Audio-Technica ATH-ADX5000

I think Audio-Technica ATH-ADX5000 is not getting attention it deserves.

Having listened extensively to Audeze LCD-3, Audeze LCD-X, Sennheiser HD 800 S, Sennheiser HD 800, Focal Clear, Focal Elegia, MrSpeakers AEON Flow Open, MrSpeakers AEON Flow Closed, Audeze LCD-2 and Audeze LCD-2 Classic at my local dealer, ATH-ADX5000 were my favorite headphones, with incredible detail, speed, transparency, extremely airy, and completely "effortless" when playing.

It seemed to me nothing mentioned above came sonically close to them.

Anyway, I was not ready to spend US$ 2400 for them, so went with "second best" to my ears - Audeze LCD-X (Music Creators edition, US$ 1200) instead. I knew they were not better than ATH-ADX5000, but were two times cheaper, while not producing two times lesser sound.

Another two months went by, and of course I came to local dealer again, this time to finally get ATH-ADX5000. Couldn't resists. After some time of having both headphones, LCD-X are collecting dust most of time time.

So if you can, do give ATH-ADX5000 a listen.
For me, they are as TOTL as it can get.

The new flagship of the Audio-Technica brand. Carolina CanFest 6 was a very humbling experience for me. Being honored by making new friends, both enthusiast and professional makes me love audiophilia more and more. First, a lovely young lady from Schiit graced me with their flagship products (in addition to their already impressive Schiit kit) and a personal friend of mine from Audio-Technica bewildered me by sending me an equally large offering and amongst them is their newest flagship the Audio-Technica ATH-ADX5000, and if I must say, a worthy companion to the flagship Schiit stack.

So to my friend at Audio-Technica (and you know who you are), I humbly thank you for all you’ve done for me and the CanFest 6 meet. Next time I see you please be ready for a giant hug. But with all the pleasantries aside, please allow me now to talk about my thoughts on the new 2 thousand dollar flagship from Audio-Technica, the ATH-ADX5000.








The Opening Experience

Well, one definitely can’t say that Audio-Technica didn’t make a grand entry with this flagship! First off the box the ADX5k comes in is MASSIVE, but what more, Audio-Technica goes above the standard presentation of the headphone and includes a printout of each INDIVIDUAL drivers frequency response. I love seeing this, it allows the listener to have an idea about how the headphones will sound and shows their capabilities. Now, in my unboxing video there was also an AT-B1XA/3.0 balanced upgrade cable. This was ONLY sent to showcase the ADX5k at Carolina Canfest 6, this $350 cable will have to be purchased separately if desired.

Getting onto the actual headphone box itself, Audio-Technica took great care in packaging this headphone to ensure it arrives safely to its new owner. There’s foam cutout at each corner in addition to an inner cardboard holder for its suitcase style headphone case reminiscent to the W5000. But inside the suitcase Audio-Technica wraps the flagship ATH-ADX5000 in a black, very soft, satin like, material where the headphone itself is nicely centered and recessed in the material. At the bottom of the headphone is where you’ll find the warranty, product info., and the ¼”, beautifully shielded, cable.


Construction






The ATH-ADX5000 is definitely a notable jump in price from their previous ATH-W5000 headphone and with that I’m seriously hoping they’ve made some major improvements. Well, rest assured that they most certainly have. The first thing I noticed is that they finally got rid of the useless floating split headband thing and instead are using the actual winged headband itself as the head support. Also, the cups themselves now have MUCH more adjustability to them. They stepped away from the more triangular shape with minimal adjustment (speaking generously) so go with a more universal flat approach with the ability to shape to a much broader head shape.

The actual build quality itself is also a high note for me. Not only is it SUPER lightweight, but it’s frame is built using magnesium so keep it strong with minimal wear. The pads (and headband) are made of my oh so beloved Alcantara, which I’ll talk about more in the comfort section next. A big no go for me that I do have for the ATH-ADX5000’s is that they creak. Whenever I put them on my head, move, turn, etc… they creak, and for a headphone that costs 2 thousand dollars, I find that unacceptable. I really hope Audio-Technica finds a fix for that and puts it into future products because one can excuse the proprietary cable but a creaky headphone just gives the impression of cheapness and I assure you, there’s nothing cheap about the ADX5k’s.

*EDIT* I've spoken with my contact at Audio-Technica and was informed that the product I received was a pre-production model and that they have since fixed the creak.

Lastly, and this is a HUGE addition that they added, but also kind of a bummer as well. But they’ve FINALLY made the addition of DETACHABLE CABLES!!!! I really wish this was standard on all headphones because it just makes so much sense but I’ll keep my rant to myself. The included ¼” jack is very nicely shielded and does a marvelous job at staying tangle free. For those who choose to upgrade to the balanced cable, you’re treated to a SUPER thick cable that reminds me of a audiophile upgrade power cable than an aux cable. The couple downsides I have with the cables is firstly, they’re proprietary. This notably increased the price and difficulty when finding aftermarket cables, even if you go through Audio-Technica. The headphones by itself is $2,000, a headphone that it does a great job competing against, IMO, is the Sennheiser HD800 S which goes for $1,700.The HD800 S includes a single ended AND balanced cable at no extra (however Sennheiser cables are also proprietary) whereas Audio-Technica charges $350 for one which puts it at close to $2,400. That, IMO, makes it a very difficult spot to be in and too big of a difference in price for most to justify.


Comfort




Audio-Technica made leaps of progress, for the most part, in the construction of their newest flagship headphone but how about its comfort? Just about all previous ATH models I’ve listened to all have a lacking in the comfort section, to me. They changed to a more universal head shape and even used my beloved alcantara material so my hopes are admittedly high.

Putting them on my head I immediately notice the sheer increase in comfort over their predecessors. The clamping force remained the same (which is good for that’s something Audio-Technica got spot on) but the support of the headphones weight, albeit little, was evenly distributed amongst the pads and over the actual headband itself. The alcantara pads have just the right amount of give and density to conform to my ears yet keep them from touching the driver casing and that’s something I really appreciate. The pads also have really good breathability, which is a reason I personally enjoy alcantara so much other than the comfort. I’ve worn the ADX5k’s for over 6 hours at a time during major listening sessions and have not once had to adjust them or take them off.

I really don’t have anything negative to say about the comfort. The creakiness gets kinda annoying but that’s a build issue. Audio-Technica did a great job designing these to be worn for long periods of time and I’d happily put these up against my favorite Oppo PM-1’s in terms of comfort.


Sound





Oh, do let me discuss the sound of the ATH-ADX5000 with you. Admittedly I was a bit worried for coming from the previous W5000 flagship I was expecting a finicky headphone pairing. But then again, look above at all the improvements they’ve made! But getting back on track, the ADX5000 overall has a slightly brighter than neutral sound and thankfully don’t seem to be so darned picky with their amps. Now granted, I played these on some of the best gear available but from tubes to solid state they sounded AMAZING. I read on a few forums that people find the ADX5k’s thin sounding which I personally must strongly disagree with. I A/B’d them with my personal HD800 S’s on each combination of the gear I listed above and on each one, sub the HDVD800, the ADX5000 sounded, overall, more fuller and complete sounding to my ears. On the HDVD800 they sounded almost identical with the only difference I could really make is the bass of the 5k’s and the soundstage of the 800 being better.

The soundstage of the ATH-ADX5000 is definitely a close up on for an open back headphone but it’s my no means claustrophobic (so most definitely not touching that of the HD800 S). If I had to give an example I’d say it’s as if you were in small jazz/comedy club setting with a really wide, wrap around stage. When there’s several moving pieces nothing gets in the way of anything and you can very easily discern one instrument from another and where it’s located in the assembly. They’re also very airy sounding while maintaining its control. A good example is the song “The Nights” by Avicii (a better recording REALLY shows what I’m talking about over the YouTube video admittedly). Notice how everything sounds fairly spaced out but yet still within comfortable listening range? To me it makes the ADX5k a very personal listening experience but yet it’s definitely focuses on being analytical over musical, the oh so infamous “Hotel California” by the Eagles, no detail goes missed and you can tell when listening that the ADX5k makes it a point to not miss any. But please allow me to talk about the individual sound characteristics so maybe I can explain what I’m talking about a little better.


Treble

The highs, to me are like the eyes; a window into the soul. Are they stary and glistening with detail or are they bland and dull? On a personal note I’ve always enjoyed looking into people's eyes, yes I was raised to always make eye contact when talking to people but it goes beyond that, it’s almost like I can get a glimpse into who they are by really looking into their eyes and that’s very reminiscent of the treble presentation. A song, or piece rather, that has became a staple for me (even more than “Diva Dance” by Evgenia Laguna [still a wonderful and beautiful song that I still use btw]) is “A Moon Filled Sky” by Unknown. Such emotion is felt by the pianist and violinist that I can’t help but get struck with a sense of sadness. Need something a little more uplifting? Please check out this clip from one of my favorite violinist, Samvel Yerninyn, during his solo in Yanni’s “The Storm.” There’s so much energy and vigor that I find it impossible to listen to it and not tap my feet and start doing a little dance in my seat.

The point I’m trying to make is, the Audio-Technica ATH-ADX5000 reproduces the treble response so beautifully that when listening to tracks with a lot of high notes or treble bias, during my time with them, I found myself continuously coming to them over many of other headphones I’ve had at the same time (thanks to Carolina CanFest 6) and even my own reference HD800 S. It’s not that the ADX5000 has super high extension (which it does in a way) but it’s the way they present the treble that makes them, from memory, the most beautiful eyes I’ve ever looked at on headphones.


Mids

My my my my my the soul of the music. And my friends, do the ADX5k reveal the artists soul. Vocals have such body, and please excuse my lack of audiophile terms in describing this but breath, behind them. To my ears it didn’t matter if I was listening to male or female vocals they just sounded like they were in person singing so close to my ears that I can feel their breath almost. Two songs I’d like to showcase this are Disturbed’s “Sound of Silence” and Adele’s “Love In The Dark”. Sadly, YouTube’s poor rendering (especially in Adele’s case) won’t do them anywhere near justice but if you listen to either or both tracks you can feel real emotion from the music and it’s only then that you’ve found a quality headphone. A ton of companies are now charging well north of a grand for a pair of headphones, and Audio-Technica is of obvious no exception, but what they’ve gifted in their ADX5000 headphones is, to me, what makes a product truly totl, the ability to physically feel the artists emotion through the music.
The frequency chart that Audio-Technica included with this headphone shows a slight dip in the mid range but, at least for me, I can’t tell anything of a dip. The mid range sounds almost focused on in fact. But who am I to argue with what charts say right?


Bass

The heartbeat of the music. Bass is what makes a headphone sound full and maintain its pace in the soundband. I compare this headphone a lot to the Sennheiser HD800 S because it matches it in so many aspects yet beats it in others. Bass is definitely an area the ATH-ADX5000’s do very well. Now don’t mistake my complement for them being heavy or particularly hard hitting for they’re still an open back headphone but to me and my ears they give me a very full feeling when listening to music and there’s a drum solo or bass drum riff that, while hyper detailed on the HD800 S doesn’t quite sound as full as they do on the ADX5k. The ADX has incredible control on the bass and it will hit and recede as good as any dynamic driver I’ve ever heard. When paired to a nice tube amp., such as the iFi Pro iCAN on tube+ mode, the bass gains a very nice forwardness that does wonders with metal music and even techno/trap.

Though the ADX5000’s will not win any awards for a super hard hitting can, to my ears it has a very full sounding bass hit that fills a lot of the holes that other TOTL open back cans skimp over. It maintains impressive control while giving the harder hits and doesn’t bloom out at all on particularly bass heavy tracks, it kinda just drops out when the hit is over instead of dragging on which I don’t think some artists intended so it did make some music in that genre sound off.


Conclusion




I know I say that I’ll really miss a headphone when I send them off, but man I’m going to miss the ADX5000.Audio-Technica slammed this headphone out of the park when they were creating it. Yes, there are a few fall backs but they still fair better than several headphones I’ve reviewed. The reference quality sound that comes from these make a perfect complement to my Oppo PM-1’s and a competitive rival to the legendary HD800 S. I for one am REALLY excited to see what “trickle down” tech comes from this headphone’s creation. A note I would like to leave off on though is for those considering the Sennheiser HD800 S I think you should also look into these. They make a great rival to them that if you can justify the extra expense is certainly something I’m for one giving some thoughts to..






Also, make sure to check out my unboxing and review videos. They’re pretty awesome AND you getta put a face to the Army-Firedawg name. If this review helped you out at all please hit that thumbs up button for it really helps me out a lot. Till next time my friends, stay safe.

I'm grateful for the people at audio sanctuary for letting me demo these headphones. I know a thanks is meaningless when my wallet should do the talking as they are a business.

I got to try these running off of the Dave and with the skull amp at audio sanctuary, alongside a lot of other totl headphones.
I feel like these compare most closely with the hd800 and to some extent the hek v1

I don't really have set music tastes. Quite recently drake, Charlotte Cardin and Amy Winehouse have been the artist's I have listened to the most.

Starting with comfort.
These are on the comfortable light side of the spectrum. Anyone who knows me from discord knows that I am really sensitive to weight and clamp, to the extent that I find the utopia uncomfortable after a few minutes. This doesn't feel as rigid as the hd800 on my head but clamps a bit more and sort of dissapears like my hd580 does.

Moving on to sound.
Bass
The bass levels aren't much higher than the hd800, if at all. It feels more punchier and more dynamic, and sometimes there is some minor bloat relative to the hd 800. It doesn't have the same level texture but matches a greater variety of genre, simply by having a greater sense of impact. This isn't a warm can by any means and at times can feelanaemic due to the lack of depth. Anyone who had visited a concert or been arounddrummers should know how a kickdrumfeels, while in recordings some mastering is at play, neither truely convey the impact of something like that.

The mids are where the ad5000x really shine. I'm particularly sensitive to mid tone so it won't come as a surprise that the stuffiness of the hd800 really coloured the tone. Whilethe texture came through on it, it sounded really stuffy, as if there was no presence. Thead5000x isn't really weebfi by any means.The upper mids relative to lower mids ismore balanced, I'd go as far as saying the upper mids aren't as bumped in fr as the er4sr Charlotte Cardin's main girl (stripped) and Amy Winehouse's back to black both highlight the raw meatiness of the artist's vocals without getting shouty. It conveys this in a way which doesn't sound smoothed over in a very Romantic sweet way.
While the upper mids can seem slightly emphasised compared to my hd580 it's so slight that I had to keep switching between them to notice the extra presence. The extra texture made it quite hard to discernbecause it didn't have the same overall relaxed balance as the 580. The mid timbreand tone between the two are different, butit's quite a subtle difference, just notsomething you have to work on to figure out. Pianos and accoustic guitars came through really well with an accurate tone. You had a sense of the individual strums and the air being pushed, overall there was a lot of resolution in terms of texture being conveyed. Aggressive pianos conveyed that sense of aggression with no attempt to hide the nastier parts of the sound. It allows asignificant amount of character to be addedto each instrument, as you would. Brass instruments have the raspiness that you get(why I never liked the trumpet), stringsresonate in the space and have the edge that they do when pushed. These doesn't smooth over detail, which makes it quite unforgiving with poorly mastered songs and anything using instruments which are usedaggressively which might not play into otherstastes. It does add character to instruments,which for people like me, makes me more involved in the sound.

The lower treble provides a good amount ofair which is similar to that of the hd800. It doesn't feel closed in despite it's smaller stage and because of that sounds seem to exist within a space and decay into the space. The issue with the hd800 is that the airhighlights the stuffy mids by isolating them in space.
In this particular instance I don't get it, but the lower treble of either doesn't bother me, like the x2 did, or the hs1551. Both conveysome form of sibilance in sibilant songs, but the air allows it to dissipate. The nature of the sibilance in both is quite different. The hd800 seems more subdued and dulled as opposed to veiled. The adx5000 has more sustain and more body making it a tiny bit more prominent, but the timbre of it is different. Which sibilance is natural is beyond me, I prefer the adx5000 here due to preference, I can't say which is technically better in this regard, only that they portray it differently. Neither has painful sibilancewhich bleeds into the rest of the sound, it'sjust there.
In terms of mid treble and it's integrationwith lower treble, the headphone works really well.
The cymbals have a TISHHhhhh sound as oppose to the TUSHH of the clear or the TISSsss of the he100v1. Treble is conveyed accurately with a good timbre. One thing tonote is that these headphones will spit glare at you when dealing with glarey treble in the mix because of this, they're definitely unforgiving
I personally believe that technically superior unforgiving headphones still sound betterthan low quality ones on a poorly mastered songs, other people will focus on this more.
I should mention most of my listening is focused around the mids, I'm not a treble head, so the treble glare isn't particularlyannoying to me.
Coming back to the mid treble I can't help but feel it is ever so slightly veiled in comparison to the hd800, despite theresolution and accuracy. The treble of neither bothers me too much, so the veil hasn't meant that I think the glare is worse than it is, since both of these headphones do that.

Being an idiot I mentioned air in the lower treble part, when it's upper treble. I'm not bothered to redo the structure of this so I'llcarry on. Both are quite airy headphones. But the hd800 is superior in this sense. Itconveys a greater sense of air which makes sounds seem more in place than theadx5000 at times. It's quite a stark difference. Both are more airy than the focals and to some extent the he1000v1 can sit in between the two.

Presentation is slightly different on the two. The adx5000 had more body to the sound, it was quite noticeable. However it was far from the utopias which is the king ofheadphones in this regard. It maybe had more body than the he1000v1 but don't quote me on that. Nevertheless, it is still thin, lacks impact and dynamics.

In terms of staging they are quite different.The adx5000 has a smaller soundstage and is therefore quite closer. I believe it's equal in width to the hekv1. In addition to the body itcreates a more intimate sound. The level of seperation and imaging created a good stage in which instruments and vocals came fromdifferent places with a good amount of depth to seem convincing. The sounds didn't seemrounded at the source and neither did they seem to dissipate all over the stage andsmother it. The good level of clarity added to this stage. But these stages were quite close and at times sounds could come 70° off from in front of you. It's disorientating and attimes annoying.

This doesn't do the same thing the hd800 does with staging. The closest thing to thehd800 was the kuru da, but I believe that is a technically worse, thinner and a less enjoyable headphone. While I initially thought there was a limit on how close the sounds on the hd800 are from you. It wasquite clear that this is a result of the staging properties in general. It is an out of yourhead kind of sound, the stage is in front ofyou, not a metre a way but closer to what you get at a performance. On that stage there is a great amount of depth, it expandsfar and not at weird extremities to you. Because of this the superior imaging andseperation, alongside the air provides the most accurate sense of stage you could probably get in a headphone. It's quite unique and hard to describe. To some it can feel diffuse (kind of me), but for people who enjoy this, the staging capacity of this headphone is unmatched and the adx5000 doesn't touch this whatsoever. It's staging is more typical to a headphone.

In conclusion I prefer the adx5000, I like the extra body and more accurate mid tone, as those are my preferences. I feel as though this tuning allows it to resolve slightly betterthan the hd800 by conveying a greater sense of texture.
The hd800 on the other hand has it's unique staging akin to speakers. It's the thickest sounding of this kind of headphone and I feel as though the tuning aids it's sense of staging.
Both are analytical and unforgiving headphones with accurate treble and a thin sound, but that's as far as the similarities go.

Sorry for the wall of text.