[Rightio]

Hi all,
I've been looking get myself a pair of headphones under $150 for sometime now and its come down to the Audio Technica ATH- M50 and the Philips Citiscape Uptown. I'm leaning towards the Uptowns, because they seem more portable, but then again, i could do the removable cable mod on the m50s which would make them portable as well. I always thought the m50s were really good because of the number of recommendations on the internet, but i've been reading a few articles on Head-fi that say that they are overhyped and the mids are recessed and drowned out. I listen to alot of rock and also some hip hop so mids and bass are both equally important to me. What i would like to know is which headphones is better in terms of sound quality and build quality.
If anyone has these headphones, you opinions would be appreciated.
Thanks.

 

[MalVeauX]

Quote:

Hi all,
I've been looking get myself a pair of headphones under $150 for sometime now and its come down to the Audio Technica ATH- M50 and the Philips Citiscape Uptown. I'm leaning towards the Uptowns, because they seem more portable, but then again, i could do the removable cable mod on the m50s which would make them portable as well. I always thought the m50s were really good because of the number of recommendations on the internet, but i've been reading a few articles on Head-fi that say that they are overhyped and the mids are recessed and drowned out. I listen to alot of rock and also some hip hop so mids and bass are both equally important to me. What i would like to know is which headphones is better in terms of sound quality and build quality.
If anyone has these headphones, you opinions would be appreciated.
Thanks.

 
Heya,
 
There's not a lot of head-fi review yet on the Uptowns. I would just wait a while and see before committing to one or another.
 
What kind of sound are you looking for? Do you like bright treble? Do you need powerful thumping bass? Or do want something flat? Neutral? Do you want something with very dimmed treble, less fatiguing, but with good mids and big bass?
 
Very best,

 

[Rightio]

im looking for something relatively flat, that will got good for most genre's.
are there any other good headphones that you could suggest? (in the sub $150 range)

 

[eortizr]

Quote:

im looking for something relatively flat, that will got good for most genre's.
are there any other good headphones that you could suggest? (in the sub $150 range)

Phillips Uptown, just $135.00 @ BB

 

[LaxGoalie248]

I just recieved the Uptowns, and although I have not tried the M50's, the Uptowns are a nice sounding pair of cans. They have great soundstage, not too prominent bass (that may be because I have been using my Klipsch Image S4's for over a year), and have nice mids. They are very quiet headphones though.

 

[qijianjonathanh]

M50s. Fantastic, fantastic headphones. Used to have a pair myself, and they're still laying around somewhere in working condition, even though I mistreated the pair as badly as one could. Great for the price -- unbeatable, I know some would say.

 

[LaxGoalie248]

I've heard mixed opinions, none saying that they were bad, but that they were just mediocre headphones. Does anyone know much about the Grados headphones in this price range?

 

[SanjiWatsuki]

The Grados have a unique treble heavy sound with a very narrow in-your-face soundstage. They are very interesting headphones with a house sound that is love-it-or-hate-it. Their bass tends to be quite weak compared to other comparable headphones in the same price bracket. I personally think their overall fidelity in their price bracket is mediocre. 

 

[leaf1569]

I recommend the M50's

 

[youngngray]

I'm listening to my M50's as we speak (well, type). While I have never heard or seen your other choice, I can say in terms of build quality, the M50 is a tank. There was a video I forget where now, where I guy bent them almost all the way backwards without them breaking. Unfortunately if you're looking for portable they may not be your best choice as you said.

 

[jschristian44]

I would say both are very similar.  The Uptown's would be more balanced though in all frequencies.  The M50's have very nice bass with excellent mids.  You can't go wrong with either set, but the M50's might be easier to drive as well.

 

[Rezound Sound]

Quote:

I just recieved the Uptowns, and although I have not tried the M50's, the Uptowns are a nice sounding pair of cans. They have great soundstage, not too prominent bass (that may be because I have been using my Klipsch Image S4's for over a year), and have nice mids. They are very quiet headphones though.

This confuses me. What are you playing them from? A rock? I think you might have the volume slider turned all the way down. I play mine from my phone and they can get painfully loud. As for the M50's vs the Uptown's, I'm pretty sure the Uptown's will be way more comfortable, these are one of the most comfortable headphones, IMO. I love their sound, the bass and mids are nice and noticeable, without overpowering the rest of the sounds. For a while I was looking for headphones that leaked the least sound, great comfort, with prominent bass and mids. These are those headphones.

 

[SONIC BOOM]

I am going too have too try the philips soon but I can tell you they look fantastic for ~$150

 

[jschristian44]

They look like the HD598 and DT990 combined.  I said they looked like the Grado's and the DT990 combined, but I forgot about the HD598.  They are very nice looking indeed.

 

[Syrk]

I bought the m50s before because it's so popular. I hated it because it was too cramped and the sound was kind of boring to me. I bought the a900 later on and I think it's much better.