[gbatemper]

Hi Head-fi,
I'm looking to upgrade my headphone setup.
Currently ,I use a FiiO E10K + ATH-M50x
 
I listen to mostly J-pop, electronic- drum and bass,  a lot of "bright"/pop sounding music in general. Good bass is a nice plus.
 
I have a budget of around $1000. I'm a total loss of what to get to be honest. So many options for Dac's, Amps, and headphones, so I really have no clue. I'd prefer a Closed headphone, but Open ended headphones are fine too. 
Any recommendations? 

 

[k4rstar]

Well first, start by looking for headphones that have the signature you're after and tick the right boxes in terms of comfort/fit, etc. Then you can see how efficient/sensitive they are and if an amplifier will be required.
 
For J-pop the first headphones that come to mind are the ATH-AD1000/2000, they have signature mids known for emphasizing the region associated with Japanese vocalists. The X revision are thought of to be more balanced (less mid emphasis, more low end).
 
Hope this helps get you started.

 

[audiojun]

m50 is over rated I used to own it and I sold it. I bought the HD600 then bought the HD650 later. Those 2 later headphones are leaps better in sound quality. But if you go out with your headphones you may want to wear closed headphones and keep an open back headphone for home use.
 
closed
Fostex THX00 on massdrop ~$400, high end closed back without breaking the bank. High quality bass, while still excellent in other areas.
 
open
Sennheiser HD650 ~$350-400 If you are after absolute sound quality then the HD650 would be it. Would have less treble than your m50 but it's balanced to my ears. It will help with those bright recordings you have.
 
Sennheiser HD600 ~$300 is better at reproducing vocals, but a bit brighter might not pair well with bright recordings.
 
AMP/DAC:
The fiio e10 isn't very good imo. I have the e10 and in comparison my motherboard headphone output sounded better.
 
Value Killers:
Schiit Vali 2 + Modi 2: the Vali 2 is actually the star, it's a great amplifier.
Geek Out V2: hard to beat in value and sound quality.
 
Diminishing returns start hard after $300 in amps, dacs and headphones but it may be worthwhile to chase after it.

 

[PurpleAngel]

  Hi Head-fi,
I'm looking to upgrade my headphone setup.
Currently ,I use a FiiO E10K + ATH-M50x
 
I listen to mostly J-pop, electronic- drum and bass,  a lot of "bright"/pop sounding music in general. Good bass is a nice plus.
 
I have a budget of around $1000. I'm a total loss of what to get to be honest. So many options for Dac's, Amps, and headphones, so I really have no clue. I'd prefer a Closed headphone, but Open ended headphones are fine too. 
Any recommendations? 

 
Soundmagic HP150 ($170) would be a noticeable improvement over the ATH-M50X.
And the E10K can easily drive the 32-Ohm HP150.
So you do not have to spend $1000 for an improvement.
 
Currently my #1 headphone, for all audio, is the Beyerdynamic T90

 

[cel4145]

B&W P7 would be a nice upgrade over the M50X.

 

[PinkyPowers]

The FiiO E10K is a fine choice for the M50x, but if you're looking at a serious headphone upgrade, I'd save some of that budget on a better DAC and amp, to fill out the new phones properly.

HD650
Schiit Modi 2 Uber
Schiit Asgard 2

That should still be well under $1000, and give you a monster upgrade.

 

[dudlew]

Well I can only chime in on gear that I have, but I am enjoying my PM3 with Modi 2 Uber and Burson Soloist SL. I use it for movies, and music from my Mac Mini. Still falls in under your $1000 budget and I think the PM3 is very versatile for either home or portable use. 
 
PM3 $400
Soloist SL MK1 used ~$300, MK2 $400
Schiit Modi 2 Uber $150.
 
There are cheaper options I am sure, the Magni 2 Uber as an amp for instance, and the Sennheiser HD600 is cheaper than the PM3, but I havent heard them, so I cant say much about them.

 

[PinkyPowers]

The HD600 is great, but it doesn't have the bass he desires.

 

[crazychile]

Like audiojun mentioned, the Fostex THX00 on Massdrop would probably fit your description. Start with those, and you can add an amp/dac later if you want.