Great review I have mixed feelings about the headband not sure if I like it or not.

@acain : Adam, it's one of those things where you look at it and scratch your head thinking if it's going to work.  Then, you put it on and... damn! can't believe how well it actually works.  But, sometime I tilt my headband forward or wear headphones dj-style on one ear - this one has to be straight on your head for those "wings" to be right above your ears, otherwise it won't be as effective.

Nice review Twister!

Excellent concise review!
Yes I agree with you, this reference headphone need a proper semi-hard case. AT should have included a good semi-hard case with it.
Also agree that R70x is excellence for both Professionals and Audiophiles.
Thanks for the excellent review and comparisons with other headphones!

I absolutely dig that 3-D suspension system as well!
470ohms for an Audio-Technica. Wow.
So no typical Audio-Technica house sound @twister6 ? This is surprising. I was not successful at finding any of their top tier headphones that did not have that Audio-Technica coloration at the highs. Sometimes felt like highs sounded a bit artificial with certain recordings because of that.
From your review I'm guessing it doesn't have that sound so I really gotta try these now! .

Really tempted after reading this review. Seems like a real quality product, and none of the "Cons" is related to SOUND. That's the big thing...

any comparisons to other popular open backs ie. he400i, hd650, philips x2,x1 etc?

@grizzlybeast : I don't have other open back headphones, but earfonia in his review (refer to a link at the beginning of my write up) mentions comparison to a lot of other headphones, including how R70x sounds a lot more natural in comparison to warmer HD650.  He definitely preferred R70x over HD650

Really nice review! These seem really interesting.

I suspect that these really want to be compared with the HD600s.

Another killer review....respect....thoroughly enjoy the write

Woot woot

Nice review! I think that I need to try a set of these with my WA-2.

thx for the write-up. The r70x seems to be a must-listen-to headpone.

I wonder how they compare to their AD line?

I was just looking Audeze lcd 2 and then I read this review.
My Pockets are hurting but my ears are full of Joy.

Is it going to replace the hd600????????

Thanks in great part to your review, have ordered these (arrival in two weeks). You suggest amping, even though the X3ii is capable of driving the R70x to comfortable listening levels. Any suggestions for amps in the $300-400 range? Thinking desktop. Already have O2, Piccolo and E12A (and wonder how those will do).

@hakushondaimao : X3ii drives R70x at 100 ticks of volume, so you are getting closer to the top (obviously a battery drain as well), but it can drive it with authority.  I don't have any desktop amps, only portable ones (E11k, E12A, C5).  Out of LO of X3ii, E11k is darker/smoother, with just an average soundstage.  E12A is more transparent with a wider soundstage, C5 adds more balanced energy (just a touch of balanced excitement to the sound, hardly any coloration) and it widens the soundstage significantly.  That's why I prefer C5 because of the impact on soundstage width/depth to take full advantage of R70x open back design.  C5 also has C5DAC version, adding USB DAC functionality.  Just in my opinion, it's a more versatile option to get you covered in both desktop/laptop and portable DAP/smartphone setups.

Thanks for the feedback. Will maybe hold off a desktop amp until I've tried the R70x with my portables. Am guessing the O2 (rated up to 600 ohms) will do pretty well. Cheers!