Not impressed with the ATH-M50x

[David Conrad]

I recently purchased the ATH-m50x as my first set of decent quality headphones.
 
Unfortunately their design doesn't agree with my head and after two hours of wearing them, I start to get a hot spot on the top of my head, the pleather on the cups rubs the outside of my ears, and my ears are irritated via rubbing the (felt?foam?) inside where the drivers are. Overall, they are VERY uncomfortable for me to wear for any longer than a few hours and if I do wear them for that long, the pain return immediately upon putting them back on until the end of the next day. 
 
At first, I loved the sound in them, and I'm not sure if it's the pain the headphones cause me or the sound, but after listening at a medium volume for more than a few hours, (I always have music in the background while I work, game, and browse) the headphones give me a splitting headache.
 
Anyways, I will be returning them.
 
I still want good set of headphones. What should I get that more comfortable?
 
I listen to indie, alt rock, house, indie electronic, as well as top 100 music.
 
$150 - $300 range
 
Ive been looking at DT 880 250 ohm pro. Any thoughts?
 
Thanks in Advance!

 

[Eurobeat]

When I was looking up reviews on the M50x, the comments that were most often were comments about the headphones being "uncomfortable," or "causing irritation on my skin," or "gives headaches/clamps head too much."

Someone who is big into the music I listen to, recommend them, but after those reviews, I decided no way!

did you check out reviews on them?  I found a lot of these reviews on Amazon!!

Hopefully you can return them, and find a new pair!

A lot of people ask what kind of "sound signature" you like.

There is a "glossary of terms"on this site with all of the terms and their explanations, so I would go check that out, even though a lot of it made no sense to me, being a newbie.

One person I've been speaking to, gave me some examples.


 

A few examples:
 
Neutral, accurate in every way.
 
Dynamic, engaging, exciting, energetic.
 
Smooth, warm, dark, laid-back.
 
Bass-heavy.
 
Bright, harsh, sibilant.
 
(Note that some of these are not mutually exclusive.)
 

There are many other choices, I'm sure, but these are just some examples.  You can see my answer, in bold, and I noticed right away that this is what I like, I didn't really have to check out the other terms, or even figure it out, because I love energy, and exciting music.

what you like, who knows.

If you figure that out, people will be able to help you out better... Good luck

 

[David Conrad]

Great information thanks. I read a ton a reviews on the ATH-M50x's. I didn't see anything bad when I looked. But I'm sure if you saw them, I was just reading reviews in the wrong place. 
 

 There are many other choices, I'm sure, but these are just some examples.  You can see my answer, in bold, and I noticed right away that this is what I like, I didn't really have to check out the other terms, or even figure it out, because I love energy, and exciting music.

I haven't seen that post before, but --Wow-- I understand what your saying here. I think it depends on my mood, but Smooth, warm, dark, laid-back is definitely my style, with Dynamic, engaging, exciting, energetic a close second (after a cup of coffee). The other three are not for me. 

 

[Japheel]

What did you like about the sound of the m50x. Know that the dt880 has less bass but very quick and deep bass.

 

[David Conrad]

I liked the clarity more than anything. The bass wasn't impressive to me on m50. I guess I would describe the bass as too fake sounding. It seemed supplemental to the intense highs. I think the highs were a bit too screechy for me. I liked the vocals because of the clarity. I'll listen again and see exactly what I like and give you a better answer. 
 
Honestly. Everything just sounds way better than anything I have heard before. It's why I'm so keen on getting another pair of good headphones. Its pretty mesmerizing.
 
I like how tight they are. I can hear every detail of my music. My old playlists are like new again. 
 
Like I said up above, Dynamic, engaging, smooth, and warm are sounds I think I will like. 

 

[Eurobeat]

  Great information thanks. I read a ton a reviews on the ATH-M50x's. I didn't see anything bad when I looked. But I'm sure if you saw them, I was just reading reviews in the wrong place. 
 
I haven't seen that post before, but --Wow-- I understand what your saying here. I think it depends on my mood, but Smooth, warm, dark, laid-back is definitely my style, with Dynamic, engaging, exciting, energetic a close second (after a cup of coffee). The other three are not for me. 

Yeah, I believe I was reading Amazon reviews, so when I saw those I was all... NOPE NOPE NOPE.  There were tons of good reviews all over as well, but I like to look at neg reviews, to get a good idea of both sides.

There is some glossary, somewhere, but the examples were sent to me via pm.

Knowng what you like, will help you find what's best for you, but like the examples say not all of them are exclusive, and you might like some, over the others.

 

[cel4145]

The Beyers will certainly fit different. Will you find them more comfortable? Comfort is such an individual thing.

Note that the DT880 250 ohm may need an amp. What will you be using them with?

They are also semi open, so not great for public use if that matters.

 

[David Conrad]

For gaming and listening at home, the semi open design will not be a problem. I don't have an amp right now, but I don't have a problem with getting one + a DAC. Not being able to use them at work is a trade off I am willing to make in the name of comfort. (Also the larger sound stage will be nice) 

The reason I am interested in the 880s is because of how comfortable people in reviews say they are. 

 

[cel4145]

The reason I am interested in the 880s is because of how comfortable people in reviews say they are. 

Then you might also consider the DT990.

 

[alynx]

Well, compared to the m50, the DT 880 are a complete different beast. And way more boring when coming from the m50.
If u want "energy" u may be better off with the DT 990 or if u want some warmer cans with still a little treble energy, the HD 598 might be an option.

 

[ahunatu]

I really like the sound signature of the M50X as you can tell by my review here but I do find the earpads a little too small to be comfortable for longer listening(it's still a huge step up from the comfort of the original M50's). If they had slightly bigger earcups and were less closed off they would be very very comfortable. 
 
The full size beyerdynamics definitely would be more comfortable. Maybe try a DT 770 they are often recommended as a somewhat upgrade to the M50's but I have not heard them myself. Only other problem is they're fully closed studio-style so they will still heat up your ears over longer listening sessions.

 

[Japheel]

  I really like the sound signature of the M50X as you can tell by my review here but I do find the earpads a little too small to be comfortable for longer listening(it's still a huge step up from the comfort of the original M50's). If they had slightly bigger earcups and were less closed off they would be very very comfortable. 
 
The full size beyerdynamics definitely would be more comfortable. Maybe try a DT 770 they are often recommended as a somewhat upgrade to the M50's but I have not heard them myself. Only other problem is they're fully closed studio-style so they will still heat up your ears over longer listening sessions.

Actually, I got some dt770s in recently and they are pretty breathable. They don't have a huge soundstage, but I definitely prefer their sound to the m50x. It is a lot cleaner and there is more subbass without the highs of the m50x that seem tonally wrong to my ears. Really nice for movies, which is what I've been using them for over my alpha dogs because THOSE get sweaty af.