Audio-Techinca ATH-A900 Headphones Review @ [H]

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FrgMstr

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Audio-Techinca ATH-A900 Headphones Review - Audio-Technica's open headphones are known to gamers for the wearing comfort and huge soundstage that these provide, but the open back models simply lack bass and isolation. Today, we will see if a pricey pair of the company's closed back audiophile headphones can offer the compromise many of you are looking for in PC audio.
 
I absolutely love my A900s and I can see you guys do too! I'm glad to see something other than the AD700 being given some credit.
 
I've been eyeing the A900s/A700s for quite a while. I'm thinking they would make a great birthday gift in May...
 
you will always do better with headphones from a headphone manufacturer than from a marketing company, especially one who uses a celebrities name to sell.

dont even get me started with gimmicky plastic "gaming" headphones that look like they came from a fisher price GI-Joe set.
 
Despite being a fairly old model, the A900s have the detail and directional sound you want in a gaming can. They are generally in the top three of the under $300 gaming headphone category. I prefer the Beyer DT880 and the Denon D2000 but only slightly. Any one of those headphones could have the gold award. The main selling point here is, with the A500 pads, the way these things "float" on your head is extraordinarily comfy. Plus you can score them pretty cheap on head fi in the used section. Great, durable headphones. Worth the $$.

Yes to the Gold award.
 
spaceman said:
Despite being a fairly old model, the A900s have the detail and directional sound you want in a gaming can. They are generally in the top three of the under $300 gaming headphone category. I prefer the Beyer DT880 and the Denon D2000 but only slightly. Any one of those headphones could have the gold award. The main selling point here is, with the A500 pads, the way these things "float" on your head is extraordinarily comfy. Plus you can score them pretty cheap on head fi in the used section. Great, durable headphones. Worth the $$.

Yes to the Gold award.
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One of the unusual characteristics about A-T's headphones is that the company's audiophile line up has been around since 2003. The AD 700 & 900 and the A 700 and 900 models are four of the most popular selling headphone on Amazon to this day. The prices of these headphones remain fairly constant at both retail and resale.
The original price of the AD700 model has increased from what it was 19 months ago when we reviewed them and the A900 pair that we reviewed today has fluctuated up and down by $25 in the last two months. I do not know of many audio products that maintain that type of retail popularity. A great pair of well built headphones can last for years though. My longest lasting is a Sony pair that I bought my first year of college way back in 1987. They still work quite well.

Audio-Technica's revamped "X" lineup should be very interesting.
 
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I have had the 700's and the 900's

only thing i dislike is the "winged" headband, I would they would something different.
 
Now that is what every review should be like. [H], you put others to shame. It's a shame that I can't really find these in my country, but our online retailer do have a pair of Sennheiser HD 800. ;)
 
YAY! I've loved my ATH-A900s ever since I had them imported like 4 years ago from Japan because Audio-technica hadn't brought them stateside. I actually bought them based off of recommendations from head-fi.org. They really are super comfy and sound good without needed an amp. Nice to see that they are now [H]ard worthy;)
 
I had the A900's for over 6 months. I liked the clarity they had, but, they had no low range at all. If anything they had just enough to make you say WTF wheres the boom?!?!? Aside from that they were pretty balanced overall. What they lack in punch and wow factor they make up for it with comfort and low to none existent listening fatigue. For music and movies ,there are better options for the money. For competitive gaming they can be nice for long sessions. the one caveat is your ears will start to sweat after a few hours of wear.
 
V3|!UM said:
I had the A900's for over 6 months. I liked the clarity they had, but, they had no low range at all. If anything they had just enough to make you say WTF wheres the boom?!?!?
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I can't see how you figure that unless you're used to something intentionally bass heavy. I wouldn't go anywhere near calling them basshead cans like my Ultrasone Pro 900s but they certainly have oomph where it counts.

If you're listening to them without EQ you're probably missing out on what they talked about in the review because while I usually listen to them "flat" they can certainly thump hard if you EQ them for it.
 
With EQ they can be made to sound fuller, true. That said, they don't feel like they have much meat. I got rid of them mainly because the signature didn't fit me. they were boring to listen to. I can't call them analytical, but, they just didn't pop. I would call the sound signature as safe not pushing any sound spectrum too much, though I will say that the treble is the shining point on these cans.

As for basshead, I do like Bass in moderation. These cans just sounded lifeless on a lot of music. Just my 2 cents...
 
guitarslingerchris said:
If you're listening to them without EQ you're probably missing out on what they talked about in the review because while I usually listen to them "flat" they can certainly thump hard if you EQ them for it.
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A little bass boost in the EQ applet or the individual sliders and they were excellent for both old and new hip-hop/rap. With too much EQ, they would become "boomy" as people commonly describe. There would be too much impact where it was never intended and the artist of the track sounded as if he were under the music. These headphones reflect EQ changes very well.
 
i like those headphones, I've tried them once, not too bad actually. Clear crisp and not to low on bass. :)
 
With the increasing attention you guys are giving to headphones, you should review the Antlion Mod Mic as well: http://www.modmic.com/

It looks like a great solution for turning premium headphones into a true headset. I've got one coming this week, and I'm really excited about it.

EDIT: I'd also like to see [H] step away from from Audio-Technica products for a bit. Aside from the abysmal beats, those are the only non-headset brand headphone that you guys have reviewed. They are great headphones, but there is a ton more out there, and this is a market that I don't think your average consume knows a lot about. In the same league you have some great cans by Sennheiser, Denon, AKG, Beyerdynamic, Grado, etc. When you are spending this much on headphones, it's hard to find something that will sound "bad"... it is a game of personal preference at that point. It's a good opportunity to let people know what else is out there.
 
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If you are looking for wide sound stage and isolation, I would recommend some semi open headphones like the Beyer DT880's.
 
I have these and everything I read in the review was pretty spot on sound wise. The problem with this is the 2 head support wing things are a little weak and after 3 years, 1 of them broke(I just sorta glued it back together). Also the plastic liner over the cusions has completey fallen off, I ended up just peeling it all away to the cusion part and no real complaints there. Overall though I would say I really like these and the $180 I paid has been well worth it.
 
Love these headphones! I see so many people while on public transit with Beats headphones. I want to go an tell them they got ripped off by clever marketing.
 
I found the bass to be more then adequate on these, then again I don't listen to disgusting shit like rap/hip-hop.
 
I used a pair of ATH-A900's for almost two years before I gifted them to my sister. They fit my head well, so they were light and comfortable. With a good seal around your ear, and decent source, they are not shy on bass, with forward mids and decent higher frequencies.

I've moved on to their newer wooden cup model, ATH-W1000X for a closed headphone. Love Audio Technica's sound.
 
Battou62 said:
If you are looking for wide sound stage and isolation, I would recommend some semi open headphones like the Beyer DT880's.
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I agree with you. I really like Beyer-D' 770,880, and 990 series. The semi-open characteristic is a good blend also, we hear a lot of comments from readers literally asking, "Can you have your skull thumped and your sound stage too?" So we went totally closed on this review.

We are definitely looking at alternative brands though. Soundstage in games is one of the most important criteria, but music playback translates as well when you guys have beefy sound cards.
 
Viper87227 said:
EDIT: I'd also like to see [H] step away from from Audio-Technica products for a bit. Aside from the abysmal beats, those are the only non-headset brand headphone that you guys have reviewed. They are great headphones, but there is a ton more out there, and this is a market that I don't think your average consume knows a lot about. In the same league you have some great cans by Sennheiser, Denon, AKG, Beyerdynamic, Grado, etc. When you are spending this much on headphones, it's hard to find something that will sound "bad"... it is a game of personal preference at that point. It's a good opportunity to let people know what else is out there.
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I second that. All the brands named above have headphones that are more than competitive with the Audio-Technicia in terms of price and sound quality. I don't know if maybe Audio Technica are giving you free phones, but these other brands are definitely worth checking out if you can help it. I have the Sony MDR-V6, Denon D2000, and AKG k702 myself.
 
Viper87227 said:
With the increasing attention you guys are giving to headphones, you should review the Antlion Mod Mic as well: http://www.modmic.com/

It looks like a great solution for turning premium headphones into a true headset. I've got one coming this week, and I'm really excited about it.
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I've been hesitant to give up my Sennheiser HD590 cans for a new headset -- I love the sound and don't really want to throw down another $2-300 for a comparable set with a mic. This looks like a great compromise. Will have to check this out.
 
Viper87227 said:
EDIT: I'd also like to see [H] step away from from Audio-Technica products for a bit. Aside from the abysmal beats, those are the only non-headset brand headphone that you guys have reviewed. They are great headphones, but there is a ton more out there, and this is a market that I don't think your average consume knows a lot about. In the same league you have some great cans by Sennheiser, Denon, AKG, Beyerdynamic, Grado, etc. When you are spending this much on headphones, it's hard to find something that will sound "bad"... it is a game of personal preference at that point. It's a good opportunity to let people know what else is out there.
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Agreed. Not that Audio-Technica isn´t a great headphone company. But maybe you can dial up the companies mentioned above and ask them for products to test? These are surely some of the top dogs with a good selection at the sub $300 price point.

Anyway it does not take much to put a beating on Dr. Dre´s beats, it´s not a worthy comparison. Also I think AKG K7xx series dominate in terms of sound stage, to the extend where it becomes a little "unnatural". These take good amping to drive though, which will kill the budget.
 
nakedhand said:
Anyway it does not take much to put a beating on Dr. Dre´s beats, it´s not a worthy comparison.
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The point of the comparison though is that Beats are one of the most popular, but most expensive consumer grade heapdhones out there. For the price, they are nowhere near worth it. As we said in the review, A-T's A900 headphones cost $100 less and are superior.

The general public hears, "Beats by Dre" and thinks it will get great bass. There are simply cheaper better alternatives that you would have for years rather than during a fad or whimsical purchase.
 
Bass is like Contrast level's on TV's to the public , its inflated to present an effect that can cover up other flaws but pronounced enough that even a laymen can notice since it taps into a the very base line perception of how sound or images are perceived.

Beats are lousy headphones with lots of bass , the bass masks the fact that the mids , highs are just terrible and since people love to hear strong bass they claim them to be "high quality" when in fact they are low grade and over priced. People also like stylized headphones that are fashion forward and many of the best headphones on the market are not "fashionable" but instead are forms of pure function.

People also buy Monster Cables because they believe the special jackets and oxygen-free sealed cabling improves the Picture Quality. Same song and dance , same fools departed from there money.

A little research will provide you with far less expensive headphones than Beats that sound much better in all the important area's ... low's , mid's and high's. But yet again the general public would rather walk into a store where a celeb has personally endorsed a line of products , pick one up thinking that its been "vetted" by that celeb and that should be good enough for them because they doubt someone like that would put there name on anything they didn't feel was a quality product.
 
EarlKeim said:
The point of the comparison though is that Beats are one of the most popular, but most expensive consumer grade heapdhones out there. For the price, they are nowhere near worth it. As we said in the review, A-T's A900 headphones cost $100 less and are superior.

The general public hears, "Beats by Dre" and thinks it will get great bass. There are simply cheaper better alternatives that you would have for years rather than during a fad or whimsical purchase.
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I think it is great that you point this out in the review. I just meant to reiterate that these headphones are miles apart in terms of audio quality. Good service letting the general public know about a cheaper and better alternative to these over hyped life style cans.

Will we see reviews of some of the other big brands in the future?
 
I love my ATH's (can't think of the model right now), but a big problem is after 4 years the ear covering material is falling off (small black pieces). So for $200 headphones, I don't see a way to fix it. I'm ending up with just Foam on my ears. Sounds good though.

Maybe because I live in AZ?
 
ol1bit said:
I love my ATH's (can't think of the model right now), but a big problem is after 4 years the ear covering material is falling off (small black pieces). So for $200 headphones, I don't see a way to fix it. I'm ending up with just Foam on my ears. Sounds good though.

Maybe because I live in AZ?
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Metrocall said:
Also the plastic liner over the cusions has completey fallen off, I ended up just peeling it all away to the cusion part and no real complaints there. Overall though I would say I really like these and the $180 I paid has been well worth it.
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This just happens and a quick email to AT support will get you replacement pads for less than $15. I know for my A700s the bass response completely disappeared until I replaced the pads so they could create a seal again.
 
What I want to know is, considering only the sound quality (not price or sound leakage), which one is better overall, the A900 or the AD900? Or maybe it's more of a trade-off where one is better in soundstage, and the other is better in bass. I wish there was one headphone that had both. I have the AD500, and it definitely needs some more bass.

Metrocall said:
Also the plastic liner over the cusions has completey fallen off, I ended up just peeling it all away to the cusion part and no real complaints there. Overall though I would say I really like these and the $180 I paid has been well worth it.
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Same thing happened to my AD500, and instead of having it look all messed up I took the whole thing off. Funny thing is, it only happened to one of the earpads, the other one is completely intact. :confused:
 
guitarslingerchris said:
This just happens and a quick email to AT support will get you replacement pads for less than $15. I know for my A700s the bass response completely disappeared until I replaced the pads so they could create a seal again.
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Wow, Thanks for the advise! :)
 
nakedhand said:
Will we see reviews of some of the other big brands in the future?
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We are definitely taking a look at other manufacturers. Ultrasone, Grado, and Shure are very popular in the gaming/PC audio enthusiast community.

The Ultrasone HFI-780 has us very curious with its built-in S-Logic surround . Perhaps a dedicated gaming sound card would not be needed? We will see.........
 
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What is the output impedance of the X-Fi Titanium HD sound card you used for this evaluation?
 
poee said:
What is the output impedance of the X-Fi Titanium HD sound card you used for this evaluation?
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The headphone port on the Titanium HD is rated as able to power headphones with an impedance rating up to 330 ohms.

It is not a headphone amp, only a dedicated 'headphone out' port. We also used the onboard Realtek sound chipset with our case's front panel jack. These headphones are very easy to power and are very loud to the average listener with low volumes.
 
I've had my eye on Audio Technica for a long while, but I haven't yet had a chance to buy a pair, and I wasn't sure about open vs. closed. However, I hope to be able to do so in a few months, and this article really helped me figure out what I wanted (namely, this pair). Thanks as always, [H].
 
I've had the A900's for years now. Ordered mine from Japan when they weren't in the states yet.

Super comfortable, great sound, quality construction. These work great for gaming also, you can really tell where shit is coming from.
 
Topaz said:
I've had my eye on Audio Technica for a long while, but I haven't yet had a chance to buy a pair, and I wasn't sure about open vs. closed. However, I hope to be able to do so in a few months, and this article really helped me figure out what I wanted (namely, this pair). Thanks as always, [H].
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IMO, their open cans are MUCH better. Not so muddy. Also, a lot more comfy with the soft pads. The closed ones might be better exclusively for gaming, but if music is a consideration, the open ones are way better.
 
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