ATH-M50's don't sound that much better than white apple earbuds?
Jan 13, 2014 at 2:09 PM Post #46 of 54
  I think the important thing is to get headphones that match the listener's desires. I.e. if they like EDM they shouldn't be buying relatively flat studio monitors, and if they like classical music they shouldn't be getting bass monsters. And that's pretty easy to accomplish in the sub $300 range.

 
indeed
 
Jan 13, 2014 at 2:37 PM Post #47 of 54
I'm not surprised. I had a similar reaction when I listened to me new Apple Earbuds that came with my iPhone 5S. Apple really stepped up their game. I can see how comparing it against low-fi headphones like a ATH-M50's might lead to an underwhelming experience. 
 
edit: I'm not a fan of the Apple Earbuds though, because I got the Shure SE535 (audiophile grade IEM) which is alot better.
 
Jan 19, 2014 at 1:16 AM Post #48 of 54
Given that both pairs I bought from amazon had such a long return policy, I had a long time to sit and compare them. I've finally made the annoying decision to return the ones that were from an authorized dealer. So i'm keeping the ones from an UNauthorized dealer, which means audio-technica won't warranty them. Why did I do this? Because the authorized dealer pair has what I assume is mismatched drivers. The left ear is ever-so-slightly louder than the right; It drove me crazy. I even gave them a good 20 hours of burn-in hoping they would even out. Is that normal for lower-end phones to have mismatched drivers? So the pair that I at first thought was fake, sounds better than the pair from an authorized dealer.
 
Jan 19, 2014 at 6:12 AM Post #49 of 54
  Given that both pairs I bought from amazon had such a long return policy, I had a long time to sit and compare them. I've finally made the annoying decision to return the ones that were from an authorized dealer. So i'm keeping the ones from an UNauthorized dealer, which means audio-technica won't warranty them. Why did I do this? Because the authorized dealer pair has what I assume is mismatched drivers. The left ear is ever-so-slightly louder than the right; It drove me crazy. I even gave them a good 20 hours of burn-in hoping they would even out. Is that normal for lower-end phones to have mismatched drivers? So the pair that I at first thought was fake, sounds better than the pair from an authorized dealer.

 
I think that's all in your head haha. To me it sounds like you're over thinking the whole thing. Also what are the names of the dealers from Amazon you bought from? I got mine last week from Instrumentpro.
 
Also are you amping them?
 
Jan 19, 2014 at 9:36 AM Post #51 of 54
So many cans i've bought have had unbalanced channels. Just use the balance option on rockbox or an iPod, or poweramp.


Woah woah woah is there a such thing as this for Windows Phones? The Beats amp on it sucks major. Also is there something like Poweramp for regular computer use? I know of THX Studio but I can't get it to work for my computer even though I have an MSI motherboard.
 
Jan 19, 2014 at 11:02 AM Post #52 of 54
Not sure about windows phones but almost all devices have the option. Its made for unbalance channels or when someone can hear more out of either of their ears.

Poweramp is an app for Android. Im sure there's some music player that allows it.
 
Jan 20, 2014 at 1:05 AM Post #53 of 54
   
I think that's all in your head haha. To me it sounds like you're over thinking the whole thing. Also what are the names of the dealers from Amazon you bought from? I got mine last week from Instrumentpro.
 
Also are you amping them?

no, not amping them. Definitely not all in my head. I sat there making extreme OCD comparisons for a long time. When I wore them backwards, that confirmed it for me, as the louder ear was now reversed. 
 
unauthorized dealer pair was from "Carolinas" 
authorized dealer pair was from "Sonic Electronix Inc"--(the uneven ones)
 

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