[messi]

Hello,
I'm looking for quality sound and stylish headphones and would rather have sound over style, and it's good to note that I haven't owned over-ear headphones before. I want headphones that aren't too hard on the bass and would like the bass to be above average (not exaggerated), plus treble should be medium. 

 

I now have AKG K375 and I find the bass very crisp and treble is ideal so overall sound is perfect. I will not use any amps when using the headphones so please consider that. Options I have considered are ATH-M50x, AKG K545 and Sennheiser Momentum.

 

I will use them mainly for music like hip-hop/rap, trap and house on my phone & laptop and rarely (once/twice a month) use them for movies/TV shows on my laptop.

 

Your input on these headphones and/or other quality headphones (for under $300) would be tremendously appreciated and I am pretty sure others will benefit as well.

 

[kraken2109]

I'd lean towards the AKGs and Senns since they're actually designed to be portable.

 

[mdslhc27]

I've tried both the M50x and Momentums and found the Momentum to be superior in clarity as the bass of the M50x seemed rather muddy to me. IMO if you have the $$ go for Momentum if not the M50x isn't a shabby choice too.

 

[BillsonChang007]

Hello,

First of, if your current headphone is perfect for you, you should consider sticking with it instead xD

As for which one to go for, the Momentum cups is rather small and ATH-M50 (not sure bout the new one) highs can be fatigue with some of the tracks and to some people. Both bass is on the loose side, AKG K545 is definitely not for basshead or people who want above neutral bass but it rather have a deep bass. Look into the Denon AH-D600

Hope it helps
Billson

 

[messi]

  I'd lean towards the AKGs and Senns since they're actually designed to be portable.

Not looking for a whole lot of portability because I will mainly use them at home and will use them in public occasionally.

 

[messi]

  I've tried both the M50x and Momentums and found the Momentum to be superior in clarity as the bass of the M50x seemed rather muddy to me. IMO if you have the $$ go for Momentum if not the M50x isn't a shabby choice too.

I feel the Momentums won't do great with the bass as someone else told me. They don't look like headphones which are made for music, and I'm not really looking for bass-heavy headphones and would rather have neutral sound with excellent highs and lows rather than bass-boosted headphones. I have a $300 budget but not too sure about the Momentums.

 

[messi]

Hello,

First of, if your current headphone is perfect for you, you should consider sticking with it instead xD

As for which one to go for, the Momentum cups is rather small and ATH-M50 (not sure bout the new one) highs can be fatigue with some of the tracks and to some people. Both bass is on the loose side, AKG K545 is definitely not for basshead or people who want above neutral bass but it rather have a deep bass. Look into the Denon AH-D600

Hope it helps
Billson

Although they are perfect earphones, I'm looking for over-ear headphones which are far more superior in comfortably as my current in-ear headphones keep falling off my ears (without moving). Don't mind the fatiguing of the highs for the M50x. From what I read online and what someone told me, the M50s work very well in all kinds of music as they are monitoring headphones and not made for a specific. Took K545 out of my list because of the said quality of sound. As for the Denon AH-D600, I do not wish to get headphones that require batteries!
 
Thank you all for your help!

 

[mdslhc27]

The Momentums do offer a great deal of sound, bass was alright for me (don't judge it just cos it's stylish) but I find it's price a bit too steep.
 
Maybe if you're looking for something with a flat signature, you could look at the Shure SRH840 headphones. They are rather heavy and bulky(meant for studio use) but sound quality is great, making up for its lack of portability. I bought them over the Momentums a few days ago as I couldn't afford the Momentums. It's a steal for its price, on Amazon for about $199

 

[BillsonChang007]

I feel the Momentums won't do great with the bass as someone else told me. They don't look like headphones which are made for music, and I'm not really looking for bass-heavy headphones and would rather have neutral sound with excellent highs and lows rather than bass-boosted headphones. I have a $300 budget but not too sure about the Momentums.

Although they are perfect earphones, I'm looking for over-ear headphones which are far more superior in comfortably as my current in-ear headphones keep falling off my ears (without moving). Don't mind the fatiguing of the highs for the M50x. From what I read online and what someone told me, the M50s work very well in all kinds of music as they are monitoring headphones and not made for a specific. Took K545 out of my list because of the said quality of sound. As for the Denon AH-D600, I do not wish to get headphones that require batteries!

Thank you all for your help!

Hello,

IMO, the Momentum have above neutral bass. Some would find it " weak" in bass not because of the quantity but the quality. It is on the loose side and it leaks to other FR. The Momentum overall, have a balanced sound.

AH-D600 does not need battery.

The ATH-M50 fatigue may not be noticeable if you are listening to dark mastering and/or if your listening section is no longer than an hour. For long term listening, the ATH-M50 sound fatigue to me and with genre like pops, things tend to sound more fatigue. I do however, like it with dubsteps xD

Anytime welcome to Head-Fi sorry about your wallet!
Billson

 

[messi]

  The Momentums do offer a great deal of sound, bass was alright for me (don't judge it just cos it's stylish) but I find it's price a bit too steep.
 
Maybe if you're looking for something with a flat signature, you could look at the Shure SRH840 headphones. They are rather heavy and bulky(meant for studio use) but sound quality is great, making up for its lack of portability. I bought them over the Momentums a few days ago as I couldn't afford the Momentums. It's a steal for its price, on Amazon for about $199

Yes, I believe the price of the Momentums is indeed steep for headphones that aren't far more superior in sound to the M50s.
 
Although the Shure SRH840 headphones look like they may be better than the M50s, the 1.8lb weight is way too much. I might consider moving them around so I did consider portability when choosing the headphones although it isn't a huge factor. I understand M50s don't have a lot of portability but they are still more portable than some headphones. 

 

[messi]

Hello,

IMO, the Momentum have above neutral bass. Some would find it " weak" in bass not because of the quantity but the quality. It is on the loose side and it leaks to other FR. The Momentum overall, have a balanced sound.

AH-D600 does not need battery.

The ATH-M50 fatigue may not be noticeable if you are listening to dark mastering and/or if your listening section is no longer than an hour. For long term listening, the ATH-M50 sound fatigue to me and with genre like pops, things tend to sound more fatigue. I do however, like it with dubsteps xD

Anytime

welcome to Head-Fi sorry about your wallet!
Billson

Hi Billson,
 
From what I've read, difference in bass isn't overwhelming between the M50s and Momentums so way pay the overwhelming price for not-so-overwhelming momentum? (no pun intended) 
 
Apologies, I misread the "Nonstandard Battery" on AH-D600's Amazon page.
 
I honestly doubt I'll ever listen for more than 2-3 hours, unless I'm in an airplane, which happens more or less than 6 times a year. I really do not like to listen to pop and lean more towards hip-hop/rap, trap and house, as mentioned in my first post. 
 
Thanks, I feel very welcomed!

 

[BillsonChang007]

Hi Billson,

From what I've read, difference in bass isn't overwhelming between the M50s and Momentums so way pay the overwhelming price for not-so-overwhelming momentum? (no pun intended) 

Apologies, I misread the "[COLOR=333333]Nonstandard Battery" on AH-D600's Amazon page.[/COLOR]

I honestly doubt I'll ever listen for more than 2-3 hours, unless I'm in an airplane, which happens more or less than 6 times a year. I really do not like to listen to pop and lean more towards hip-hop/rap, trap and house, as mentioned in my first post. 

Thanks, I feel very welcomed!

The Momentum have a more balanced bass while I can tell there are very little recessed bass at the ATH-M50 somewhere around 100Hz. The Momentum also sound more natural, more musical IMO.

If you can afford the Momentum Over-Ear, go for it. If not you can look into the Momentum On -Ear since you are not wearing too long so comfort shouldn't be a problem. In terms of quantity, the momentum on ear offer the most bass out of the three mentioned in this post. It is more aggressive sounding compared to the more "relax" if not, veiled [TO SOME PEOPLE] nature of Momentum Over-Ear. Isolation wise, the AH-D600 did best.

Hope it helps
Billson

 

[idnakor]

Can someone explain the "fatigue" issue? I don't seem to get what you mean. I'm also interested in buying the ath m50x.

 

[BillsonChang007]

When you listen to headphone or audio with upper midrange spike or at the highs, specially with female vocals, it may sound annoying and feeling of headache, or ear piercing to some.

It's a good headphone for $150~, but I would still go for ZoroHD unless you need comfort and more bass at certain point.

 

[idnakor]

Sound quality is my top priority. I listen to ALL, but really, all genres of music.
I would like to have high volume using ipod with no amp, and if course if they look good its a bonus (i dont buy leather products). Any recommendations for a budget under 200$?and thanks for your help, appreciate it.

P. S. As for sound signature, i like crispy crystal clear sound but i heard the ath m50 has a problem with the mids and as someone who listens to all genres maybe i should lean more to flat sound signature.