jamontoast
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Jul 2, 2008
- Posts
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http://audio-technica.com.au/?page_id=1015
Here they are, the Audio Technica BB500 full size behind-the-head street style headphones. The are designed as a bassy DJ style headphone that won't mess up your hair while you tromp around outside. They're a pretty awesome looking headphone and they sound pretty nice too. Sorry for the micro blurry-cam photos, but my camera broke so I'm on the cellphone camera:
Build
As soon as you pick these up, you'll notice that they're pretty light and plastic, especially compared to the similar looking M50s. They do feel a bit cheap, so if you paid the full RRP of $150 for these, you might feel a bit cheated. The street price is about half of the RRP. The single sided cable is thick, nice and stays straight even after coiling. It terminates in a right-angled 3.5mm plug. The earpads are synthetic and are nowhere near the comfort levels of the leather M50 pads, but aren't uncomfortable. The band has the same synthetic material over it and looks great. The plastic looks finish looks clean and great! The headphones come with a velour carry bag.
Comfort
This point is a bit variable. There are a couple factors that might come into play. If you have a largish head, these headphones won't be very comfortable. The band touches the back of my head (which messes up my hair... grrr) and since I wear glasses, the pads kill the top of my ears since that's the point that they grip to your head. When I'm not wearing my glasses, they are very, very comfortable. I noticed as I was walking to the station, they would slip off my head unless I adjusted them to be uncomfortably tight. I've had to stop wearing them because the top of my ears are hurting from my glasses being sandwiched, which is annoying. I can imaging that if you didn't wear glasses and had a small head, these headphones would be great.
Sound
Here the BB500 wins a lot of brownie points. While not quite as refined as the Audio Technica M50s, they are almost spot on to my Koss KSC75s, only closed and with a bit more bass. There is a lot of definition in the treble and it's not too harsh, which I love. There's plenty of that detailed Audio Technica midrange and quite a bit of bass. The bass is a little muddled but very fun and engaging. It's a tiny bit less accurate to the Koss KSC75. I've been listening to rock, classical and electro during the day and this headphone is a very good all rounder. I've compared it to my Yuin PK3s, Audio Technica M50s, Koss KSC75s and Beyerdynamic DT880s. For itss price range (I paid about US$60 off ebay), the BB500 sounds about on par in terms of bang for buck. It's basically a fun, detailed sound with a bass and treble emphasis, but maintaining a good level of clarity and soundstage due to a very nice midrange. The soundstage is great for a closed phone, becoming very holographic at times. Being closed, it blocks a good amount of ambient noise, making it great for the office. You can really crank them in an office environment without disturbing your coworkers (which is why I bought them). They're easy to drive, about level with the M50s. I drive them straight out of my Sony S755 mp3 player or my CMOY amp.
Conclusion
If you can pick these phones up for a good street price, have a small head and don't wear glasses (or have thin frames), the BB500 represents good value and great looks also. If you have a large head like me, they might mess up your hair and start to slip off your head while you're walking, but they sound fantastic! Not up to M50 standards, but fairly close for about half the price. Think a closed KSC75 that looks cool and you're about there. Recommended for small heads
Jam
Here they are, the Audio Technica BB500 full size behind-the-head street style headphones. The are designed as a bassy DJ style headphone that won't mess up your hair while you tromp around outside. They're a pretty awesome looking headphone and they sound pretty nice too. Sorry for the micro blurry-cam photos, but my camera broke so I'm on the cellphone camera:
Build
As soon as you pick these up, you'll notice that they're pretty light and plastic, especially compared to the similar looking M50s. They do feel a bit cheap, so if you paid the full RRP of $150 for these, you might feel a bit cheated. The street price is about half of the RRP. The single sided cable is thick, nice and stays straight even after coiling. It terminates in a right-angled 3.5mm plug. The earpads are synthetic and are nowhere near the comfort levels of the leather M50 pads, but aren't uncomfortable. The band has the same synthetic material over it and looks great. The plastic looks finish looks clean and great! The headphones come with a velour carry bag.
Comfort
This point is a bit variable. There are a couple factors that might come into play. If you have a largish head, these headphones won't be very comfortable. The band touches the back of my head (which messes up my hair... grrr) and since I wear glasses, the pads kill the top of my ears since that's the point that they grip to your head. When I'm not wearing my glasses, they are very, very comfortable. I noticed as I was walking to the station, they would slip off my head unless I adjusted them to be uncomfortably tight. I've had to stop wearing them because the top of my ears are hurting from my glasses being sandwiched, which is annoying. I can imaging that if you didn't wear glasses and had a small head, these headphones would be great.
Sound
Here the BB500 wins a lot of brownie points. While not quite as refined as the Audio Technica M50s, they are almost spot on to my Koss KSC75s, only closed and with a bit more bass. There is a lot of definition in the treble and it's not too harsh, which I love. There's plenty of that detailed Audio Technica midrange and quite a bit of bass. The bass is a little muddled but very fun and engaging. It's a tiny bit less accurate to the Koss KSC75. I've been listening to rock, classical and electro during the day and this headphone is a very good all rounder. I've compared it to my Yuin PK3s, Audio Technica M50s, Koss KSC75s and Beyerdynamic DT880s. For itss price range (I paid about US$60 off ebay), the BB500 sounds about on par in terms of bang for buck. It's basically a fun, detailed sound with a bass and treble emphasis, but maintaining a good level of clarity and soundstage due to a very nice midrange. The soundstage is great for a closed phone, becoming very holographic at times. Being closed, it blocks a good amount of ambient noise, making it great for the office. You can really crank them in an office environment without disturbing your coworkers (which is why I bought them). They're easy to drive, about level with the M50s. I drive them straight out of my Sony S755 mp3 player or my CMOY amp.
Conclusion
If you can pick these phones up for a good street price, have a small head and don't wear glasses (or have thin frames), the BB500 represents good value and great looks also. If you have a large head like me, they might mess up your hair and start to slip off your head while you're walking, but they sound fantastic! Not up to M50 standards, but fairly close for about half the price. Think a closed KSC75 that looks cool and you're about there. Recommended for small heads
Jam
