ATH-M50 + Mixamp=?

I own the ATH-M50 as my pair of portable headphones. Normally I use the ATH-AD700s, which are much lighter in the bass but have an expansive soundstage. Both are very detailed phones. The ATH-M50s have more bass than the AD700s, which I'm not that used to, but the majority of my friends all prefer the M50s when they compare the two.

No experience on the amp, though. Sorry! I do know that people will be recommending the Denon D1001 headphones as an alternative, though.

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f4/ath...erence-466157/

you will get pretty much the same responses as this thread posted 4 days ago


Really all my friends seem to prefer the AD700s so far, heh. my personal preference is the AD700 as they sound more crisp and clear/cleaner, but not sure why were talking about an open phone in a thread where closed option only was mentioned, heh.

I just ordered the M50's today and I should get them soon. Im gonna try them out with the a40 mixamp but I havent ordered my mic yet. Ill let you know soon enough how they work with the typical shooters though. All I know for sure is that the A40 headset itself sucks lol.

Any amp with a rich midrange and tight, tight bass would benefit the M50s I'd imagine. They definitely don't need a bass boost, unless you're a major basshead. Midrange is a tad distant, could use some filling out with a middy kind of amp.

I find the ATH-M50 to be the phones I have that change least with an amp - they are very well engineered and sound pretty much perfect straight out of a DAP. Differences with an amp are of the ever-so-subtle variety that I question whether it's placebo or real. Amping them certainly won't hurt but you definitely don't need to spend the cash if you don't already have one.

EDIT: Oh and I 100% absolutely recommend these phones. I haven't found someone who's listened to them and not absolutely loved them.

I have an M50 as well and it is my favorite headphone, period. I have not dabbled into the higher end of headphones other than listening to them in shops, but among the stuff I have and have spent a long time with the M50s are my clear favorite. I often wish I could bring them everywhere -- they are portable but they are still pretty big and don't slip into a pocket like an IEM would.

I do not hesitate in recommending them to you at all. Go and get them now.

Have not tried the amp you said but like Eddie said you don't need to amp these.

But this thread is directed toward using them with a a40 mix amp. This particular amp uses an optical cable from the back of a Xbox360 and provides the ability to mix the sound between voice and audio so you can still hear the in-game communication while getting directional positioning of your opponents. So until you actually use them with this fairly crappy amp actually playing a video game its kinda hard to tell how well it will work out. Im afraid the M50 might be a tad bit too bassy for this application since the purpose is the hear directional audio and bass can get in the way. But Ill know soon enough :-)

I agree... I just tried these, and I greatly prefer them to every headphone I have listened to. What headphones? Well, that includes the Beyerdynamic DT880, Sennheiser HD650, Grado SR325i/SR225, and the Sennheiser HD595/HD555. These simply do everything right, with just a tad bit of mid recession. Don't worry about the mids though--much more impact and involvement can be found there than the DT880 or HD555.

From what some head-fi'ers say about this headphone and that, I understand that people can get confused. This person's impressions match up with what I've found, and he was listening at the HeadRoom store:
Audio-Technica ATH-M50 Reviews :: Headphone Reviews

Simply, you'll find a true to the source sound on these headphones. Audiophiles won't like 'em since the highs and lows come out strongly with the vast majority of commercial music (that has bumped up highs and lows to survive compression and to appear better on cheap speakers), but that is because these are strict reference headphones. The M50s aren't warm or relaxing (DT880/HD650), or mid-centric with lower treble peaks (SR225/SR325i). They just tell the truth, and that makes the M50s so nice that are my favorite headphone under $500. I can't wait to get 'em for my birthday!

You guys make me giggle and bring a little more joy to my day. But have either of you heard it paired with the A40 mixamp as the OP requested opinions on. I want to hear impressions myself. The good news is if I cant find any by tomorrow I will have some myself. Problem is it will take a long while for me to burn them in properly.