M50s overrated?

The M50 really is an excellent 'phone that offers a lot value for the money(at 130 and below that is).  I think for many, the M50 is their first foray into the world of high quality audio, and as such tend to over qlorify them a bit.  Though, it seems they are indeed on their way to become the new beats, which is just fine by me.

If I were you I wouldn't give a crap what other people think about them, as long as you like them.

The term 'overrated' comes from people who obviously like a different sound character.

On this forum you will notice that other brands get the label 'overrated' as-well, appearantly all headphones are overrated ;)

Taking their price in account I don't think they're overrated, this in contrast to the Beats which are seriously overpriced.

And many people like the M50s, with a good reason, wouldn't they?

So I wouldn't worry much about the anti-hype you will read every now and then.

 

Edited by Mink - 4/9/11 at 6:47am

That's what i thought so at first.. maybe it's been uber-praised by some people but from what i've gathered so far it's basically the price-performance ratio that most people are clamoring about on the ATH-M50.. I haven't got one myself but im seriously planning to upgrade my so-so ATH-Pro5V.. i even posted a topic about my current headphone on why it sounded so much different from its spiritual brother the ATH-Pro5ms when in fact it should both be the same when looking at the specs of both cans.. As soon as i'll get my hands on one of these ATH-M50's i'll do my very best to write the most objective review i can and share my personal-auditory experience on this baby.. HAPPY LISTENING! :D

 

Exactly.  M50 is easily to recommend for people in the US because of the price performance ratio.  Not so much in UK and I presume Europe for instance.
 

 

M50 may be a good starting point due to the price value though its far from perfect. To me its not the only headphones that are overated over here nowadays, its just that people love their cans may tend to overpraise it.

 

I may consider Beats if they're going to lower down the prices by a factor of at least four..

The M50s IMHO deserve all the praise they get. They are affordable in my neck of the woods, don't have an offensive sound signature (great balance between fun and uhh... balanced), have had plenty of owners to back up what's been said of them, and are seriously just something everyone should try at least once if their funds allow it.

I have tried countless of headphones, yet the M50 still stands out for me. They are just damn good for the money.

As with all things popular, some people are just gonna hate for the sake of hating.

What MLE and others have said is pretty much on the money. Great value and very good sound. The praise and some over-praise and hype... but I think they mostly deserve all the praise they get. Some will go overboard with their praise or hate for them, but you have to consider the source and know that it's all opinions anyway and mean nothing if you disagree or hear differently.

 

As was said... perfect? No, but extremely listenable and fun and reproduce most things fairly realistically. Very sonorous and full-bodied and rich. A little mutted, sometimes seem a bit slow... but these are minimal and often overstated. I've never experienced the 'metallic' highs some hear.

 

All in all, very good cans that have been around for some time and have been called FOTM many times. 

I think they can get overhyped sometimes, but definitely not overrated.  They are indeed the type of headphone you can use as a benchmark to compare other headphones around the same price point-- or, heck, even the highest priced headphones.

At the price point I think they are OK, but they are definitely hyped to hell on these forums, especially by new users who take their first leap into head-fi without an amp or dac, and stopping at the m50's.

 

I have heard many mid-fi headphones, and the m50 just sits as another choice that attracts the "I'm not a basshead, BUT I WANT BASS" crowd of new comers. There has been so much overemphasis on what an audiophile owns. For example a lot of newcomers will buy the m50 as their first headphone. Pleased with their experience they will recommend it to other, but not just a recommendation like: "this sounds good". It becomes a recommendation like: "THE BEST HEADPHONE AT THIS PRICE POINT." I find that blatant certainty rampant among this crowd.

 

Personally compared to the k240, grado sr60i in a lower or same price point, they fall short in both mids and highs. I think they have great bass, but there is no resolution and the mids and highs are quiet grainy (just listen to female vocals to hear it)

 

Overall, I think there are better choices, feel free to disagree, but take a look at all the m50 threads and I think you will notice the same kind of trend that I notice.

For M50 to 'become the new Beats', Audio Technica needs to slap on a $500 pricetag onto them (parallel to the Beats' SQ:price ratio).

sorry guys but i don't find their msrp of $199.99 reasonably cheap at all. in canada they are way expensive. they are only good if you get them for their street price of around $120. and their prices have been going up lately.

 

imo the shure srh440 is better value for the money.

Edited by bcasey25raptor - 4/9/11 at 11:02am

Given that they're currently going through "popularity backlash" from all the hoighty-toighty types, snobbily turning their noses up at them, and people who've never even heard them saying their headphones are better, I'd say no, they aren't too overrated. They're good cans and a great value, but they shouldn't be considered as an end-all-be-all recommendation. There are other cans in the price range that are arguably just as good, and cans with different sonic characteristics that people might prefer.

They've been FOTM since I first joined here. I think its way past that by now.

But which popular headphones on this forum never have been flavor of the month?

From the time I first visited head-fi the following headphones were hyped to death:

 

The Shure SRH-840s - always in relation with the M50s which are supposedly 'blown out of the water' by the Shures

Denon D2000s

Audio Technica ATH-A900s

German Maestro GMP 8.35, though they never got a big 'following'

 

And before my time the Senn HD650's, AKG K701 etc most certainly have been flavor of the month

Edited by Mink - 4/9/11 at 12:02pm