[llamatimelord]

I am new to buying over-ear headphones. I primarily listen to Classic Rock and Alternative Rock. I don't know much about buying headphones so I could use all the advice I can get. I am drawn towards the Ultrasone HFI 780 and Audio Technica M50. However, if you have any suggestion s that would be better then either of the headphones I listed, I would appreciate it. Also, I want good nose isolation and minimal sound leakage so I also wanted closed as opposed to open. Thank you for your suggestions!

 

[Snag1e]

I have both the HFI-780s and the M50s.

For everything but Electronic, I prefer the M50s. The Ultrasones have to harsh of a treble for my taste on most musical genres.

In my experiance, the M50s have more bass, are warmer sounding, have a smaller soundstage, and are more comfortable than the HFI-780s.

I feel that the HFI-780s are brighter and more detailed than the M50s, have a larger soundstage, and have a more "V" shaped response with somewhat recessed mids. I also find the highs on the 780s to be a bit harsh for my taste with a lot of music....

 

[Sandman65]

Having ownded ATH M-50's for ~ a month I'd say they are quite a good deal for classical, jazz, fusion, most prog rock, country (Lyle Lovett, Willie Nelson) IF the recording quality is decent.  The genres you mention (Rock and Alternative) do have some good recordings but from my experience it's more a hit-or-miss proposition and a headphone such as the M-50 will definately let you know what camp the recording quality falls in to. I LOVE earlier Smashing Pumpkins, Helmet, etc... but unfortunately I have yet to find many quality recordings in the rock/alt rock genres when compared to the the previously mentioned.
 
I like the M-50's as they are well built and relatively comfortable to wear...4 hours being my longest marathon.
I wear glasses with fairly thick frames and the earpads seal quite nicely, though note the earpads/seal will make your ears sweat after some time but show me a closed headphone that won't...
I detected no difference in "sound" over time..ie: no burn in voodoo effects so you should have a pretty good idea if you like them straight out of the box.
 
I'm currently back to running off my laptop soundcard and mostly listen at volumes from 25-40 (which is plenty loud for me)...anything higher and the bass starts to get flabby and treble hardens. I demoed a portable dac/amp which allowed for listening at ~ 15-30 volume settings for similar output and the bass "seemed" more taunt and treble more relaxed, smooth...perhaps suggesting addl amplification may have something to offer? I don't know if the before/after amp impressions were "in my head" as I had config issues with the dac and returned the unit after only a couple hours of serious listening.  Long story short...it sounds good without supplemental amplification but I believe there may be small improvements to be gained through more robust ampflication(?)...especially if you like to listen LOUD
(you want an amp with low output impedance that can flow some current)
 
Shure has the SHR840 which is similar in price but has a more pronounced upper bass hump with less extension vs. the M-50.
The Ultrasone 780  freq resonse as shown below from Headroom seems to be of question with the sub 300hz curve dropping moreso?

 
 
The other three cans often mentioned are AKG K550, Denon AH-D2000 and Shure SHR940, all having specs that hint at similar amplification requirements and twice as expensive vs.the M-50.
 

 
Given the genres you prefer too bad you aren't looking for an open design as the Grado SR60i costs half the M-50!
If you want to spend twice the coin of an M-50 I'd probably give the AKG K550 serious consideration!

 

[cel4145]

Quote:78

I have both the HFI-780s and the M50s.
For everything but Electronic, I prefer the M50s. The Ultrasones have to harsh of a treble for my taste on most musical genres.
In my experiance, the M50s have more bass, are warmer sounding, have a smaller soundstage, and are more comfortable than the HFI-780s.
I feel that the HFI-780s are brighter and more detailed than the M50s, have a larger soundstage, and have a more "V" shaped response with somewhat recessed mids. I also find the highs on the 780s to be a bit harsh for my taste with a lot of music....

 
The frequency response graphs at headphone.com show the 780s to be more mid heavy than the M50s, not a v-shaped response at all. The mids are more emphasized than the bass and as much as the treble. I own both, and I think it's easy to hear that. 
 
I would agree that the 780s have a more aggressive treble, although I don't find it to be a problem. I find the M50s to be a little too reserved overall in comparison. Not disagreeing with you on this part, just trying to point out that really it will depend on the taste of the listener.