Audio Technica ATH-M50S

[Simmonz]

I am going to be getting a pair of these from work for $50 in the next couple weeks. I have been told they are good and my work has a special offer to employees for the $50 price. We usually sell them for $180. Any opinions from [H] ? I am using the Corsair HS1A right now.

 

[Almighty ODST]

$50 is a steal and you know it! lol your work is gouging people with that $180 price though. These sell for $160 everywhere else.

 

[FinalAura]

Thats a steal! Go for them, I love mine. It has a really clean sound with a good amount of bass

 

[Godmachine]

Seriously , a HUGE steal. Don't think BUY!

 

[Simmonz]

$50 is a steal and you know it! lol your work is gouging people with that $180 price though. These sell for $160 everywhere else.

I live in Canada so maybe that has something to do with it, i'm not sure. Around here there is very little competition from retail outlets like where I work because the only other places to shop is Best Buy which don't have high quality electronics and charge even more for what crap they have. I am going to be placing my order on Monday with my store manager. I am a little worried though, I figure if the upper management are being this nice they have to be getting ready to screw us in some way lol. Oh well, good deal is a good deal.

 

[SLiGuy]

Well, color me envious. I'm also using an HS1A right now and I happen to be looking at the ATH-M50s as well. The lowest I've found them for was around ~$155 on Amazon. $50 is a great price!

You'll probably get them before I do so please report back and let us know how you like them compared to the HS1As

 

[Benjus]

Well, color me envious. I'm also using an HS1A right now and I happen to be looking at the ATH-M50s as well. The lowest I've found them for was around ~$155 on Amazon. $50 is a great price!

You'll probably get them before I do so please report back and let us know how you like them compared to the HS1As

If you're willing to buy used, head-fi.org tends to have many of these posted for about $100.

 

[Simmonz]

Well, color me envious. I'm also using an HS1A right now and I happen to be looking at the ATH-M50s as well. The lowest I've found them for was around ~$155 on Amazon. $50 is a great price!

You'll probably get them before I do so please report back and let us know how you like them compared to the HS1As

My manager will be placing the order on the 20th so I hope to receive them on the 25th-27th. I will report back for sure. I am excited. I had never heard about this pair of headphones prior to this deal but when my manager told us one of my coworkers literally took all of the pairs we had off of the shelf and brought them to the back lol. He said we had to buy these at that price. He really likes them. My manager just laughed and told him that we had to special order the headphones and that we couldn't use what stock we had because those were for customers.

 

[ThinJ]

Just wanted to echo for $50 the M50's are a no brainer. They're really good at their normal pricepoint. At $50 they're amazing.

 

[viralcow]

O_O $50 is an awesome deal. I feel jealous.

 

[fss69]

Yeah, they are definitely a steal at that price. However, do not get your hopes up after reading all the glowing reviews. The M50 has been revised to sound much more neutral. Not that it is a bad headphone now by any means, but it isnt the same and not the same value (then $100).

 

[Almighty ODST]

Yeah, they are definitely a steal at that price. However, do not get your hopes up after reading all the glowing reviews. The M50 has been revised to sound much more neutral. Not that it is a bad headphone now by any means, but it isnt the same and not the same value (then $100).

I don't understand what's wrong with sounding neutral, but I guess if people wanted more bass then that'd be a tick against them now. Do you know when they were revised?

 

[viralcow]

there's nothing wrong with being neutral. I've gotten so used to it that I can't stand phones with too much coloring or emphasized bass.

recently got the AKG K550s, they are quite good.

 

[Godmachine]

Yeah, they are definitely a steal at that price. However, do not get your hopes up after reading all the glowing reviews. The M50 has been revised to sound much more neutral. Not that it is a bad headphone now by any means, but it isnt the same and not the same value (then $100).

Considering neutral is virtually the goal of many headphones and amps and dac's made today , that's not bad thing at all. In fact that is what many audiophiles would consider an "improvement". If you want colored , altered sound ..go buy some Beats.

However , if you want something sounding closer to the way it was meant to sound , consider buying the most neutral headphones you can afford. At 50 bucks the M50S is beyond a steal , down right grand theft.

I'm very seriously considering selling my Denon's (2000) and buying the AKG , I hear its isolation is far better which appeals to me at the moment.

 

[pclov3r]

I paid 100$ for mine last year.

 

[quantum112]

there's nothing wrong with being neutral. I've gotten so used to it that I can't stand phones with too much coloring or emphasized bass.

recently got the AKG K550s, they are quite good.

True that, music is already mixed to sound good psychoacoustically... you don't want your headphone's freq response messing with that further.

 

[Benjus]

True that, music is already mixed to sound good psychoacoustically... you don't want your headphone's freq response messing with that further.

Not to derail the thread further, but I think "preference" in what someone looks for in music is highly subjective, so in that sense really I don't see anything wrong with people preferring one headphone which is "colored" (LCD-2) versus one which is "analytic" (HD800). If they want to convince you the recording sound is better in one over the other that's debatable. But preferences...eh.

Regardless. I would take two M50s at the $50 price. One for work and one for home. And then in a few months when you might want something better you can sell one or both at a profit.

Cheers,

Edit: needed to complete a sentence.

 

[fss69]

Considering neutral is virtually the goal of many headphones and amps and dac's made today , that's not bad thing at all. In fact that is what many audiophiles would consider an "improvement". If you want colored , altered sound ..go buy some Beats.

However , if you want something sounding closer to the way it was meant to sound , consider buying the most neutral headphones you can afford. At 50 bucks the M50S is beyond a steal , down right grand theft.

I'm very seriously considering selling my Denon's (2000) and buying the AKG , I hear its isolation is far better which appeals to me at the moment.

Neutrality is not always the goal. Consumers have different tastes. A lot of people find studio monitors and the like too sterile and unengaging.

Funny how you are advocating linear sounding equipment, but own the Denon D2000.

 

[Godmachine]

I guessed you miss that last line. Allow me to repeat and make sure you read it this time.

"I'm very seriously considering selling my Denon's (2000)" As a side note , saying that Denon D2000's are as uncolored as Beat's , if that's what you are implying is down right insulting to Denon.

Neutrality is ultimately the goal of headphone based audio equipment as to not muck up the individual sound of each album. Sound engineers go to much trouble pleasing the producer of an album who goes to a lot of trouble producing songs with the artist. And all of that is designed with speaker use in mind. Very few albums are designed with headphone use. Therefore while I can understand the use of equipment for home speaker use that is not dead neutral , I think for headphones the desired effect is easier to reach with neutral gear.

You can mock that all you want but the reality is that users are now willing to spend hundreds per headphone (trashy , rapper inspired headphones but headphones none the less) for looks and sound. We all have friends who've gone out and spent money on these types of cans and my friends at least when they hear a good neutral sounding headphone , actually changed there minds and sold the trashy headphones for something more balanced sounding. While this isn't the case for everyone and not everyone will care enough to do , the fact that any of my friends did this shows that while they are being sold on looks and bass .. there is a sizable number of people just like them that have never heard a good neutral headphone before and would likely enjoy the listening experience from using one while also saving quite a bit of money. Will everyone feel this way? Of course not.

The masses are lacking information when it comes to headphones so when they go into a big electronics chain retail outlet , they have no idea what actually sounds good so they do what most people do and ask for advice. And while those employee's don't make commission off these sales they are told to push them hard regardless so that's what they do. So a regular joe who has no idea what kind of product to get has a pair of Beat's shoved in there face and told that they are fashion forward , they sound great off any source and that they are designed by audio experts who know there business .. but of course this is pretty much all bullshit. I think most people in a blind test would constantly pick out less expensive more balanced headphones.

Therefore now I recommend only headphones I've found to be more balanced and or neutral. Does that mean all of the ones I recommend are dead neutral? Of course not , but I certainly don't recommend trashy and over priced muddy bass cans with pretty logo's to anyone. If you are dead set on these kinds of cans for there looks , go right a head ... but know that you are getting ripped off and your not even getting good sound in the process.

 

[Benjus]

...Therefore now I recommend only headphones I've found to be more balanced and or neutral. Does that mean all of the ones I recommend are dead neutral? Of course not , but I certainly don't recommend trashy and over priced muddy bass cans with pretty logo's to anyone...

If that's your prerogative Godmachine, and if it makes your ears happy then Hallelujah! But if someone comes to me and says "I want BASS... for $200" I don't tell him "That's cool, let me show you the most neutral headphones for $200!" I'm recommending something they simply don't want. Good or bad, what people want to hear is subjective. Whether or not you agree about getting neutral headphones and then EQing your way to victory as opposed to getting headphones which fits your natural sound tastes is a different discussion entirely.

Thus, I think you're being disingenuous in saying that everyone should pursue analytical sound in their headphones. If I'm a mixer or do studio work, then yes, you are absolutely right. But if I want to get my eardrums rocked while listening to dubstep, I don't use Sennheiser HD600s. I reach for my Ultrasone Pro 900s.

Further, you contradict yourself:

...Neutrality is ultimately the goal of headphone based audio equipment as to not muck up the individual sound of each album. Sound engineers go to much trouble pleasing the producer of an album who goes to a lot of trouble producing songs with the artist. And all of that is designed with speaker use in mind. Very few albums are designed with headphone use. Therefore while I can understand the use of equipment for home speaker use that is not dead neutral , I think for headphones the desired effect is easier to reach with neutral gear. ...

Firstly, many people who do mastering and mixing do so using headphones! Second, your conclusion is; music is designed with loudspeakers in mind, therefore you don't need neutral loudspeakers. This doesn't make any sense to me, because if that were the case then you would most certainly want the absolute most neutral speakers possible. Anything else would be warping the sound as the engineers intended, since the sound clearly was only ever intended for use with loudspeakers. And therefore, since music was designed with loudspeakers in mind, one may want non-neutral headphones since that would do better at replicating a specific speakers sound. [One could argue you can EQ your way out of this quagmire, but that's neither here nor there.] Finally, when I listen to Sir Luscious Left Foot, I could give a rats ass how Big Boi envisioned me listening to it. I want to hear his beats shake my skull and the rhymes be crisp and airy. That means I want a "V" shaped listening curve and I'll be damned should anyone tell me I'm wrong for doing so.

Your thoughts are always welcome.

Cheers,

 

[Godmachine]

If that's your prerogative Godmachine, and if it makes your ears happy then Hallelujah! But if someone comes to me and says "I want BASS... for $200" I don't tell him "That's cool, let me show you the most neutral headphones for $200!" I'm recommending something they simply don't want. Good or bad, what people want to hear is subjective. Whether or not you agree about getting neutral headphones and then EQing your way to victory as opposed to getting headphones which fits your natural sound tastes is a different discussion entirely.

If someone comes in and asks me personally that they want a pair of cans with great bass I recommend the Denon 2000D as its better all around and yet more comfortable for long term use and excels in area's the rapper headphones don't. I can say without question that the Denon 2000's are far more neutral than Beats while still retaining loads of bass. If someone is going to personally ask my opinion then I'm not going to give them a recommendation for something I feel is substandard even if I know they might like a lesser quality headphone.

If they wanted a loaded opinion then they can ask the Best Buy retail salesmen and not me. Hearing is certainly subjective just like opinions are. If someone comes on this forum and ask's about rapper headphones then I'm going to always point them towards the direction of cheaper (whenever possible) and better alternatives ..and if I happen to point them towards headphones that also happen to be more neutral than perhaps it might even ultimately improve upon their own standards of sound quality possible from headphones in that price range and if they disagree then oh well.

Also I don't believe in EQ'in personally so I wouldn't recommend it if asked my opinion on it. However I can see how EQ'in has its place and can be useful but again I don't recommend it.

Thus, I think you're being disingenuous in saying that everyone should pursue analytical sound in their headphones. If I'm a mixer or do studio work, then yes, you are absolutely right. But if I want to get my eardrums rocked while listening to dubstep, I don't use Sennheiser HD600s. I reach for my Ultrasone Pro 900s.

Further, you contradict yourself:

I'm not saying that everyone should always pursue analytical sound but when someone asks how I feel music should sound then I'm going to almost always say "neutral". I'm not going to advise someone who has $40 pair of Koss headphones to buy some HD800's because they are "super analytical" as sometimes even hyper analytical headphones can end up stale and sterile in sound quality. But I will advise someone who uses over priced muddy cans that there are far more balanced options for less money.

Perhaps I should change my wording a bit then , I'm going to say "balanced" from now on instead of "neutral" because ultimately that's not what I'm going for and that's not what I should recommend.

Firstly, many people who do mastering and mixing do so using headphones!

Indeed but they mix them for speakers the majority of the time and I would say that modern techno , rap and electronica probably gets mixed often via headphones but I'm sure many times they also get mixed on speakers more often then not. I'm not saying its not possible , because it certainly (its called "binaural (dummy head) recording" and that's the only method I consider that actually properly mixes for headphones) is but the vast majority of great records out there are mixed for speakers. Its far more challenging to mix on headphones than it is through a couple of mid range monitors and end up with excellent results unless you know what you are doing , there are plenty of articles that can be found via an easy search on Google explaining the difficulties with mixing music on headphones.

Second, your conclusion is; music is designed with loudspeakers in mind, therefore you don't need neutral loudspeakers. This doesn't make any sense to me, because if that were the case then you would most certainly want the absolute most neutral speakers possible. Anything else would be warping the sound as the engineers intended, since the sound clearly was only ever intended for use with loudspeakers. And therefore, since music was designed with loudspeakers in mind, one may want non-neutral headphones since that would do better at replicating a specific speakers sound. [One could argue you can EQ your way out of this quagmire, but that's neither here nor there.] Finally, when I listen to Sir Luscious Left Foot, I could give a rats ass how Big Boi envisioned me listening to it. I want to hear his beats shake my skull and the rhymes be crisp and airy. That means I want a "V" shaped listening curve and I'll be damned should anyone tell me I'm wrong for doing so.

Your thoughts are always welcome.

Cheers,

Well you are correct there , I think I was probably overtired when I wrote that but honestly both should be "balanced" ultimately. And while you don't give a shit how the artist intended you to hear the music that doesn't mean other people don't because I actually do. Just as directors care how you watch there movies and if it wasn't for that we wouldn't have things like surround sound in homes or high definition content. Those things spurred from a director or a group of directors pushing the envelope and wanting their audience to experience it the way "they" was intended.

Shit this whole 3D fad is being pushed by studio's who want to make an extra buck and directors who want to shove 3D down our throats. Artists often want you to experience content the way they feel it was intended , this is nothing new. If its wrong of me to suggest better quality , more balanced headphones even to the layman then so be it but it won't change my mind on what I will personally recommend.

Looking forward to your reply

 

[Benjus]

Thanks for your really thoughtful post Godmachine! (I apologize to the OP, we've totally gone off the deep end as to derailing the thread) Let me see if I can reply to your post and sum this up since I think I finally get where you're coming from (even if I may not agree).

If someone comes in and asks me personally that they want a pair of cans with great bass I recommend the Denon 2000D as its better all around and yet more comfortable for long term use and excels in area's the rapper headphones don't. I can say without question that the Denon 2000's are far more neutral than Beats while still retaining loads of bass. If someone is going to personally ask my opinion then I'm not going to give them a recommendation for something I feel is substandard even if I know they might like a lesser quality headphone.

I couldn't agree more here. "Quality of sound" on headphones is subjective of course (even NwAvGuy thinks that!) but there are very real distinctions between different models, and some are much better than others.

If they wanted a loaded opinion then they can ask the Best Buy retail salesmen and not me. Hearing is certainly subjective just like opinions are. If someone comes on this forum and ask's about rapper headphones then I'm going to always point them towards the direction of cheaper (whenever possible) and better alternatives ..and if I happen to point them towards headphones that also happen to be more neutral than perhaps it might even ultimately improve upon their own standards of sound quality possible from headphones in that price range and if they disagree then oh well.

Fair enough.

Also I don't believe in EQ'in personally so I wouldn't recommend it if asked my opinion on it. However I can see how EQ'in has its place and can be useful but again I don't recommend it.

I guess since we've already derailed the thread, I can post what I think about EQ. Honestly I don't see much of a problem with EQ. Mixers and masters use it when making music, why can't a listener do the same? The problem with EQ is when people start introducing clipping unnecessarily when what is really necessary is an amplifier. And, EQ-ing down will never really have a negative impact on the actual sound quality per se and can really change the listening experience in a positive way (for instance, simulation of a tube amps "warmth"). But, from a musical purist perspective, I can see why you feel the way you do.

...I'm not saying that everyone should always pursue analytical sound but when someone asks how I feel music should sound then I'm going to almost always say "neutral"...

And the difference between "analytical" and "neutral" is...? AFAIK the two terms are interchangeable.

Well you are correct there , I think I was probably overtired when I wrote that but honestly both should be "balanced" ultimately. And while you don't give a shit how the artist intended you to hear the music that doesn't mean other people don't because I actually do. Just as directors care how you watch there movies and if it wasn't for that we wouldn't have things like surround sound in homes or high definition content. Those things spurred from a director or a group of directors pushing the envelope and wanting their audience to experience it the way "they" was intended.

Actually it probably does mean there are other people who don't care, because I guarantee you that people walk around with FiiO E11s with their EQ turned on. It also means that some people care very deeply about flat response, as you do. It's very easy to show disproof via counterexample, no? My point wasn't that one way is necessarily better than another.

Anyways, hats off to you, as it appears your position is well defined and makes sense, at least to me.

Cheers,

 

[Godmachine]

Agreed , its nice to have a discussion with differing view points and not have it turn into a troll fest. I do respect your stance as well Benjus

Sorry for the derailing OP.

 

[XacTactX]

There is an important distinction here you guys. With converters and amplifiers like a DAC, or a headphone amp, or something like that, flat frequency response is not a preference, it is a requirement. With speakers, headphones, IEMs, or other devices that turn signals into sound waves, frequency response is not a requirement, it is a preference.

That's the essence of it, and it is why high quality components become indistinguishable from one another if they are good enough (like the Benchmark DAC1 Pre and the Objective2).

 

[Simmonz]

Well I finally picked up the ATH-M50 today. My thoughts in short would be mind blowing. These are just awesome headphones. I was a little worried they wouldn't live up to the hype but they have far suprassed my expectations. I haven't had a chance to try them for gaming yet but movies and music are much betetr than my HS1A set.