[Luckbad]

  I don't really care if they are portable. I don't like to use an EQ if I don't have to. I don't currently use an amp, but I've been meaning to look more into that as well. If you have any recommendations on amps as I'd love the hear them.  

 
If you don't have an amp, you don't want to go much about $200-$300 or you won't be getting the best sound possible.
 
A commonly recommend amp in this thread that is versatile and basshead-worthy is the Cayin C5.
 
I'll quote myself from a couple pages back first (this is roughly in escalating price and basshead performance). These are headphones I'd be down with no EQ on:
 
The Audio-Technica WS99 hit hard and have a V shaped signature. The earpads aren't terribly big. Some people recommend the Brainwavz HM5 pads for these, but they seemed to leak sound for me. The new HM5 Angled pads might not leak sound with them (they're a little narrower), but they weren't out when I had these headphones.

The V-Moda Crossfade M-100 sound good and hit hard. Also V shaped sound. They have XL pads that are mandatory for comfort. If you have particularly large ears, they still won't fit.
 
The AudioQuest Nighthawk are quite solid and do not cause any fatigue at all over extended periods. I feel like they benefit from but don't require a decent amp. They're pretty darn expensive, though. Semi-open, so they don't isolate a ton.
 
Fostex TH600 (then TH900) are amazing but cost a lot and need a good amp to pair with. You probably don't want to start here because of diminishing returns. Semi-closed, so they don't isolate a ton.

 

[DooberKnob]

Just curious, what are the differences between the Fostex th600 and th900 aside from the fancy paint job and metal vs wood housing? I know the th900 has a Tesla 1.5 magnet vs a 1 magnet in the th600, but what does this entail? Are the 50mm diaphragms the same?

 

[Luckbad]

  Just curious, what are the differences between the Fostex th600 and th900 aside from the fancy paint job and metal vs wood housing? I know the th900 has a Tesla 1.5 magnet vs a 1 magnet in the th600, but what does this entail? Are the 50mm diaphragms the same?

 
They are essentially the same. Some people think the TH900 hits harder, but I haven't seen many A/B tests (especially no blind tests). I got the TH600 with the expectation that I'd eventually replace the magnesium cups with either Lawton wood cups or TH900 cups (also from Lawton Audio).
 
http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/FostexTH600.pdf
http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/FostexTH900.pdf
 
The short answer, I guess, is that the TH900 theoretically sound slightly better. However much better they sound is probably not worth double the price unless you have money falling out of your pockets.

 

[DooberKnob]

   
They are essentially the same. Some people think the TH900 hits harder, but I haven't seen many A/B tests (especially no blind tests). I got the TH600 with the expectation that I'd eventually replace the magnesium cups with either Lawton wood cups or TH900 cups (also from Lawton Audio).
 
http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/FostexTH600.pdf
http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/FostexTH900.pdf
 
The short answer, I guess, is that the TH900 theoretically sound slightly better. However much better they sound is probably not worth double the price unless you have money falling out of your pockets.

That's kind of what I was suspecting. The only real, non-cosmetic difference seems to be the higher gauss rating of the th900 (15,000 vs. 1,000) but I have no idea what this means in the context of headphone sound quality.

 

[Luckbad]

 
That's kind of what I was suspecting. The only real, non-cosmetic difference seems to be the higher gauss rating of the th900 (15,000 vs. 1,000) but I have no idea what this means in the context of headphone sound quality.

 
It also has a slightly better cable. Both have very good stock cables, though.  You can get them reterminated/replaced at various places (Moon, Lawton, eCasperTFG on Etsy, maybe Norne Audio) if you are worried about the cables.
 
The gauss rating theoretically increases the dynamic range of the headphone, although the TH600 goes beyond what pretty much any music needs at its rating anyway.
 
The differences are subtle. It's like a gold vs. silver medal at the olympics. Both runners are crazy fast, and the silver medal winner comes in hundredths of a second after the gold, but the gold medal winner is still better.

 

[Luckbad]

The in-laws headed back home, so I can finally A/B my Fostex TH-600 with the AudioQuest Nighthawk. With the exact same settings swapping between the headphones within a couple seconds of each other (both stay plugged in the entire time), The Nighthawk hits nearly as hard as the Fostex.
 
That is pretty incredible considering that the Nighthawk has such plush earpads. When I swap the TH-600 to use Brainwavz HM5 earpads, the Nighthawk actually keeps right up.
 
Neither headphone has been broken in for the suggested 150 hours, so it's possible one or the other will ultimately dominate the comparison.
 
It should be noted that both headphones are 25 Ohms. The Fostex TH-600 has a sensitivity of 94 dB SPL/mW, and the AudioQuest Nighthawk has a sensitivity of 100 dB SPL/mW. That means the Nighthawks are slightly louder than the Fostex at the same settings on my system, so they'll get a little bit of extra punch from volume.
 
Even so, I'm very impressed with the bass on these things. I wish I still had the V-Moda Crossfade M-100, because I'm pretty sure the Nighthawks hit harder.

 

[FritzS]

   
They are essentially the same. 
 
http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/FostexTH600.pdf
http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/FostexTH900.pdf
 

 
Have both the same ear pads too?
 
I want to buy some for modding my D7000.

 

[DooberKnob]

  The in-laws headed back home, so I can finally A/B my Fostex TH-600 with the AudioQuest Nighthawk. With the exact same settings swapping between the headphones within a couple seconds of each other (both stay plugged in the entire time), The Nighthawk hits nearly as hard as the Fostex.
 
That is pretty incredible considering that the Nighthawk has such plush earpads. When I swap the TH-600 to use Brainwavz HM5 earpads, the Nighthawk actually keeps right up.
 
Neither headphone has been broken in for the suggested 150 hours, so it's possible one or the other will ultimately dominate the comparison.
 
It should be noted that both headphones are 25 Ohms. The Fostex TH-600 has a sensitivity of 94 dB SPL/mW, and the AudioQuest Nighthawk has a sensitivity of 100 dB SPL/mW. That means the Nighthawks are slightly louder than the Fostex at the same settings on my system, so they'll get a little bit of extra punch from volume.
 
Even so, I'm very impressed with the bass on these things. I wish I still had the V-Moda Crossfade M-100, because I'm pretty sure the Nighthawks hit harder.

How do they compare between 20-50hz? I would image the TH-600 would have the edge there since they're closed back.

 

[Luckbad]

  How do they compare between 20-50hz? I would image the TH-600 would have the edge there since they're closed back.

 
TH-600 seem to hit a little harder in the sub-bass (including 20-50Hz). Both of them block about the same amount of outside noise--halfway between an open and closed headphone. The AudioQuest Nighthawk are semi-open, and the Fostex TH-600 are semi-closed. That apparently means exactly the same thing. I have no issues (nor do my coworkers) using either in my office, but I don't work in a library and I don't listen to super loud music while I work.

 

[NewWaveAudio]

Can't believe I've actually found a pair of beats that I like. Needed something that didn't leak like a seave, for on the bus, and good for exercising. Don't want to get my Mastertracks sweaty. Decided to pick up a pair of Powerbeats2 from Best Buy, and I'm thoroughly enjoying them. Has powerful bass with the tweaks I've made

 

[Hawaiibadboy]

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Can't believe I've actually found a pair of beats that I like. Needed something that didn't leak like a seave, for on the bus, and good for exercising. Don't want to get my Mastertracks sweaty. Decided to pick up a pair of Powerbeats2 from Best Buy, and I'm thoroughly enjoying them. Has powerful bass with the tweaks I've made

 
 
I like the Beats Mixrs myself. And the Monster Npulse over ears. The Beats haters are off their rocker. I know some expensive gear made of plastic and sound is poor. That's at least 30% of the stuff talked about in here.
 
 
R.I.P "Rowdy"
 
 

 

[knorris908]

Watching Rowdy Roddy as a kid afforded me the first time I can remember thinking, "Aw Sh!t...  You've gone and F__KED UP now!  You've pissed off THE PIPER."  He's got that "look"  (Evil, no more Loki-like mischief grin.)  Time to pay THE PIPER!  Closest thing to the "Wolverine" X-Men Character in the WWF.  HE wasn't that big, but he would chop opponents down to size.  (Usually after taking QUITE a beating.  Kinda' like Wolverine in that respect as well....)
 
He will be greatly missed.  I'm even sadder than when we lost Andre, and I actually still watched WWF when HE passed.  Not to compare them, just saying....  D@MN.

 

[FreshBeBallin]

Hi guys, newbie here. obviously. But anyways I'm trying to get back to my music producing or beat making whatever you want to call it. It's been about 2-3 years and I'm trying to get back in the groove. So, I currently have a Alesis multimix8 USB mixer that allowed me to use for playback through my m audio bx5a studio monitors. Well this setup did well for me in my bedroom studio on a budget. One of the main reasons I stopped making music is because I live with others and it's hard to find time to make music without disturbing them. Hooking headphones up to the mixer never worked for me because I could never hear that punchiness from the kick drum that would get me into my groove. So, I'm still in my current living situation but I want to upgrade my equipment to allow me to produce at anytime. So, although I love my m audio BX5a monitors, I purchased a KRK sub for those deep 808 drums. The nice punchy deep kicks came through pretty well with the BX5a's but when it comes to 808s they didn't come through so well. now I'm about to upgrade my interface to an RME Babyface. I would like to get the Bx8a monitors if I can find some. Some say the bass is exaggerated but if that's true then I guess I need monitors with exaggerated bass because I need that kick drum to sound punchy. Now I will admit that my friend had a pair of the older Mackies and although my deep 808 kick drums sounded nice on them it changed my 808 drums and made them sound WAY to good. It colored one of the 808 sounds so well that I wish my 808 sounded like that but in reality I know it didn't. With the BX8a that my friend had the kicks were nice and punchy but more true to sound. I haven't heard the KRK8's but I see a lot of people that make similar music to me use them. I don't know how they compare with the m audio BX8a's though.

Well anyways, if anyone has heard the Bx8a's and the Mackies you might understand what I'm saying when I say the bx8a allows you to hear the punchiness of the kick without coloring the sound so much whereas the Mackies although it sounds nice (and how I would want my kick to sound perhaps if somebody mixed it down) it just can color the sound too much. Since I'm a hip hop producer I don't need coloration in the hi's mids or lows, but I do need that extra oomph!!! In the low end to be able to hear my deep kick drum and 808 kick drums and the BX8a m audios suit me. Oh yea I have the BX8 d2 and they don't cut it at all. I need to sell them.

So my question is, do you guys know of any headphone out there that I can pair with my RME that will allow me to hear my deep punchy kicks clearly without sacrificing the hi's and the mids. I'm looking for the punchiness set of headphones out there that will allow for the kick drum to come through without coloring it so much. Like my BX8a vs Mackie comparison. The price of it is not a big concern either I just need a good set that's punchy. I heard the ATH-M50x were pretty good but then again I don't know. Maybe a few different choices in perhaps different price ranges ranking from most preferred to least preferred for the type of music I create will help.

Sorry so long of a post i know how tempting it is to skip over these type of post unless there informative (and even then sometimes)

 

[Hawaiibadboy]

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

Quote:

Hi guys, newbie here. obviously. But anyways I'm trying to get back to my music producing or beat making whatever you want to call it. It's been about 2-3 years and I'm trying to get back in the groove. So, I currently have a Alesis multimix8 USB mixer that allowed me to use for playback through my m audio bx5a studio monitors. Well this setup did well for me in my bedroom studio on a budget. One of the main reasons I stopped making music is because I live with others and it's hard to find time to make music without disturbing them. Hooking headphones up to the mixer never worked for me because I could never hear that punchiness from the kick drum that would get me into my groove. So, I'm still in my current living situation but I want to upgrade my equipment to allow me to produce at anytime. So, although I love my m audio BX5a monitors, I purchased a KRK sub for those deep 808 drums. The nice punchy deep kicks came through pretty well with the BX5a's but when it comes to 808s they didn't come through so well. now I'm about to upgrade my interface to an RME Babyface. I would like to get the Bx8a monitors if I can find some. Some say the bass is exaggerated but if that's true then I guess I need monitors with exaggerated bass because I need that kick drum to sound punchy. Now I will admit that my friend had a pair of the older Mackies and although my deep 808 kick drums sounded nice on them it changed my 808 drums and made them sound WAY to good. It colored one of the 808 sounds so well that I wish my 808 sounded like that but in reality I know it didn't. With the BX8a that my friend had the kicks were nice and punchy but more true to sound. I haven't heard the KRK8's but I see a lot of people that make similar music to me use them. I don't know how they compare with the m audio BX8a's though.

Well anyways, if anyone has heard the Bx8a's and the Mackies you might understand what I'm saying when I say the bx8a allows you to hear the punchiness of the kick without coloring the sound so much whereas the Mackies although it sounds nice (and how I would want my kick to sound perhaps if somebody mixed it down) it just can color the sound too much. Since I'm a hip hop producer I don't need coloration in the hi's mids or lows, but I do need that extra oomph!!! In the low end to be able to hear my deep kick drum and 808 kick drums and the BX8a m audios suit me. Oh yea I have the BX8 d2 and they don't cut it at all. I need to sell them.

So my question is, do you guys know of any headphone out there that I can pair with my RME that will allow me to hear my deep punchy kicks clearly without sacrificing the hi's and the mids. I'm looking for the punchiness set of headphones out there that will allow for the kick drum to come through without coloring it so much. Like my BX8a vs Mackie comparison. The price of it is not a big concern either I just need a good set that's punchy. I heard the ATH-M50x were pretty good but then again I don't know. Maybe a few different choices in perhaps different price ranges ranking from most preferred to least preferred for the type of music I create will help.

Sorry so long of a post i know how tempting it is to skip over these type of post unless there informative (and even then sometimes)

 

 
In order of how I'd go..

Ultrasone Sig DJ    (weakness: price and sub bass extension. Would give you a thump but trap beats or 808 might seem a touch rolled...lotta EDM folks love the **** outta these though)
 
M-Audio Q 40.          (weakness: build quality ..though this might be the best choice if you are not feeding too much amp)
 
SMS DJ Pro              (weakness: not much room for amp, beautiful sound on wired version)
 
V Moda M-100         (weakness: darkish sound that makes all Hip Hop tracks sound like they are coming from a club size stage at best. Upper freq's seemed to be off?)
 
Yamaha Pro 500       (weakness: not really fully over ear and are huge head rigs. Bass can be ******* epic if highs are cut a tad)
 
 
 
All have fine mids by any standards and can excel in Hip Hop. SMS and Q40 don't need much amp but need a bit to bloom.
 
I'm a Hip Hop head ....case' my avatar didn't make that clear

 

 

[xTHExKelevra]

Hi guys, newbie here. obviously. But anyways I'm trying to get back to my music producing or beat making whatever you want to call it. It's been about 2-3 years and I'm trying to get back in the groove. So, I currently have a Alesis multimix8 USB mixer that allowed me to use for playback through my m audio bx5a studio monitors. Well this setup did well for me in my bedroom studio on a budget. One of the main reasons I stopped making music is because I live with others and it's hard to find time to make music without disturbing them. Hooking headphones up to the mixer never worked for me because I could never hear that punchiness from the kick drum that would get me into my groove. So, I'm still in my current living situation but I want to upgrade my equipment to allow me to produce at anytime. So, although I love my m audio BX5a monitors, I purchased a KRK sub for those deep 808 drums. The nice punchy deep kicks came through pretty well with the BX5a's but when it comes to 808s they didn't come through so well. now I'm about to upgrade my interface to an RME Babyface. I would like to get the Bx8a monitors if I can find some. Some say the bass is exaggerated but if that's true then I guess I need monitors with exaggerated bass because I need that kick drum to sound punchy. Now I will admit that my friend had a pair of the older Mackies and although my deep 808 kick drums sounded nice on them it changed my 808 drums and made them sound WAY to good. It colored one of the 808 sounds so well that I wish my 808 sounded like that but in reality I know it didn't. With the BX8a that my friend had the kicks were nice and punchy but more true to sound. I haven't heard the KRK8's but I see a lot of people that make similar music to me use them. I don't know how they compare with the m audio BX8a's though.

Well anyways, if anyone has heard the Bx8a's and the Mackies you might understand what I'm saying when I say the bx8a allows you to hear the punchiness of the kick without coloring the sound so much whereas the Mackies although it sounds nice (and how I would want my kick to sound perhaps if somebody mixed it down) it just can color the sound too much. Since I'm a hip hop producer I don't need coloration in the hi's mids or lows, but I do need that extra oomph!!! In the low end to be able to hear my deep kick drum and 808 kick drums and the BX8a m audios suit me. Oh yea I have the BX8 d2 and they don't cut it at all. I need to sell them.

So my question is, do you guys know of any headphone out there that I can pair with my RME that will allow me to hear my deep punchy kicks clearly without sacrificing the hi's and the mids. I'm looking for the punchiness set of headphones out there that will allow for the kick drum to come through without coloring it so much. Like my BX8a vs Mackie comparison. The price of it is not a big concern either I just need a good set that's punchy. I heard the ATH-M50x were pretty good but then again I don't know. Maybe a few different choices in perhaps different price ranges ranking from most preferred to least preferred for the type of music I create will help.

Sorry so long of a post i know how tempting it is to skip over these type of post unless there informative (and even then sometimes)

 
So, I'm coming from the producer side of this. For monitors, I like Yamaha HS8s. They sound really nice and are pretty damn close to pure reference. For headphones, I wouldn't use anything other than reference headphones. If you go with headphones that you would normally use to sit around and listen to music it will often times not be a true representation of what you have produced. 
 
If you truly don't care about price I'd suggest Sennheiser HD800s. They usually run about $1500, but for mixing they are worth it. They have all the lows you need while still being reference.
 
Another great option is the AKG K812 PRO. It is also in the $1500 area.
 
Going down in price I'd suggest Sennheiser HD650s. They are a lot like the 800s but not quite as punchy. Around $450 usually.
 
Also, AKG K712 PRO. These run around $500 but I generally prefer the Sennheiser 650s to these because they're punchier, and a bit more full bodied. 
 
You can go for AKG K701. These are the headphones that Quincy Jones swears by. That should really be all the endorsement you need. They're $350ish. 
 
You mentioned the ATH-M50Xs. They are great for listening but I wouldn't mix with them. The ATH-M70Xs on the other hand I would. They are reference whereas the 60s lean more toward the listening experience side. They're about $300. 
 
Hope this helps you some.