ATH-m50 vs Grado sr80i vs Sony MDR v6 vs Sennheiser 228 Pro's

[CitybytheBay]

I am looking to buy a new pair of headphones. I had a pair of Beats by Dre Solo HD's and i was really satisfied with them up until they broke when I put them in my bag one day. My main use will be just for recreational use. Mostly at home, at school, just walking around. I'm trying to stay under 200$ and i have done some research and had lots of mixed reviews on these 4 headphones:
Ath-m50
Grado sr80i
Sony MDR v6
Sennheiser 228 Pro's

I am by no means an expert on headphones so if there is another pair of headphones that you have found to be better than these please tell me about them. Thanks

[CrowdAds]

[gebbss]

I'm quite a newbie at this myself, but the sr80i's are too open to be used anywhere but home. I don't know about the other two, but I bought a pair of M50's - I'm still waiting for my order to arrive though. >_>

[Satellite_6]

If these are mainly for home, open headphones might be ok, it's your call. If you do go with open, people seem to like the Senn. HD 555s, Audio Technica ADH-AD700, Alessandro (Grado) MS1s. . . in this price range.

I'm not sure about closed 'phones but I doubt you can go wrong with Sennheiser!

[Jack4L]

The Audio-Technica M50's are the only ones I'd recommend going with after you have used and liked your Beats They wont be as bassy, but I'm sure you'll find they are bassy enough, you might even enjoy a wider range of music with them as well. The Grados and Sonys are really bright sounding compared to your Beats, and the Sennheisers- well are sort of on the light and portable side, good if you can get them on the cheap. A better set of Sennheisers would be the HD25 SP.

Lots of other headphones out there, but the M50's are the only ones I'd go with out of the 4 with all things considered.

[CitybytheBay]

Thanks Jack4L. I'm open to lots of different suggestions so if there is another pair of headphones that you recommend under 200$, since it seems like you know a lot about headphones, please feel free to share it with me.

[JxK]

If you're going to use them out and about, then you're best off with a closed headphone. Using open headphones in loud areas will require you to turn up the volume to dangerously unsafe levels in order to hear the music. For good portable fullsize headphones, I'm fond of the m50. I wrote a review of them in the headphone review section if you're interested.

[Marvin the Martian]

Originally Posted by JxK

If you're going to use them out and about, then you're best off with a closed headphone. Using open headphones in loud areas will require you to turn up the volume to dangerously unsafe levels in order to hear the music. For good portable fullsize headphones, I'm fond of the m50. I wrote a review of them in the headphone review section if you're interested.

I take the opposite approach....I use open 'phones out and about because I like to hear the cars coming. Sure, it takes a little discipline to not turn up your volume to dangerous levels, but it's a worthy exercise for me.

[JxK]

^It's a bit of a balancing act. But most headphones and IEMs only dampen outside noise. The m50 block out some 20db, which isn't enough to cut you off from reality. Now, etymotic's IEMs - which boast an industry leading 42db(!) noise attenuation - those truly will leave you in a silent bubble. Using open headphones in loud areas though, for me at least, is pointless. If you keep the volume low enough to not do real damage there are times when you literally won't hear anything being played. But I guess the levels of outside noise we experience do depend upon where we live...maybe the places you use your phones are just quieter. And I prefer quiet listening, which likely plays a role in my choices.

[CitybytheBay]

Hey guys. My final two choice were the ath-m50's and the sennheiser 280 pros but i decided to go with the sennheiser's because they were cheaper. Thanks for all the input and i hope i get my money's worth.

[Satellite_6]

Originally Posted by CitybytheBay

Hey guys. My final two choice were the ath-m50's and the sennheiser 280 pros but i decided to go with the sennheiser's because they were cheaper. Thanks for all the input and i hope i get my money's worth.

They look pretty solid compared to other Senns you were looking at, I hope they sound good! They probably will.

Sennheiser 4 eva!!! Or until I try something better.

[JxK]

I've never had the 280, so this information is secondhand...however more than one person as stated that the 280s excel at isolation. They're apparently pretty much the most isolating closed can on the market. By that same token, they have relatively more clamping force than other closed headphones. Not sure if that will affect your comfort, but I thought I'd at least bring it to your attention.

[Adub]

If you're choosing between the 228 and the m50, there is no contest, not even close i suggest the M50.