ATH-M50X Professional Studio Monitor Headphones, Black, Professional Grade, Critically Acclaimed, with Detachable Cable

Let me start off with a disclaimer that I am rather severely hard of hearing (require good hearing aids to hear well...ish) caused by a bout with bacterial menigitis as a toddler, so take the following review for what you will. General Summary: With these, I can hear/feel bass, I can now (occasionally) hear things I couldn't hear before (eg: cymbals/high-hats on drums) and similar sounds (although my headphones are in the dangrously loud range of 85-90db+ range when I do so). Volume is not an issue with these by any means as I can actually turn them up to be loud enough to hurt my ears and force me to turn it back down (though I rarely ever have it that loud as my hearing is damaged enough as is lol). For music: The bass has will actually vibrate my headphones when turned up despite not having EQ tuned more towards bass (it's pretty flat which is another bonus as it gives you a better baseline for EQ control). I can hear certain things I never could before such as things in the "back of the mix", faint adlibs, subtle sounds such as cymbals and hi-hats on drums. For Gaming: Clarity is incredible and I have slightly more situational awareness when in games (though I still miss some things due to my hearing issues). Volume & sound feels rather "full" to me as well. I rarely ever have volume/sound issues in games with these headphones. For movie/video (youtube, netflix, etc): Outside of really soft speaking/whispering, I have absolutely no issue with hearing everything rather clearly (aside from added effects such as distortions of course, but I can barely understand that to begin with due to hearing). Even with distortions though, I can actually hear and understand it a little better than I have ever been able to with any other headphones I've ever used, personally. My previous headset was a Logitech Artimis which was surprising how good it was and until I got these, the Artimis headsets were the best I've ever used (though gaming focused)... Now? Sorry Logitech, but these are even better, however, with that said. Both are surprisingly affordable for their quality and neither use the dreaded "in-line controls" which always the weakest point and when that goes, the headphones stop working so any headphones without in-line controls will always be viewed far more favorably by me in durability... Speaking of... Durability: I've dropped these countless times (by accident... butterfingered klutz problems lol). Have accidentally "kicked" them, pulled a little too hard when there was not enough cord, and other various, minor mishaps common from daily use and they are still working fine with 0 issues or any actual damage. I have one minor gripe although I think that has more to do with my glasses (or me) than with the headphones and that is that sometimes I can't seem to make them sit comfortably on my head, but rotating the cups a little seems to help though it still takes a few minutes to get used to it again but once I do... They are incredibly comfortable and remain comfortable even after wearing them for 12+ hours a day as I do most things on the PC and at my PC most of the day, so I'm wearing the headphones more often than not. These are durable, powerful, and comfortable. The only drawback for me *personally* has less to do with the headphones and more with hardware/software of my PC which is I wish this came with an app that could read db output so I can be more conscious and careful of my hearing for it is more dangerous (for me). Thus it is more likely to cause damage for me as my starting volume is considerably higher by default due to hearing loss as the 70db range is what I need to hear well enough to follow along (I can *hear* the 60db range, but have severe trouble understanding as it's barely whisper level for me due to hearing). but that's really close to 80db range and I can easily cross over into that (and into the 90s) for long extended listening periods which can damage hearing if done for extended amounts of times. All in all, I highly recommend this product whether your hearing is normal or damaged. I have found no legitimate faults with this product. I would definitely purchase again in the future (doubly so if they create and include an app that can help keep track of db levels to add a layer of hearing protection much like apple does with their air pod ear buds and the hearing section of the health app). I would hope that if they do the app, it is free or at least cheap and affordable (like 5-10 USD at most and not something like 50-100 USD). To the person reading this: I hope this review from someone with hearing impairments was helpful in spite of the fact that I have severe hearing damage. Thank you for taking the time to read this and have a great day/night.

I have owned these headphones for 6 months. I'm semi-audiophiliac. They've generally been my go to for listening to music. I'm only writing this review because I unlocked the truth i'd been missing out on for 6 months. That's my resume. Here are my thoughts on why you should choose these over budget or more expensive headphones. ( & yes, you should, but read on.) These are great no matter what you plug them into. I'll give them that. You will be generally impressed if you plug them into your iphone, android, mac, etc.. They're pretty darned good. The volume is perfect, the highs are there but tame enough while keeping truth. You won't blow your eardrum tweeter, but the highs are definitely there and serviceable to truthiness of the treble band. The bass is true bass. It's not overly exaggerated; these WILL NOT give you an ear massage, it will however give you pretty close to exact bass. That's actually a fantastic thing, learning to appreciate bass rather than it treating your ears as a trampoline is definitely an enlightenment. I mainly use these with Spotify for my music diet. I'm a premium subscriber which gives me the rights to their high quality streams. These WILL expose bad recordings. Certain punk rock will not sound good as high quality electronic or high end produced modern pop. The ATH-M50x's keep the recording quality obvious, but I would go on to say that they're pretty forgiving at the same time. If you picked up a pair of AT's higher priced cans, you'd probably expose even more, and is that worth it? Ehhhh it's up to you, but these are the sweet spot for the price if you're really looking to find flaws in recording, ya geek. The biggest take away for these cans is this: while plugging them into anything will get you great audio, what they're plugged into matters. They will expose the the truth of the audio output of the device they're plugged into. An Iphone won't sound as good as plugged into a macbook pro which won't sound as good as a pc with a good sound card. I'd been running these on my dell monitors headphone jack, which runs into an nvidia 980ti GPU, which serves up audio through the mentioned audio jack. It was okay. Today I pulled out the long 3.5mm male to 2.5mm male (the connection on the ATH-M50's is 2.5mm fyi) that came with these and decided to plug these into my gaming pc that has a decent realtek soundcard... Oh my lord panty dropping audio blissfulness, the gods have spoken, how the hell did I miss this, hot damn. It awoke the beast. I cannot say more until you try these in a preamp (coworkers recommended) or something that pumps out decent audio. These are a catalyst, you just need the correct crucible to handle it. You pair these babies with the correct output mechanism, and it will be one of the best 100$ range headphones you'll have ever have bought. Sky's the limit, just feed them correctly. Since owning these, I've bought other Audio-Technica audio and recording devices. Have a set of their ATH-CKS55XBT blue tooth headphones : Audio-Technica SOLID BASS Bluetooth wireless stereo headset ATH-CKS55XBT As well as the AT2020 usb microphone: Audio-Technica AT2020USB PLUS Cardioid Condenser USB Microphone It helps to live 3 miles from their main headquarters and warehouse, but my first venture with AT were these headphones bought from Amazon, and I haven't looked back. These can's established brand loyalty in me to AT. They are The Truth.

Edit: This review is from a viewpoint of someone who haven't used the previous M50 version. This review is generally about the overall quality of this headphone! My Review: This is one of the best headphone I've owned. Even more expensive headphones like the Sennheiser HD series (besides the HD800 I guess) are not as good as this one. There are several factors that make this headphone awesome: Comfort: 10/10 First of all, I want to talk about the component that separates this headphone from the Sennheiser HD series or other headphones; the comfortable of this headphone is unmatchable by other brand headphones. I have big ears and the ear cups fit perfectly inside my ears as well as the tightness of the ear cups doesn't hurt my ears either which helps with extended listening/wearing. The earcups are made out of some sort of soft leatherish rubber which is once again...super soft and comfortable. Same thing for the headband, it's so soft and fit to my head so well. They also put some sort of soft cushion under the earpads for extra comfort. Which are all pretty neat and cool features. Sound Quality 30/30: +Highs 10/10: Perfect, crisp +Mids 10/10: Really clear and balance +Lows 10/10: Very good base and smooth. I'm not an expert or audiophile but dang this headphone sounds good. Everything sounds differently, every song sounds like a new song and you can hear everything in the audio file as long as you have the good enough quality audio track. I've listen with this headphone from all kinds of music: classic, rock, pop, alternative, etc. Everything just sound so good. In my own opinion, I think that this headphone sounds better than the Sennheiser HD598 HD280 380 because of the improved base as well as the clearer background I guess (just my own opinion). Also in my own opinion, I think this headphone is better than the Bose QC15 and is comparable to the Shure SHR1440. Overall, everything sounds smooth crisp with incredible base. Get this for your own to try it out and you'll see what I mean. (I will update more as I break it in a little bit more, could be even better :D) Looks 9.99/10: It looks great and well... This is again a personal reference/opinion. This headphone is very fashionable and awesome looking. It's also very light so you can wear it outside no problem! This is just my opinion on the look but you can look at the picture and judge for yourself. :D Feels 10/10: Very solid and durable. Inside is made out of metals/aluminum (I'm not really sure). You can feel the quality of it from top to bottom , it feels very dense and solid (unlike the plasticky feel from say the QC15 or HD380)...From the ear cups to the leather padding. It's a great built headphone overall. The cables are also thick and durable (I like the coil one because I tend to move around a lot). Overall, great upgrade from the last model (which I never own one, I took this sentence from reading other reviews :D) Pricing 10(+5) or 15/10: For a headphone like this,I could pay 400 dollars for it and still feel worth it. I don't know, may be it's just me but I feel like getting this headphone for just around 200 dollars (plus tax) from Amazon is way too cheap. With this awesome quality built, comfort level as well as supreme sound, this headphone is way too good for its price/competitor. [Hurry, get this now before Audio Technica raise the price:) ...jkjk haha] Conclusion: That's all I have for now. I hope you find my review helpful and help you somewhat make up your mind to purchase a great headphone. If anyone would ask me which headphone to buy within the 500 dollars range, I would tell them to save the other 300 and get this headphone in a heartbeat! Some extra comparison: -ATH-M50x or Beats Pro HD $500 => Beats: Broncos ATH-M50x: Seahawks (lol sorry Broncos fans) -This heaphone or QC15: This headphone for sound quality and price. QC15 for sound cancellation. About the same comfort level. P/S: Sorry for any grammatical errors or mistakes. Please feel free to leave any comments, improvements that I could make for my reviews as well as some more comparisons that I could do. Thanks again for reading my review!

These things might be lower cost / lower-end headphones but they’re not cheap! I use them as studio monitors when I play bass and I was worried they wouldn’t be able to handle it. I’ve blown several sets of headphones already and some that cost A LOT more than these! When I’m just jamming and not really practicing anything new, I have my bass, effects, and whatever music I’m playing along with going thru these cans. A lot of headphones in this price range get really muddy or the bass gets really thin if there’s too much low-end. This is especially true if it’s turned up a bit. These Audio-Technicas are workhorses. I’ve been able to torture these things with loud music and heavy bass without any issues. I’ve been very happy with them. Now, let’s be clear on something. If you’re looking for the best sounding headphones in this price range these probably aren’t them. When I want to really listen to music or movies I have high-end headphones that are great for that. However, I would NEVER play my bass or my effects rig thru them. That’s not what they’re built for. That said, these Audio-Technica ATH-M50X headphone still sound great and they can take a lot of abuse. As over-the-ear studio monitors they’re great and they don’t cost a fortune. They come with 3 excellent 1/8 inch to 1/8 inch cable options and include a quality 1/4 inch adapter so you can plug into amps, computers, mixers, or whatever. The included cables are high quality soft rubber that doesn’t pull hair (a miracle of modern science) and seem well built and durable. The headphones collapse nicely and the cables can be removed / interchanged for portability or to fit different environmental needs. They really thought of almost everything! The only suggestion I would make to any potential buyers is this. Buy a case for them. The pleather bag that comes with the headphones is “meh” at best. A decent case will keep them well protected, make them easier to carry, and will fit your cables without them getting all tangled up. Most cases are about $20 and will help protect your headphones a lot more and the bag will. That’s it! Overall, they’re great and you should get yourself a pair!!

Background: I got tired of all the mixed reviews of best “closed, around-ear” headphones fewer than $200, so I got 7 of the top recommended brands/models and decided for myself (luckily, they had a 15 – 30 day trial period). I needed a “closed” headphone so NO sound (for listening enjoyment only) could be heard by people around me. I’m somewhat of an audiophile and an ex-band director…so perfect sound is important to me (note: I listen to concert band, jazz, orchestral movie soundtracks, choral, classical, and even some pop/rock/country). My “control” for testing was music from my iTunes Library (apple Lossless files) on my laptop with advanced soundcard. I wanted to spend fewer than $200. Here are the following results: 1st place: Audio-Technica ATH-M50x. (score: 90/100 points) Pros –It does a variety of tasks really good with no real weakness at anything. It’s best for listening enjoyment…not professional studio monitoring as advertised. It has very warm sounding vocals, a balanced sound (with very slight favor to lower mid range & upper bass), and comfortable (loose) fit on my ears/head. It handles thick, polyphonic music passages with ease without distortion…while keeping the main melody/vocals volume and tone quality still cutting through with warmth. The sound feels like you’re in a very large professional concert hall! People with large heads will appreciate the fit of these comfortable headphones. Cons- Although you have the feel of being in a large concert hall, the distance to the stage seems a bit too far away…perhaps the 30th row. These headphones are the highest price of those tested (around $170…ouch… but, it comes with 3 different chords to the headphones/ and bag). 2nd Place: Sennheiser HD 280 Pro. (score: 88/100 points) Pros – Very balanced sound throughout the registers…no favors to any register!!! It can be used for both studio monitoring or listening enjoyment. The extra-deep bass extension can be “felt” during musical passages…nice. This Headphone has as a very “live” performance sound…like you’re on the 5th row during a concert. Best headphones for listening enjoyment under $100 (only $99!). Cons – The tone of melody/vocals sound a bit thin or “electric” at times during thick/polyphonic textures in musical passages…especially male tenors and trumpet/alto sax solos. Although you feel like you’re on the 5th row during a concert, it sounds like you’re in a small auditorium rather than a concert hall. Fit may a bit tiring after a long period (good clamping pressure). 3rd Place: Sony MDR-7506. (85/100points) Pros - These headphones must be the best at studio monitoring…or when you need to be critical and “dissect” music…every detail can be heard throughout every register (you can even hear faults in the recording you never wanted to hear before). The sound feels like you’re in a closed room with a live band)...not a performance concert hall/auditorium (there is a lack of reverb) good for recording professionals (and only $86!). Very clean and articulate at the “attacks” of instrument/vocal notes (not much sustain with these headphones) throughout all of the registers. Cons – Very bright sound…taxing to the ears after a while (Treble is very pronounced). Must use an equalizer to add bass/warmth to the sound for listening enjoyment...Yes it’s a pain, but then they do sound good after those adjustments. 4th Place: Bose SoundTrue, Around Ear. (80/100 points) Pros – These headphones have a good, balanced sound throughout the registers (Note: you will have to turn up the volume on these headphones). They are very comfortable and “light” on the head….you almost forget you have the headphones on. Cons – Sound is very “speaker” sounding...like you’re at a concert to hear your favorite band in the 50th row, but the stage is full of speakers playing CD recordings of your favorite band; therefore, there is just too much distance from you to the stage. Price is too much for this headphone ($150). 5th Place: Koss SP540. (75/100 points) Pros – These headphones are very cool looking, and somewhat comfortable (I have normal/smaller ears). The sound is not balanced…favors the bass/mids…good for rock/rap lovers. Mids and treble sounds have been somewhat muffled…so the bass and lower mids “boom” throughout your music. Cons – Feels like you’re sitting behind the band at a concert. Not worth the $150 price tag. Note: I have a Koss 35 Pro A and love the sound of these headphones (but they are half-open designed, not fully closed) and I hoped these sp540 models could compete…disappointed. 6th Place: JBL J88a. (68/100 points) Pros – These headphones are the most comfortable…no competition in this department! Bass is very heavy….rap/rock lovers will appreciate these headphones. Cons – The mids and trebles have been purposely muffled…almost non-existent...feels like you’re sitting behind the band during a concert (with cotton in your ears). Price is good ($99), but come on…try to have some balance throughout the registers. 7th place: Grado SR125. (65/100 points) Note: This is the headphone I’ve had for a couple years...and why I started a search for a better headphone. They are not what I needed because they are “open designed”…thus, people around you can hear them. Pros – Very crisp and clear mids and trebles…you can hear every detail. Comfortable fit. Cons – no bass what-so-ever…thus, bright and airy sound only. It feels like you’re sitting on the 75th row at a concert! These headphones are rather expensive (around $120 bucks when I bought them 2 years ago…$150 today).

First, I am not an audiophile, so this review is for us mere mortals with normal ears. I understand there are super tasters, and probably super listeners. I am not a super listener, and am willing to accept that my ears are "normal". If you are an audiophile, or "super listener" just move on. Please don't buy these and leave a negative review. Leaving a negative review is not useful to the other 95% of humans. Accept that you have an incredible sense level that most of us don't have. I gave these a 5 star audio quality because a normal person can easily tell the difference between these and a gaming headset, for example. This is an important quality for normal human use. A lot of "high end" headsets are indistinguishable, for normal people, to a headset like these. For listening to music and sound accuracy, these are simply amazing. They are not insane bass headphones. The bass is good, but it's normal good, it is not amplified to ridiculous levels like some headphones. The sound seems neutral and relatively balanced. The sound is much more detailed than any other headset I've used in the past. There are smaller details on a lot of the music that I listen to that I never noticed before. Again, this is from the perspective of a normal human with normal ears, so there is a good chance you will be able to have the same results. Noise cancellation I gave a 4 star because they do block a ton of sound but are not active noise cancellation. So there is room for improvement but they are still very good. Normal people won't have an issue with this I don't think. One thing to note here is if you have ears that stick out these will be uncomfortable. The pads are comfortable enough, but the foam over the speakers are irritating on the ears. This doesn't bother me because my ears sit close to my head. Your mileage may vary here. For gaming I gave these a 4 star. It's hard to rate these for gaming, because gaming is not the primary purpose of these headphones. They are a 4 star for me, personally. It honestly depends on what you are looking for in a gaming headset. If you are looking for sound accuracy these are amazing. If you want massive explosion booms with overly loud bass in call of duty, these might not be for you. If you want overly sensitive and loud treble so you can hear footsteps from a mile away, these are not for you. To be clear, these do both of those things, but they do so in a balanced and accurate way. These are not "competitive" level for gaming. However, if you play casually and not competitively, these are an amazing set for gaming. These will produce a more natural sound, which is something the vast majority of gaming headsets do not do. Most gaming headsets focus more on treble for competition. They do not offer a natural sounds. One could argue this headset is closer to how the sound designers intended you to hear their games than a gaming headset, counterintuitively. Who are these for? These are not for professionals or audiophiles. These are for mortal listeners. If you are a mortal listener, you can easily tell the difference in sound and appreciate what these have to offer. You absolutely cannot say that about a lot of "audiophile" headsets that cost a ton more. This headset is good enough for anyone to appreciate the difference in quality. These are not for people who need a non-balanced sound. I am not criticizing the need for those kinds of headsets at all. They perform their function well. This is not one of those. To sum this review up, these are incredible headphones for the value if you want a balanced, accurate, sound profile. These are "just buy it" quality for normal humans.

I am currently using this as my primary DJ headphones to help cue and setup the next track on the playlist. The sound quality is just perfect for my ears without having to worry about discrepancies between lows, mids, and highs. As a regular headphone - it is also great! I use it with a Type-C to 3.5mm to connect to my phone and the quality is also great! They fit snug and feel great on my ears and do not seem to feel heavy at any point. It also comes with different cables/connections which is great for DJ decks (1/4") and the regular stereo 3.5mm for mp3 devices. The cables also have a lock mechanism so they do not easily detach from the headphones. The build quality of the headphones are great as well! It does not feel super cheap like the generic $15-$30 ones. I do realize that the run warm so if you sweat a lot or easily, you will feel it after a while. That is the only con I have with the headphones.

My new favorite headphones! Previously had m40 and they’re great, but slightly lacking in the low range. M50 add a little extra to make the sound more complete without exaggerating/overemphasising any particular range, so they sound pleasant and natural. I use these for production and to just listen music in general. I can wear them for several hours without getting fatigued by the sound or physical discomfort. That said, the band was a little too tight for my head size. It’s subjective of course, but easily fixable by bending it gently around the center. I want the pressure to hold the ear cups pressing down sealing the sound, I just don’t want to feel that pressure on my ears/head. Bending the band slightly did the trick. I did this on my m40 too. Both became perfect after that. I read some sound-related reviews where people were unhappy with the sound of m50 Bluetooth version, and it prompted me to try this regular/wired version. I’ve tried that one at the store by connecting my iPhone to them via Bluetooth. So I don’t know how they sound via a wire I just know that the base was way too uncomfortable for me to even listen to a single song. So I kind of decided not to get m50 at all based on that experience. Glad I read those reviews and tried the wired version! Sound is subjective so what I dislike can be a plus for you. If you like a LOT of base, you might give them a shot. As for the wired-only version of m50, they feel like a natural upgrade from m40, nothing is in exaggeration but rather improved well-balanced sound. These are closed-back design, but they have the best sound stage of any other closed-back headphones I’ve tried. There might be something better out there of course, but to me if there’s a distinctive feel to the sound, like it’s coming from a tin can, I just can’t use that. Neither m40 nor m50 have that. You can hear a concert hall or any other space in the track. Beyerdynamic closed-back headphones that I’ve tried had this tincan element to their sound. They’re often praised by professional producers but personally, I can’t imagine how I could possibly create a sound with that. It’s distracting for listening, and just doesn’t reflect the actual sound I’m working on. M60, in case you’re wondering, are very different to the series. They’re shaped differently and sound differently. I prefer the sound of m50. Also, they’ve improved the cable quality on M50 and now there’s even a 3rd cable included that’s a perfect length for using on the go and it’s very flexible.