[Meetite]

Hello all,

I am currently in the market for a new pair of cans for around $200 (I unfortunately can't go much higher than that) and would like some help deciding at pair to buy. I've been researching for a while and have been having trouble deciding with all the options in this price bracket. I am okay with buying second-hand as long as they are in good condition, though new is preferred.

I'm mainly intending on using these for gaming, meaning long term comfort is very important, though I will also be using them a lot for music. (A list of videos is at the end of this post with the kind of music I'm intending to use these with). I like my audio on the warm side, I find reference really boring and like my audio to be 'exciting'.(currently my daily drivers are a pair of RHA MA750s with isolation Comply tips, which are great but imo have a little more bass than I'd like for what I intend to use these cans for and the treble can be kind of sibilant sometimes).

I am looking at both open and closed-back headphones, as either would work pretty well for me (though I don't want too much sound leakage as I'm in a household with two other people and a very irritable dog ). It'd also be nice if the cable was removable/replaceable, though it isn't a necessity assuming it comes with a decent warranty.

I'd prefer if an amp we're mostly unnecessary, so as long as they don't basically require an amp it's fine (I don't currently have the funds necessary to invest in an amp and/or DAC, though I do plan on investing in one within the next few years). The computer I will be using these with can probably drive up to around 250 ohms, though it still wouldn't be optimal.

A lot of my music has a hard beat and brass instruments. "Feel it Still" by 'Portugal. The Man', the instrumental version of "Until Heaven Stops the Rain" by 'Wax Tailor', and "Devotion" by 'Coleman Hell' are perfect examples. (See Below)




Input would really be greatly appreciated, thanks!

 

[serman005]

Sounds like closed is going to work better for your home situation--any good headphone that is open will leak a fair bit. Given that, my recommendation would be for a SoundMAGIC HP151 (the new version of the HP150 with the upgraded, more durable build quality). $129.99 on amazon today. This headphone ticks off several of your boxes and is slightly v-shaped and therefore more to the exciting side of things than neutral. Check it out--it could work for you. Highly recommended.

 

[Meetite]

Sounds like closed is going to work better for your home situation--any good headphone that is open will leak a fair bit. Given that, my recommendation would be for a SoundMAGIC HP151 (the new version of the HP150 with the upgraded, more durable build quality). $129.99 on amazon today. This headphone ticks off several of your boxes and is slightly v-shaped and therefore more to the exciting side of things than neutral. Check it out--it could work for you. Highly recommended.

Thanks for the suggestion, I'll look into it!

 

[Old Dirty Puppy]

I would highly recommend the Audio-Technica ATH-M50x, these are an overall great pair of closed headphones. Also I really like the Monolith M560. The cool thing about the M560 you can remove the back covers and turn them into open headphone, which improves their sound quality. I personally would go for a pair of M560, but I also have a bias for planar magnetic drivers.

 

[Meetite]

I would highly recommend the Audio-Technica ATH-M50x, these are an overall great pair of closed headphones. Also I really like the Monolith M560. The cool thing about the M560 you can remove the back covers and turn them into open headphone, which improves their sound quality. I personally would go for a pair of M560, but I also have a bias for planar magnetic drivers.

The monolith looks interesting, I'll put that on my list of headphones to look into. Unfortunately in going to have to shoot down the M50 though, I tried them once and personally didn't really like them (comfort was an issue, the earcups weren't padded enough and it sounded a bit brighter than I like).
Thanks so much for the suggestions though!

 

[squee116]

Do you have a door between you and the rest of your apartment/house? If so, open backs should be fine. They don't bleed so much sound that they are as loud as speakers.
I'll also say that "v" curve headphones (often associated with fun or engaging descriptors), with video games, become very fatiguing if there's gun fire involved.

As for efficient, closed back headphones, I've tinkered with the AKG K553s, and they got most of what you want, though bass and isolation was meh, compared to other closed backs with good seals like the ATH's. I recall hearing VMODA come up a lot for "fun" sounding headphones, though seal and comfort are unknown to me. On a budget, I've seen lots of discussion of the AKG Yxx series for warm/dark.

If you can swing open-backs, I think the Philips Fidelios X1/X2 or Sennheiser 598s might be in your wheel house.

 

[Meetite]

Do you have a door between you and the rest of your apartment/house? If so, open backs should be fine. They don't bleed so much sound that they are as loud as speakers.
I'll also say that "v" curve headphones (often associated with fun or engaging descriptors), with video games, become very fatiguing if there's gun fire involved.

As for efficient, closed back headphones, I've tinkered with the AKG K553s, and they got most of what you want, though bass and isolation was meh, compared to other closed backs with good seals like the ATH's. I recall hearing VMODA come up a lot for "fun" sounding headphones, though seal and comfort are unknown to me. On a budget, I've seen lots of discussion of the AKG Yxx series for warm/dark.

If you can swing open-backs, I think the Philips Fidelios X1/X2 or Sennheiser 598s might be in your wheel house.

I live in a house that's very open, so until my office gets moved (which isn't happening any time soon) isolation is a problem (not so much for how much I hear, but how much other people hear). My old headphones were v-shaped (original Sennheiser momentum). They were a bit fatiguing over time, though I never really got to that state because I found them ungodly uncomfortable in sessions longer than an hour or two. The main issue I had with the momentum's (other than comfort) was treble was very sibilant sometimes. I've been looking into the Sennheiser HD598s for a while, I'm just not sure how i feel about the sound (i haven't heard them before so i dont really know though). The new HD598sr looks really nice too, which im leaning pretty hard toward. I tried VModa's once, i had a slight issue with the amount of clamp, but i didn't listen to them long enough to really get a sense for how they sound.
speaking of which, on the topic of sound, im going to be using these to play games like overwatch mostly, though i do have a large variety of games so versatility is going to be important. I'm less focused on something that will hopefully fit my needs perfectly as much as I am on something that will fit my needs reliably while being as versatile as possible. I'm thinking a more subdued v-shaped sound signature would be perfect.
You make some very interesting suggestions, so I'll definitely look into them.
thanks!

 

[squee116]

Without too many specifics, or knowing how high you put your volume, I will say that with no obstructions, and volume turned up higher than normal, I can hear open back headphones from about 5 to 6 feet away if everything else is deadly quiet and I'm listening for it, give or take a couple of feet depending on the source. (My ska music is more audible than my pop music from a distance with the brass instruments)
With a door closed, even my bat-eared and easily irritable housemates don't have any complaints.

I think for versatility, the Senns will probably be the way to go. If clamping pressure is going to bother you, you may want to avoid the ATH-M50's. I had similar issues with the Sennheiser HD 25s, which also work a treat for sound isolation, but are ungodly uncomfortable. Half the reason the ATH's seal so well (maybe more than that), is they clamp like a vice onto your noggin. I found the AKG 553's much more comfortable, but you give up that seal for isolation, and you lose that dark, bassy goodness. You're going to have a real trade off for isolation and comfort, with few exceptions in your price point.

Perhaps this plan is a bit Schiit (excuse my French), but perhaps you could mulligan on the headphones (Sennheiser HD439 go for about $40?) and spend the rest on an AMP/DAC combo that could prepare you for a future set of headphones? (Magni/Modi used set)
Just thinking out loud, and that's definitely a longer term project, but it would open up a world of closed cans, even ones under 250, that you may not have been able to drive before.

 

[Meetite]

Without too many specifics, or knowing how high you put your volume, I will say that with no obstructions, and volume turned up higher than normal, I can hear open back headphones from about 5 to 6 feet away if everything else is deadly quiet and I'm listening for it, give or take a couple of feet depending on the source. (My ska music is more audible than my pop music from a distance with the brass instruments)
With a door closed, even my bat-eared and easily irritable housemates don't have any complaints.

I think for versatility, the Senns will probably be the way to go. If clamping pressure is going to bother you, you may want to avoid the ATH-M50's. I had similar issues with the Sennheiser HD 25s, which also work a treat for sound isolation, but are ungodly uncomfortable. Half the reason the ATH's seal so well (maybe more than that), is they clamp like a vice onto your noggin. I found the AKG 553's much more comfortable, but you give up that seal for isolation, and you lose that dark, bassy goodness. You're going to have a real trade off for isolation and comfort, with few exceptions in your price point.

Perhaps this plan is a bit Schiit (excuse my French), but perhaps you could mulligan on the headphones (Sennheiser HD439 go for about $40?) and spend the rest on an AMP/DAC combo that could prepare you for a future set of headphones? (Magni/Modi used set)
Just thinking out loud, and that's definitely a longer term project, but it would open up a world of closed cans, even ones under 250, that you may not have been able to drive before.

Interesting idea. Im actually thinking now that what I may do is buy a Magni 2 & Modi 2 and just buy a new cable for my Sennheiser momentums and mod the ear pads. That would probably be a pretty good improvement and by the time september comes i'll probably have enough money for a better pair of headphones than I can get now. Thanks for the awesome suggestion!

 

[samvafaei]

Looks like you are looking for a pair of wired, closed back headphones (I hesitate recommending open-backs based on what you said). You mentioned you didn't like the M50x for their comfort, I give you that, but sound quality wise they are hard to beat (almost at any price!). So my top recommendation would be the Bose SoundTrue Around-Ear II (super comfortable, similar sound to M50x), then Beyerdynamic DT770 (more comfortable than m50), and Polk UltraFocus 8000 (warmer sounding, but not so comfortable). Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 also fits your budget, and you can use them with the wire for gaming. Their sound is rather warm, but they are not as comfortable as the Bose.

 

[Meetite]

Looks like you are looking for a pair of wired, closed back headphones (I hesitate recommending open-backs based on what you said). You mentioned you didn't like the M50x for their comfort, I give you that, but sound quality wise they are hard to beat (almost at any price!). So my top recommendation would be the Bose SoundTrue Around-Ear II (super comfortable, similar sound to M50x), then Beyerdynamic DT770 (more comfortable than m50), and Polk UltraFocus 8000 (warmer sounding, but not so comfortable). Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 also fits your budget, and you can use them with the wire for gaming. Their sound is rather warm, but they are not as comfortable as the Bose.

I'll look into them, thanks for the suggestion.

 

[Meetite]

Currently, thanks to squee116's suggestion I think I'm going to go with a Magni 2 and Modi 2 from Schiit (I'll buy them b-stock to save money, I don't really care enough and unless someone says otherwise it is unlikely i'd want to return them within 15 days) and use the leftover money i have to buy a new cable for my Sennheiser Momentums and a pair of Brainwavz earpads to put on them to improve comfort problem. This is especially appealing since an amp and DAC are a much more important long term purchase/improvement, especially considering that considering how much I'm trying to spend on headphones right now, they'll probably be replaced within 2 or 3 years, while if I wait until i have enough money for something like an HD600/650 or something in that range i won't feel the need to upgrade for a long time.

Thank you everyone for all your input and advice. Please feel free to input more information though, as I have not yet finalized this decision.

 

[samvafaei]

amp/dacs don't make that much of a difference, unless it's an impedance issue. I don't think the Momentums are that good sounding, so unless you like their dark (warm) sound profile, I wouldn't spend money on fixing the momentum and instead would get something more balanced.

 

[Meetite]

amp/dacs don't make that much of a difference, unless it's an impedance issue. I don't think the Momentums are that good sounding, so unless you like their dark (warm) sound profile, I wouldn't spend money on fixing the momentum and instead would get something more balanced.

It's less so a short term improvement as it is a long term one. I'd personally rather not spend less money on headphones i'd replace in a few years once i buy an amp and dac when i can buy an amp and dac now and buy a better pair of headphones later (it makes sense in my head).
I know it isn't that much of an improvement, but long term it will be a huge one.
Furthermore, I don't like the Momentums as being perfect for me (which they most certainly aren't), but they are definitely close to what I like.

 

[squee116]

It's less so a short term improvement as it is a long term one. I'd personally rather not spend less money on headphones i'd replace in a few years once i buy an amp and dac when i can buy an amp and dac now and buy a better pair of headphones later (it makes sense in my head).
I know it isn't that much of an improvement, but long term it will be a huge one.
Furthermore, I don't like the Momentums as being perfect for me (which they most certainly aren't), but they are definitely close to what I like.

Sound quality aside, I can say that the HD439's would be more comfortable, which is why I recommended them, and because their sound quality is generally praised as being far beyond it's cost. You could sell the Momentum's, pocket the difference, and put them toward a newer heapdhone down the road. Would SQ take a step back? Probably. That's what I meant about a mulligan, though I understand not wanting to take step backs in SQ.