[GN3RAL KARL]

I'll say this first off: I don't record, DJ, or do any mixes with this headphone (no prosumer work). These Audio Technica M50's (straight cable) are used purely for listening to my music. One phrase comes to mind about these cans: O MiE GaWd!

Highs - Imagine a dedicated tweeter per cup. The highs are INCREDIBLE. Sirens, cymbals, piano notes, you name it comes in crystal clear with a pristine pitch. No harshness or fatigue comes with it. No roll-off or sibilance either, even if you crank it up to stratospheric levels.

Mids - Like 2 miniaturized, mid-range drivers for your dome piece. When I heard Bose, I thought I HEARD everything, which was very nice. With the M50's, YOU WILL HEAR EVERYTHING. There were hidden voices and notes that even the Bose's missed in songs that I knew by heart. Voices came out clear and articulate. No recessed mid-range here. It's all up in your grill with pleasing authority and with the natural fullness that is to be expected with your tunes.

Lows - Lean, tight, and fast - like a cheetah.  It goes deep and has good extension.  The versions nowadays pump out a few decibels lower than the early '09 models that I use to own.  I have modded these by adding a extra headphone cushion to each cup.  Comfort went up significantly, while at the same time, the bass is 2x as strong now.  Right in line from when I first had them.  I love it.  Audio Technica probably did that though to give it a more "flatter" response for critical monitoring.  The bass though is less quantity than before, which may be a deal-breaker for some.

Soundstage - For a studio monitor, the soundstage is very good. There is a wide sense of space and depth to the sound. Nevertheless, they aren't as open-sounding as others such as the DT-770 pros, which have a closed design as well. This can sometimes take you out of the "scenario" when watching movies or playing games, which is why I use these primarily for music. I use the DT-770 pro's for movies and games, which those excel in this area.

Detail Retrieval - Plain and simple, if it's in the audio track, you will hear it with no problem at all. Every nuance, sound, intricate detail, and mouse-fart will have a direct line to your eardrum for your listening pleasure. No complaints.

Value - You need a pair (no, not those) of Audio Technica M50's. These are more than worthy to add to your headphone stable. Comfort is also quite excellent. Other studio monitor headphones pinch too tight for me (I also wear glasses), these are just right. Not too loose or constricted. The Beyers beat these in this area though (those are like Serta pillows .

The cord is terminated into a slick-looking, metal housing, with a flexible end connected to a 1/8" plug, that also can be mated to a screw on 1/4" adapter. In other words, you can plug the M50's into whatever device you want; Ipod, home receiver, amp, etc., right out of the box. Durability is also the best I've seen yet. Can't see these breaking in any way, even if it's in the hands of a toddler.

Audio Technica M50's = A slice of musical heaven with whipped cream.
 
Max Sound Level before distorting - 122db
 
*I have owned 3 versions of these - Early '09 black/blue box (most bass-heavy) straight cable, '09 black/blue box coiled cable (sound the same as straight), and the more recent modern white/light blue top flap (this version has noticeably less bass and a little more pronounced bottom mids).  I like the bass heavier version more.

*Burn in definitely changes the sound. Other owners have suggested 40 hours of cooking. The headphones sound more distinct, clear, and the instruments have better separation. Even the bass is more lively and the soundstage is more expanded. All said, don't judge yet until you've pumped tunes through them for many hours. Which then, the end result will surely be a smile on your face.

 

[clapyoubeezy]

what would you recommend for a home studio, coiled or straight? mic and computer are about 4-5 ft apart

 

[GN3RAL KARL]

The length of the coiled one when relaxed comes to about 6ft.  However that can stretch to about 7ft. with minimal pull if phones are on the head.  At the distance you're sitting, the coiled should work excellent.  Nevertheless, the straight version comes to about 10ft, but that can be wrapped and twist-tied like my version.  I wrapped about 4ft. of it and it works just fine for me.  Generally speaking, the preference on this one is up to the user.

 

[milosolo]

Excellent review! I've had mine for three weeks with a 65 hour initial burn-in. I have them paired with a Mav Audio D1. Listening to LP's through this setup is divine! I had a few misgivings after reading review to the effect that these are "studio monitor" cans that are too neutral and revealing for casual listening. Yeah right. To sum up I call them "musical".

 

[GN3RAL KARL]

Thanks!  Revealing and neutral is exactly what I prefer for my music as well.  I don't care what the naysayers say, these cans are awesome and still are comparable to those that cost 3 times as much.

 

[earerror]

Nice review man, definitely a worthy purchase. 

 

[GN3RAL KARL]

Quote:

Nice review man, definitely a worthy purchase. 

Thanks!  I noticed you have experience with the W1000X - How are those if you don't mind me asking?
 

 

[shamrock134]

I thought bass differences between the blue/black, blue/white box models were considered a myth?
 
My M50 is the blue/white box version. Since the bass is not flawless (for me), does not vibrate my jaw or my eyeballs maybe the box differences are true?

 

[DirtyLaundry]

What have you heard exactly that costs 3x as much and was better by the m50's? Also, what was the source/amp? 
 
Quote:

Thanks!  Revealing and neutral is exactly what I prefer for my music as well.  I don't care what the naysayers say, these cans are awesome and still are comparable to those that cost 3 times as much.

 
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The m50's are nice but let's no go crazy here, they are certainly not one of the best headphones ever. From what I remember they sounded quite nice but also somewhat congested and unrefined. For the money though I don't know if you can do too much better
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[GN3RAL KARL]

Quote:

I thought bass differences between the blue/black, blue/white box models were considered a myth?
 
My M50 is the blue/white box version. Since the bass is not flawless (for me), does not vibrate my jaw or my eyeballs maybe the box differences are true?

They certainly are true.  In fact I was a little disappointed after my 40-hour burn-in on the newer version on the bass quantity.  I missed the original's headbanging authority.  I copied this review from Amazon, but it was for the early '09 version (black/blue).
 

 

[GN3RAL KARL]

Quote:

What have you heard exactly that costs 3x as much and was better by the m50's? Also, what was the source/amp? 
 


 
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The m50's are nice but let's no go crazy here, they are certainly not one of the best headphones ever. From what I remember they sounded quite nice but also somewhat congested and unrefined. For the money though I don't know if you can do too much better
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DT880 600ohm with JDS Labs Bass Boost Cmoy v2.2.  Definitely a smidge better than the M50 overall.
 
 

 

[DirtyLaundry]

Since when do the DT880's cost three times more though? The Beyer's are $269 on Amazon and M50's are about $150. When I bought my DT880's I paid closer to $200
 
Anyhow, a CMOY is definitely not sufficient to power those cans. You might get the general idea of the potential of the headphones, but ideally you should probably spend at least as much on the amplifier as you did on the headphones to get the most out of them. The Cmoy is about as barebones as you can get 

 

[GN3RAL KARL]

Quote:

Since when do the DT880's cost three times more though? The Beyer's are $269 on Amazon and M50's are about $150. When I bought my DT880's I paid closer to $200
 
Anyhow, a CMOY is definitely not sufficient to power those cans. You might get the general idea of the potential of the headphones, but ideally you should probably spend at least as much on the amplifier as you did on the headphones to get the most out of them. The Cmoy is about as barebones as you can get 

I have bought one of my M50's at a price of $105 (ebay).  When I purchased my DT880's, at that time the lowest price was $299 (headroom).  That's almost 3x as much.  No doubt, at any given moment, the M50's could go full retail and some may get fortunate and find (as in your case) the 880's for far less.  That's great you were able to get the 880's at that price, but I was not at the time.
 
As far as the Cmoy, that is incorrect as well.  If you look at the many great reviews on it, many have mentioned that in many areas the Cmoy can hang with some of the finest and may even exceed it to some ears.  That's no lie, take a look at some of the testimonials, you may be surprised.  I certainly was, and that's why I had purchased 2 of them when I was almost ready to pull on a Headroom Micro (or even the Beyer A1).
 
As far as the Cmoy being inefficient, wrong as well.  I had one of my Cmoy's custom impedance matched for 600ohms.  I contacted John (Sieber, I think that's his last name) that makes the JDS Labs Cmoy, had it matched, and also purchased one of the highly recommended ac adapters' from Mouser, that also outputted 16-17 volts of power.  As you may know, more voltage is necessary for high-impedance.  I have to say, the voltage alone is more output than I've seen on ANY amp, if you spot another amp that outputs more, please let me know I'm interested.  Not even my Yamaha a/v receiver outputted that much, maybe around 12v.  I was able to hit maximum levels of volume with the bass boost on (around 108db, the max for the 880's), and was grinning from ear to ear.  No doubt the Cmoy was cheap, and that makes it all the more so incredible for what you're getting.  Have you heard one yourself?
 

 

[lzboarder8]

If  you are looking to buy a pair of straight M50's, I am selling my dear pair (used) with all the original accessories plus DT 250 pads. They're great headphones!
 
PM me if you (or anyone) is interested.
 
Quote:

what would you recommend for a home studio, coiled or straight? mic and computer are about 4-5 ft apart
 

 

[iamthecheese]

Quote:

I have bought one of my M50's at a price of $105 (ebay).  When I purchased my DT880's, at that time the lowest price was $299 (headroom).  That's almost 3x as much.  No doubt, at any given moment, the M50's could go full retail and some may get fortunate and find (as in your case) the 880's for far less.  That's great you were able to get the 880's at that price, but I was not at the time.
 
As far as the Cmoy, that is incorrect as well.  If you look at the many great reviews on it, many have mentioned that in many areas the Cmoy can hang with some of the finest and may even exceed it to some ears.  That's no lie, take a look at some of the testimonials, you may be surprised.  I certainly was, and that's why I had purchased 2 of them when I was almost ready to pull on a Headroom Micro (or even the Beyer A1).
 
As far as the Cmoy being inefficient, wrong as well.  I had one of my Cmoy's custom impedance matched for 600ohms.  I contacted John (Sieber, I think that's his last name) that makes the JDS Labs Cmoy, had it matched, and also purchased one of the highly recommended ac adapters' from Mouser, that also outputted 16-17 volts of power.  As you may know, more voltage is necessary for high-impedance.  I have to say, the voltage alone is more output than I've seen on ANY amp, if you spot another amp that outputs more, please let me know I'm interested.  Not even my Yamaha a/v receiver outputted that much, maybe around 12v.  I was able to hit maximum levels of volume with the bass boost on (around 108db, the max for the 880's), and was grinning from ear to ear.  No doubt the Cmoy was cheap, and that makes it all the more so incredible for what you're getting.  Have you heard one yourself?
 

 
No doubt the m50s are good cans, but I've heard them along with plenty of other cans amped and unamped and I have a couple of issues with your claims.
Compare MSRP vs MSRP and low internet price vs low internet, its just easier and more consistent that way.
Power and volume levels are not a selling point of an amp, I've heard cmoys and IMO its 5 bucks in parts with an OP amp that colors the sound to your liking, as well as adding volume. Check out a circuit schematic, there isn't much to them. I won't be ditching my minimax for one anytime soon.
Your entitled to your opinion about the m50s but mine is they're one of the best 100-150 closed cans but they don't compete with cans such as the d5ks, hd600s, k701s costing three times as much. There's a million reviews of the m50s out there since they hit FOTM, and yours seems to be the most glowing.