[thelamppost]

I've had the ATH-M50s for about two years now and they're great!  The problem, however, is that I've shown them to my dad and now I can't ever use them.  So I'm using this opportunity to move up to the next step.  I'm considering a few options:
 
Darth Beyer V4 (Terminators)
Denon AH-D5000/D2000 (would prefer the 5000 as I like the wooden covers and have read that they are built with some higher quality)
ATH-W1000X 
ATH-W5000
DT 770 Pro 80
 
As you may be able to tell, I enjoy the bass in my music.  I listen to a lot of dance/techno/dubstep/house, rap/hip hop, hard rock/metal.  These headphones would be used almost exclusively for music, and I do understand that I'd need an amp.  For portable amps I've been considering:
 
Possibly a CMOY with or without bass boost (I see these all over eBay and I'm not sure how good the bass boost feature is)
Fiio e17
Fiio e7
 
Now what I'd really like to do if I have some spare time, is try and make my own Darth Beyers (V4s hopefully) for the challenge and sense of accomplishment.  I'm no expert modder, but I think it would be a fun project.  The problem is, I can't seem to find any guides and I'm not sure what the extent of the mods are.  What are the differences between V4, V3, V2, and V1?  Are only the cups replaced with wooden ones, followed by a recable?  Is anything done to the driver or anything else?
Otherwise, I'm thinking my best bet would be to get a used pair of DT 770 Pro 80s and send them in to headphile.
 
So my questions are:
What is your opinion on which headphone/amp I should get?  If applicable, are there any alternative portable amplifiers in the sub-$100 price range that would better fit these?
 
Is my idea of making my own Darth Beyers unrealistic or too difficult for someone with no experience?

 

[BillsonChang007]

Hello!
 
Have you ever consider the Sennheiser Momentum? It's a perfect upgrade from ATH-M50 and it is also one of my favorite headphone for bass without losing the mids but the bass does bleed a little thought :/ anyway, the mids are warm. Sibilance unlike most Sennheiser I had experienced with, these Momentums are really quite. Soundstage fall short but it has decent details. Build quality are superb but if you have L-size head like me, you might as well have fitting issue.
 
As for amping, no, you don't need one but not sure if it is paired with one. Do consider FiiO E11 if you don't need a DAC 
 
i hope this help!
Billson  

 

[Perpendicular]

Just wanted to add that I just purchased a pair of Nuforce HP-800's and have not quite broke them in yet, due to a lingering ear infection, but for $149.00, they are a steel! Worth 2 if not 3 X's that compared to others. Plus they also make some of the most accurate, jitter free headphone amp/DAC's out there!
Well worth looking into. These are their first OTE Cans, as they primarily used to make earphones and can amp/DAC's!
IMHO, they used the engineering $$$ For sound, not flash! So they are not flashy, but have full solid aluminum head frames and VERY good audio.
They are a newer company out of Cally, but are becoming quit large. That should tell you something. I'd have to say, when they started making personal audio products a lot of there success had to be word of mouth! That's how I came upon them, and have never looked back!
They started out manuf. high quality $$ home amps and CD/Blu-ray players.
That have a huge collection of awards for the short time they have been around and excel at Customer Service, as well.

Hope I was some help? They are definitely worth checking out! You can right to their website and they have an E-Store along with it. Just Google!

 

[thelamppost]

Hey thanks for the responses guys.  I had not heard of those two headphones and definitely will consider them now.  I like the look of the HP-800s a little more than the momentums...but I guess sound quality is more important.  I would like to know how these two compare to the cans i've suggested as well.  
 
As for the fiio e11,  it must have slipped my mind, but its definitely something I'm considering as well.
 
I should also mention that I only want a pair of closed headphones before people start to suggest open ones.  

 

[roma101]

Look into the Yamaha PRO 500 (my favorite headphone I have owned yet) and the V-MODA M-100. 500 is more balanced across the spectrum with nice bass punch and extension and excellent timbre accuracy to my ears. M-100, from what I have read, is more of a basshead can, a little v-shaped but fun-sounding overall.

 

[thelamppost]

I'm not sure if the yamahas are what i'm looking for...but as for the VModas, i believe my neighbor has a pair and hopefully i'll be able to try those out.

 

[Perpendicular]

I have not had a chance to audition the Senny Momentums, but have owned several pair of different Sennheiser models in the past. The 595's were very good overall (they also did not need amps to get good clean audio out of them and were very comfy, so I am guessing the Momentums are very good!
My only complaint with my 595's was the plastic was easily stressed and eventually cracked in a few places.
The Sennys are much more pricey than the Nuforces, but the Nuforces do not come with a fancy solid case, only a silky tie top bag, but for $149.00, they really shine. I do not like over manipulated bass or any "pre-equalized" Cans for that matter. That's what impresses me about the HP-800's. the sound is very natural and neutral, but still has very good tight bottom end and the overall sound quality is more of a flat frequency response, thus the Studio Monitor quality rings true to me when I listen to them.
Basically, if the recording you are listening to is mixed and produced well, they are going to shine! Likewise, badly mixed and recorded music sticks out like a sore thumb! But, I don't listen to Hip Hop or Dub Step, which IMHO, is over produced for the masses. I listen to a wide variety to music, but tend to lean toward Neo-Progressive Rock....aka Porcupine Tree, Anathema, Rush, Transatlantic, and Steven Wilson's newer solo magic, and IMHO, these Cans are perfect for my needs!

 

[BillsonChang007]

Quote:

I have not had a chance to audition the Senny Momentums, but have owned several pair of different Sennheiser models in the past. The 595's were very good overall (they also did not need amps to get good clean audio out of them and were very comfy, so I am guessing the Momentums are very good!
My only complaint with my 595's was the plastic was easily stressed and eventually cracked in a few places.
The Sennys are much more pricey than the Nuforces, but the Nuforces do not come with a fancy solid case, only a silky tie top bag, but for $149.00, they really shine. I do not like over manipulated bass or any "pre-equalized" Cans for that matter. That's what impresses me about the HP-800's. the sound is very natural and neutral, but still has very good tight bottom end and the overall sound quality is more of a flat frequency response, thus the Studio Monitor quality rings true to me when I listen to them.
Basically, if the recording you are listening to is mixed and produced well, they are going to shine! Likewise, badly mixed and recorded music sticks out like a sore thumb! But, I don't listen to Hip Hop or Dub Step, which IMHO, is over produced for the masses. I listen to a wide variety to music, but tend to lean toward Neo-Progressive Rock....aka Porcupine Tree, Anathema, Rush, Transatlantic, and Steven Wilson's newer solo magic, and IMHO, these Cans are perfect for my needs!

I listen to everything under the sun, I'm pretty sure for the extra buck for those leather senny, it's really nice for portable use except for a few negative point. I find it good with a lot of music that doesn't require good soundstage.

 

[Tsujigiri]

The D2000's will be difficult to get now that they're discontinued and being hyped up like crazy. I personally haven't heard them, but something tells me that with the recent secondhand prices skyrocketing, they're no longer that competitive at their price point. I have the DT770-80's paired with a Fiio E12 and they sound great to me. I use that as a more portable setup than my HD650's. The E12 bass boost is pretty subtle, but it boosts the sub bass rather than the midbass, which I very much prefer. I don't think the bass boost is necessary with the DT770-80's, but it might tickle your fancy.

 

[MalVeauX]

Quote:

I've had the ATH-M50s for about two years now and they're great!  The problem, however, is that I've shown them to my dad and now I can't ever use them.  So I'm using this opportunity to move up to the next step.  I'm considering a few options:
 
Darth Beyer V4 (Terminators)
Denon AH-D5000/D2000 (would prefer the 5000 as I like the wooden covers and have read that they are built with some higher quality)
ATH-W1000X 
ATH-W5000
DT 770 Pro 80
 
As you may be able to tell, I enjoy the bass in my music.  I listen to a lot of dance/techno/dubstep/house, rap/hip hop, hard rock/metal.  These headphones would be used almost exclusively for music, and I do understand that I'd need an amp.  For portable amps I've been considering:
 
Possibly a CMOY with or without bass boost (I see these all over eBay and I'm not sure how good the bass boost feature is)
Fiio e17
Fiio e7
 
Now what I'd really like to do if I have some spare time, is try and make my own Darth Beyers (V4s hopefully) for the challenge and sense of accomplishment.  I'm no expert modder, but I think it would be a fun project.  The problem is, I can't seem to find any guides and I'm not sure what the extent of the mods are.  What are the differences between V4, V3, V2, and V1?  Are only the cups replaced with wooden ones, followed by a recable?  Is anything done to the driver or anything else?
Otherwise, I'm thinking my best bet would be to get a used pair of DT 770 Pro 80s and send them in to headphile.
 
So my questions are:
What is your opinion on which headphone/amp I should get?  If applicable, are there any alternative portable amplifiers in the sub-$100 price range that would better fit these?
 
Is my idea of making my own Darth Beyers unrealistic or too difficult for someone with no experience?

 
Heya,
 
I would suggest you just get a good headphone and then simply tweak/equalize the bass yourself.
 
I would look at these as base headphones to work from:
 
Beyer DT770 (any model)
Ultrasone PRO 750
Mr Speaker Mad Dog
AKG K167 & K267 & K550
AudioTechnica A900X
 
From there, a Fiio E12 for portability (has such great power output). Or if you want something that functions as a desktop dac/amp as well as a portable amp, look into the Fiio e17 or e07k. Or if you just want a home setup, look at the Schiit Modi & Magni, or an NFB12.1 or JDS ODAC/O2.
 
As for tweaking, start using an equalizer if you're not already. Instead of increasing the bass frequencies, leave them at zero, or a gentle curve down from zero. Drop the other frequencies by a good -10db to start. Go lower if you want. Just experiment here to your taste. This will expose and emphasize bass without increasing distortion potential. Now this will lower the line out volume, so here's where your amplifier comes in to raise that back up. And it will be very bassy and have tons of impact. Simple process.
 
An example of what I mean by equalizing for bass:
 
 

 
Very best,