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Audio-Technica ATH-M50 Professional Studio Monitor Headphones $125 @ Amazon

That's a nice price drop, but a bit expensive still. Some HD280s I've had for a few years (and got at a great price) are about the same and cheaper.
 
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DoomDoomDoom said:
That's a nice price drop, but a bit expensive still. Some HD280s I've had for a few years (and got at a great price) are about the same and cheaper.
Click to expand...

They are rather different headphones. HD 280's does not require an amp, and it will sound decent. M50's require an amp to sound decent. Without an amp, the HD 280's are better. With even a cheap amp (like a FiiO E7), the M50's will be slightly better than the HD 280's overall. If you love bass, the M50 will destroy the HD 280's (both amped).
 
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dexvx said:
They are rather different headphones. HD 280's does not require an amp, and it will sound decent. M50's require an amp to sound decent. Without an amp, the HD 280's are better. With even a cheap amp (like a FiiO E7), the M50's will be slightly better than the HD 280's overall. If you love bass, the M50 will destroy the HD 280's (both amped).
Click to expand...

That's one of the things I love about my customs, my Cowon J3 drives them with ease. Even my Porta Pros are easily driven by it. TF10 custom remold pic below.

p1030148rf.jpg
 
dexvx said:
They are rather different headphones. HD 280's does not require an amp, and it will sound decent. M50's require an amp to sound decent. Without an amp, the HD 280's are better. With even a cheap amp (like a FiiO E7), the M50's will be slightly better than the HD 280's overall. If you love bass, the M50 will destroy the HD 280's (both amped).
Click to expand...

With 38ohms of impedance I'm not seeing why one would "need" an amp for these. I am curious about them compared to what I currently own though (HD380pro).
 
Somebody remind me; What did these used to go for before the entire internet got a hard on for them?
 
I don't know when these got so expensive. I bought my ATH-M50s 3 years ago for $100.

They do have great sound, but are terribly uncomfortable. I know everyone hates Bose, but my QC15s are way more comfortable than the Audio Technicas.

I gave up with Sennheiser after my HD280s broke apart. I bought them in 2004 and I always took good care of them. They completely broke apart after 5 years. My Audio Technica ATH-M50s made it through a deployment to Iraq without as much as a scratch.
 
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Another one here:

Crazy value here IMO:


Audio Technica ATH-M50 Headphones (Coiled or Straight Cable)

http://slickdeals.net/?&sdpid=51435...essionals.com/cgi-bin/gold/item/ATH-M50-PROMO

For coiled cable use coupon code ATH-M50-PROMO-COILED-60

For straight cable use coupon code ATH-M50-PROMO-STRAIGHT-60

$100 each + shipping (varies by location, about $8 to the east coast)

*WHITE Version ($6 more) --

Use code ATH-M50-PROMO-WHITE-60
 
Q-BZ said:
Another one here:

Crazy value here IMO:


Audio Technica ATH-M50 Headphones (Coiled or Straight Cable)

http://slickdeals.net/?&sdpid=51435...essionals.com/cgi-bin/gold/item/ATH-M50-PROMO

For coiled cable use coupon code ATH-M50-PROMO-COILED-60

For straight cable use coupon code ATH-M50-PROMO-STRAIGHT-60

$100 each + shipping (varies by location, about $8 to the east coast)

*WHITE Version ($6 more) --

Use code ATH-M50-PROMO-WHITE-60
Click to expand...

That's the one I posted, I just linked it to the thread at SD's.
 
Hot deal on these should be $75.


These are over rated.
 
derek533 said:
The AT-AD700 are much better overall cans for a lower price. More comfortable, and one of the widest soundstages I've ever heard in a headphone. http://www.amazon.com/Technica-ATH-...=UTF8&qid=1341665284&sr=1-1&keywords=AT+Ad700
Click to expand...

After reading the SlickDeals thread I went with the AD700 since it is so highly regarded in the FPS gaming community for the large soundstage and accurate positioning they provide. I will say they do sound pretty good, but I think I prefer my Grado SR80s a bit more for music, though I am definitely more used to how they sound since I've been using them for 6 or 7 years. Possibly I just need to play with the EQ a bit and also allow the elusive burn-in time. But the comfort level on these AD700s is freaking amazing. The top headband provides enough pressure to support the headphones but not enough to the point where it is really noticeable. These also put minimal pressure on the side of your head and the ear pads are also shaped to be thicker in the back so that they'll provide more even pressure all around the earcup compared to more traditional earpads that are just one uniform thickness. I used them for about 3-4 hours straight last night and barely had to readjust them for comfort reasons as I often do with other headphones and headsets.
 
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The SR80s are pretty incredible for music, but yeah I'd let those AD700s burn in for a bit. If you stopped using the Grados altogether you'd probably get used to the AD700s quicker, but the fact is they'll never really be comparable and you may very well end up preferring the SR80s for music and the AD700s for games. I used to keep several pairs of cans around for different purposes because I liked various aspects of each but in the end I sold them all and settled on Beyer DT-770 Pros which do pretty well all around (as should the AD700s). I just don't have room for all of those headphones anymore. :D
 
imyourzero said:
So if you need closed, spend $30 more and get these. :)
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How does the sound stage on these compare to the purple ones? They look better.

What about for ambient noise canceling? Black or purple? Seems like a better headset for the money.


Also looking at some of the newer Sony headsets which are highly rated and priced in same range.
 
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pwrusr said:
These look like a great pair of cans to buy as spares :cool:
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Spares to what? I'd rate them higher than anything mass-market/branded (see "Beats"), but lower than headphones that are twice to three times as much by a reputable maker. It's all about the budget, for someone who isn't a perfectionist audiophile, these will serve them great for the cost if they can get them for a bargain. It helps to have a good soundcard (if PC driven) so you can tweak if you're gaming or listening to music (I have completely separate settings).

The reason they went up so much in price (peaking at $160, iirc) is because they had a significant value to performance ratio. They were undervalued and met the performance of phones in a higher price range.

It's also about signature. Some people like a certain signature over others. I happen to like the signature of the ATH-M50's over the more expensive Sennheiser's that I tried.
 
Don't trust anyone's 'opinion' on headphones.

Plain and simple - everyone's ears and sense of hearing are different. Headphones are going to sound different from person to person, sometimes vastly different. Try what you can, buy what you like, and don't become a brand snob.
 
Spidey329 said:
Spares to what?
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I think he was just saying that because of the price point and solid performance that these offer, they'd make for good "extra" headphones to have around in the event that your more expensive headphones broke or you just needed a "fun" pair of headphones for a change of pace. Obviously someone in the market for Sennheiser HD 650s or Denon AH-D2000s probably wouldn't compare them with these, but they might make a good fill-in pair if the need arose.

Spidey329 said:
I'd rate them higher than anything mass-market/branded (see "Beats"), but lower than headphones that are twice to three times as much by a reputable maker. It's all about the budget, for someone who isn't a perfectionist audiophile, these will serve them great for the cost if they can get them for a bargain. It helps to have a good soundcard (if PC driven) so you can tweak if you're gaming or listening to music (I have completely separate settings).

It's also about signature. Some people like a certain signature over others. I happen to like the signature of the ATH-M50's over the more expensive Sennheiser's that I tried.
Click to expand...

Agreed. I'm big on products that cost significantly less, yet perform 9/10ths as well as more expensive items (for example I'd never buy a GTX 680 after seeing how close the GTX 670 is in terms of performance). And signature is a huge part of the enjoyment one derives from a headphone...hence why often there is no "better," just "the sound that I prefer." The Grado SR80s mentioned above cost much less than those HD 650s, but the two sound vastly different and it's entirely possible that someone would prefer the in-your-face energetic sound of the Grados to the more laid-back sound of the Senns.

I'll just throw out another option at this price point that seems to be excellent for the money: http://www.amazon.com/Shure-SRH440-...8&qid=1341791295&sr=8-1&keywords=shure+srh440

Spidey329 said:
The reason they went up so much in price (peaking at $160, iirc) is because they had a significant value to performance ratio. They were undervalued and met the performance of phones in a higher price range.
Click to expand...

Also agreed, however as you said, one of the reasons they became so popular was because of their price/performance ratio. As they rose in price the reputation and enthusiasm towards these seemed to level off because people realized that they were approaching the price of more expensive headphones. $150 is a lot closer to $200 than $100, and there are a lot of awesome headphones that can be had for $200 that people deemed to be worth paying for over the M50s.

SonDa5 said:
How does the sound stage on these compare to the purple ones? They look better.

What about for ambient noise canceling? Black or purple? Seems like a better headset for the money.
Click to expand...

Sound stage won't be as large as the open AD700 obviously, but still better than a lot of closed phones. Noise canceling will be better by leaps and bounds; open phones tend to let a lot of sound in by design. I can only used closed phones despite their disadvantages; I need the noise isolation because of the air purifier that runs in my room to keep the dust down (not to mention the sound generated by GTX 480 SLI).

Blue Falcon said:
Don't trust anyone's 'opinion' on headphones.

Plain and simple - everyone's ears and sense of hearing are different. Headphones are going to sound different from person to person, sometimes vastly different. Try what you can, buy what you like, and don't become a brand snob.
Click to expand...

++++++1.

It is infinitely better if you can audition headphones yourself, preferably for an extended period of time (not just 5 minutes in a store). Opinions of headphones are extremely subjective and you can try to make your purchases based off of what other people are saying about the sound, etc. but everyone has different ears and a different basis for comparison. Buying based off of others' opinions can get you pointed in the right direction, but it can also lead to disappointment.
 
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Spidey329 said:
Spares to what? I'd rate them higher than anything mass-market/branded (see "Beats"), but lower than headphones that are twice to three times as much by a reputable maker. It's all about the budget, for someone who isn't a perfectionist audiophile, these will serve them great for the cost if they can get them for a bargain. It helps to have a good soundcard (if PC driven) so you can tweak if you're gaming or listening to music (I have completely separate settings).

The reason they went up so much in price (peaking at $160, iirc) is because they had a significant value to performance ratio. They were undervalued and met the performance of phones in a higher price range.

It's also about signature. Some people like a certain signature over others. I happen to like the signature of the ATH-M50's over the more expensive Sennheiser's that I tried.
Click to expand...
I currently have beyerdynamic DT770-80pro's and DT880's. I've been wanting to try something new for a while, yet still keep the price down. These AT's look perfect for price & performance. Reading one of the reviews on amazon for them even has one guy saying they are better then his DT770's! :eek:

I guess I shouldn't have said "spares" and instead said "another pair to add to the collection" :D :cool:
 
Interesting discussion here.

For the people that are comparing the M50's (closed) to open headphones. Please don't. They are a different category (I probably shouldn't have bothered to even contrast it with the HD 280's). That said, if you are buying these for gaming, don't. The ADA700's are much better. Open headphones offer a much larger soundstage, and thus are much better for gaming.

I personally don't like closed headphones (unless it's to block out the sound of annoying kids playing on the street) because of the inferior sound stage, but many people do prefer them. And AFAIK, the M50's are one of the best closed headphones you can get on a performance/price ratio. Anyone that compares them to Beats is pretty insulting.
 
Blue Falcon said:
Hey, they're great cans for the price... maybe not in the same league as $200 headphones but don't let that stop you. They sound pretty damned good to me and to most other people who've tried them.
Click to expand...



But how do they compare to the $100 deals found in this thread?
 
Kelby said:
Thanks for pointing these out. I currently use Senn 201's on the go and the reviews state these will blow 'em out of the water. For this price, fuck it. I'm gonna try them out.
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I also ordered, I have a feeling most people and I would not tell a difference between these and "200 dollar headphones". I have a drawing tablet that works as well as a Bamboo Intuos 4 and a LCD wall mount, and lots of cables from Monoprice. Everyone basically agrees that Monoprice is good quality
 
YamahaAlex37 said:
I also ordered, I have a feeling most people and I would not tell a difference between these and "200 dollar headphones". I have a drawing tablet that works as well as a Bamboo Intuos 4 and a LCD wall mount, and lots of cables from Monoprice. Everyone basically agrees that Monoprice is good quality
Click to expand...


The thing is you don't have to spend $200 to get nice set of headphones.

I'd rather spend $100 and get a high quality well praised set of head phones then get a set of headphones that has a reputation for being super cheap and decent.

Looking at the specs the mono price don't have as wide as range as many other well known and highly regarded headphones.

Looking at the reviews there is about 200 reviews and the score is close to being a perfect 5 but I'n not impressed with all of the reviews.

From one of the reviews:

After looking at a number of headphones like the Sony Extra Bass Series, and Beats I came to the WISE decision to buy these and save A Hundred dollars (literally). I love the sound and I love wearing them even without any music playing.
Click to expand...


Even without any music playing? That was a 5 star review. :eek:
 
SonDa5 said:
The thing is you don't have to spend $200 to get nice set of headphones.

I'd rather spend $100 and get a high quality well praised set of head phones then get a set of headphones that has a reputation for being super cheap and decent.
Click to expand...

Oh let me fix my post:

YamahaAlex37 said:
I have a feeling most people and I would not tell a difference between these and "100 dollar headphones".
Click to expand...
 
SonDa5 said:
But how do they compare to the $100 deals found in this thread?
Click to expand...

I would say they definitely compare. Thousands of others would agree with me... audio snobs excluded.

I would also again offer that comparisons in general are stupid for the reasons I previously mentioned in this thread. This is why I rarely enter into headphone / IEM threads except to offer the advice I already have. EVERYONE'S EARS ARE DIFFERENT - right down to the shape of the ear canal, eardrum shape and thickness, and even the way the 'hairs' in the inner ear detect and convert vibration into nerve impuses.

TRY whatever you can before buying, buy what YOU LIKE and not what others insist are 'great', and most definitely don't fall for the old 'you get what you pay for' byline because in cases like these it can be completely and utterly false.

It's like asking someone what flavor of ice cream is the best... I mean everyone knows Rocky Road is king but.... Rocky Road might taste like ass to some people.
 
450 said:
It's nuts how much more expensive the 'X' versions are...
Click to expand...

Probably seeing the same thing with those as with the M50, they got popular and they're trying to capitalize on the model recognition.
 
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