Should I buy the ath-m50x headphones or the m50?

[BmoneyGames]

All i've heard about is how good these headphones are and i was thinking of getting a pair.
So i did some reasearch and found of pair of the original m50's on craigslist for $75.
And i found a pair of the m50x's on amazon for $140. Is the m50x's worth the extra 75 bucks or should i pick up the m50's? Or should i skip the m50's series all together and look at other headphones?
p.s. I would use them for music, gaming etc...

 

[RazerZ]

The best way to see if you like them would be to try them out. I owned a pair of m50s... if you never owned a decent pair of headphones before you would probably like them. If you have a place like Guitar Center or Best Buy near by be sure to at least try the m50s along with other similarly priced cans and see which one you like best. They have that fun "v shaped" sound signature with emphasis on the low end and treble and are VERY forward sounding. The soundstage is also quite small and I found myself not enjoying music (especially classic rock) a lot of the time because of this along with its powerful/harsh sound. Build quality is top notch and they would last you for years to come. They do have a good amount of clamping force and comfort isn't the best either. They use pleather pads and since it's a closed back design they can become hot and sweaty after a while of listening, which causes the soft pleather pads to harden in a short amount of time. The headband padding is also rather poor and left me with a hotspot on the middle of my head. During longer listening sessions I could feel the metal headband clamping into my skull. This can be alleviated by adding further padding and stretching the headband. However since it is not that comfortable and the soundstage is poor, I wouldn't recommend them in general for gaming. YMMV. $75 for the original m50s is a decent deal.

The m50x is a slightly tweaked pair of m50s with a removable cable. The sound is more detailed and neutral, however they sound very similar to the m50s. Considering there are other similarly priced headphones like the DT 770 PRO which can do everything better than the m50x for the same price I would not buy them.

 

[BmoneyGames]

The best way to see if you like them would be to try them out. I owned a pair of m50s... if you never owned a decent pair of headphones before you would probably like them. If you have a place like Guitar Center or Best Buy near by be sure to at least try the m50s along with other similarly priced cans and see which one you like best. They have that fun "v shaped" sound signature with emphasis on the low end and treble and are VERY forward sounding. The soundstage is also quite small and I found myself not enjoying music (especially classic rock) a lot of the time because of this along with its powerful/harsh sound. Build quality is top notch and they would last you for years to come. They do have a good amount of clamping force and comfort isn't the best either. They use pleather pads and since it's a closed back design they can become hot and sweaty after a while of listening, which causes the soft pleather pads to harden in a short amount of time. The headband padding is also rather poor and left me with a hotspot on the middle of my head. During longer listening sessions I could feel the metal headband clamping into my skull. This can be alleviated by adding further padding and stretching the headband. However since it is not that comfortable and the soundstage is poor, I wouldn't recommend them in general for gaming. YMMV. $75 for the original m50s is a decent deal.

The m50x is a slightly tweaked pair of m50s with a removable cable. The sound is more detailed and neutral, however they sound very similar to the m50s. Considering there are other similarly priced headphones like the DT 770 PRO which can do everything better than the m50x for the same price I would not buy them.

I looked at the DT 770 pro and it's a little bit out of my price range. Trying to keep under $150. So your saying you would prefer me get the m50 over the m50x. Cause this is going to be a pair of headphones that I'm gonna be using for quite a while. I guess you could call it a go big, or go home scenario. So I want to know what would be better in the long run.

 

[RazerZ]

Of the two I would go with the m50s since the sound is very similar and you're finding it for half the price as well. However there are other headphones <$150 which would put up a strong fight and would definitely be a better choice for gaming.

What genres of music do you listen to? Do you plan to use these headphones on the go in a public environment?

 

[BmoneyGames]

Of the two I would go with the m50s since the sound is very similar and you're finding it for half the price as well. However there are other headphones <$150 which would put up a strong fight and would definitely be a better choice for gaming.

What genres of music do you listen to? Do you plan to use these headphones on the go in a public environment?

Dubstep, Country, Rap, electronic.

And will the comfort be a problem.
I will be using these for long sessions.
And yes i am going to use theme in mostly car trips
and friends houses outside of home.

 

[RazerZ]

The m50s would work well for all of those genres. They should be comfortable enough after modding if they are not comfortable at first. My m50s had a strong clamping force, stretching them out on a small speaker box greatly helped. Also the pads were shallow and the drivers would touch my ears making them sore after a while. This can also be alleviated by stuffing tissue between the earpads to bring the drivers farther from your ear.

I would also look into a pair of NVX XPT 100's in that price range. On amazon they have a sale going where $100 gets you the headphones and a pair of EX10S IEMs (in ear monitors). They would be a nice step up for your portable audio if you've been using apple earbuds or some other generic brand. Comfort wise they are a big step up from the m50s. The ear pads are quite large/thick and leave plenty of room for your ear. They come with two sets of ear pads, angled and straight, and are very soft. They are made of pleather and memory foam.The headphones themselves are solidly built and are also quite flexible, they should hold up well for rough use. Compared to the m50s they have a smooth, clean, laid back sound. The soundstage has been considered best in class and is the opposite of the m50s, wide and open. Unlike the m50s they use dual removable cables which is also a plus. I would think more people would prefer these over the m50s since they are not as aggressive sounding and would be easier on the ears for longer sessions.

 

[ssddx]

i also own a pair of m50s and while they are nice cans its not worth $75 more for the m50x over the m50 deal you saw (however do keep in mind you can get BRAND NEW but open box m50's on ebay all day long for only $99). not everyone likes the forward sound that the m50s have (i personally do) which i think razerz covered.

if you had the budget (and since you were looking on the used market, check out used prices as well) for the dt770 they are better all around and are more comfortable than the m50. he covered this as well.

not covered were the v-moda headphones which you might also like for your needs

your choice ultimately what you go with. i will say that the m50s are durable as tanks and do fold up which is nice for travel despite them being full sized. while iems are easier to travel with they can get dirty fairly quick depending on your ears. i personally never had luck keeping a pair clean (and yes i did clean my ears daily)