[TehSquash]

Hi guys, this is my first time posting anything on head fi, so bear with me haha. I've been searching for a good pair of headphones for a couple of months now, and I am absolutely confused as to what to get. I've decided on closed back circumaural headphones below like 150 bucks, but that's where it ends. This is how it went: first I though of the sennheiser hd 429s because they're pretty cheap and they seemed to be a good choice, but then I went to the hd 449s because they had better sound quality apparently, then the 280 pros because they have good sound quality and bass, then the ath-m50's because there were many posts about how the m50's trump all headphones under 200 bucks, and then the ultrasone hfi 780's because I saw countless threads stating how the 780s trump the m50's. Given how indecisive I am towards which headphones seem more appealing, I decided to make a thread about this so I could get some help from people who've actually had more experience with this kind of stuff. What I'm looking for is a pair of headphones that are closed back, circumaural, can block ambient noise very well like the sennheisers apparently can, are very easy to drive (the recurring theme here is that my parents don't wanna spend a lot of money on this stuff lol), have punchy bass but still have nice highs and mids, have good aesthetics (I don't care too much for this), and are preferably under 150 dollars. I'd use my headphones primarily for listening to music off of my iPod touch. I listen to a range of music from classical stuff like Bach and other orchestral pieces to house music like Nero and deadmau5.

just a refresher on what I considered in the past:
- hd 429
- hd 449
- hd 280 pro
- m50s
- hfi 580 and 780
- some akg's, but the majority had very high impedence and I'm looking for like 40 ohms or lower

I know I sound really picky, but help is greatly appreciated, especially in time for the holidays when prices are lowered. lol I'm a freshman so I don't earn my own money and my parents are very shrewd with their money, so yeah that explains the under $150 bit of my post.

Thanks

 

[MalVeauX]

Heya,
 
Ultrasone HFI 780
 
It's the way to go.
 
Very best,

 

[TehSquash]

Thanks for the suggestion, but are there any other better choices? I'm not sure about the leakage of the 780's, but i've read that the sound isolation is between 10 and 15 dB while the majority of the sennheisers have an isolation of up to 32 dB. Also, how's the sound quality of the 780's in comparison to the ones that i mentioned? are there any others that would be better within my price range?

 

[Roller]

I second the Ultrasone HFI-780 recommendation. Their sound quality is superior to all the headphones listed. It should be noted that even the HFI-580 are better sounding than the alternatives, the difference being that the HFI-580 is slightly less refined than the HFI-780, but has more emphasized bass.

 

[TehSquash]

Alright, I'm considering the 780's, but I want to know if there are any other headphones under $150 that are better than the 780's and are easy to drive.
Do you guys know if the Sennheiser RS 160's are any good? The wireless connectivity is a bit appealing to me, and they boast "audiophile-grade sound quality". Is this true? I'm only second guessing the 780's because they appear to be flimsy and I want to get a pair of headphones that are sturdy like the m50 (although I've ruled that one out) and I've been shying towards a pair of Sennheisers because they were the first ones that I heard were the "best" company for headphones.

 

[Dyaems]

m50 for me because it sounds more balanced than the ultrasones hehehe

 

[BillsonChang007]

If you prefer Sennheiser headphone, you can go for the HD 518 pair with a FiiO E5/6 if you don't want isolation. Or for the Sennheiser HD 449/439 for better isolation

 

[TehSquash]

hmmm...are the hd 449's good for electronic/house? if not, which headphones are a better choice? (doesn't have to be sennheiser)

 

[TehSquash]

Alright actually, I've decided on either the m50's or the 780's. Now, there are a number of threads here on head-fi about whether to get the m50's or the 780's, and everybody's saying to get the 780's, but those who talk about the m50's both in word and in speech through reviews make it seem to me that the m50's are more worth it. So which ARE more worth it, the m50's or the 780's?

 

[Roller]

The ATH-M50 are far less refined, with grainy treble, low quality bass and mids that are too artificial. The HFI-780 improves on each of those aspects. Also, the HFI-780 blows the ATH-M50 (and many other brands) out of the water when it comes to EDM or bass emphasized genres.

 

[BillsonChang007]

+1 for Roller