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A Concise View of Why The ATH-M50 is No Longer King - Page 24

post #346 of 495
8/7/12 at 6:34pm
Oh man.

Over the years, I've had a variety of MDR's, Ultrasones, AKG's, and most recently the DT770 Pro (current favorite - though not portable AT ALL. Sucks for traveling).

Here I was, browsing head-fi for suggestions to replace my now-defunct V6 as travel cans.

I'd mostly read great things about the M50. Didn't know it was the object of such heated debate.

Couldnt resist the urge. Bought it.
Edited by N8RV - 8/8/12 at 5:02pm
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post #347 of 495
8/8/12 at 5:08pm
One day later, I have to say I'm not impressed.

Shame. I was sort of rooting for them.
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post #348 of 495
8/8/12 at 5:28pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by N8RV View Post

One day later, I have to say I'm not impressed.
Shame. I was sort of rooting for them.

Don't like them either. Try burning them in and see if it makes a difference. Replace them with hfi 580 or hd 380 pro. MUCH better headphones IMO.

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post #349 of 495
8/8/12 at 5:53pm

You can burn these until the cows come home it aint going to get any better!!

 

Alex

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post #350 of 495
8/9/12 at 5:45am
Quote:
Originally Posted by N8RV View Post

One day later, I have to say I'm not impressed.
Shame. I was sort of rooting for them.

 

 

Please, share with us what you dont like about them. Bass? Soundstage? Comfort? Too mainstream?

 

 

 

 

....sorry had to add that last one.

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post #351 of 495
8/9/12 at 7:10am
It's popularity had nothing to do with it. If anything it just made me more curious to try it out.

My main gripes (all subjective):

1. SO uncomfortable. They were painful to wear. Eventually resulted in headaches.

2. I love big bass. My DT770 could be described as "bassy"... but even at that it's a very clear, defined, musical bass. The low end on the M50 was sloppy in comparison.

3. Overall, they lacked depth and clarity. Everything sounded squashed. Got tiring very quickly.

I just couldn't have the M50 on and listen to anything for more than, maybe 30-45 minutes at a time.

I know there's the "break-in period" factor to take into account but, even right out of the box, I was able to enjoy the DT770 for hours without fatigue or head pain.

For a mere $50 difference I'd rather just buy a second DT770 (though I'll probably just go with the new Custom One).
Edited by N8RV - 8/9/12 at 7:11am
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post #352 of 495
8/9/12 at 7:39am
Quote:
Originally Posted by N8RV View Post

It's popularity had nothing to do with it. If anything it just made me more curious to try it out.
My main gripes (all subjective):
1. SO uncomfortable. They were painful to wear. Eventually resulted in headaches.  I though they were comfortable enough...and isolation was pretty good.

2. I love big bass. My DT770 could be described as "bassy"... but even at that it's a very clear, defined, musical bass. The low end on the M50 was sloppy in comparison.  I though they lacked bass, but what they have was not sloppy to my ears.
3. Overall, they lacked depth and clarity. Everything sounded squashed. Got tiring very quickly.  I didn't get this impression.
I just couldn't have the M50 on and listen to anything for more than, maybe 30-45 minutes at a time.
I know there's the "break-in period" factor to take into account but, even right out of the box, I was able to enjoy the DT770 for hours without fatigue or head pain.
For a mere $50 difference I'd rather just buy a second DT770 (though I'll probably just go with the new Custom One).  When I listened to the the DT770 all I could hear was a strong midbass thump.  I love bass, but the DT770 had too much.

 

It is indeed subjective.  Your gripes are different than mine.  I sold my M50 because they just did not satisfy me and found something else that did.  

 

I think the M50s are a good set of headphones though...just not for me.  I can see why some people like them so much.


Edited by elvergun - 8/9/12 at 6:23pm
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post #353 of 495
8/9/12 at 8:07am
IMO they do more things right than they do wrong. No headphone is perfect but the M50s are a winner to my ears at the price point. Excellent tonality, portable, good clarity and instrument separation, decent isolation and comfort. Stylish too.
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post #354 of 495
8/9/12 at 9:02am
Quote:

1. Many more senior voices in forums such as Head-Fi have come out of the woodwork to fight the vicious cycle of 

 

Are you into comics and super heroes? Good vs evil, things like that?

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post #355 of 495
8/9/12 at 11:36am
Quote:
Originally Posted by elvergun View Post

 

It is indeed subjective.  Your gripes are different than mine.  I sold my M50 because they just did not satisfy me and found something that did.  

 

I think the M50s are a good set of headphones though...just not for me.  I can see why some people like them so much.

Fair enough.  

 

Different head shapes / sizes.  Different ears.  

 

I'm not going to knock 'em.  If they have such a strong following, it must be for a reason.  Just not my cup of tea.  

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post #356 of 495
8/9/12 at 11:45am
Quote:
Originally Posted by N8RV View Post
  Just not my cup of tea.  

 

Not my cup of tea either...

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post #357 of 495
8/9/12 at 2:09pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jupitreas View Post

With all due respect to those who dislike the ATH-M50, what are the better full-size closed headphones out there for about the same price? I think I've tried nearly all of them and can't think of one that I prefer over the M50.

 

KRK KNS 8400 - nice detail but bass is seriously lacking in impact, sounds like someone is farting

Shure SRH440 - rolled off bass

Sennheiser HD280 Pro - harsh and somewhat hollow sounding with resonances from the enclosures

Shure SRH840 - good sounding headphone but not very portable and very uncomfortable. I also find the highs on them to be lacking

Sony MDR-7506 - harsh upper mids, unnatural bass, quite uncomfortable after a while

Beyerdynamic DT770 PRO - exaggerated bass response, not portable, harsh highs, very recessed midrange (way more than M50)

Fischer Audio FA-003 - huge, not portable, hard to get a hold of, bass could be better

Ultrasone HFI580 - S-Logic sounds artificial, particularly for people who have asymmetrical ears, upper-mids and highs are quite harsh

Sennheiser HD449 - bass is muddy and uncontrolled, very disappointing headphone

M-Audio Studiophile Q40 - nice, but has poor build quality and is not as detailed as the M50

Beyerdynamic DT250-250 - sounds better than ATH-M50 but is not portable, requires an amp to sound good and has poor quality control

Fostex T50-RP - ugly as all hell, not portable, rolled off bass and treble. 

AKG K727 HD - rolled off bass, not portable

 

Have I missed some other M50 competitor that is out there? 


Sennheiser HD380- they sound great (highly detailed) but do have a vise-like grip on the head.   Also, less bass than the M50.


Edited by Craigster75 - 8/9/12 at 2:11pm
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post #358 of 495
8/9/12 at 6:21pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by rhythmdevils View Post

 

You have absolutely no idea what you're talking about.  Unbelievable that you keep attacking people's hearing when you are so ignorant. 

Oh i saw you on innerfidelity, the guy in the comments said you should go out more 

http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/highest-fi-always-best-fi

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post #359 of 495
8/9/12 at 6:31pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by LazBro123 View Post

I know, but opinions should still be taken into account. I know what you are talking about is broader and much bigger than what I am talking about, but I am telling you my experience with these headphones. I have owned m50s and own 580s and have auditioned dt770s for a while, and in my opinion, 580s are much better than m50. It seems like more people than me don't like m50. Don't wanna be mean or anything :), but have you ever tried or owned m50s? Or are you just looking at graphs and specs to tell if they are good or not. Graphs don't always prove is a headphone sounds good or not. The graphs seem good for m50s, but I do not like their sound at all.

We explained this to rythmdevils in the other forum and he could barely answer, he posted the chart in the forum titled "athm50 overated?" rythmdevils posting charts wont explain why the mids are recessed , the bass bommy. also not everyone knows flac or high quality formats so why recommend a noobie who has low bitrate mp3 on average the m50 when the headphone is so darn unforgiving(makes the song sound horrible)? 

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post #360 of 495
8/9/12 at 6:33pm

wink_face.gif


Edited by XxDobermanxX - 8/9/12 at 6:36pm
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