New headphones, need help!

[Daydream]

Looking to buy a new headphone. Preferably under $100. I have a few options but i cannot make a decision between them.

I don't really mind whether its open or closed back.

Sennheiser Urbanite XL $110

Sennheiser HD 558 $100

Audio-technica ATH-M50x $150

While i can spend $50 more to upgrade to Sennheiser HD 598 or Beyerdynamics Custom one pro plus.

I understand that Sennheiser's are open and M50x to be closed. Either one doesn't bother me. I would just like a nice, clear sounding vocals for modern music and nice comfortability.

 

[Dackzy]

2 hours ago, Daydream said:

Looking to buy a new headphone. Preferably under $100. I have a few options but i cannot make a decision between them.

I don't really mind whether its open or closed back.

Sennheiser HD 558

Audio-technica ATH-M40x

While i can spend $50 more to upgrade to Sennheiser HD 598 or M50x or Beyerdynamics Custom one pro plus, i would rather not like to and only will if they are absolutely worth the extra $50. I don't even know the difference between these and their upgraded versions.

I understand that Sennheiser's are open and M40x to be closed. Either one doesn't bother me. I would just like a nice, clear sounding vocals for modern music and nice comfortability.

I have heard that the M40x's bass i very disappointing, while i do not want bass heavy headphones, i would like them to be at least nice and exciting.

Well I don't know the use case, but I can tell you this none of the Mx0x headphones has any soundstage so they kinda suck for FPS games also the comfort is not very good, I have a lot of experiance with the M50x and let me put it this way if you are used to gaming headsets they are great, but if you have used really good headphones before trying them you can hear that they are a bit muddy in the mids and the treble is a bit hit or miss. Many people call the m50x for "flat" sounding headphones when they are not, the M40x is more "flat" sounding, still not really "flat" sounding, most people are a disappointed with the m40x bass because they want more bass. The HD 558 should be the most detailed of them both.

[Daydream]

3 hours ago, Dackzy said:

Well I don't know the use case, but I can tell you this none of the Mx0x headphones has any soundstage so they kinda suck for FPS games also the comfort is not very good, I have a lot of experiance with the M50x and let me put it this way if you are used to gaming headsets they are great, but if you have used really good headphones before trying them you can hear that they are a bit muddy in the mids and the treble is a bit hit or miss. Many people call the m50x for "flat" sounding headphones when they are not, the M40x is more "flat" sounding, still not really "flat" sounding, most people are a disappointed with the m40x bass because they want more bass. The HD 558 should be the most detailed of them both.

Well my main concern isn't directed towards gaming. So the 558 should have better sound quality over the M50x and M40x? When people want more bass on the M40x, is it because they are bass heads or are they sufficient?

I could cheap out and go for Phillips SHP9500 which has 50mm drivers.

[Dackzy]

8 minutes ago, Daydream said:

Well my main concern isn't directed towards gaming. So the 558 should have better sound quality over the M50x and M40x? When people want more bass on the M40x, is it because they are bass heads or are they sufficient?

I could cheap out and go for Phillips SHP9500 which has 50mm drivers.

1. They want more bass, because they like more bass, every person is different when it comes to taste

2. The sound quality of the HD 558 will be above the m40x and more like a side step to the m50x

3. The SHP9500 is a bit more bright than the 558 in the sound, meaning they have a bit more focus on treble

[Jack02]

I prefer the SHP9500 over the HD 558.

[Daydream]

How are the Urbanite XL compared to the 558?

[KaminKevCrew]

7 hours ago, Daydream said:

Well my main concern isn't directed towards gaming. So the 558 should have better sound quality over the M50x and M40x? When people want more bass on the M40x, is it because they are bass heads or are they sufficient?

I could cheap out and go for Phillips SHP9500 which has 50mm drivers.

Driver size honestly has practically nothing to do with sound quality. Don't fall for that crap. 

 

Stay away from the M_0X stuff. They're not worth buying unless you've never had comfort issues with anything on your head. Also, they're still not worth buying unless you can get them for half off or more.

 

The Sennheiser will probably have a somewhat more balanced sound.

[Daydream]

11 minutes ago, KaminKevCrew said:

Stay away from the M_0X stuff. They're not worth buying unless you've never had comfort issues with anything on your head. Also, they're still not worth buying unless you can get them for half off or more.

 

The Sennheiser will probably have a somewhat more balanced sound.

Pretty much, my option right now is the ATH-M50x, Sennheiser HD 558/598. Few reviews have commented that the 598 sound quality is similar to the M50x, is this true? Also between 558 and 598, is it worth it to buy the 598 over the 558?

[KaminKevCrew]

2 minutes ago, Daydream said:

Pretty much, my option right now is the ATH-M50x, Sennheiser HD 558/598. Few reviews have commented that the 598 sound quality is similar to the M50x, is this true? Also between 558 and 598, is it worth it to buy the 598 over the 558?

Sorry, I wasn't trying to say that they would sound similar, only that from what I recall, the Senns have more bass than what would normally be considered neutral (using the HD600 as the standard here). They're not going to sound similar at all. 

 

Anyway, the HD558 is the one to buy, since you can just pull some foam out, and it will sound almost exactly the same as the 598.

[Daydream]

30 minutes ago, KaminKevCrew said:

Sorry, I wasn't trying to say that they would sound similar, only that from what I recall, the Senns have more bass than what would normally be considered neutral (using the HD600 as the standard here). They're not going to sound similar at all. 

 

Anyway, the HD558 is the one to buy, since you can just pull some foam out, and it will sound almost exactly the same as the 598.

What about the Sennheiser Momentum Over ear? I can fork out $50 more to go from 598 to Momentums.

[Dackzy]

9 minutes ago, Daydream said:

What about the Sennheiser Momentum Over ear? I can fork out $50 more to go from 598 to Momentums.

the momentum is overpriced if you only care about sound, they are fashion headphones so you are going to pay for the design. The HD 598 are not worth it over the HD558, they sound 95% the same without the mod and with the mod 99.999% the same.

[KaminKevCrew]

7 hours ago, Daydream said:

What about the Sennheiser Momentum Over ear? I can fork out $50 more to go from 598 to Momentums.

Personally, I really enjoyed the momentum while I owned it. They definitely get a recommendation from me. Just be aware that unless you have tiny ears, the gen 1 momentum is definitely not a real over ear headphone.

[Daydream]

2 hours ago, KaminKevCrew said:

Personally, I really enjoyed the momentum while I owned it. They definitely get a recommendation from me. Just be aware that unless you have tiny ears, the gen 1 momentum is definitely not a real over ear headphone.

No, if i am purchasing one, it will be the gen 2. In your opinion, would they be worth $25 more than the 598? Sound quality wise, and most use will be indoors, with maybe some occasional outside usage if its closed back.