[JakeMnz]

So I've been looking at quite a few and I have this wonderful problem where when I find something, I nitpick and decide that I found something better, then nitpick again and go back and forth and throw more stuff I found into my little pointless contemplation until someone with actual knowledge tells me what is best. I have around $120 to spend, but the lower the cost the better. I'll make this as organized as possible.
 
Music I listen to
-Classic
-Rock
-Metal
-DnB
 
What I would like (Don't need)
-Detachable wire
-In-line controls
-Visually appealing
-Something that will not only suffice for music listening, but gaming as well.
-Good weight. Just in between heavy and light
 
What I Need
-Blocks a good amount of noise
-Leaks very little noise
-Over-ear (Absolute must)
-Closed design
-Good build quality
 
Other thoughts
I'm currently using the Razer Kraken and I wouldn't mind upgrading. If anyone could throw a suggestion out there I would appreciate it. I also have an obnoxious list of headphones that I've been looking at, so if you think one in there is the best, then please let me know. I'm willing to spend $120, I just haven't found a pair yet that makes big enough of a difference to be worth it.
 
I'll put what I'm looking at in an Amazon wishlist to make it easy to navigate. http://amzn.com/w/NIE76DJA4GPT

 

[milk]

Hey there, Jake!

I wanted to throw my thoughts into the mix and you can tell me how they sound to you, or if they don't cater towards what is required in your next headphone!

For now, they'll be short and to the point.

Beyer Dt880-semi open but other people in the same room couldn't hear the music until I played it quite loudly and they blocked quite a bit of sound as well! They're great at classical and metal, and do great with rock too! They have a pretty dry sound and can be a bit boring but they hit the nail for your genres. Great bass, dry super detailed beyer mids, semi hot treble but very enjoyable for a treble-head.

If that isn't your cup of tea, and if you do not mind buying a used pair of cans, you may like the Shure 840s. They have the very forward, thick shure mid range, the bass is a bit light and thin, but detailed nonetheless, and if I recall correctly, they're pretty bright with a sparkly well extended treble region. They're a very neutral headphone all together and have great detail for classical, rock, metal, and the mids and lows have enough body for DnB!

Akg K550 - has present bass that's well extended and very detailed, but with not much quantity. They have a very flat mid range which is very smooth and a bit bright given it's upper midrange-treble based sound sig. It's a brighter headphone that's very neutral with great detail and can clearly play classical, rock and metal with great clarity. Classical sounds full and bright, rock is detailed and very smooth, and metal has great detail throughout the whole spectrum to cover anything it may be thrown at. A decent all rounder!

I have a few more cans in this category but tell me if any of these strike you as interesting. For me these were more detailed, thin, analytical cans which have perfect auld for your genres. But if you wanted something a bit more fun and colored I can recommend others with such characteristics!

Tell me whatcha think, bud!

 

[JakeMnz]

Those are all great suggestions, and I definitely wouldn't mind having the AKG K550, but even on Amazon they all go over my price cap of $120. I'm not super concerned about how the headphones sound with their default settings because I'll always have an equalizer running in the background to give me the best possible sound I can get. However I obviously want them to have decent quality. My main concern is that they don't leak a whole lot and block out a good amount of noise while I'm listening to music. For example, if I'm listening to my music at 50%, I don't want to be able to hear the people talking at a normal tone 10 feet away from me and I don't want them to be able to hear my music.
 
The three headphones I'm looking at now are the Sennheiser HD-280 PRO, the Shure SRH440, and the Creative Aurvana Live! 2. From what I've read in reviews, the HD-280 will hold the most sound in, the SRH440 will keep the most sound out, and the CAL2 will have the nicest sound overall but falls short in the other two categories.
 
If you have any other suggestions that fit the price range, I'd love to hear them. If you really think I should spend a little more though, then I suppose it wouldn't be too much of a hassle to get a little bit more money.

 

[JakeMnz]

So I think I narrowed it down to two headphones.
The Denon AH-D1100 and the Creative Aurvana Live! 2. From the looks of it the two are pretty similar and don't out shoot each other that much in all of the important categories. The Denons seem to be better for home use from the reviews, and the CAL2's seem to be better for public use, based on reviews.
 
From what I've read:
 
Denon AH-1100
-Better for home use
-Slightly better quality (Both build and sound-wise)
-Deeper, yet clean bass
-Blocks out a little more sound
-Leaks a little bit
 
Creative Aurvana Live! 2
-Better for public use
-More natural sound, balanced
-Doesn't leak as much
-Doesn't block out as much sound
 
Once again, any insight would be appreciated. Any other suggestions would be great as well.

 

[SDBiotek]

I had the Denon Ah 1100, but did not like them. They had decent isolation, but we're very creaky. The midrange was very recessed. The bass was powerful, but it overwhelmed everything else. I think the UE 6000 would be a good option for you. It has good isolation , even when used without the noise cancellation turned on. Without the noise cancellation, it sounds fairly neutral. With the noise cancellation on, bass is more prominent.

I also have the AKG K550. The bass is very deep and textured, but lean. You can sometimes find them refurbished for around $130.

 

[Gravit8]

Hey, I know some won't agree on this forum, but I think the AudioTechnica ATH-M50s fit the bill everywhere except the detachable cable and in line controls.  Durable, visually appealing, good weight, I also play PC games, and they work great for that, they give a good sense of where sounds are coming from.  They're closed back, so they don't leak sound in or out, and one of the best things, is how EQ-able they are, I play with EQ a lot too and they can be pushed pretty far in different tonalities.  They hit your price point exactly as of right now. $119 on Amazon (coiled) ($110 for the straight cable version).  I've had a few different cans now, but they're still one of my most used.. Let me know if you have any questions! 
 
Also : If you're looking to save money the Monoprice 8323's sound very good and are very durable for the $30 that they cost (& they come with a detachable cable!), not as detailed as the M50s, but I'd say they're about 75% of the way there, just thought I'd throw that out there if you were interested.
 
EDIT: The M50s are also available in White and Red if you don't like the black.

 

[JakeMnz]

I saw those and I definitely like them, however it's surprisingly hard to find any decent reviews on them. Most of the reviews I found contradict each other so that's why I've been avoiding buying a pair, even though I'd really like them. I think I'll go with them though and I can always send them back if I don't like them.

 

[superjawes]

I know it's out of your price range...but the ATH-M50X exists for a straight improvement on the old M50. The cable detaches, and they ship you three (straight, coiled, and small for portable). I have a pair of non-X M50's (which got sidelined when I got my HD600's), and I liked them a lot. I used them for music and games and had no complaints. Now it's just that my 600's are better.

Amazon reviews are overwhelmingly positive, Tyll put them on the Wall of Fame, and he also has a full review. At least check out the Wall of Fame to see where some of these models lie.

 

[JakeMnz]

I know it's out of your price range...but the ATH-M50X exists for a straight improvement on the old M50. The cable detaches, and they ship you three (straight, coiled, and small for portable).

 
I saw those and I do like them, however I don't really want to spend $50 more to only get a detachable cable and slightly better padding. It also looks like the cable is a specific one with a locking feature, which kind of makes the detachable cable feature itself pointless because if the cable gets pulled on somehow, it can still cause damage.
 
Quote:

I think the UE 6000 would be a good option for you.

My only concern with those is did Logitech put too much into the design and "noise cancelling" and not enough into the overall sound quality?
 
I think the best thing for me is to get the M50 and if I don't like them, return them or put them on Craigslist and link people to AudioTechnica's website where they say the MSRP is $200 and sell them for $180 so I can get a more expensive pair

 

[Matrixnobu]

I would get the Beyerdynamic DT-770 Pro 250ohm cans. Sound awesome!

 

[superjawes]

I saw those and I do like them, however I don't really want to spend $50 more to only get a detachable cable and slightly better padding. It also looks like the cable is a specific one with a locking feature, which kind of makes the detachable cable feature itself pointless because if the cable gets pulled on somehow, it can still cause damage.

I always felt like the point of detachable cables was to change them out as needed (which is part of th reason that the M50X comes with three cables). The cables in my HD600's are detachable, but they fit it pretty tightly to keep a solid connection.

And it's more than cables and padding for upgrades. From what I've read, Audio Technica did a straigh upgrade on sound quality, too. If nothing else, the M50X's definitely sound different.

 

[SDBiotek]

   
My only concern with those is did Logitech put too much into the design and "noise cancelling" and not enough into the overall sound quality?

I wouldn't say that at all. They sound very good for a closed back headphone, but just happen to have a more modern-looking exterior. As superjawes noted above, take a look at Tyll Hertsens' Wall of Fame over at Innerfidelity.com. The UE 6000s have since been bumped off the wall, but are very good. Both the white and black versions are now under $100 on Amazon (the white model is less than $80).
 
Here is link to Tyll's review:
http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/surprisingly-good-logitec-ue6000-and-ue9000

 

[JakeMnz]

Alright, so the UE6000 is looking really good right now, but can anyone comment on the ear cups? My ears are a little bigger than average and I've noticed that most people are saying that the cups are relatively small, so would I find them to be uncomfortable for extensive use (I'll be wearing them almost all day, just about everyday)?

 

[Trunks159]

You probably would find them a little uncomfortable, as I did.  However, at this price range, you can't do any better than the UE6000, unless of course you're willing to go with an on ear headphone, which you said you didn't want.

 

[JakeMnz]

  You probably would find them a little uncomfortable, as I did.

Sadly I need headphones that are as comfortable as possible as I'll be wearing them for 6-7 hours just about everyday. So if they're too tight for me, it will eventually develop into a problem, which I've experienced with other headphones in the past.
 
Odds are unless I find a different pair sometime soon, I'll end up going with the ATH-M50 and putting on SRH840 or 940 pads to make them even more comfortable. They just seem like the perfect match for my current needs. In the future when I have a more flexible budget, I'll definitely be looking to get something much much better. And like I said, if I don't like them, I can always send them back or resell them.