Headphones

So the Porta Pros are pretty nice for the money, but I’m starting to think about stepping up to something a little nicer. Trying to weed through the choices is a major exercise in futility. What one guy says is the best pair of cans he’s ever heard, a horde of reddtes says is crap. What one guy says is ‘natural’ sounding, another says is too bassy and muddy. Most of the reviews rate them on stupid extra features, everything but how they actually sound, mostly stuff I could give a turd about. You just never know if a review is from the standpoint of a studio engineer or a bass-hungry consumer. So once again I’m turning to the ears of experience.

I like bass. I need a cigarette after listening to my Amp Ultra system because it’s so full and rich, with bass that rattles my spine. I know I won’t find cans that can replicate that, but I’m sure I can do better than what I have without breaking the bank. The Porta Pros don’t give me enough bass, even though the overall sound is pretty warm, with just a hint of high/mid detail. I want a little brighter, but also more bass punch without losing mids detail. I do NOT want ‘flat’ critical listening cans; I have a pair of those (Sennheiser) that absolutely suck for casual listening - they’re just lifeless boring trash. I am not an engineer, I am not a music critic - I just want to feel the music as much as I hear it. What I’m looking for also has to be reasonably light and comfortable for long listening sessions. The Porta Pros are very good in that regard.

So far I’ve narrowed my latest search down to Oneodio Pro 50 and Audio-Technica ATH-M50x ($118.85 at B&H Photo!). The Oneodio is another budget can that, from all I can see, has a pretty serious V curve that most people seem to enjoy, but some criticize for muddying up the lower mids. I cannot determine from the gazillion reviews I’ve read if these would be clean enough over their bassiness (there’s a new word for all y’all) to be enjoyable for extended listening. While reviews are generally positive, they could all be coming from people who have only had crappy ear buds to compare to. The AT M50x’s, from what I’ve been able to cobble together, also have that ‘consumer’ V-curve, though maybe not as drastic as the Oneodio’s, with good tight bass punch, along with cleaner mids and highs. The opinions go from great to garbage, which helps me not one bit. The good reviews indicate they could be what I’m looking for, but they vary so much that there’s no way to be sure.

I’m trying to keep this next step under or at least close to $100, but I’ll consider going up to $200 if I KNOW I’m going to get what I want as far as audio quality and wearing comfort. Thinking over-ear, open or closed back. Wired only, no mic, no remote control, no extra bs that contributes nothing to the sound.

Thank you all again for bearing with my neurosis.
 
So the Porta Pros are pretty nice for the money, but I’m starting to think about stepping up to something a little nicer. Trying to weed through the choices is a major exercise in futility. What one guy says is the best pair of cans he’s ever heard, a horde of reddtes says is crap. What one guy says is ‘natural’ sounding, another says is too bassy and muddy. Most of the reviews rate them on stupid extra features, everything but how they actually sound, mostly stuff I could give a turd about. You just never know if a review is from the standpoint of a studio engineer or a bass-hungry consumer. So once again I’m turning to the ears of experience.

I like bass. I need a cigarette after listening to my Amp Ultra system because it’s so full and rich, with bass that rattles my spine. I know I won’t find cans that can replicate that, but I’m sure I can do better than what I have without breaking the bank. The Porta Pros don’t give me enough bass, even though the overall sound is pretty warm, with just a hint of high/mid detail. I want a little brighter, but also more bass punch without losing mids detail. I do NOT want ‘flat’ critical listening cans; I have a pair of those (Sennheiser) that absolutely suck for casual listening - they’re just lifeless boring trash. I am not an engineer, I am not a music critic - I just want to feel the music as much as I hear it. What I’m looking for also has to be reasonably light and comfortable for long listening sessions. The Porta Pros are very good in that regard.

So far I’ve narrowed my latest search down to Oneodio Pro 50 and Audio-Technica ATH-M50x ($118.85 at B&H Photo!). The Oneodio is another budget can that, from all I can see, has a pretty serious V curve that most people seem to enjoy, but some criticize for muddying up the lower mids. I cannot determine from the gazillion reviews I’ve read if these would be clean enough over their bassiness (there’s a new word for all y’all) to be enjoyable for extended listening. While reviews are generally positive, they could all be coming from people who have only had crappy ear buds to compare to. The AT M50x’s, from what I’ve been able to cobble together, also have that ‘consumer’ V-curve, though maybe not as drastic as the Oneodio’s, with good tight bass punch, along with cleaner mids and highs. The opinions go from great to garbage, which helps me not one bit. The good reviews indicate they could be what I’m looking for, but they vary so much that there’s no way to be sure.

I’m trying to keep this next step under or at least close to $100, but I’ll consider going up to $200 if I KNOW I’m going to get what I want as far as audio quality and wearing comfort. Thinking over-ear, open or closed back. Wired only, no mic, no remote control, no extra bs that contributes nothing to the sound.

Thank you all again for bearing with my neurosis.
Currently out of stock and outside your price range but these may be what you're looking for.
 
What one guy says is the best pair of cans he’s ever heard, a horde of reddtes says is crap. What one guy says is ‘natural’ sounding, another says is too bassy and muddy. Most of the reviews rate them on stupid extra features, everything but how they actually sound, mostly stuff I could give a turd about. You just never know if a review is from the standpoint of a studio engineer or a bass-hungry consumer. So once again I’m turning to the ears of experience.

I like bass....
A suggestion -- I've found that using EQ, particularly PEQ, greatly enhances the quality of any speaker or headphone. That's one of the greatest advantages of WiiM devices -- their PEQ setup is amazingly versatile and effective, especially for the price of the units. And there are a number of web sites that offer recommended EQ settings for many makes and models of headphones. I've used the WiiM system to fine-tune my headphones with great results.
 
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Currently out of stock and outside your price range but these may be what you're looking for.
I Tried these, i actually enjoyed them for edm/ reggae but not with other types of music, a lot of bass, tuneful bass, also very comfortable, but not for me.

Try to get a set of Grado headphones to try, I personally like the grado sound but cannot use open backed headphones because I listen to music in the same room as my wife watches tv:)
 
cannot use open backed headphones because I listen to music in the same room as my wife watches tv
Yeah, been there once before when i got a new pair of open backed headphones.
We both just kept on turning up the volume!
I'm now banished to another room with some newer closed backed headphones.
So not all bad after all ;)
 
A suggestion -- I've found that using EQ, particularly PEQ, greatly enhances the quality of any speaker or headphone. That's one of the greatest advantages of WiiM devices -- their PEQ setup is amazingly versatile and effective, especially for the price of the units. And there are a number of web sites that offer recommended EQ settings for many makes and models of headphones. I've used the WiiM system to fine-tune my headphones with great results.
I bypass the WiiM when using phones - I just plug directly into the iPhone or iPad. The problem there is the Music app doesn’t have a separate EQ for different outputs, so I’d have to change it when going between wired phones and Bluetooth to the amp. And the way Apple manages the EQ is kind of a PIA - it’s buried in Settings instead of in the app. I’ve turned EQ off for going to the amp and speakers, as the Amp Ultra does a much better job with it, but I’ll give it another try with the phones and see how that goes. Could also try a separate EQ app just for giggles.
Edit: On second thought, that’ll be a loud and resounding no on an app. No way in hell I’m paying a subscription fee for that.
 
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Yeah, been there once before when i got a new pair of open backed headphones.
We both just kept on turning up the volume!
I'm now banished to another room with some newer closed backed headphones.
So not all bad after all ;)
Yes we did the exact same thing:)
I use closed back now:)
 
Thanks - would have been our 56th wedding anniversary this week. Happy but sad memories.
Very sorry to hear this. Hang onto those happy memories.

On a brighter note, I just placed an order for the Audio-Technica ATH-M50x. It was a tough choice between these and the Oneodio Pro 50; but from what I could gather, the general consensus is the AT’s have clean but not harsh mids and highs, are less boomy but still have good bass punch with a less extreme V shape. Observations to follow.
 
Very sorry to hear this. Hang onto those happy memories.

On a brighter note, I just placed an order for the Audio-Technica ATH-M50x. It was a tough choice between these and the Oneodio Pro 50; but from what I could gather, the general consensus is the AT’s have clean but not harsh mids and highs, are less boomy but still have good bass punch with a less extreme V shape. Observations to follow.
Thanks - look forward to your review
 
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