[Review] Audio-Technica ATH-M50s

[h264]

 

Background

 

In case some of you are unaware, these are a very popular pair of headphones on the internet.  Ever since late 2009 I’ve seen rave reviews pop up all around the internet.  4chan /g/ headphone posters declared it “the official headphone of /g/” (it is now currently either the Sony MDRv6 or HiFiman HE-500 depending on who you listen to).  It’s been given such accolades as “Beats Killer” and “the best pair of headphones at any price”.  This headphone has had more hype surrounding it than any other headphone on the internet besides the infamous Beats by Dr. Dre.  Beats fanboys have lined up on YouTube and professed their changing of allegiance to this headphone, and Cadillac commercials have featured them.  So is it really worth all that hype?

 

Build and Comfort

 

If nothing else, this is one nice looking headphone.  The cups prominently feature the Audio-Technia logo surrounded by a silver metal ring.  They come in black, but there is also a special edition silver version, a white version, and most notably a fire-engine red version.  Very flashy.

 

However, this headphone is not simply designed to serve as a headnecklace to fashion conscious teenagers.  This is a professional DJ monitor, featuring high isolation and the ability to monitor with one side of the headphone only while not having to hold them in any special way.  This leads to a very complex headband featuring 3 different degrees of freedom.  The cups can be bent back and forth, rotate 180 degrees, and the entire cup can be folded back against the headband with a pair of headband hinges.  Since this headphone has a single cable lead, the wire connecting to the right cup has to worm its way through this complex mess of joints to get to the other side.  While it’s proven to hold up pretty well, I’ve heard of numerous accounts of the right cup going silent, so it’s worth noting to treat these with care if you want them to last and not force the cups into any strange gymnastic feats.  I personally find that the rotation of the cups can make getting these on your head unruly at times.  Once you get them straight, however, they are quite comfortable.  One of the major complaints about the comfort of this headphone is that it exerts excessive clamping force on its wearer.

 

 

I’m sorry, I’m just not feeling it.  If it really bothers you, you can just stretch the headband out a bit until the headphone wears in.  My only complaint is the earpads are completely unbreathable and cause your ears to get quite sweaty over a long period of time.

 

I usually wouldn’t even mention the cable termination, but it’s quite fancy in this case.  The screw on ¼” jack is gold plated and the entire jack is metal.  There is a spring on the first portion of the cable to keep you from pulling on the cables leading to the connector when you tug it out of a jack.  My cable is straight as this is the ATH M50s specifically, but the normal version has a coiled cable if you take issue with those.

 

Sound Quality

 

The cups on the Audio-Technica ATH M50s are closed and as you would expect there is a major low frequency compliment to these headphones.  When I first plugged these in, I thought I was listening to a very cheap headphone indeed. The bass was bloated and uncontrolled and the highs were non-existent, much like the Beats Solo I’d tried in a store about a year back.  Disappointed, I trucked through listening to some YouTube videos with them.  Even voices sounded off and distant.  I tried re-screwing on the ¼” jack a few times thinking it was a connection issue.  Nope.  I put them away in their bag for about a day, and then on a whim pulled them out for a couple more hours of listening.  By the time I’d reached that second hour, the perceived signature of these headphones had completely changed.  The high frequency response rose about 5 dB, and the low frequency response weakened and became much more controlled.  Mind you, even now it’s still a pretty bassy headphone, but nowhere near as bass-heavy as my old Beyerdynamic DT990pros.  The detail is excellent, and I find them very enjoyable to listen to.  Sounds are more distant and laid back and sound more like a pair of good speakers and a subwoofer, much like my Custom One Pros in position 2.  In fact, both these headphones are neck and neck in audio quality, with the Beyers being slightly more laid back and having a bit more bass bloom, and the Audio-Technicas being a bit louder in the mid-range.  Isolation is similar to the Custom One Pro as well.  They really are very similar headphones if you don’t look at them.

 

Conclusion

 

If you don't believe me, do you believe Dr. Dre?

 

I think I can now say this with a great bit of confidence that these are indeed worth the hype, but probably not so much at the $150 price point.  Compared to already overpriced headphones these are definitely much more worth it even at $200, but I think there are overall better options once you hit the $150 mark.  Lots of very nice headphone are at and BELOW this price point that have lots of detail and are also built with better materials.  However, this is an excellent choice even at $150 in a couple situations.  If you lack special amplification, these are incredibly easy to drive off desktop onboard, portable media players, and smartphones.  Also if you like the look of the Beats by Dre, but don’t want to pay $300 for a pair, this is an excellent alternative that looks, in my opinion, and just as pretty, especially in red.  As such it’s prominently featured on my image in the FAQ as a tried and tested headphone, but I’d wait for a good sale around the $100 price point before I picked up a pair.  At that price point, it may certainly be one of the best values I’ve encountered yet.

[MayflowerElectronics]

Nice review as always, and it's the same thing I say all the time. They are a good headphone, but not at it's

Current price point.

[HutchisonSorbo]

Nice work. 

[frontliner]

Once the pads start cracking replace them with some Velour SRH-940. Mine are very comfortable now. The isolation does suffer a bit and treble increases a tad, but there aren't many other choices for replacement pads.

[Exyn0s]

I love my m50's, I think they were worth the money

[Aphexx]

Once the pads start cracking replace them with some Velour SRH-940. Mine are very comfortable now. The isolation does suffer a bit and treble increases a tad, but there aren't many other choices for replacement pads.

the single redeeming factor of the couple shitty ass turtle beaches that I bought is that the earcups are straight compatible with my m50

 

@h264 are you getting varied experiences based on your sources? I'm not sure if I am making this up in my head but my M50 sounds different on my onboard or soundcard some days it seems like a bit of the bottom end has been taken away

[h264]

@h264 are you getting varied experiences based on your sources? I'm not sure if I am making this up in my head but my M50 sounds different on my onboard or soundcard some days it seems like a bit of the bottom end has been taken away

Well it's only got a 38 Ohm nominal impedance rating so 10 Ohm output impedances will definately kill the bass.

[Aphexx]

no no. its that it sounds "off" from time to time and only noticeable when I change the source it is plugged into and then after I switch back it sounds normal 

 

meh its probably just me and the connection is at fault

[h264]

no no. its that it sounds "off" from time to time and only noticeable when I change the source it is plugged into and then after I switch back it sounds normal

meh its probably just me and the connection is at fault

So it only sounds bad for a while then sounds fine?

[Aphexx]

thinking about it I think its my connector or something 

 

its never noticeable till I change sources and hasn't happened the last month 

[h264]

thinking about it I think its my connector or something 

 

its never noticeable till I change sources and hasn't happened the last month 

 

wonder if you've got one of those right driver wires starting to go bad in yours, since it's most likely occuring when you're moving the cups around a lot while you change sources.

[JAKEBAB]

why no removable headphone jack thats a selling point for headphones imo

[Focux]

I LOVE MY M50 RED LTD ED!

[t0wer]

no no. its that it sounds "off" from time to time and only noticeable when I change the source it is plugged into and then after I switch back it sounds normal 

 

meh its probably just me and the connection is at fault

 

could the pads be moving and not sealing correctly causing it to sound off?

[stevv]

Oh man, I remember the Sony MDR v6, I had to settle for the v4 (poor high school student)...  but the v6 sounded much better, especially the bass and highs, not to mention more comfortable too.  When I got the Grado SR-80's , I never looked back.  

 

One thing I don't like about the M50's audio are the highs... they sound as though the treble on the equalizer was turned up, and gets uncomfortable after a little while of listening, like the Sony's I had.  Maybe it can be fixed with some sound foam.  I did not have that issue with my Grado SR-80's with the original earpads, but the open center earpads I had to replace them with are a different story.

 

I'm going to do the "open cup" mod on the m50's once the warranty's out haha.  I took them apart earlier and surprisingly still have plenty of bass even without the cans.

 

why no removable headphone jack thats a selling point for headphones imo

Yeah.  I bought mine already modded (from a Audio Technica retailer)
 

 
 
 

Once the pads start cracking replace them with some Velour SRH-940. Mine are very comfortable now. The isolation does suffer a bit and treble increases a tad, but there aren't many other choices for replacement pads.

I plan on getting velour/velvet cups too.  The standard ones are like hard plastic cups and suffocating.
 
Something like this one for under $20 (I think the store custom ordered them for the m50)