[mattering]

Hey guys! I have a question about both the T50P and ESW9. The current rig so far is a tf10 to my iPod Touch and a DT770 to a Ordnance .22 to my iPod Touch. I like to listen to just about anything from classical to J-Pop and to happy hardcore/hardstyle. Now I have to pick between the T50P and ESW9. I heard that the T50P has excellent treble, okay mids but not really great lows [although they are noticeable] and they are also "fast" earphones. I heard that the ESW9 however has an overall warm sound signature with better lows than the t50p  and great mids and not really great highs and they are also "slow" and quite dull earphones. I'm not really sure about which headphones to get and so I am here to kindly ask for your assistance to choose between these 2 great portable headphones. Thanks in advance!

 

[Trillian]

Have you considered the HD25?

 

[mattering]

Nope i only have the options to choose between the T50P and the ESW9.

 

[lauchar]

ESW9, too much bass for t50p. I own both and sell t50p finally
 

 

[mattering]

Decided to get the ESW9...I didn't really expect much from this portable cans. I knew that the comfort was pretty good and then when i turned on my music, boy was i blown away. There was more bass than i expected and the bass was really detailed too. The mids kind off stood out for me and that to me was pretty good. The highs however weren't really bright but i had already expected that. I read that it was dull and slow but to be honest its not dull and its not that slow either. It was pretty good at playing happy hardcore and stuff like that. Overall, felt that the ESW9 were really great.

 

[Mochan]

I felt the ESW9 has relatively muddy bass actually. Not very detailed and not very clear. For a can at this price I expected far better clarity -- it's like a Beats Solo HD with better mids. 
People saying it's dull are probably talking about its treble response, likely.
 
The T50p has much better treble, some of the best I've ever heard from a headphone actually, but is lacking in bass in comparison.  If bass is your thing, the ESW9 is the much better choice for sure.
 
Congrats on the ESW9 though it's a mighty sweet-looking can, one of the best actually in terms of looks IMO.

 

[Haonan]

Great purchase there mattering! And nice to also see a fellow countrymen as well, welcome welcome.

I have posted my impressions in one of our local forums (HardwareZone), but thought I will re-post it for the benefit of other HeadFi-ers here.

I have been using my pair of ESW9s for close to 2-yrs now, IMO if u are looking for a supra-aural portable cans that works well for classical, jazz and female vocal genres, I would say you won't go wrong with the ESW9 at all. Compared to some of the Audio-technica IEMs that I currently own such as CK9/CK100, the bass properties on ESW9 goes much deeper and more punchy showcasing quite abit of mid-bass hump as well so they do have warmer qualities compared to my above-mentioned IEMs, which are more known for their cold, analytical sound. As mentioned in Headfonia's closed cans review, while the ESW9 may not live up to other livelier sounding cans reviewed in that shootout, but due to their very sweet and lush midrange with tubey-like sound signature, these are very good portable cans that I have enjoyed pretty much when it comes to the jazz genres, especially when listening to female vocals tracks by Olivia Ong, Susan Wong or Corrinne May.

Of course, every IEM/headphone have their own weaknesses. In my own perspective and words, the transient speed factor or known as the attack/decay speed of the drivers is not a strong pt of the ESW9s, they seemed to be much slower than my Grado RS1i's or CK100 when it comes to speed, in this respect I felt that when it comes to rock/progressive trance/techno genres, the ESW9 do not come across as 'lively' as I would have enjoyed with my other gears mentioned above. So in this regard just take note speed is not their forte, I would consider them to be much more laidback compared to some of the portable cans mentioned in the Headfonia shootout review.

http://www.headfonia.com/closed-cans-shootout-m-50-esw-9-t50p-hd25-1-beats-studio-srh-840-srh-750dj-k181dj-and-dj1pro/4/