I've gone and tested several recommended headphones, and I am appalled. Looking for headphones that LAST, while delivering sound for under 300.
Jul 1, 2012 at 8:36 AM Post #31 of 44
Quote:
To those of you who recommended the V moda M100, I owe you everything.
 
I've been wanting the V-Moda Crossfades for a while now but all the reviews say the sound quality is garbage. And while the M80 exists, I don't want on-ear cans. The m100.. my god it's perfect, IF it lives up to it's hype. 
 
Thank you again for making me aware that this can is in development. 

There aren't any review I know of that say the M80 is garbage. If you don't think you will like the M80 sound you might not like the M100, which, from what i've gathered, has slightly deeper, more controlled bass, as well as treble that will be less rolled off. V-MODA headphone don't have big spiked treble like most other mid-fi cans that you might find. 
 
Jul 1, 2012 at 10:14 AM Post #32 of 44
The Crossfades were designed for club DJs who listen at loud volumes and are very dark with a strong bass. They aren't particularly my taste either. I too am waiting to see what Val has come up with when the M100s are released.
 
Jul 1, 2012 at 10:55 AM Post #33 of 44
There aren't any review I know of that say the M80 is garbage. If you don't think you will like the M80 sound you might not like the M100, which, from what i've gathered, has slightly deeper, more controlled bass, as well as treble that will be less rolled off. V-MODA headphone don't have big spiked treble like most other mid-fi cans that you might find. 


I'm pretty sure he was referring to the LP not the M-80. He just didn't get the M-80 because it's on ear.

Anyway with the M-80 being so good, I expect the M-100 to be a stunner.
 
Jul 1, 2012 at 12:44 PM Post #34 of 44
Jul 1, 2012 at 4:37 PM Post #35 of 44
AKG K550
 
Jul 1, 2012 at 8:02 PM Post #37 of 44
If you're in Toronto, stop by Long & McQuade @Bloor and Christie.
They have Audio Technica, Beyerdynamic, Shure, KRK, AKG, etc.. (pretty much most of the ones Bay & Bloor do not carry).
 
I'd suggest the Beyer DT 770 Pro-80.
For $180, they sound great (if you don't mind slightly recessed mids), isolate well, and are built like a tank!
They are rather large though, so you might have to sacrifice this aspect in order to meet your other requirements.
 
Jul 6, 2012 at 11:20 PM Post #38 of 44
Thank you all for your suggestions,
 
I will be heading out again to where Bee recommended, at  Long & McQuade, because Bay Bloor Radio had no AKG or Audio Technica. 
 
To clear things up, yes, i am really looking forward to see what the M-100's will be like. Would you guys say that the current m-80s are as good as the Denon 2000s? Because when I tried those on, they seemed to have the best, most natural sound. And if the m-80s are as good, then the m-100's should be perfect.
 
Thanks again!
 
Jul 6, 2012 at 11:29 PM Post #39 of 44
OP, maybe you should've done a bit more research? The sennheisers are open so ofc there's no isolation; Denon Dx000 line provides little isolation considering they are "closed" cans. And there's a lot of people who complain about sennheiser's use of their cheap-feeling plastic, even on higher-end models like the HD598. I'm just surprised you thought the D2000 had shoddy build quality. They feel a bit fragile but at the same time they're so light and comfortable.
 
My recommendation would be the AKG K550, as others have suggested. Seems to fit your criteria pretty well.
 
Jul 7, 2012 at 2:05 AM Post #40 of 44
OP, maybe you should've done a bit more research? The sennheisers are open so ofc there's no isolation; Denon Dx000 line provides little isolation considering they are "closed" cans. And there's a lot of people who complain about sennheiser's use of their cheap-feeling plastic, even on higher-end models like the HD598. I'm just surprised you thought the D2000 had shoddy build quality. They feel a bit fragile but at the same time they're so light and comfortable.

My recommendation would be the AKG K550, as others have suggested. Seems to fit your criteria pretty well.


I think maybe he didn't realize he didn't want open cans when he started. I don't think I was aware too much what the difference was until I got my first truly open cans. Aren't most cheap headphones closed?
 
Jul 7, 2012 at 3:22 AM Post #41 of 44
I'd like to throw out that plastic doesn't mean poorly made - unless you absolutely abuse your equipment, there should be no durability problems with something like the AH-D2000. From reading the original post I'm getting a strong "Beats the benchmark for headphones" vibe - so why not get Beats? Not being a troll - if that's what you want, that's what you want. :xf_eek:

Other options in the "indestructible" category would include the Beyer DT48, Beyer T70, Koss Pro4AA, etc - they're all heavy, metal, and so on. But if you're really banging on your cans, I'd go with IEMs - they'll probably survive it better. :)

All of that aside, if you're just using these at home and don't want to listen to the computer fan, the Bose QC15 with their ANC are a very capable performer.
 
Jul 16, 2012 at 7:57 PM Post #43 of 44
OP here,
 
So I made my way down to Long and McQuade today and tested out the only two headphones that they had that were also well reviewed on the forums here.
 
I tried the Audio Technica M50's, and while the build quality was decent, I found the sound to seem very compressed, as though the singer was standing right beside my ear. It also seemed to make his voice nasally. And this is to the ear of a complete newbie. 
 
The other cans i tried on were the AKG 271's. I found the sound to be a lot more natural and spacious, but it was built out of cheap plastics that you could feel were easily scratched and damaged. Surprisingly though, my father purchased a pair of them, because he loved the comfort, sound, and price point, and he doesn't need them to be as robust as I do, so I will have them for further testing (Perfect!)
 
To me, the 271's rival the Denon D2000's in terms of sound, but I will admit that the 2000's are better. (And you pay accordingly)
 
Unfortunately, they did not have the AKG K550's, which was a bit of a disappointment, but I'm not done my search yet, as I'm holding off to see (and hopefully test) the V-Moda M100's.
 
Jul 16, 2012 at 8:20 PM Post #44 of 44
I thought I'd chime in, as I have some experience with the headphones mentioned, and I think perhaps I have a recommendation which would work for you.
 
You seem to be rather fond of the sound of the Denon AH-D2000s, so I'll use that as a starting point. I've never actually owned a pair of D2000s, but I have owned the D5000s for almost five years, and I gather the two have a rather similar sound. I can understand thinking that they are delicate, but if the D2000s are built anything like the more expensive 5000s they are anything but shoddy. Delicate does not mean poorly built.
 
I know nothing of the V-Moda M100, so I will leave it mostly alone.
 
I think you would do well to investigate the offerings of Beyerdynamic, particularly the DT770-PRO - assuming you can get one of the older ones, before they changed the construction. The one I have is the 2005 version, and it is simply one of the sturdiest headphones there are - and also my everyday listening headphones. I chose the Beyer DT770 over the Denon D5000 because of sound preferences, but the two have a somewhat related sound; the bass on the D5000 is more overwhelming and less controlled, while the midrange is slightly better. I also find the highs on the D5000 to be unpleasantly piercing, but I think that's probably just me - my hearing is very sensitive to high notes.
 
The DT770-PRO is constructed of metal and plastic; metal headband and Y-frames, plastic cups. The cups are of extremely durable plastic, however, and are in no way fragile. I've had mine for 7 years, during which time they've had their earpads replaced 3 times, been dropped from a six-foot height and crammed unceremoniously into my luggage on two occasions. Aside from the fact that they have black earpads now instead of grey, I wouldn't know the difference between them now and the day I got them. Isolation is also excellent, without too much clamping force. If you really want isolation, you can get the M edition (meant for drummers, I believe) which has significantly more isolation; I've heard that it sounds worse, however.
 
Also: If you really can't stand plastic construction and like the sound of the D2000, you might be able to get a used D5000 for somewhere near your budget. The D5000 is built exclusively from metal, leather and wood - as far as I'm aware, it contains no plastic whatsoever.
 
EDIT: The DT770 is a fairly large headphone, but overall smaller in every dimension except for weight than a D2000 (I think - I've never measured them side by side).
 

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