at least. I'm very impressed by how great they sound, especially for their price.

 

[deafdoorknob]

I went from the vmoda to the M50x and much preferred the latter, in fact, it is still my preferred commuting headphone.

the focals are much leaner than either, and relatively uncomfortable.

you could head over to the extreme bass head club thread for more bass heavy headphones.

without knowing your budget or taste, the other contenders would be:

M50x
beyerdynamic COP (user adjustable bass)
Aiaiai TMA-2 (Studio preset)
JVC SZ-2000
Audiotechnica Pro700 mk2
( http://musicalmusings.themindofgame.com/2013/05/audiotechnica-pro700mk2-review-basshead-set/ )

 

[Yukicore]

I went from the vmoda to the M50x and much preferred the latter, in fact, it is still my preferred commuting headphone.

the focals are much leaner than either, and relatively uncomfortable.

you could head over to the extreme bass head club thread for more bass heavy headphones.

without knowing your budget or taste, the other contenders would be:

M50x
beyerdynamic COP (user adjustable bass)
Aiaiai TMA-2 (Studio preset)
JVC SZ-2000
Audiotechnica Pro700 mk2
( http://musicalmusings.themindofgame.com/2013/05/audiotechnica-pro700mk2-review-basshead-set/ )

Thank You for clarifying Vmoda and the Focals, I guess I can cross those out from my list.
 
People have been complaining about durability of Beyerdynamic COP, so I guess I will be skipping those. Or shouldn't I?
 
Really like the AIAIAI TMA-2 Studio, never heard of them before. But the question is, how much am I paying for them modular, as that's not really what I am after, surely there are headphones that deliver more for the price?! But I really like these, and reviews speak very highly of them. 
 
JVC SZ2000 & Audiotechnica Pro700 mk2, Have you had personal experience with these? JVC's design wise look stunning. But sound wise, they both go as Bass Heavy headphones, and the thing is with most Bass Heavy headphones, they often sound rubbish in other areas, not saying they do in particular, but some people say that in reviews. Also as for Pro700 mk2, they are DJ headphones, which are usually less comfortable, and focused more on punching the bass, which doesn't exactly reproduce the original sound.
 
Not sure if m50x are much of an upgrade, they're pretty much the same, right?
 
So, maybe You didn't perceive that I was going more for Balanced sound. But I greatly appreciate the suggestions, they helped me a lot on my investigation. The AIAIAI TMA-2 seem like a nice headphone, which I could potentially buy, but I am wondering if there is a better alternative. Not sure though why these headphones are sitting in the jungle, as rarely anyone says something bad about them. Maybe because of the name.

 

[Yukicore]

I found A-T ATH-A900X, the reviews say that they are really great, especially for the price. 182€, could be lower
 
Anyone can quickly note something about them, or tell me a better option? I can cancel the order within few hours, but after that I think any returns or cancellations would be very problematic
 
Damn, I couldn't take it, ATH-A900X seemed like too much of a gamble, and they often go for as low as 140€, I should either wait or find a better alternative. Some people are saying that they are bad fit, and uncomfortable, also less bassy than M50's, which is not fine by me. This is so complicated. If only there was a place in my country, where I could compare and try out various headphones.

 

[Yukicore]

Thinking of getting Audio-Technica ATH-MSR7's, which I've been looking at for quite a while. Some people say that they lack low's, some say they don't, hopefully those who say they lack are bass-heads.
Anyone have an opinion on those or another recommendation?

 

[Yukicore]

Damn it, nobody cares about me 

 
I ordered MSR7 for a little bit over 200€
I probably won't be updating this as no one gives a ***** about headphones under 500€ in this forum 

 

[sikki-six]

Beyerdynamic DT770 with 80 or 32 ohms are much better than the M50's, imo. The price should be pretty similar, at least here in Europe. They do bass better I think, also the mids/lower highs are not as shouty. There's some strident stuff in the highs on both, but DT's are much easier on the ears there. Sound stage is strong for such a closed can - M50 has very little SS.... Talk about comfort - M50 just cannot compete with Beyer earpads. 
 
It's one old design, but I don't think it has been bested in the 100-150 euro range.

 

[zazex]

  Damn it, nobody cares about me 

 
I ordered MSR7 for a little bit over 200€
I probably won't be updating this as no one gives a ***** about headphones under 500€ in this forum 

 
They're really good headphones; you made an excellent choice.
 
Very widely praised in the UK and USA press, on various websites, etc. (including this one)
 
Perhaps a touch light in the bass, and a touch 'present'' in the upper mids.

 

[Yukicore]

  Beyerdynamic DT770 with 80 or 32 ohms are much better than the M50's, imo. The price should be pretty similar, at least here in Europe. They do bass better I think, also the mids/lower highs are not as shouty. There's some strident stuff in the highs on both, but DT's are much easier on the ears there. Sound stage is strong for such a closed can - M50 has very little SS.... Talk about comfort - M50 just cannot compete with Beyer earpads. 
 
It's one old design, but I don't think it has been bested in the 100-150 euro range.

 
Mids is the reason why I didn't want to go for Beyerdynamic DT770, Well I couldn't hear them for myself, but based on reviews. The m50's, while bass is quite punchy and somewhat detailed, mids are left out. Not sure how highs compare to better headphones, but they seem to be missing detail a lot. So I ordered AT - MSR7, while it's said to be a bright headphone and not as punchy in lower bass sections, but I'll see how it goes.
 
DT770's would probably be a good upgrade from m50's if you wanted similar V shaped sounding headphones with more detail.
 

   
They're really good headphones; you made an excellent choice.
 
Very widely praised in the UK and USA press, on various websites, etc. (including this one)
 
Perhaps a touch light in the bass, and a touch 'present'' in the upper mids.

 
Thank You.
 
I usually try to skip the official review site opinions, as they tend to skip noticing issues with products, and take a very quick look and don't go in-depth.
 
I heard about the absence of strong bass, but hopefully I could overlook that, as m50's sometimes seem too punchy in the bass for me, not so much now as in the first few weeks, because I've got used to them, but still.
Sometimes it's a nice feeling to listen to the lower sections, as it's like listening to the melody and groove of songs, rather than the song itself. But I still prefer more flat sound overall. I really have to concentrate to be able to hear mids on m50's, but for the price they're really great headphones.
 
Edit: My ears are kinda used to muffling the bass themselves, when I first put m50's on after a break the bass is cutting into ears, but after a while I'm starting to kinda straining the ears to leave the bass out, does this make sense? 

 

[zazex]

   
Mids is the reason why I didn't want to go for Beyerdynamic DT770, Well I couldn't hear them for myself, but based on reviews. The m50's, while bass is quite punchy and somewhat detailed, mids are left out. Not sure how highs compare to better headphones, but they seem to be missing detail a lot. So I ordered AT - MSR7, while it's said to be a bright headphone and not as punchy in lower bass sections, but I'll see how it goes.
 
DT770's would probably be a good upgrade from m50's if you wanted similar V shaped sounding headphones with more detail.
 
 
Thank You.
 
I usually try to skip the official review site opinions, as they tend to skip noticing issues with products, and take a very quick look and don't go in-depth.
 
I heard about the absence of strong bass, but hopefully I could overlook that, as m50's sometimes seem too punchy in the bass for me, not so much now as in the first few weeks, because I've got used to them, but still.
Sometimes it's a nice feeling to listen to the lower sections, as it's like listening to the melody and groove of songs, rather than the song itself. But I still prefer more flat sound overall. I really have to concentrate to be able to hear mids on m50's, but for the price they're really great headphones.
 
Edit: My ears are kinda used to muffling the bass themselves, when I first put m50's on after a break the bass is cutting into ears, but after a while I'm starting to kinda straining the ears to leave the bass out, does this make sense? 

 
Well, IMO some review sites are better than others.  In fact, some are very good indeed.
But generally they're not going to be your top hits on google or whatever search engine you use.
 
[Note: I have had the MSR7's btw.  Wouldn't comment on them otherwise.

]
 
 
 

 

[Yukicore]

I received the MSR7's yesterday. After now 4+ hours of use these are my impressions.
 
Looks and comfort : They look superb, if only they'd feel more premium, but then again, once they're on your head they are so comfortable and don't feel heavy on your head, so when thinking that way, I can justify the use of plastic, but the plastic is not very cheap feeling, especially after getting used to the headphone.
 
Sound : Well I know now what some reviewers said about them sounding separate and bright, for a monitor headphone sounding separate might be the most important feature, so I'm not sure how the M50's get to be called monitor headphones. Continuing on, when you easily spot a badly produced song, due to the headphones sounding clean and separate, these headphones will make you hate bad producers. As well as, for example, people who make Youtube videos using bad quality microphones.
   For me I found them quite sibilant, and thus very tiring. Maybe I will get used to it, or they will "burn-in". I would have liked them to be a bit more punchy in higher end of Low frequencies and more calm in the highs.
 
As far as audio reproduction they're amazing, and that is the problem with them, they make badly produced sounds sound horrible. It's good that I have only a small fraction of them in my personal audio library, but hearing them annoys me now greatly, and when viewing videos on Youtube where the author would use a bad quality microphone hurts my ears. When the beauty is better audible, the ugly becomes more apparent..
 
After 15+Hours of use : The highs are still piercing through my ears on songs produced by people using muddy headphones made by Beats or something, but on other than that I've gotten used to the highs, and they are very pleasing, if audio content is produced correctly.
Bass response has improved, it might just be me getting used to the headphones, it's now almost the sweet-spot for me, but it makes me appreciate songs with deep bass and low notes on bass guitars, as there is more audible diversity between the frequencies, that of the M50's had.
Headband starts hurting the top of my head after 1-2 hours of use, which I hopefully will change as the headband material begins to loosen up.

 

[Yukicore]

About the headband comfort. I couldn't really get used to it, top of my head just hurts after using these, and then some. I tried finding a headband cover for these, there wasn't much of a choice, but I got THESE (Headband Cushion Comfort pad For HD-series Headphones--Black) , they fit almost perfectly. if only a bit too tight. I will post pictures. And they improve the comfort a little bit, it feels great to have a different pressure point on the head. As you can see they make the headphones look worse, though.
 
Posting this to update the comfort part of my impressions, and to help someone decide whether to get these, I was risking when getting these.

 

[krenky]

I don't think that upgrade looks bad. If you wear them home its all right. Comfort and sound is more important... I don't have these but also consider these headband cover for my other models. I would give it thumbs up. I hope you still have them.

 

[Yukicore]

I don't think that upgrade looks bad. If you wear them home its all right. Comfort and sound is more important... I don't have these but also consider these headband cover for my other models. I would give it thumbs up. I hope you still have them.

I still have them, comfort for me is great, some times after very long sessions the ear cushions start to squeeze too close to your ear. Very long being over 4 hours without​ a break.
The head band was worth it to me, I think. Otherwise it wouldn't be just the ear gristle hurting after a long session.
Sound for me is perfect. I love the neutral sound they give, you can listen to all kind of music genres with pleasure