As per my thread on the Somic EFi-82 MT:
 
In 2010, there was Superlux. In early 2012, there was Jaycar. Several months ago, there was JVC's HA-S line. Head-Fi's ability to find mid-fi headphones at downright laughable prices has always been commendable. But all too often, these headphones get bragged up as being better than flagship models of established audio brands, something experienced Head-Fiers rightly laugh at.

But can it happen?

Can an budget-fi headphone legitimately be mentioned in the same breath as headphones ten times its price, not as a "poor man's version", but as an equal?

I believe so.
 
 
 

Mind you, I have no experience in high-end gear. I'm 16, and my first vocational experience began last week. My parents aren't rich. 

But I do have my fair share of experience with mid-fi headphones. I can usually scrounge enough Birthmas money to eek out a great deal on a solid vintage headphone or an FOTM. 

The Somic EFi 82 MT is not a mid-fi headphone.

Got that?

The Somic EFi 82 MT is not a mid-fi headphone.

What is it? I don't know really. I lack the experience with high-end models to come out and declare that the Somic EFi-82 MT is an HD650 killer, or that it's going to put your Stax to shame, but I can say that it demolishes everything I've heard in Mid-Fi/ Budget Land.
 
 
Note: The one thing that you need to make these headphones sound as great as they should is to acquire a set of Shure SRH840 pads. They fit a little loose, but it's nothing bad. The remainder of this post is about the EFi-82 MT with SRH840 pads.
 
So without further ado, let's get started on how these bad boys sound.
 
 
Bass is deep and punchy. In the intro to Kanye West's Love Lockdown, the EFi presented all three subbass notes (two deep, one very deep) at an equal volume, the way they are supposed to be presented, something I have never heard done before. In contrast the Philips Uptown loses steam at the deep note, playing it more quietly than the other two. The extension here is top-notch. Mid-bass is a bit emphasized, but not in a distracting way. These headphones are "selective thumpers", getting a bit boomy in genres that are meant to be a bit boomy (modern rap and electronic music), but they won't make a bass-fest out of your Adele CD.

Vocals are just...wow. The treble allows a vocalist's breaths and hard consonants to isolate them slightly from the rest of the track (not sibilant, but a bit "sparkly"). The mids, in turn, bring them up to the forefront, but not at the expense of other parts of the frequency spectrum. It's the musical equivalent of depth of field. 
 
The treble has the potential to get, as mentioned, a bit sparkly if the mix calls for it. This thing will pick up bad treble mixing/mastering like it's no tomorrow, but on the right track, all individual pieces of the treble can be sonically isolated and pinpointed. 

The soundstage and positioning is top-notch. If I were to draw a diagram of where I perceived everything to be positioned, it would show that the EFI-82 MT has a listening angle of about 200 degrees, or slightly over my left and right shoulder.

To really illustrate how wonderful these things sound, here's a list of all of the new things that these headphones taught me about some of my favorite songs.

• Florence + The Machine - Spectrum: Florence has a ping-pong delay on her vocals throughout the track. 
• Il Volo- Beautiful Day: There's a strange click at the 0:06 mark.
• Flobots- Handlebars (I like their other stuff too): The violin is panned about 90% right for the whole song, but changes to the left side in the third verse.
• Kanye West (in general): Kanye West has some really cramped sounding mixes.
• Macy Gray- I Try: The vocals in the chorus are multiple takes, with every take hard-panned left or right.
• Ellie Goulding- Lights: The vocals in the chorus are stacked, with one take one octave below the other
• Fun. - Some Nights: There's a really cool snare roll at the :45 mark.
• Imagine Dragons - It's Time: There's one more clap than I thought there was in the main rhythm pattern, and there are some snaps too.

 
These are songs I know, love, and have heard dozens of times on mid-fi headphones. Yet, upon listening to many of my favorite songs once on the EFi 82 MT with SRH 840 pads, all of these new features became extremely evident.

These are bar none the greatest headphones I own, but like all FOTMs, it does have a few drawbacks.

For one, they do get hot after about 2-3 hours of listening with the SRH 840 pads.

For two, you probably won't be able to buy them on eBay. I was, but they're not on there now.

For three, you have to wait a whole month to get them shipped to your house from China.

For four, they look kind of dorky, but when have we cared about that?

However, the EFI 82 isn't just a great deal; it's a great headphone, no matter how you slice it.

 
First impressions of these bad boys (coming unamped from a Motorola Xoom, because I spent the week at my dad's, while my audio equipment spent the week at my mom's) were not good. The bass was boomy, the highs were non-existent, and the mids existed in a state of recession that could put 2010 USA to shame. The only thing that made them comparable to Sennheiser was a comically overstated veil. Despite this, I kept listening to them, finding these qualities to become less and less apparent over time. Yesterday, I tried them out again, and to my surprise, they finally started sounding like the HD600 competitors Head-Fi has been touting them as. Perhaps spending 6 hours outside in the Michigan cold while I was in school impacted their sound quality.
 
The MH463, after burn-in (literally) sounds wonderful. Highs are present, but not "sparkly"/obtrusive. Lower mids (especially male vocals) are a bit recessed, but they do an excellent job at bringing female vocalists to the forefront. Soundstage is wide, obviously, with this being an open-backed headphone, but not to the point of sounding "gimmicky". Bass packs a definite punch, but can get a little sloppy on tracks with a lot of low bass (that "boom, boom, boom" crap). As the bass is this headphone's major problem area, it goes without saying that the MH463 perform best with acoustic, classical, rock, and other genres that don't involve subbass.

Only one small problem. Although the Somics sound excellent...that's about all they do right. The build is creaky and rigid feeling (I feel like these things are going to snap in half every time I use the extenders). It is very obvious that Somic spent their money on R&D and drivers, leaving accessories (no case or spare pads) and features (don't expect a detachable cable here) to their more costly competitors. They also shipped a bit...dirty, with residue and other white/grey "gunk" all over the housing. Gross. This isn't necessarily something to complain about, however, as making these cut-backs allows Somic to offer $150+ dollar sound at a $50 price point. Unfortunately, due to this mindset, the Somic MH463 falls victim to having the worst pads ever. Seriously. I can't wear these things for more than 20 minutes without my ears bursting into flames. They also rest awkwardly on the ear, making my ear tips and lobes very uncomfortable. 

Fortunately, the Audio-Technica ATH-M50 has some of the best pads ever, and they just so happen to fit the Somic MH463. I just worked this one out, so I can't give a 100% review of the sound, but it seems to circumvent the bass issues with this headphone quite a bit. 

This is one of the best "sound quality for buck" headphones out there. Just understand that when you purchase these that sound quality is all that you are getting. As we are audiophiles, this shouldn't be much of an issue. Unfortunately, I don't see this headphone serving the needs of people who have other needs. At the end of the day, this is a $200 headphone in a $50 package, but it's still very obvious that it comes in a $50 package.

SOUND QUALITY: 

BASS: Loud, boomy, and kind of obnoxious in bass-heavy genres without M50 pads, but is punchy and articulate in more "natural" ones.
LOW-MIDS: Slightly recessed and distant, but still hefty and with a good amount of "body" to them.
HIGH-MIDS: Exceptional. From 350-700 Hz, the MH463 is unstoppable. Airy, a bit sparkly, and right at the forefront, which is exactly where they should be. The high-mids truly set this headphone apart from everything else I have heard. 
TREBLE: It's here, it exists, it does its job, and it leaves. Not harsh or grating, nor recessed and hollow, the MH463s treble gets done what it needs to get done. You'll know when a vocalist breathes or a drummer hits a hi-hat, but it's not painfully obvious unless the track calls for it.
SOUNDSTAGE: Wide, inviting, definitely not intimate. Things that are hard panned sound like they're coming from about 95-100 degrees left or right (slightly over your shoulder). Everything fills in quite nicely.
 
BUILD/FEATURES:

DURABILITY: Not great, it appears. This headphone employs a similar strain relief to the M50...and seeing how my M50's strain relief broke, this is definitely vulnerable. Don't move your head back and forth too much while listening, because the MH463s creak like there's no tomorrow. Also, the extenders are very rigid and tight, sort of like the JVC HA-S400. Perhaps they just need to be broken in. 
COMFORT: Without the M50 pads, the MH463 is unbearable for more than 30 minutes to an hour. However, they do have a well-cushioned headband, so once the M50 pads are on, they are an absolute breeze to wear for long periods.
APPEARANCE: They look...decent, I guess. Save for the residue, they appear pretty plain and standard.
ACCESSORIES: Hope you like 1/4 inch adapters, because that is all you're getting.

Overall, this is a must-own for all audiophiles and a must-avoid for everyone else. If you can get past some build quality and comfort issues (I cannot stress getting the M50 pads enough), then you will be treated to one of the best sounding headphones you can purchase for under $200, let alone $50.
 
EDIT: Turtle Beach X12/X32 pads are much more comfortable than the M50 ones. They can be had from Turtle Beach's website for about $13 shipped to the US.

Setup: Windows Media Player (Variable Bit-Rate WMAs at approximately 300kbps) -> PreSonus AudioBox USB ->Superlux HD681
 
FOLK/ACOUSTIC
 
Barton Hollow (The Civil Wars): Simply put, these cans make this song sound HUGE! Right from the get-go, the HD 681s impressive soundstage makes evident intricate panning on guitars, drums, strings and vocals. The kick drum is refined and tamed but present, and the male and female vocals sound superb. 
 
Black Horse and the Cherry Tree (K.T. Tunstall): The HD 681s brilliantly emphasize the hard panning of this song's drums, making this much more obvious than my Audio-Technica ATH-M50s (yeah, sure, open vs. closed headphone. The fact that this is even a comparison is a testament to the value of the HD 681s.) The guitar and vocals are clear and sound great, if a tiny bit congested.
 
HIP HOP/RAP
 
Air Force Ones (Nelly): This song shows off the HD 681's remarkable bass. Quantity-wise, the HD 681s have less bass than mainstream headphones like Skullcandies or even audiophile endorsed headphones like the previously mentioned Audio-Technica ATH-M50s. However, the bass that is present is punchy and serves as a background to some AWFUL lyricism. 
 
Everything I Am (Kanye West): After listening on my ATH-M50s, this song sounds deflated. There just isn't enough low end here to keep me satisfied. Fortunately, these headphones do fairly well with EQ, so getting things to a level I could appreciate. Kanye's voice on this track sounds a bit piercing, but the strings and piano sound wonderful.
 
POP
Set Fire to the Rain (Adele): Vocals sound rich, full and breathy (and Melodyned, but don't blame Superlux for that one.) Strings sound clear across the board. The HD 681s really shine here.
 
Don't Let Me Get Me (P!nk):  The hi-hats/cymbals are fatiguingly harsh. The kick drum is murky as all get-out. The song in general sounds congested. However, the vocals and guitar sound clear controlled. This was still painful to listen to.
 
ROCK
Ain't No Rest for the Wicked (Cage the Elephant): The bass in this sounds JUICY. It's something to behold. Vocals sound transparent, and the HD 681s reveals layering techniques that are being used. The drums sound punchy, and the hard-panned guitar serves as an excellent example of the HD 681's abundant depth.
 
I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend (The Ramones): Vocals sound clear. Drums sound clear. Bass sounds clear. Guitar sounds clear. Nothing to complain about here.
 
ELECTRONIC
Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites (Skrillex): The high-pitched beginning synth is downright painful due to its harshness. The drums sound wonderful, and unsurprisingly, the bass drop is detailed and transparent. Some of the high-pitched parts of the drop are a bit fatiguing. Vocals sound a bit crisp, but are clear and pleasant. 
 
Face to Face (Daft Punk): The kick drum and bass on this sound warm in all the right ways. Vocals sound clear, if a bit sibilant. The guitars are extremely detailed and sit beautifully in the mix. Daft Punk on the HD 681s is a real treat.
 
BOTTOM LINE
The HD 681s are a steal at their retail price of $36. For people wondering if audiophilia is worth the money (BELIEVE ME, IT'S NOT! GET OUT WHILE YOU CAN!  ) this is a wonderful set of cans. And heck, even for people with top-of-the-line set-ups, this is a worthwhile purchase. I favor these to my ATH-M50s in certain genres, and the ATH-M50s are some of the most loved headphones on Head-Fi. As a hobbyist producer, these are positively vital to my mixing/mastering process, as they are extremely analytical while managing to sound enjoyable. Simply put, these cans sound good, and if you can put up with some sibilant highs and a slightly weak (if incredibly clear) bass, you owe it to yourself to buy a pair.