Audio-Technica M50x Professional Studio Headphones for studio recording, creators, DJs, gaming, podcasts and everyday listening – Black
Features:
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Critically Acclaimed Sonic PerformancePraised by top audio engineers and pro audio reviewers. | Clear Sound for Studio, Live, DJ and Personal UseExceptional clarity throughout an extended frequency range, with deep, accurate bass response. | Offers Excellent Sound IsolationCircumaural design contours around the ears for excellent sound isolation in loud environments. |
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For in the Studio and on the Road90° swiveling earcups for easy, one-ear monitoring, and collapsible for space-saving portability. | Comfortable Fit for Hours of UseProfessional-grade earpad and headband material delivers more durability and comfort. | AccessoriesDetachable 1.2 m – 3.0 m (3.9′ – 9.8′) coiled cable and detachable 1.2 m (3.9′) straight cable. |
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| ATH-M20x | ATH-M30x | ATH-M40x | ATH-M50xGM | ATH-M70x | |
| Application | Tracking, mixing | Tracking, mixing | Mixing, tracking, DJ | Mixing, tracking, DJ, personal listening | Mixing, tracking, FOH, DJ, mastering, personal listening |
| Driver Size | 40 mm | 40 mm | 40 mm | 45 mm | 45 mm |
| Sensitivity | 96 dB | 95.5 dB | 98 dB | 98 dB | 97 dB |
| Maximum Input Power | 700 mW | 1300 mW | 1600 mW | 1600 mW | 2000 mW |
| Impedance (Ohms) | 47W | 47W | 35W | 38W | 35W |
| Weight (HP w/o Cable) | 6.7 oz. | 7.8 oz. | 8.5 oz. | 10 oz. | 9.9 oz. |
| Frequency Response | 15-20,000 Hz | 15-20,000 Hz | 15-24,000 Hz | 15-28,000 Hz | 5 – 40,000 Hz |
| Earcup Swivel | 15° Both Directions | 15° Both Directions | 15° In / 90° Out | 90° Both Directions | 90° Both Directions |
| Collapsible | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Cable | 3.0 m (9.8′), straight, left-side exit | 3.0 m (9.8′), straight, left-side exit | Detachable 1.2 m – 3.0 m (3.9′ – 9.8′) coiled cable and detachable 3.0 m (9.8′) straight cable | Detachable 1.2 m – 3.0 m (3.9′ – 9.8′) coiled cable and detachable 1.2 m (3.9′) straight cable | Detachable 1.2 m – 3.0 m (3.9′ – 9.8′) coiled cable, detachable 3.0 m (9.8′) straight cable and detachable 1.2 m (3.9′) straight cable |
| Weight: | 285 g |
| Dimensions: | 28.96 x 25.4 x 10.41 cm; 285 Grams |
| Model: | AUD ATHM50X |
| Colour: | Black |
| Batteries Included: | 1 Lithium ion batteries required. |
| Colour: | Black |
| Origin: | Taiwan |
Just an average user looking for above average sound. Definitely found it here, I do not often leave reviews but hoping this helps others. I am not an audiophile as such, have no real experience to talk off, but what I can say is swapping between my sub 20 headphones and these, I can tell the difference, everything sounds tight, clear, seperated where it should be, or where I did not know it should have been before. Very pleased, going to get some comfier pads for them, I’ve paid a bit of a premium, my ears deserve to be extra comfy, not that they are uncomfy, I would say comfort is on par with any sub 20 set.
Love that this set of headphones has great precision from bass to high end. They aren’t fancy – they are plain, wired cans. I have only had them a day and haven’t tried them through the sound mixing equipment yet but I’m sure they will perform well. Being low impedence they are driven by the ipod and phone easily…being into metal, too, I sometimes like to crank up to 11…these are handling that great. Even Lemmy comes through damned clear on Overkill, so mids are fine. Shinedown, nicely polished. Faster Pussycat, still raw. Orchestral you can hear everything…. Bridge Over Troubled Water clear as a bell on everything… A definite step up from my buds and well worth the money I paid. Bought the gun metal grey so were 95 quid.. If you want mega bass then I’m finding that the Beats are better… But I’m not 18 so even though I love good big bass, these do the highs better for me.
They are a little tight on my head so after half hour I was feeling a bit uncomfortable…. They’ll ‘give’ in time, like wearing in a pair of new leather shoes.. But I do have a slightly bigger size head, apparently. The cans swivel lots (which some may not initially like) so they fold away nicely for storage in the hard case that came with them. 2 leads that plug into the left ear cup. One coiled with the 6.5 jack and one shorter with the 3.5mm. The cups, by the way, are pretty small but I’m getting used to that. I’d prefer them 10mm bigger.
Plastic construction on the outside which is OK by me – if I get 3 years use out of these I’ll be happy, but I’m sure I’ll get 10 years if I don’t throw em around. Next stage is to get a non-budget high res player to use and make a further comparison.
So, in short, 95 quid is superb for 99 percent of people; the other 1% may want to spend 950 to really boost listening pleasure.
The Pros –
AudioTechnica make quality products. Very good build. Reasonably comfortable to wear for extended periods. Selection of cables and both plug sizes included. Sound quality, varies depending on what you use them with. When paired with a high quality amp, or other such source, the sound is excellent.
The Cons –
When used with something less capable, there is a small problem with the bass. This can be adjusted, but to give you an idea of what I mean, I tried using these with my iPad Pro for mastering a song. Yes, the sound was still good, but somehow not as comfortable to my inner ear. I had better results using a cheap pair of JVC headphones. But to be fair, iPads are not what the Audio Technicas are optimised for. FWIW, there is a paid app, TB Morphit, made by ToneBoosters, which can dramatically improve the sound of these headphones. So if that is a major way in which you intend using them, then it may be worth investigating.
Used them for over a year and they’re still in perfect condition.
I use them almost every night and there’s been no wear or tear.
Sound quality is perfection.
Good bass.
Noise cancellation is fantastic – I’ve tested it by playing a drum kit as loud as I can. Friends have agreed too. It really dampens sounds as loud as that without feeling like your ears are being suctioned.
Which segways perfectly to the comfort; they are a tiny bit heavy, but they don’t hurt my ears or my head after multiple hours of use.
As titled, best headphones I’ve bought. Well worth the money.
I bought these headphones on the 19th October 2014. When I say I used them daily, believe me, I mean DAILY. I suffer from tinnitus and fall asleep to the same ambient album every night (shout out to “Deep Frieze”). When I’m working, sometimes my tinnitus can stress me out, so I often put these on just to cancel noise in the office.
On the 21st November, 2020 the left ear got a little loose. I could fix it by tightening the screws, but I decided to move on and try a different pair.
These headphones have crossed continents, been kicked around in a rucksack, used all day at my desk and been in my constant possession for SIX. YEARS. To this day, the sound quality is just as good as it was back then.
This is by far the BEST value for money I have EVER gotten from any product ever. I actually feel emotional about retiring them.
Anyway, if it wasn’t already obvious: I recommend these headphones.
I use these daily since my Sennheisers broke and can hand on heart say I would rather have these which cost less. The bass is tight and punchy and the cable variety is a nice touch meaning it can be used with an aux port or I can use it with my audio interface. I love these headphones and would recommend them to anyone for their sound quality.
What an upgrade… awesome !
Sweet letters of advice to prospective buyers… RTFM !
(Where R = Read, M = Manual).
I had a fight trying to get the jack into the headphone socket, thinking that it was tight as it was new. Then, after noticing alignment markings, checked the manual. Yes, dearly beloved, it has a twist lock. I’d not seen one before, my bad, my excuse.
A truly great pair of cans. Tonal quality – exceptional. Really good soundproofing too.
Regarding comfort, I’ll come back on this subject. Currently, my record stands at 90 minutes with no ear pain from pressure.
The headphones are perfect. I’m no audiophile so I can’t be too critical on the sound quality, however I know these are great headphones. The folding works well, the cable is a little strange to plug in first with the twisting mechanism but is not a problem after the first try, the case and cables are all good quality too. Overall, very happy with this purchase.
Very good quality sound – I like it flat so that I can appreciate all aspects of my music without emphasis on one feature (that’s what audio profiles are for), and so that I can mix music in FL Studio. Good range and clarity.
I have used these just about everyday for the last 2 years and a few months, and apart from some scuffing as shown in the picture (no noticeable loss of comfort), they are perfect still.
The over-ear feature does cancel sound quite well, but don’t expect miracles in a subway station for instance.
I was after low/mid price and high performance, I think these are as close as you are going to get to this paradigm.
They are comfortable to wear for long periods of time. I’ve had them for over a year now and they are still in great condition.
These are used for studio work, mixing and production. Bass is not exaggerated, there is plenty of top end and the Mid range remains responsive.
Overall there is not a lot of colour to the sound,
What I really enjoy about these is that they can be pushed volume wise, some of the other studio headphones I’ve used have been too quiet.
Put it this way If they broke I’d buy another pair straight away.
I bought these for the intention of listening to music and gaming at night rather than blasting it out of my Bose Companion 3.0. The partner isn’t best pleased when I do.
These were a bit of an impulse purchase instead of a gaming headset, purely though recommendation from other users i got them and boy was i surprised. They are by no means studio headphones but you could of easily fooled me, the quality is amazing. For just listening to music I prefer to listen through these than my Bose, the bass quality doesn’t degrade any of the other audio at all.
Good headphones, here are some tips for use.
I used to have an LG V series phone (has good internal DAC and amp), moved to another phone and the sound was weaker. Some tips if you have a phone with USB-C >> get a USB-c DAC with amp, it really boosts the headphones a lot. I tried a few, best from Ali Ex called MEIZU HiFi DAC (32bit plus internal amp aprox 15 and takes about a week to come from China).
Other tip, can convert to gaming headset, or confernece calls headset, if you look on amazon can find replacement cables that have a boom mic (2.5trs to 3.3trrs).(works with DAC also)
search Cable-Boom-Microphone-Playstation-Controller-ATH-M40-50-70X
To use the DAC on android, get USB Audio Player Pro, log into Tidal might need to pay a few pounds also for MQA. But once these all enabled, I get Direct 96kHz MQA, FLAC 96kHz 24 bit 1757Kbps sound quality. Which is amazing on a crappy motorola G8 Power! (this passes the signal to the USB DAC to drive headphones)
sound is great.
These are very intense headphones, the bass especially I found overwhelming on a lot of songs, meaning 1) earache, and 2) less prominent vocals. Which was disappointing as a lot of my favourite songs don’t benefit from a boosted bass where the vocals and guitars should be star of the show. Still, they sounded absolutely incredible with drum and bass and hip hop so I get why they’re popular. But don’t get these if you’re looking for an ‘all rounder’ headphone and especially if you want to close your eyes and listen to more chilled music because these won’t let you relax. Lots of reviewers praise these headphones for their ‘exciting’ sound which is appealing in theory, but you really need to try these before you buy if you have sensitive ears. I swapped for the m40x which still has a powerful bass but I’m getting used to it. Bear in mind I have come from cheaper headphones which can’t deliver a very detailed or powerful response, and this is a warning to those like me – a casual listener looking for a big upgrade in sound quality for all different genres of music that these are not particularly multi purpose. However if you want big sounds and an emphasis on bass no matter the song (and haven’t been tarnished by bassy headphones), these will blow your socks off.
These headphones are good headphones but not as good as what I expected by looking at all the perfect reviews. You can get similar sound quality with much cheaper headphones too so its not magical regarding extra price tag. Dont get me wrong it doesnt sound bad, it sounds nice but there are similar headphones with similar performance but lower price tags. The noise cancellation is good but they can be so tight so give you headache after several minutes.
I bought these to replace my headphones which had just gotten old and needed replacing. I visited a lot of comparison websites, and these headphones had a high recommendation so I thought I would invest in them.
It was one of the best purchases I have made for my setup. I play video games, watch films and listen to music on them and every experience is fantastic. The sound is crisp, and aids in fully immersing you into whatever you are doing.
Its important to have headphones which don’t squeeze your head and you are able to wear for extended periods of time and these are definitely one of those. They are padded and sometimes you even forget you have them on.
I would highly recommend these to anyone, and i hope you enjoy the headphones as much as I do.
Best Closed-back headphones for under a grand easily!
Comfortable and great sounding. If you want pumping bass for your tunez, look elsewhere. if however you like classical music then buy em now, you will not be disappointed.
I do a fair amount of recording at home and mainly use a pair of Beyer DT990s. They’re open backed which is great for mixing but they leak a lot of sound which is easily picked up by microphones.
To get round this and to have a second pair for a singer to use, I decided to get a pair of these ATH-M50x.
In general, they’re every bit as good as all the other reviews say. Sound quality is good and there’s very little noise leakage.
I’ve docked a star purely because they’re not quite as comfortable as the Beyers. They’re not uncomfortable by any means – just not quite to the same level of comfort. In every other respect and for what I need, I think they’re as good as the DT990.
Amazing set of headphones!!!!! That’s all I should need to say
These headphones are extremely comfortable, I normally struggle as a glasses wearer to find headphones that don’t crush my head when I’m wearing them but these are just perfect, they have amazing low end yet stay very punchy for the perfect kick drum, the cables are amazing quality and also help that you get 3 different ones so you can change to suit your surroundings.
Just absolutely amazing!!!!
I was recommended these by a fellow composer as I’ve had to set up my studio elsewhere during the Coronavirus lockdown in the U.K. and I was not prepared to buy another set of speakers. I’m incredibly impressed with the quality of these headphones. The clarity in sound is wonderful. Sound cancelling is pretty good when there is sound coming through the headphones. However, not completely cancelled with nothing being played through. But, honestly that minor point.
The seller was also very helpful in regards to a lost product. I contacted them and received replies very quickly and the issue was sorted and I never felt any concern about if the product would turn up.
Highly recommend these to composers having to mix on the move and those who want a higher quality of headphones.
Excellent sound quality: very balanced. Durable build. The only reason I didnt give it 5 stars is because the headband is a little tighter than I would like. This may improve/loosen with use, snd if it does i would increase it to 5stars. (I jave bose quiet comfort also and sound wise I would say these are comparable, maybe bose has better bass but this has better over all balance of bass, mid, treble. Bose has very good noise reduction and blue tooth connection but its much more expensive. If sound is your main aim these are a good choice. If you want headband comfort, bluetooth, and favor bass heavy headphones, bose will be better but you will pay a lot more.)
Huge bass that’s not too bloaty, you can hear the texture of different bass instruments, mids a little shallow but detailed and nice enough to not be annoyed by it, highs are laid back and not piercing while still detailed. I own hifiman he400 too, they have nicer mids, prefer the highs on m50x as the he400 can be a little piercing, the bass on he400 is a little more solid sounding but not forward enough for my taste and overall I prefer the bass on these audio technica’s at less than half the price!
They also really comfy too! I have small ears and a lot of cans I find I’m constantly adjusting them on my head, these clamp to my ears and I can just forget they are there. Really glad I bought them!
Bought for monitoring song creations and mixing down. They are super and given such clarity to mixing my songs down. With its great frequency range. All the leads you need included. Yes I am impressed, after being use to some cheap headphones for ages, treated myself to these and wish I had always had them of course. You get what you pay for it seems. Without breaking the bank for home studio set ups.
I purchased these Audio Technica’s to replace a longstanding pair of Sure cans which I sadly broke by accidentally sitting on
I use these with my Yamaha digital piano, for watching movies and with my Mp3 players and phone for music.
I am very impressed with the sound quality, great detail and in my opinion wellbalanced. Very comfy and well made, I can wear them for hours, with no fatigue. I’m not sure why others are complaining of low volume issues as I find these go more than loud enough, and I’m not one for listening at low volumes.
If you’re looking for good quality, comfy great sounding cans these are your answer. Well worth the price tag.
These headphones have made my music experience better by a country mile. Paired with my Pioneer XDP-30R with or without my Fiio BTR1 or BTR3 Bluetooth amps; these headphones are simply the best — for the money — I could imagine. So, I use in-ear Sony MDR-EX650’s for out of the house listening — which are for me the best IEM’s ever — for the money IMO — but now at home, the M50X are my favourites — lots of volume — lovely presence. I am no audiophile, but my music world got significantly better with these cans.
These come highly recommended which influenced my purchase. For me the aren’t spectacular, that isn’t to say the sound quality is not good because it really is, particularly for the money, but I was not blown away. Perhaps I was expecting more because of the hype.
I found them comfortable to wear for several hours at a time and they become more comfortable as the pads break in. All that said they absolutely crush more expensive brands. Beats spring to mind, I had a pair that cost 3 times the price of these, the build quality was rubbish and the sounds quality did not come close to these.
Not a bad buy
I’m a professional musician and was handed a pair of these to use on a recording session. I could not believe the sound quality. Every individual instrument you want to hear is there. They are incredibly well balanced. If you want headphones that just thump bass out at you, then get a pair of those dreadful Beats. However if you like to hear every detail on a piece of music you are listening to, then buy these. Very comfortable to wear for hours at a time and superb quality all round. Just buy them.
I am a hobbyist music producer who needs good quality headphones for mixing purposes. These are very widely used for that purpose and it’s easy to see why. Sound quality is excellent, the highs are crystal clear and the bass is full but not exaggerated. If you can’t use a subwoofer because of the noise then you’ll definitely appreciate these.
My only criticism is that they’re not the most comfortable headphones I’ve ever owned. Clamping force is pretty strong, and I actually had to remove them occasionally to reduce the discomfort during the first few months. The cups are a decent size and cover the ear, unlike some other headphones, but until you’ve really broken them in I don’t think you will find these particularly comfy. You definitely won’t be able to forget you’re wearing them.
Overall though a really great pair of headphones, with 1 star docked because of the initial discomfort.
I bought these headphones to use at home to listen to music on my iPad or Samsung Galaxy when I am doing something painful, like writing a report. I’m not a sound expert and I don’t spend a lot on gadgets and toys, but, to my inexperienced ears, the sound from these headphones is special: clear, crisp, warm, layered. You hear sounds you cannot see in the scenes of films. In fact, once when I had them on, I kept turning around looking for the source of a sound. It only occurred to me later that it was from what I was watching. I thought I was hallucinating. The noise-cancellation is brilliant; you do feel cut off from your surroundings and deeply immersed in whatever you are listening to. The build is solid, and it folds and stores away nicely. It is on the large side but is very comfortable to wear as it cups both ears without causing any pressure.
If I had to quibble a bit, I’d say I wish it did not transmit any sound at moderate to high volumes, because it can upset people next to you and, I think, slightly defeats the point of personal headphones. At lower volumes, this is not a problem and one should not need more than this if one wishes to stave off tinnitus and deafness in the long-term. Honestly, they are near perfect, and for the price, what a find! I love them.
I was looking for a good quality pair of headphones to use with my guitar FX unit (Boss ME-80) and to listen to lossless music files. The reviews for these headphones were generally excellent here and on other sites so I ordered a pair. Sonically they are excellent- well balanced (ie not bass heavy) and very detailed. They block out external noise pretty well – at least in my home environment – I didn’t try them on a commute or similar. They also leak to the outside world very little of what you’re listening to. All good so far…
Unfortunately the ear pads are a little too shallow for my ears. The top of my ear pressed against the inside and quickly became annoying.
Despite loving the sound quality and the choice of cables that came with it The level do discomfort meant that I chose to return the product.
After some more research I finally settled on the Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro 80ohm, which I’m very happy with.
I love these headphones. Great quality in sound and build. Also really comfortable. I use them listening to music, working in Live Sound and also more recently attempting to DJ. Some people have said these are a bit bass heavy, but I don’t think they are, they are definitely not “DJ headphones”.
Much better headphones for the money than anything in that price range and some that are a bit more expensive.
Coming with the three different types of cables is also pretty handy, although I mainly use the coiled one.
I have a pair of very expensive in ear monitors that cost 5 times what these cost and when I am sat at my desk and can put them in my ears dress the cables and attach the clip to the cables to stop them ruffling into anything they are perfection. When 8 am sat on a train and out and about these headphones are the business, the sound is totally acceptable, they do not fall out of my ears, the cables are not transmitting everything they touch into my skull, and they are comfortable.nso now I am happy and can listen wherever I am
A stunning pair of headphones. Build quality is excellent, sound quality is off the scale. They are nice and loud if you like lots of volume but it’s the sound QUALITY that makes these amazing. I’ve heard new things, subtle little bits and pieces, in records I’ve been listening to for over 20 years. The bass is nice and deep yet doesn’t overpower like Dre Beats. The treble is crisp and clean. The mids are perfect with vocals clear and fully audible. They are comfortable on my head for quite long periods of time but I do have a small head and they might be less comfortable on a larger head. All in all they are exactly what I wanted and expected. 5*
Noise cancellation is good, but if you’re listening to music with these on public transport at a volume of 80% then expect people to hear it, and likely give you looks. It’s important to know that the volume is quite loud and somewhat sensitive, 40% volume should be suitable enough for you to use when in public but when you’re on your own or at home then 60% should be perfect. You don’t want to lose your hearing now, do we?
To conclude, these Headphones are very good entry level ‘Professional’ Headphones and you can use them when producing music or to use recreactionally when walking around at home or outside. The good thing is that you are provided with 3 cables that each have their own specific use. If you are one of the many people that just want these Headphones for your phone or MP3 Player, then you will be happy to know that a 3.5mm cable is provided to plug into your devices.
I bought these for monitoring in my home studio after reading many rave reviews about them. My old Beyer Dynamic DT231’s had served me well and still sound great but the foam padding had perished so took the excuse to buy some new headphones.
I won’t bore you with a huge review full of technical details but I will say that sound quality is so subjective – some like drums, some like guitar, some like vocals etc when listening to music. I thought the purpose of studio headphones were to be totally neutral, i. e flat EQ response however, these headphones are far too bass heavy for my liking. Don’t get me wrong, I love a strong kick drum or bass groove but in most music genres these project bass to the front of the mix which is unnatural and unwanted. They are much better suited to listening to dance music or hip hop where extra bass is preferable.
I returned these and went for my second choice – Beyer Dynamic Dt770 Pro which have a far more balanced sound and are really comfortable.
Can’t believe I’ve had these for well over 3 years now. They’re still in great condition – unlike my previous Sony headphones which had a similar folding mechanism but didn’t last like these.
The sound quality is very balanced from low bass through to the high treble range, so it’s definitely for people who value good sound reproduction rather than a super-boosted bass. The extra cables have been handy too – the short one for on-the-go with my phone and the coiled one for instruments and making music at home. The bleed is quite low, making it good for shielding the fact that you’re playing cheesy pop from commuters, but in my opinion not quite good enough for recording vocals in your home studio.
If it’s sound quality from a reliable set of headphones you’re after, you can’t go wrong with these.
Comfy enough to wear for hours. I do online game streaming, and these can be worn for a very long time with no problem. They also have a great flat sound to them with no stupid EQ like Beats by Dre or other mimic headphones. The included cable choices are very useful and the bag is a nice touch. Very little sound leaks out when using at a reasonable volume, so they are great for using near a microphone.
In my 30+ years of listening to music these are my first set of “proper” headphones.
When I first tried these I didn’t expect to hear much of a difference but the difference is noticeable. Music just sounds a lot better, more detailed, richer and “wider” with these.
You have to listen to a CD or vinyl to really appreciate the sound quality, listening to low bitrate MP3s just wont give you a true representation of how good audio sounds.
Great balanced, clear sound with really crisp mids. Wonderful for studio work, especially for the price. Lack of noise cancellation is a bit disappointing but its not needed for what these were intended.
Materials feel really nice and that distinct Audio Technica design is iconic; everyone just knows they’re the incredible ATH M50X. Plenty of my friends asked me to try them when they first saw them because of their reputation, and all were impressed by them.
Definitely recommend, especially for the price.
I also use these for my daily listening on the train and out and about. For this, they are certainly great sounding but could be better. For consumer listening I would look for bigger bass and sweeter highs so these may leave you wanting more, but they are certainly realistic and do the job they were intended for. The noise isolation is good but not perfect, if you travel in noisy environments like a bus or a train, you may prefer too opt for some noise cancelling choices, once again the noise isolation works in your favour when producing because the headphones still keep you in the room for reference.
The build quality is nice and my headphones are going strong after 6 months, but for 120 (what I paid) I’d like to have seen more metal on the frame rather than plastic to add some rigidity, they can feel a tiny bit cheap. I’m a massive fan of the swivelling cups, that’s a great feature for ease of use and also DJing.
This has been a harsh review and they are certainly the best pair of headphones I’ve bought to date, consider what you want them for before purchasing. They do the job for me perfectly.
Item as described, always wanted a pair of audio-technica’s for years, ever since “JimmysReviewRoom” reviewed them on youtube, finally saved up and got them and I got to say after wearing them for the past 6 months, I understand why there so hyped because their so comfortable, pretty lightweight, durable (still in good condition after daily use) and don’t give any listening fatigue to your ears. The noise cancellation is pretty good also and I would recommend these, as they are definately worth it. Good for listening to any type of song or genre of music, and also listening to podcasts/movies etc.
So basically you can’t go wrong really, they will probably last me at least 3 years.
I am an amateur musician who composes, performs, records using Apple’s Logic Pro X and am a long term fan/user of Bose headphones. Until recently i had been using my Bose Soundlink Bluetooth phones with Logic. However wireless phones are incompatible with the recording process due to the latency issue, so I was using them ‘wired’ with Bose’s incredibly short emergency cable. So I decided to look for dedicated studio quality headphones. Don’t get me wrong, the Soundink phones are superb and highly recommended for general listening. But as I searched for producer quality phones one make/model stood out – Audio Technica M50X.
From the moment I first put the M50X on and listened to one of my projects I was astonished by the sound quality. There is a c clear, crisp distinctive between all of the instruments, which all sound ‘pure’ (ie as they actually sound). The frequency coverage is also impressive, from deepest sub-bass to the highest piercing synth. The clarity and separation between instruments is unparalled. This aspect may be disconcerting for casual users used to paying way over the odds for drum’n’bass enhanced headphones a la Beats. But for anyone creating and mixing it is of paramount importance. Gone is the muddiness of standard phones (especially beats) and also to a lesser extent Hose. I cannot stress enough just how good these headphones are. If you’re looking to listen to music as it is supposed to sound, with beautiful clarity and full tabbed frequency, then the M50X are for you! And all did less than half the price of style-over-substance Beats…
As I am sure you have all noticed, it can be a bit of a mine field on here, well anywhere in fact when buying things and I include headphones. I am not into “blutooth” stuff, for me they affect the original source too much. I can’t bare the whole “Beats” range or Bose. They really do sound like toilet ( putting it bluntly and politely). Once you have taken these types out of the equasion, you either have cheap unknown brands or you have to step up into the real “Audiophile” area which can come at a huge premium and sometimes even then, you don’t get the full benefit as they require an external amp to power the high impedance.
I had a shortlist of brands from Grado, Senheiser and Klipische to Sony, B&W, Beyer Dynamic and of course, Audio Technica.
I used a mixture of youtube reviews, customer reviews here and my own brand experience and audio knowledge. I was very close to getting a set of Grados, but I really want closed back designs as I may want to use them in either a broadcast situation or also in publice. There is nothing worse than being “THAT Person” with heaven knows what bleeding out of their earphones, intruding on other people’s space when not only can you not make out what it is, but even if you could, you don’t wanna hear it “second hand”. So with that all in mind, I went for these ATH-M50x headphones.
I listen to a vast array of genres and styles, plus of course whatever a multimedia feed on a mobile device or laptop web browser my throw my way and I am intending to challenge them.
There are differing views on whether to “burn in” headphones or not. Now for me it depends. If they are a cheap brand or a “fashion brand” like beats or bose, I really would worry, but knowing Audio-Technica products as I do, their products really do benefit from a “run in” time. I am using a “self made” pink noise track. an hour long on loop (repeat) at 96khz, 24 bit. If you are wondering, which “colour” noise to use, for test and run in purposes always use pink noise. White noise has a slightly boosted top and mid, while the Brownian noise (not to be confused with the brown note haha) has a boosted lower end. The idea is to have an equal balanced frequancy range (which is what pink noise is) and let that play for…well however long you feel. THe usual time is about 8hrs upwards. Of course you can play music through them for that period constantly, but again, I want to burn in all parts equally so I use pink noise.
So, anyway, back on topic, I have been burning these in for 8hrs and I am now listening to them while writing this “review”.
You really have to go a long way to beat the quality in both build and sonic performance of these headphones in their price range. These really do resemble a flat response headphone. What you hear is your playback device and audio file quality. Comparing the same track (bit rate and depth) with these headphones on my Lenovo Laptop verses my Sony NWZ-A10 High Res Audio player has never been so different. Via my laptop’s internal soundcard the sound was “ok” nothing to write home about and they sound like I would expect from a 60 set of headphones. Putting them on a decent source such as the Sony….wow! Whole new dimension! Theres plenty of punch, warmth and depth, together with detail galore. Every frequency has “space”. At no point do these headphones sound restricted or limited. Mid range is clear and smooth and the highs are very pleasent indeed. They are not “biting” and “shrill” at all. This kind of sound means that long periods of listening won’t be fatiguing at all. I then took it them to try a 96khz at 24bit audio file. There is so much “space” in the audio. vocals are very clean and central, acoustic bass drums are heavenly. Lots of punch and depth, yet leave room so you can hear the resonant skin too. There is great channel speration. I find it very easy to “place” things in a mix with these on. Using a reference such as Doug Macleod’s Exactly Like This album. It is a very natural sounding, open, listening experience.
The build of these hedphones has been carefully thought through. The head band is very flexible and will fit pretty mch any head shape with comfort and ease. The actual Earphones themselves will rotate a full 180 degrees each. Again, making them fit ears and heads of all shapes and sizes. The “height” of the earphones adjusts very smoothly and they have a premium feel in general.
In the box they provide 3 different styles of cable. A short one for mobile devices, a longer version for studio or hifi situations and then a “curly” version of the studio/hi-fi cable. As if that wasn’t enought they give you a soft carry case (although I will buy a hard case for mine as I have a habit of throwing stuff in a bag when in a hurry).
All in all I am over the moon with these headphones. The Senheisers are like muddy plastic boxes in comparisson. These ATH-M50x don’t “exagerate” anything to the point of being distracting and “untrue” to the original source, however they will only be as good as the source you use.
If you listen to “chart” stuff, you will hear the compression and saturation that happens as they try to push stuff to the limit all the time. If you then try something recorded with some actual “air” and dynamics in it, you will hear just what I am talking about.
If you like well balanced, honest sound, suitable for long periods then this is for you. If you have these in a short list. Wait no longer, just put them in your basket and thank me later.
As I am sure you have all noticed, it can be a bit of a mine field on here, well anywhere in fact when buying things and I include headphones. I am not into “blutooth” stuff, for me they affect the original source too much. I can’t bare the whole “Beats” range or Bose. They really do sound like toilet ( putting it bluntly and politely). Once you have taken these types out of the equasion, you either have cheap unknown brands or you have to step up into the real “Audiophile” area which can come at a huge premium and sometimes even then, you don’t get the full benefit as they require an external amp to power the high impedance.
I had a shortlist of brands from Grado, Senheiser and Klipische to Sony, B&W, Beyer Dynamic and of course, Audio Technica.
I used a mixture of youtube reviews, customer reviews here and my own brand experience and audio knowledge. I was very close to getting a set of Grados, but I really want closed back designs as I may want to use them in either a broadcast situation or also in publice. There is nothing worse than being “THAT Person” with heaven knows what bleeding out of their earphones, intruding on other people’s space when not only can you not make out what it is, but even if you could, you don’t wanna hear it “second hand”. So with that all in mind, I went for these ATH-M50x headphones.
I listen to a vast array of genres and styles, plus of course whatever a multimedia feed on a mobile device or laptop web browser my throw my way and I am intending to challenge them.
There are differing views on whether to “burn in” headphones or not. Now for me it depends. If they are a cheap brand or a “fashion brand” like beats or bose, I really would worry, but knowing Audio-Technica products as I do, their products really do benefit from a “run in” time. I am using a “self made” pink noise track. an hour long on loop (repeat) at 96khz, 24 bit. If you are wondering, which “colour” noise to use, for test and run in purposes always use pink noise. White noise has a slightly boosted top and mid, while the Brownian noise (not to be confused with the brown note haha) has a boosted lower end. The idea is to have an equal balanced frequancy range (which is what pink noise is) and let that play for…well however long you feel. THe usual time is about 8hrs upwards. Of course you can play music through them for that period constantly, but again, I want to burn in all parts equally so I use pink noise.
So, anyway, back on topic, I have been burning these in for 8hrs and I am now listening to them while writing this “review”.
You really have to go a long way to beat the quality in both build and sonic performance of these headphones in their price range. These really do resemble a flat response headphone. What you hear is your playback device and audio file quality. Comparing the same track (bit rate and depth) with these headphones on my Lenovo Laptop verses my Sony NWZ-A10 High Res Audio player has never been so different. Via my laptop’s internal soundcard the sound was “ok” nothing to write home about and they sound like I would expect from a 60 set of headphones. Putting them on a decent source such as the Sony….wow! Whole new dimension! Theres plenty of punch, warmth and depth, together with detail galore. Every frequency has “space”. At no point do these headphones sound restricted or limited. Mid range is clear and smooth and the highs are very pleasent indeed. They are not “biting” and “shrill” at all. This kind of sound means that long periods of listening won’t be fatiguing at all. I then took it them to try a 96khz at 24bit audio file. There is so much “space” in the audio. vocals are very clean and central, acoustic bass drums are heavenly. Lots of punch and depth, yet leave room so you can hear the resonant skin too. There is great channel speration. I find it very easy to “place” things in a mix with these on. Using a reference such as Doug Macleod’s Exactly Like This album. It is a very natural sounding, open, listening experience.
The build of these hedphones has been carefully thought through. The head band is very flexible and will fit pretty mch any head shape with comfort and ease. The actual Earphones themselves will rotate a full 180 degrees each. Again, making them fit ears and heads of all shapes and sizes. The “height” of the earphones adjusts very smoothly and they have a premium feel in general.
In the box they provide 3 different styles of cable. A short one for mobile devices, a longer version for studio or hifi situations and then a “curly” version of the studio/hi-fi cable. As if that wasn’t enought they give you a soft carry case (although I will buy a hard case for mine as I have a habit of throwing stuff in a bag when in a hurry).
All in all I am over the moon with these headphones. The Senheisers are like muddy plastic boxes in comparisson. These ATH-M50x don’t “exagerate” anything to the point of being distracting and “untrue” to the original source, however they will only be as good as the source you use.
If you listen to “chart” stuff, you will hear the compression and saturation that happens as they try to push stuff to the limit all the time. If you then try something recorded with some actual “air” and dynamics in it, you will hear just what I am talking about.
If you like well balanced, honest sound, suitable for long periods then this is for you. If you have these in a short list. Wait no longer, just put them in your basket and thank me later.
Sound: starting off with the main reason you would get studio monitors, the amazing sound signature. From what I have watched and read on the internet, the M50Xs are close to neutral but the M40X are more neutral with its sound signature; there is a touch more bass with the M50X. As someone who came from a line of gaming headsets, which always overdoes the bass leading to a loss in the mids and highs and also “surround sound”, this was a nice change. Switching back to stereo, but not to mention a relatively flat sound signature, was very liberating. Listening to music I had always listened to, I never knew how much of the finer details I was missing. When it comes to editing, I can hear exactly what I have recorded as it is not washed out by software controlled surround sound. Gaming is nothing to write home about, though I am still adjusting to stereo gaming again, but nonetheless it’s still great if you just want to game. Just to be clear, . All in all the M50X has a solid sound signature that it is great for everything you want to hear.
Quality: The body is mostly plastic except for the adjustable headband which is made of metal and each step is nice and sturdy, the headband and earcups are plush but the covering is what I will describe as leather (well it is, probably synthetic) and the entire unit does not creak like cheap headphones. The pivot points for the 180 degrees of swivel also don’t feel like you could break it the moment you touch it. Even though the body is mostly made of plastic, these studio monitors feel like quality, like the company cares about their product and the customer experience (in this case they do).
Comfort: Now, this is one of the main categories that prevented me from giving this a full 5 stars. Starting with the good points, the headband and also the earcups are plush and your ears ‘cup’ inside quite nicely which is a huge plus in my books. These are lighter in weight and has a comfortable clamping force on my head, compared to my gaming headset which always fell off of my head if I looked up. HOWEVER, the downside is that these are monitors are really closed off so eventually it does get warm for your ears, not to mention it does get uncomfortable to wear for long periods (2 hours +), so I suggest at least 5-10 minute breaks to recover your ears from discomfort; not a major negative.
Other: I instantly like the features of this headset: 180 swivel and fold up earcups for portability. It comes with a leather carrying bag and 3 cables which you can choose depending what you are doing (at home, on the go etc.). This cable is detachable to prevent damage if you take these everywhere you go and should you kill one of the cables you can replace them. The cables has a proprietary locking mechanism so you don’t accidentally rip it out when you stray too far from the device. The 2nd negative for these monitors here IS the proprietary cable which means that you cannot use your own personalised 3.5mm headphone jacks, you have to get the official cable which kind of sucks but again it’s not major negative.
Conclusion: these studio monitors are some of the best for those who wants to step into the pro-sumer market for their sound needs, you cannot go wrong if you pick up the ATH-M50X, and by extension the rest of the ATH-M series. If those 2 bad points that I have mentioned are resolved, then this would have a 5 star rating from me.
The audio quality is amazing for the price and they feel comfortable and fit comfortably. It was also a nice touch to have 3 cable types and a carry bag.
When setting them however keep the following in mind:
1. Make sure your devices audio port is dust free (by blowing on it or compressed air can to clear it.) Because if there is dust the audio of these quality will function quite wildly.
2. When you connect one of the cable to the headphones, it is not just plugging it in. You need to plug in AND twist lock it into place. If you don’t twist lock it into place you will get NO audio.
These M50X studio headphones are superb for listening to music. I’ve tried them with Classical, Country, Sacred, Folk and other music – and the crisp sound reproduction and quality is outstanding. The various instruments can be distinguished clearly, and can be heard playing from their different positions.
There’s a good range of frequencies. Bass is fine. It is not boosted to overwhelming levels as with some other headphones. Midrange and treble frequencies are also well reproduced.
I have noticed that these headphones perform best when listening to sounds recorded in high quality studios – as is most Classical music and certain other genres. By contrast, the poorer sound quality of recordings made in lower tech studios becomes more noticeable when listening with these headphones.
I have also tested these headphones with recordings that were made about 100 years ago. (Amelita Galli-Curci, and others of that era.) The clarity is very good – bearing in mind the technical limitations of early cylinders and Shellac records.
To date, I have had excellent results with these headphones while connected to a desktop computer (PC), a laptop, a tablet computer, or a smartphone.
After listening with these M50X headphones, I could never go back to lower quality headphones. The difference can’t be described – it needs to be experienced. If you want to listen to the full range of sounds as they should be heard, experience the reverberations of the bass instruments, and enjoy the ‘full flavour’ of instruments and vocals, then only headphones of this class will do. Yes, you can buy even more expensive headphones – but these M50X phones are fully adequate for most listening / monitoring purposes.
I REALLY like these headphones. They’re comfortable for long (~12hours) periods of use, after a little while they can start to bite the top of your head, but this is just a consequence of using headphones.
As far as sound quality goes, they’re great – I have them running into a dedicated sound card (resulting in 192 kHz, 24 bit), and the difference in quality over my old USB headphones (44.1 kHz, 16 bit) is very noticeable. They block out external sound, which can be a nuisance if you want to be able to hear things like the front door, but the benefits reaped in the form of stronger bass is definitely worth it if you want to enjoy richer tones in audio.
I’ve been using these headphones now for about 18 months and I still love them. I bought them originally to use for music production but they’ve turned into my daily drivers now. They power well from a phone without an amp needed. Sound quality is decent although the bass feels a bit boosted, although this may be due too the closed back design. Soundstage is lacking, but once again that is to be expected from a closed back headphone. The 3 cables included are handy. I don’t like that they use a 2.5mm cable into the headphones, it means you can’t use any run of the mill aux cable and have to buy specific ones for these headphones. I still reccomend them too this day.
Best headphones I’ve ever used. Great neutral sound profile so perfect for accurate audio experiences. If you’re into instrumental music this is definitely the way to go. I mainly listen to heavy metal, rock, alternative and classical music and these headphones perform exceptionally. They do however also work great for more bass-driven genres and honestly I’d prefer to have greater detail in jungle, drum&bass, trap etc. than be listening to overly bass heavy headphones which seems to be the trend these days.
The three different interchangeable cords are very useful. The shorter one is perfect for use while commuting or just generally in public while the longer ones are great for studio or home listening sessions.
I was pretty excited about this headphones as I’ve seen a lot of product reviews in and out of Amazon. I opened them and there was different adaptors for different things like a direct plug in for electric guitars ect. I put them on and they were super comfortable. I played some music for the first time and I was gob smacked. The music quality was just amazing. I bought an mp3 player to go with them and I was just amazed at the quality so I think these headphones were the best spend I ever made. For these headphones to be this kind of quality on a none apple ipod-like device is amazing. I could go on about how I like these and how the quality surpassed every other headphones I have ever bought but I wont bore you all. Buy them and see. I can hear much more than I ever could hear on anything else, I can hear instruments that I have never noticed before and the music is crystal clear quality at 192k quality. In the words of a famous drag queen “Im gagged Darling”.
I love these.
I’d used mainly gaming headphones/headsets before, and they all had decent sound, but I wanted a pair of really outstanding headphones, that produce the sound quality only acceptable by producers and sound engineers. I went for these, as they are still within an acceptable price range but seemed good enough.
That was 2 years ago, and I totally forgot to write a review. The sound quality is amazing!!! It handles bass so well, while still being punchy as hell. I can listen to some of the bass-iest dubstep at full volume, and these bad boys handle it perfectly. I can move on to rock/metal and it’s as clear as day.
You won’t even need to adjust an equaliser, because these already produce superb sound quality that you probably won’t need to boost your bass at all 😛
I have owned these headphones for almost exactly one year, during which time they have performed flawlessly with great sound to boot.
To say I am easy on my tech would be a total lie. Before purchasing these headphones, I had gone through 4 pairs of earphones over a span of around 4-5 months, each set failing in some fashion, usually the cable connector breaking internally.
These headphones have yet to have a single issue. The short cable which I have left attached since first receiving the product has performed flawlessly. I am impressed with the sound quality these headphones provide, however the longevity and build quality is what stands out to me as the most impressive quality of these cans.
If you care about great sound, and don’t want to be replacing your headphones every couple of months, I cannot recommend these cans highly enough.
There is not much more I can say that other reviews haven’t.
– Sound quality 10/10. Nice clear sound, with good bass while still keeping clarity.
– Comfort 9/10. You can keep these on all day no issue, I would recommend looking at extra ear cups as they make the comfort even better. The headband is very comfy and offers great support. The ear cups are deep enough so the inside will never touch your ears.
– Build 10/10. I have had these headphones for some time now and have had no issues, the band is flexible and the swivel mounts on the ear cups are well constructed. I have travelled with these multiple times and beaten them up a few times and cannot complain or report any damage.
– Accessories 10/10. The headphones come with 3 choices of cable and a travel bag and I can not complain about any of these.
Overall I cannot complain about these. As stated I was so impressed with these I bought another pair for my girlfriend the next day. I can not find any better headphones at this price point and can not recommend them more.
Great for mixing & mastering, casual music listening, or film watching. While the soundstage is not quite as large as other models of similar price such as the AKG K240 or the Audio Technica ATH-AD700, its bass response, mid-range clarity and crisp trebles are unmatched by other headphones in the price range. The closed-back design of the headphones also isolates sound fairly well, meaning they won’t leak a tonne of sound to nearby people. The ability to change the cable is also a nice addition which means you won’t waste 100+ on a pair that will break in 6 months.
Week 2 update: The sound is crystal clear, really great headphones much cheaper than beats as they are not wireless/the slimmest but that is IMO not important as the 2 main factors which are of course sound and comfort. The sound again is amazing, a real eye opener when comparing how your fav songs sound.
!!! Comfort: They are comfortable earphones. However the earpads I found can feel a little tight at times. However this is easily fixed after going with the popular recommendation of getting a set of velour earpads from amazon which make the headset a lot more comfortable to use, no tightness anymore they are really great.
You can also customise the headphones if you want to spend another 15-20 quid there are some pretty cool skins at the moment which i might potentially be looking at when im not so broke 😛 all in all great purchase one of the best for the money!
Let me start by saying for me the M50x are an excellent set of cans that hold the frequencies with integrity. Tops never peaked and sounded harsh, mids were separated and slightly pronounced and never sounded muffled once, and the lows are tight and controlled but ever so slightly pronounced for a more warm sounding experience exactly what i was wanting. A run of Yanni Rainmaker and Estas Tonne The Song of the Golden Dragon shone on these with a good soundstage but not greatly expansive, one was able to distinguish the instruments and the vocal from the senorita in the Rainmaker was nothing short of sublime and epic journey to the heavens and back. A few further tracks of Coldplay, George Benson, Randy Crawford, Qawalli Folk Music. Clannad Irish Folk, and finally some classic hip hop from the likes of Cool Herk, Afrika Bambata, Melle Mel, Grandmaster Flash etc and modern hip hop likes of Mobb Deep, CNN, Fat Joe, Big Pun etc let me say these cans brought a smile to the face which hurt! A set of cans that did an excellent job at lots of different genres. Very rarely do you come across a pair that can handle the above genres with authority, never once sounding uncontrolled or overwhelmed.
I tried the headphones with my Nexus 6P through a quality HP amp and 32 bit DAC that i used with my Senny HD650’s that were power hungry. the M50x sound was further enhanced and now the smile had turned to a grin with a few audible affirming compliments, totally sublime and these were testing the waters of my HD650’s which were more than twice the price of these.
However let me state for the record these M50x are stupendously good for the person who wants to disappear into the audio and doesn’t want a totally flat response as monitors can provide, however after much consideration on the point of diminishing returns and the power hungry ‘open back’ HD650’s i went with the M50x as they were also easier to drive and did not need a lengthy set up when you wanted a quick portable listen, but these are ‘NOT’ as good as the reference standard HD650’s which are definitely a couple of notches above the M50x’s.
The reason the HD650’s were better for me were 1) The comfort level of the velour pads. 2)The open back design also let your ears breath. The tops mids and bottoms never lost integrity once ‘no matter how hard they were pushed’ 3) You could hear the breath intake of vocalists and individual strike of the music instruments on the HD650’s especially when listening to Estes Tonne the legendary guitarist. That’s not to say these expressions were not noticeable on the M50x but their was a great soundstage on the HD650 which the M50x could not compete with, bear in mind the HD650s cost over twice the price of the M50x.
Now youll be wondering why did i sell the HD650’s, the choice was one of diminishing returns of how much one has to pay for the little improvement in sound in the world of hi-fi audio and the fact that i have kids that constantly disturb me and the HD650’s being OB design became unsuitable. I may have possible kept them had it not have also been the set up procedure of the DAC and headphone amp being anchored to the listening room.
This was one of the more difficult decisions i have ever made on a set of cans so ill finish by saying where the Audio Technica’s were like Satin the Sennheiser HD650’s were like silk. The choice is yours!
I absolutely love these headphones. I use them through an M-Audio M Track 2×2 interface and and I have just discovered Dolby Atmos. They sound so good and are extremely comfortable and even for extended periods of time. They isolate extremely well so you will not be disturbed. One thing I would say is that when I first got them, wearing them for long periods of time would make my jaw hurt or even give me a headache, however apparently this is common and folding a pillow in half and putting them over it for 48 hours solved it. They still isolate brilliantly but are now very comfortable.
Great Headphones!
No disrespect to Sennheiser, as I do believe they make solid products, however once I put these Audio Technicas on, I immediately noticed a difference to my Senn. HD280 Pro headphones.
Absolutely nothing is lacking, and I’m glad I went with these from recommendations. These headphones make listening to music a treat, whether you’re going for a nice soft jazz with a resonating bass, or a heavy punk with perfect clarity to pick out each instrument (as frantic as the play style is).
To put it short: You’re not going to be missing out on anything with these.
HOWEVER… This means literally everything, including distortion. I’ve realised this is largely due to the track you’re playing, basically if it’s been recorded with distortion (such as very old music that hasn’t been remastered, or cleaned up) you may hear that in the background with the same great clarity as everything else.
So one thing I would definitely recommend, with the above in mind, is these are for truly appreciating music, and in that sense it would be wise to use high quality files when using these.
On top of everything they fold neatly, and come with interchangeable cables for various scenarios. They’re comfortable to wear, even for running. These are awesome cans for on the go, which is how I enjoy most of my listening. A mic would have been a deal-sealing addition here.
I’m no sound engineer, but I know what I expect in this price range, and the m50x’s deliver well.
Alternatives? Had I been shopping for home use at this price range I might have looked at the beyerdynamic 770 pros. On the other hand, if I were buying cans that I wasn’t going to take outside, I might up the budget and consider open backs.
I previously owned the ATH-M30X and loved them with the downside of the cable being attached and being way too long.
I thought these would be the same but just with the cable being detachable. Boy was I wrong!
These offer amazing sound quality, a VERY clear step-up from the M30X.
The leather feels amazing on my ears and after over a year of daily use they have not failed me once!
I’ve used these in pouring rain, and dropped them on multiple occasions, never have I had an issue. These are incredible headphones and I strongly recommend them.
They work very well with bass, are easy for new phones to drive so an amp isn’t even needed.
The best feature in my opinion is that they are fully sound-proof. On full volume whilst wearing them, no one around me can hear the music, and I definitely cannot hear them.
Strongly recommend.
Pros:
– Amazing bass quality
– Good quality leather/comfort
– Sturdy
– Detachable cable (Includes 3 cables)
– Sound-proof
Cons:
– Not as crisp as the Sennheiser HD598s
I found these to be very comfortable and fitted perfectly but they also adjust very well for other sizes. What use is a great pair of headphones if you never want to wear them because it’s painful?
They have served me well for a solid year at this point, mostly wearing them every day for 2-4 hours and I even ordered a second pair as a gift for a friend. They have kept excellent shape and haven’t batted an eye at my rough and tumble, ready and go routine.
The cables are very high quality and with 3 to offer it makes using these very convenient over other options. If you are unhappy with the look or design you can always stick a skin on them however I find they look great as they are!
I have also used these for gaming. Pairing these with the Antlion Mod Mic is a great combination for PC gaming, Also works with consoles with the right adapters.
You can also buy a Bluetooth adapter for these if you wanted to get away from your device of choice but this obviously means you will need to charge battery and sacrifice sound quality.
Over all these are a great pair of cans with excellent sound, I could easily recommend to anybody looking for some new headphones!
Pros –
Flat sound for editing audio.
Very durable with great build quality
They are very comfortable, nice padding and the clamping pressure is just right
They are light and hurt over time
Great value
Cons – (It’s really hard to think of any really…)
Flat sound also limits some music when listening back to it for recreational purposes. More suited for creating audio rather than enjoying it.
Not many options for colour or style.
Bluetooth Adapter and Amplifier for Audio Technica ATH-M50x – BAL-M50X
Audio-Technica ATH-M50X Studio Monitor Professional Headphones – Black
Audio-Technica ATH-M50X Studio Monitor Professional Headphones – Matte Grey
Audio-Technica ATH-M50X Studio Monitor Professional Headphones – White
for Audio-Technica ATH-M50X M40X M50 M40 M30 Studio Monitor Professional Headphones Hard Storage Carry Storage Case Bag by co2CREA
Antlion Audio ModMic Attachable Boom Microphone – Noise Cancelling with Mute Switch
I found these to be very comfortable and fitted perfectly but they also adjust very well for other sizes. What use is a great pair of headphones if you never want to wear them because it’s painful?
They have served me well for a solid year at this point, mostly wearing them every day for 2-4 hours and I even ordered a second pair as a gift for a friend. They have kept excellent shape and haven’t batted an eye at my rough and tumble, ready and go routine.
The cables are very high quality and with 3 to offer it makes using these very convenient over other options. If you are unhappy with the look or design you can always stick a skin on them however I find they look great as they are!
I have also used these for gaming. Pairing these with the Antlion Mod Mic is a great combination for PC gaming, Also works with consoles with the right adapters.
You can also buy a Bluetooth adapter for these if you wanted to get away from your device of choice but this obviously means you will need to charge battery and sacrifice sound quality.
Over all these are a great pair of cans with excellent sound, I could easily recommend to anybody looking for some new headphones!
Pros –
Flat sound for editing audio.
Very durable with great build quality
They are very comfortable, nice padding and the clamping pressure is just right
They are light and hurt over time
Great value
Cons – (It’s really hard to think of any really…)
Flat sound also limits some music when listening back to it for recreational purposes. More suited for creating audio rather than enjoying it.
Not many options for colour or style.
Bluetooth Adapter and Amplifier for Audio Technica ATH-M50x – BAL-M50X
Audio-Technica ATH-M50X Studio Monitor Professional Headphones – Black
Audio-Technica ATH-M50X Studio Monitor Professional Headphones – Matte Grey
Audio-Technica ATH-M50X Studio Monitor Professional Headphones – White
for Audio-Technica ATH-M50X M40X M50 M40 M30 Studio Monitor Professional Headphones Hard Storage Carry Storage Case Bag by co2CREA
Antlion Audio ModMic Attachable Boom Microphone – Noise Cancelling with Mute Switch
Wonderful sound and very comfortable*. My one and only gripe is that the plastic cup that meets the ear pads has a sharp inner edge, it just feels a bit chintzy. It’s the part I grab to handle the phones, maybe it’s intentional to provide more purchase, but I’m not a fan.
The isolation is good enough for my needs, and probably as good as you’re going to get without ANC.
The cable quality and general build quality is good. Having the 3 cables is actually really useful for me, so that was a big plus. As another reviewer commented I think that the locking mechanism on the cable misses the point, somewhat. I’d have preferred a stiff but free plug – if I yank the cable by accident I want it to free itself, all the locking mechanism does is provide the potential for breaking something. But you can not lock them, so this isn’t really a bad thing, as it’s completely optional. Just of note.
But these things really do sound great. I listen to a pretty broad spectrum of music, and I’ve found everything I’ve listened to is just spot-on. Deep bass, crisp highs, perfect clarity at every frequency.
This is how the artists you listen to intend you to hear their music. You can’t get much better than that.
* They were definitely too tight for the first week or so, but settled in pretty quickly. They’re a bit like a pair of leather shoes – you need to wear them in. After a few weeks they’re very comfortable, could easily wear them all day.
They have a good, flat response, with crisp highs and well-defined lows. Great in he studio with good isolation from the external environment. Also good for playing music on the train from my iPhone. They eliminate all but the loudest external noise, and I am glad I didn’t buy the expensive, noise cancelling headphones I was considering.
They fold flat and fit neatly into the included soft bag. They come with a short cable, a long cable, and a coiled, telephone like cable. They also include a 6.3mm (male) to 3.5mm (female) stereo jack convertor.
They are comfortable to wear – I’ve worn them for up to 3 hrs at a time without discomfort, and well made.
In short, you can buy cheaper, but you get what you pay for and these are stunningly good for the price.
These headphones are much recommended online as a relatively cheap introduction into the world of high fidelity.
They are functional and do not excessively grab attention visually. They are extremely comfortable and adjustable for all head sizes and shapes, the build quality is top notch and they are hard wearing. They come with a range of cables which is useful for home and portable listening, though none have a mic or handsfree buttons. These can be driven to enjoyable volumes even with a weak input source. The sound quality is very good. They are overall tonally balanced as both bass and treble are slightly emphasized over middle frequencies giving a “lush” or “vibrant” sound to the music”, though it’s not too unnatural . Individual sound elements come through clearly and with great detail. However the stereo sound stage is slightly lacking width and precision compared to many other high end headphones, although they are still a huge step up from regular “consumer” headphones or In-Ear monitors. Overall, a solid purchase for a budding audio enthusiast who is too smart to waste their money on an inferior product.
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After going through a load of gaming headsets, I wanted to try some high-quality headphones out. Initially, my main purpose for these headphones was to be gaming. Before I got these, I didn’t listen to much music; but man, that changed when I started using them.
I’ve used a lot of gaming headsets for gaming because of the virtual surround sound that they often have, to provide a sense of spatial tracking — so that you can hear where your enemies are. I’ve tried headsets from Corsair, Turtle Beach, Logitech, Sony and others, and in all truth these Audio-Technica headphones are better for gaming, and I don’t think virtual surround sound is necessary (though my PCs audio driver can do it anyway). In fact, I think using high-quality headphones like these helps you to pinpoint sounds even better. Not only that, but everything sounds better too — so that’s a solid win for gaming.
I mentioned I bought these primarily for gaming, but since I got these headphones, I’ve been listening to so much music. Ever since I got these 4 months ago, I’ve been using them for hours and hours every day, listening to so much music, because it just sounds so damn good! If you’re coming from a gaming headset, even the higher-end ones, you will be in for a pleasant surprise with these awesome headphones from Audio-Technica. They’ve made me a music lover!
We’ve established that the audio coming out of these is pretty damn good, but headphones are more important than just audio. If you’re wearing these for hours on end every day like me, it’s important that they’re comfortable. I can’t tell you how many headphones I’ve had that hurt my ears by putting pressure on them after a few hours, or hurt the top of my head with extended use — it’s been quite an issue for me with some models. Fortunately, these headphones are pretty light weight and there’s some soft padding on the headband, so I’ve not had any top-of-the-head pain. The cups also go over your ears, instead of sitting right on them and applying pressure, and the cups are soft. Another win there — I’ve not had any pain on the ears either.
With how much I was enjoying these headphones, I decided to take them out and about with me. I found them really nice to have when I was revising for my summer exams, and took them into my university’s study areas. This is a good point to mention that these headphones have pretty good noise isolation, which is very helpful. However, on the topic of taking these headphones out and about, they fold in on themselves very conveniently, and the ear cups swivel 45 degrees in each direction (see images). You can then put them in a bag, but if you want to protect them then you may be interested in getting a hard case. Personally, I went for this one: for Audio-Technica ATH-M50X M40X M50 M40 M30 M20 Studio Monitor Professional Headphones Hard Storage Carry Storage Case Bag by co2CREA . It’s a nice hard case that fits the headphones perfectly, and has an additional compartment to put your audio cable in. I’m not a fan of the really “bold” branding on the carry handle, and speaking of branding, I don’t particularly like how bold the Audio-Technica branding is on the headband of the headphones. It’s a minor point though — but here’s an option if you’re interested in a hard case. Back to the review!
These headphones use the 3.5mm audio port, however they come with a proprietary Audio-Technica cable. One of the advertised advantages of this is that you can twist the cable on the end that plugs into the headphones, like you would turn a key; and it will lock the cable in — this way, you won’t accidentally yank it out. However, I think this is missing the point of removable cables. If something yanks on your cable enough to pull it out, then I think it’s better to let it be pulled out; otherwise, your headphones could be yanked off your head and damaged. For this reason, I don’t twist the cable to lock it in, and just let it sit normally. Let the cable get yanked out, and keep your nice headphones safe.
In the box, you get three of Audio-Technica’s proprietary audio cables. Two of them are straight, measuring 125cm and 312cm. The third is partially coiled, and measures about 2m, going to about 3m when stretched. Two 3.5mm to 6.35mm adapters are included in the box; one of them screws on, and another just plugs in. The screw-on adapter will thread onto both of the longer cables, but not the shorter one. See my images to get a look at how this works. Finally, there’s a 3.5mm splitter for planes, and a leather pouch to keep it all in.
I’m not an expert on audio. These are the first headphones I’ve had that I would say are professional quality, and it’s just another step in my audio journey. Having heard the sound that these produce, I can’t imagine what comes out of Audio-Technica’s higher end headphones; but some day, I hope to find out. For now, I’m extremely happy with these. The experience I’ve had with these headphones has been enlightening, and it’s truly brought me many hours of joy; I’ve experienced sounds from music that I never knew existed. If you’re interested in music in any capacity, even a little, then I highly recommend these headphones to you. They will open up a whole new world of sounds, and you will enjoy your music better than ever.
The ATH-M50X is not just a product. This might sound silly when we’re just talking about headphones, but I really would describe this product as a magical experience; and if you have any appreciation for audio, then you owe it to yourself to dive in!
I bought these for use in an office where I wanted to listen to music without disturbing anyone and finally stopped getting on with in-ear ‘phones.
In my opinion, they are quite astoundingly good with most types of music. I find the sound suits my ears with the relatively flat response, and although I do get a bit hot wearing them for hours, they are never too hot (unless the weather is too hot already) and they are always comfortable. I can see why other reviewers might find them a bit small – they are only just over-ear and not particularly roomy, but that’s OK as long as you are expecting it. Because they’re fairly low impedance, they should work well with pretty much any smartphone or music player you might have – I’ve never found them too quiet on any device I’ve tried them on (including several friends who wanted to try on their various random devices), but of course they sound great on a headphone amp or home hifi.
For those who want me to be a bit more specific: they’re flatter and less sibilant than my Beyerdynamic DT990 Pros with less sound stage but clearer mid-range (to my ears, at least), and they make up nicely for the muted bass in my (well-fitting) Shure SE315s and are clearer at the same time.
For those who just want good headphones: I took these with me to visit my sister, who was skeptical about the value of a decent pair of headphones. I handed them over and she said “Yeah, well I already have a pair of ear buds that I think are quite goo…oh.” and sank into an Elbow-induced trance for the best part of ten minutes. She bought a pair from Amazon the same day.
I did a lot of hunting for monitor headphones for production and it seems like these are the most popular of the lot. I was nearly swayed by a couple of other pairs which some people said had less of a hyped low end and mids but the thing that swayed me one was pro engineer who said that he likes them because they are a good blend of monitor headphones i.e a fairly unbiased frequency response but the fact that they’re slightly geared towards recreational listening means that a producer can at the same time get a good idea of what their finished product will sound like on standard headphones. Having listened to them now I’m not disappointed at all. The sound is spectacular, they’re comfy and clasp my head well to prevent sound leakage and having multiple leads is just a sheer treat. Buy them
These are some of the best headphones I’ve ever owned. The highs and mids are sharp and the lows are deep. While they don’t offer the same bass as you could get in other sets, they are not supposed to. These are made to make the sound clear and not to over power any aspect of what you’re listening to. Although, if you really are looking for monitoring headphones you should maybe look at the m40x as they offer a flatter sound. However, these headphones are great for the day to day and can be used in every situation, except in the gym I would imagine. They are a strong, well made set with some nice detailing, making them a very good looking and stable set. While they are comfortable, after a few hours they do start to feel a bit tight, but I imagine that after a few weeks you should get used to it. If not, you could always swap the headphones foam for a better feel as I’ve seen many people do with relative ease. All in all a great product and highly recommended.
Staging is great and detail is not lacking however I feel the DT770s just pip the A-Ts on articulation. The A-Ts are perhaps a little hyped especially low down but for many people this is part of their charm. Reasons to prefer the A-Ts over the DTs are mostly down to comfort and convenience, not sound. Not everyone likes the big DTs earcups. The A-Ts also fold nicely like DJ headphones should and have plenty of isolation for live work. They are slightly more sensitive than the DTs. For some people the DTs would be too quiet used with a phone.
Hope this is a useful comparison.
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Pros:
*Good sound Quality.
*Good value for money.
*Very portable.
*reasonably Comfortable.
*Have a good sound signature.
*Come with different cables and an adapter to plug into 1/4″ (6.35mm) jack.
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Cons:
*Can get very warm after a while (but taking off for 2 seconds helps).
*Folding is not the best space conserving way.
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I recommend these headphones as they are just a total winner when it comes to value for money, They are not exactly over ear but large on ear headphones and surprisingly still have quite and immersive sound.
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*Value for money [10/10]
*Build Quality [9/10]
*Reliability [9/10]
*Size [9/10]
*Sound Quality [8/10]
Really good headphones. Bought them when they were 85.00 . They are on par sound wise, with my beyerdynamic Dt990’s. They are closed back design so outside noise is subdued better than open back. The price they are at the moment have gone up to 125.00,so I saved 40.00 pound when I bought them. Since then I have recently bought the Philips x2 headphones and believe me they really blow both these headphones out of the water. Although m50x are good I’ll keep them as a spare pair. My opinion of these cans dramatically changed after listening to the x2’s. For an extra 40.00 pound there’s just no comparison in sound. If you can afford it definately go for the Philips x2’s. If not buy these headphones,there good to get onto the high quality sound ladder. Oh,and they are very well made and quite comfortable.
These are a temporary replacement for my Bose headphones, that have broken and I am going to replace later in the year. They give great audio listening pleasure, but I miss my Bose as they exceed the comfort levels of these headphones.
This headphone are sought after by most of my family, but I am yet to risk lending them to anyone. Comfort wise, I have big ears, can’t change that and these pinch my ears slightly, not really noticeable when wearing them for a short time, but when i am watching a film and want peace and quiet after a while it is noticeable and I ache for a while when i remove them. Apart from that they are amazing, considering the price I paid, the quality that is reproduced is very good, The three different cables mean that I can change according to the location of the source without having to inconvenience anyone else.
Overall i would recommend these to anyone who enjoys listening to music, films or even audio books as the clarity is superb accross the whole range.
i bought these cans for a mixture of home and train use. they state quite plainly that they are ‘studio’ phones so i can’t complain
about the bulk, but they are not really for travel in my opinion. so, the quality of sound? excellent for me as they are very compitent
in the ‘treble’ zone; i am not one to be overwhelmed by bass thank you. the high notes are super clear and the bass is there if you
want it. my lack of expertise in making comparisons is very limited, so 4 stars rather than 5 as these are not an expensive item
compared with many others.
i find the cups a little claustrophobic ‘cos i have largish ears! and they seem to be a little warm after a while too. there are, however,
several cheapish options for more voluminous replacements/upgrades if they don’t suit the individual.
i have a narrow head and the fit is a little loose for me even when fully closed (the extendability). i wouldn’t think that people with
wider heads would have a problem as a consequence.
no fancy connections/controls, plenty of alternative cables in the box, the quality seems devoted to the sound; i have no problem
with that. recommended.
Excellent headphones. Deep tight bass and bright but controlled treble. Technically excellent but they do lack a bit of soul. I tried the Audio-Technica, Bose, Beyer and the August EP650. I’ve ended up sending everything back except the August EP650 which are my go to headphones. I also invested in a pair of TAKSTAR HI2050 for serious listening although the August are still my headphones of choice. Both sets of headphones cost less than 60 and I couldn’t be happier.
The Audio Technica ATH-M50x are excellent especially at their price and you’ll be hard pressed to find anything substantially better without paying ALOT more. I just found them a bit analytical whereas my August EP650’s allowed me to just enjoy the music. The August are also Bluetooth and I can highly recommend wireless headphones
My usually very underwhelmed son (the only compliment I got after slaving for hours on my wondrous Christmas dinner complete with goose fat roast potatoes that angels would weep over, was “the green beans are on point this year”) raved to me about these headphones. As I am clearly old and over the hill, etc etc he is stunned that I found such a good choice for him (quietly smug face).
I actually saw him yesterday walking into the kitchen with these huge heaphones rigged up to his ipad mini! He said that they’re so good that he uses them for everything now, including watching television.
I should actually knock three stars off though, since he now can’t hear a thing when I call for him to take the rubbish out, answer the door… anything actually. It’s odd though, as they still let him hear if I ask if he’d like a takeaway for dinner .
It’s taken me a day or so to ‘get used’ to them. I bought these replace my worn out Sony MDR XD200s – and so that’s my only real reference. It’s also taken me approximately a year to decide which headphones to buy, because it’s such a personal decision. Sure, there are some technical details to consider, but ultimately it comes down to “do you like how they sound” and “are they comfy enough”.
For what it’s worth, the only other real contender were the Beyerdynamics DT770s (and maybe a pair of AKGs but I couldn’t work out which ones). Ultimately I went for these ATH M50x, based on reviews, descriptions and youtube videos.
I like the tech specs. The frequency range and impendance all sound great.
I like how it looks and feels. You can tell you’ve got a premium product in your hands (and on your head). It may be made from plastic, but it’s thick plastic, it feels sturdy. The hinges look durable and work nicely. The headband feels nice, as do the ear pads (though I could be tempted to put some velvety/suede ones on there). I like that you can turn the pads, and even fold them into the headband. All these feels nice and durable.
Though every time I pick them up (and I tend to pick them up by the pads), it swivels of course. In some ways I wish there was a way you could lock it.
I like the detachable cable, and I like that the headphones came with three different cables (short, long and coiled).
I like the sound! It’s a very clear, precise, nicely controlled, warm sound. A lot of people say it’s lacking in bass… and I tend to agree, but it’s not a deal breaker. It’s actually more realistic this way… but it may, generally, be more suited to jazz or classical music than techno. (As it happens I’m into orchestral and acoustic music).
I write music too, so I’m using these for composing, monitoring and mixing. It’ll take a little getting used to, as my previous Sony’s were more bass-heavy. But these Audio Technicas are overall much crisper.
They fit snuggly on my head and really do block out a lot of external sound (way, way better than my old pair, which were quite loose-fitting and let a lot of sound through). It’s bit weird if you happen to have a drink or snack whilst you’ve get these on, as it sort of amplifies everything that happens in your head!
Initially, they felt really tight on my head. They really clamped down, but I managed to strecht ‘m a little and now they’re more comfortable. So, don’t give up too soon! Just gently stretch them a little.
They’re also quite a bit heavier than my old ones, but I don’t think that’s going to be a problem.
Oh, one tiny minor gripe – I bought the black coloured ones as they were considerably cheaper than the dark green/brown ones, which actually look nicer in the pictures. Then again, I can’t see the colour once it’s on my head!
4,5 stars… but I’m rounding up to 5 in the rating.
Got this today to replace my Dr Dre over-the-ear headphones. I love the Dr Dre’s; superb music quality throughout bass to treble, but I get fed up with having to buy batteries for them. They have that ‘noise cancellation’ thing on them which, whilst good, requires batteries to listen to anything through them. I wish there was an option to listen without the noise cancellation and therefore not require batteries.
Anyway so I got these headphones as I had an earlier model some years ago. The sound quality is even better than my Dr Dre’s, whether I am using it with my iPad or BlackBarry phone. However, using then on my laptop is vary disappointing. Listening to music or playing a game the sound is awful; tinny, no base and about half volume compared to using the Dr Dre’s on the laptop. I have no idea why they are so rubbish on my labtop but superior on my iPad & BlackBarry phone.
The box comes with the headphones, obviously and three leads. 1) 1.2-3m coiled cable, 2) 3m straight cable and, 3) short 1.m straight cable for use with portable devices. Also comes with a screw on larger jack.
Vary comfortable, and cover my ears nicely. Snug without being too tight. Nice padding on the ears and on the headband.
Recommended, though if wanting to use them on a labtop you might want to consider something else.
So this is my first and possibly only Amazon review.
About a year ago, I owned a pair of Sennheiser HD 650s, which I’d paired with a Little Dot amp. They were awesome, but in the end I sold them as I didn’t feel I used them frequently enough to justify the money tied up in them.
Having been headphone-less for quite a while, primarily based on customer reviews, I purchased 2 pairs of ATH-M50X headphones. One for me, one as a christmas gift for my Dad, which is currently wrapped in anticipation.
I have been using my pair of ATH-M50X’s plugged directly into a Native Instruments Komplete Audio 6 for about a week. Anyone who is on the fence about buying these… just buy them. They sound AWESOME. Do not require an amp. They are extremely comfortable and have EPIC soundstage. I rarely rave about products, but seriously.. whilst I was very happy with the Sennheisers, they simply aren’t worth the extra money. I am an audiophile, these are awesome!
Personally, I found that the headphones were a little heavy and after wearing for long periods of time, the headband can become quite uncomfortable. This is because it is made out of steel which is great for build quality but I found that the padding was not quite thick enough. I modded the headphones and attached my own headband and now I have no problems with the headphones and would 100% recommend.
Good:
Sound quality
Build quality
Portability
Bad:
Comfort
Weigh
Before I write my review, I have to confess I am not an audiophile or probably have good hearing. I bought it as a gift for someone who has more sensitive ear than me. Typically I use earphone. I bought this after going through couple of reviews on headphones.
But even so, it is very comfortable to wear. I almost dont want to give it away as gift! The noise isolation is pretty good as well so at not so loud volume level you can immerse yourself in the music. The item comes with 3 different length of cords which makes wire management that much easier. The sound is excellent but I guess this is matter of opinion.
I find the headphone slightly heavy to the point that it was a bit awkward in the beginning. But I think its something that I can use to without feeling uncomfortable. Last minor point is that the item is in rather excessively sized packaging. I think they could definitely try to reduce the size of the packaging.
Bought these because the price and general reviews were encouraging. Replacing my Sony MDR-V700 headphones was proving difficult as their 5Hz to 30KHz frequency range put replacement costs in the 200 plus area and above!
Well the ATH-M50X’s feel lighter and more comfortable and make my old Sony’s feel like they are made of iron!
On first try comparing the two the Sony’s sounded better with more power. initially disappointing.
But repeated listening with the ATH-M50X’s, (classical, pop, vocaloid, vocatrance, Jpop, streamed anime, DVD films and jazz) was rewarded with a quite significant sound performance as if my ears were learning to use the new headphones.
Well I can hang up my old, zip-tied together, torn padded Sony’s that used to crush my ears, (they used to be red after listening for long periods) and enjoy comfortable listening pleasure.
The default ear pads were very comfortable but I took the opportunity to get the red Brainwavz pads. A sound purchase!
ME: I have been using these for about 7 months. I am not an audiophile, nor a professional reviewer so sorry if I made any technical mistakes!
PROS:
Build and design: The build is excellent. The headphones are very sturdy and feel and look premium. Take impact well and no damage done when dropped. Even can be worn in light rain (not recommended!) I feel that the design is attractive and the attention to detail by Audio-Technica is unbelievable. The ear cups are extremely cushioned and comfortable and can be worn for many hours without becoming uncomfortable. When they did become uncomfortable on the head taking them off for 5 minutes worked like magic.
Convenience: These headphones are extremely portable and practical. The cups swivel 180 degrees from one side to the other, which isn’t necessary but is a nice bonus. The best thing is that the headphones easily fold up vertically, which reduces their size and bulk vastly. Thus the headphones can easily be transported. They are also relatively light, and they fit perfectly into the premium leather bag. I use my M50Xs mainly with my phone, they are very suitable for mobile use. The cables can be switched, however since there is a special jack only the three provided cables can be used, not a custom wire. The provided cables are a 1m cable, a 3m coiled cable and a 3m straight cable. This wasn’t an issue for me, as the 1m one is perfect for mobile use, the coiled one exceptional for PC use and the other 3m cable suitable for when I needed more reach, like when my phone was plugged in far away etc.
Sound: Coming from a non-audiophile this is by far the biggest pro. The sound quality blows me away every time I use the headphones. The bass is punchy and sounds realistic, the highs, mids and lows all sound excellent and instruments, sound and effects can be heard which you wouldn’t here without headphones on. Very neutral and not modified sound, you hear what the artists intended you to. There isn’t much else I can say about sound quality, you have got to try these on to understand what I mean. The other aspects of the sound are the volume, the max volume is really loud, even too loud for my ears, and noise isolation. While there is no active noise cancelling the puffy ear cups do stop lots of the noise coming in. Rarely, this can be a con like when someone is calling your name, but in general this is an excellent feature. I can’t hear anything from the outside world when music is playing. Conversely, there is little to no sound leakage. No strangers or parents can hear that you have a secret passion for Justin Bieber!
Price and Comparison: In its price bracket, I feel these are the best headphones by far. I have tried a few more expensive headphones which have a worse sound quality. Beats by Dre for instance, cost so much more for worse sound quality and enhanced bass and highs. Well worth your money.
Another pro which doesn’t fit in to any category is that no amp is needed for them to work, making the price seem even better.
CONS: There are hardly any. The main ones are that none of the cables include a mic, so phone calls can be annoying, but how often do you take a phone call while listening to music anyway? The headphones can be slightly bulky even while folded. Because of the special jack I can’t use my custom cable. A mentioned, after hours of use get a bit uncomfortable.
VERDICT: As you can see, the Pros outweigh the Cons by far. Audio-Technica would get 6 stars from me for immaculate headphones!
Best value headphones (quality for price) on the market.
They are very comfortable, although the tight grip makes want to take them off for a few seconds every hour or so. The tight grip however makes them very unlikely to fall off, and the cushioning is very soft, so they are still very comfortable. They look very cool and the cables are very useful. I use the coiled cable at home and the short one with my ipod on the go.
The sound. I have tried Sennheiser HD558, HD280, Sony MDR ZX100, Marshall Major and the Scarlet Monitor Headphones. The M50x blow all of them out of the water in terms of sound quality. They are not completely flat, so I wouldn’t classify these as studio monitor headsphones, but flat enough for what I am recording. They noticably enhance bass. Don’t worry if your not in to bass, neither am I, they do it very subtly and I actually think the very slight bass boost improves listening experience. And, man, do they sound great plugged in to a guitar amp or with Rocksmith. I would highly suggest these over similarly priced Marshall or Vox headphones for playing guitar.
Another thing to note is while they are closed back, they don’t isolate sound. I can hear pretty much everything happening around me, which is how I like it. This does however mean that you can’t listen to loud music in public, but I have found that they isolate just enough for you not to need to listen to music very loud to have an enjoyable experience.
Anyway, at this price point, I don’t think you’ll find anything better, unless you really need the completely flat sound.
Only just got these so not had a massive amount of time listening. However. my first impressions are that I made the right choice.
The main thing I noticed was the bass. The bass performance is very strong and the only thing missing is that thump in your stomach! This doesn’t mean that the bass is overblown or exaggerated but that it is there and sounds like it should do! Even with classical music you can identify different instruments. The mid and top ranges are also clear and you get a good stereo placement. So far rock, classical and audiobooks all sound very good.
The headphones themselves feel solid and well made. They are not small so may not be great for travel but so far have felt comfortable to wear. I also like that you get three different cables with them and that they lock in place making it harder to pull out.
Update: Had these for about six months now and have been using them regularly and I am still pleased with them. They still look as good as new so build quality is fine. Comfort wise I have sometimes felt that it has been hard to adjust them to a just right setting and after prolonged use my ears did feel a bit warm. Glad I got them.
Got these today and their sublime in every way including the price! Love the warmth these headphones bring to the table and they sound a lot richer when they are connected to a FIIO E18 which they are now as I write this review, compared to the HD700 they are a more fun headphone to listen to than the HD700 and would appeal to a wider audience than the HD700’s. I know I shouldn’t be comparing the two because there is such a difference in price but I think I will be listening more to the audio technica more now, the HD700 have incredible razor edge detail and outstanding separation of instruments, suited well to classical orchestral music , imaging is great on them due to their open backed neutral air design, but the M50x does a mighty job 3 specially for their price , they deliver incredible clear sound and plenty of bass, even though they favour bass I still use the bass boost feature on my fiio e18, I just had to write a review because it would be criminal not to because they are soo good, the AKG K550s are in my opinion more laid back and flat due to their reference sound nature which isn’t a bad thing because their designed to be , the AKG K550s doing incredibly open for a pair of headphones than are closed back, sometimes you would wonder if they were on your head, their is more separation in the AKG’s than the M50x but marginally , I would still prefer the M50s for regular listening, since I previously owned a pair of M50’s I know that they are incredibly well built and are surprisingly comfortable the ATH M50X sound a tad more refined and clearer than its predecessor, so all in all the ATH M50X superior in many ways than its predecessor and are just great !!!!
These are truly wonderful DJ phones, the only negatives seems to be a bit of rattle at excessive levels. They’re plastic for heavens sake! Simple cure: get some blue tac or (my preferred choice) black plasticine, and push random blobs around the outer shell. It ain’t pretty, but it works! Bingo. Good enough up to ears bleeding level. The black plasticine is pure vanity, you don’t look cool if your phones look like they’re growing mould. Try this with all your hi fi stuff – brilliant under deck platters or isolation feet. You’re simply breaking up the standing wave patterns in uniform manufactured shapes whatever the material. Yes, my hi fi (which is pretty hi end) looks like it’s been savaged by a red bull and chocolate fuelled pre-school hit squad, but boy, does it sound good!!
Great set of headphones!
I’m no audiophile by any means but I can appreciate the difference between a cheap pair of headphones and a good pair.
These headphones on full blast and sat on the sofa next to me are actually louder than my phones speakers which is a pretty cool party trick.
The sound itself is very good, the bass isn’t overbearing but it’s definitely there when required.
The headphones themselves are quite large as you would expect considering the fact they are over ear rather than on ear. These are the first over ear headphones I have owned since I had a pair of beats and all these headphones do is highlight to me the fact that i was horribly ripped off by the beats.
If you’re looking for a good value set of headphones, with the the quality to match it’s price tag then you’re honestly not going to be disappointed with these.
Superb. Love the sound from these headphones. For 100 odd, you’ll struggle to find a better headphone producing such amazing sound. Rich, deep bass and sharp detailed highs. Vocals and mid range sounds are clear and vibrant. I totally love the sound from these… well, second to my in-ear Shures with custom ear moulds, but those cost almost 500 compared to these which are one-fifth of the price. If someone were to ask me what headphones to buy, I’d suggest stay away from Bose (had 2 pairs, but now don’t really like the sound of those) and either choose these or the Audio-Technica ATH-M70X which I also have. The Audio-Technica ATH-M50X are great all round, but in my opinion the more expensive Audio-Technica ATH-M70X are either for those recording their own sounds or those wanting to hear how the pure sound was it was recorded in the studio. It’s a matter of preference and I prefer the lose Audio-Technica ATH-M50X ones for everyday listening.
These headphones are actually pretty good, I really like them! (and coming from a ‘victor meldrew’ type person such as myself is saying something!)
The sound is very clear, bass is great- far better than I would expect. If you couple these up to a decent DAC (such as a Focusrite or Dragonfly) the vocals sound amazing, really rich and as though the artist was in the room with you. Instruments are lovely and clear with loads of body to the sound. Yes, I’m very happy with them!
I did accidentally drop mine down a height and they hit a drystone wall on the way, this happened twice before I moved them from their perch – and they still worked with no problems or marks on the unit – so must be well built as they did fall from a canny height.
I would definitely, without any doubt recommend these headphones and would certainly buy them again if and when I need some more. Lovely sound, comfy fit, loud and well built.
Have had these for just a week . so no Burn in .. Love them
Played via Amp , Via Fiio E12A ..
I do have the Sennheiser HD650s which are better but they are open, harder to drive and not really portable
I have the AKG 451 , which are serious VFM ,at half the cost and the Sennhieser on ear Momentums ( similar cost) different sound
.. so lots to compare ..
Both are great but these are simply in a class of their own for the money ..
I was considering the AKG 720s .. but I have no regrets at all going for these ..
I lie about burn in , one week is probably enough . The Bass is really just enough without being overpowering , and comfort .. can be achieved by tweaking .. but though the the fab looks and finish are, superlative Plastic but not at all cheap looking)
…. I cannot fault the sound quality at all ..
If it has any, it is that it exposes poor audio sources ( mostly YT uploads done badly) but give it better… it just shnes and some YT uploads are excellent
.However I Played a few CDs through a Home Setup and Wow .. I was reminded why I like CDs as opposed to poor bitrate encoded Mp3s . That says it all
I give it 5 stars without hesitation ,
and Nope .. I do not work for Amazon or Audio technica .:)
These arrived quickly and well packed. The included carry case is decent , the addition of the three removable cables (the X on top of the M50 is for these) is good and all three feel thick and sturdy. The headphones carry this forward, feeling reassuringly chunky and weighty, yet light enough not to cause headaches and be comfy on long listens. They are conservative in design but still look cool. They fold small for slipping into their carry bag and all the joins and build makes me think they will not be falling apart any time soon when being stored like this.
The sound is brilliant. The whole scope of instruments in my music (mainly rock and metal) comes out more than I’ve heard with any other headphones. Every part of the recording is distinct, clear and powerful, little details being dug out even on the lowest quality mp3s, while uncompressed audio sounds truly immersive. Going back to cheaper headphones suddenly feels masochistic. I couldn’t recommend these enough.
Bought these as a birthday present for a friend’s grandson but just had to sneak them out of the box and try them.
They are very comfortable to wear and the sound is really first class. Amazing bass (as to be expected in a closed back unit) maybe not quite perfect but tight and just about the best balance. Mids and highs are also very nice and on a par with my ancient pair of Beyer DT 990s which are the best I’ve found apart from something like Stax Electronics. There is a little more bass in the AT’s but the Beyers just have a slight edge of refinement. I suppose if you are young and listen to rock and roll then the AT’s are probable the ones for you.
Incidentally I thing its clever to have interchangeable leads and while the sound could be potentially slightly downgraded because of the connection, if you can sense that difference you’d be spending loads more money on a high end pair.
I’ve deliberately kept the descriptions less technical. They are very nice and exciting headphones to listen to. They involve you in the music and thats the most important thing. At this price they are a bit of a bargain.
Brilliant sound & quality feel!
I bought these to replace my Beats Studio – after watching many reviews raving about the sound quality being better than the Beats Studio I was interested. The biggest clincher for me though, was the lockable lead & the lack of sound leak! The Beats Studio although great sounding, have a loose cable & leak SO much sound I never felt comfortable using them on the bus/tube!
I did a sound comparison between the each other & the M50X are a far better sounding set – with crisp clear, well defined bass (I’m a bit of a bass-head, so was important) conversely like all Beats gear, the Studios are too bass heavy. The M50X have great, crisp & clear mids & highs too!
Also now Apple own beats & they are bloody EVERYWHERE, it just aint cool anymore (if it ever was!?!)
Highly recommended!!!!