[WideBoy]

I bought the M50Ss in the white box a couple of weeks ago just to try something else out while my Shure 440s are out of commission. I liked the build of the M50s a lot. Compared the 440s they were very comfortable and felt well-constructed. I was also impressed with their sound quality, at least in the beginning. They sounded strange to me, and the frequency response graphs shown at HeadRoom confirm what I heard. There are two distracting/irritating factors that ultimately had me returning these well-built phones: an odd trough in the bass that seemed to suck out the soul of the music, and an artificial boost to the high treble. I really wanted to like these headphones, but they didn't work for me. I have since bought some Senn HD518s and while they are not closed, I am much happier with them. Comparatively speaking, both the Shure 440s and the Senn HD518s were purchased for around $100, so I cannot defend the $160 price tag of the M50s. I don't know if they are over-rated, but they did not work for me where they may work for someone else. I am a frugal shopper and like to see how much quality I can get for my money, and to me, the M50s are simply overpriced.

 

[nicholars]

I think the reason they have become over priced is due to the amount of hype around them and this has pushed the prices up, I think they used to be about £105, now they are £135.... At £105 I think they are a good deal because of the build quality and the sound is decent (not amazing just decent). At £135 I think they are too expensive.
 
I think the reason they sell so much is because of the price point... It is where people who are new to headphones but want a decent pair would be willing to spend for the first pair. I don't think these are overhyped as much anymore though because people have realised that there are better options for the money.

 

[Dongle]

When someone is new, as I was a month ago, you're hoping to find something that's leaps and bounds better than what you've been exposed to your whole life up until this point.

What you've been exposed to is cheap pack-ins with your cell phones and MP3 players. Maybe you bought a $30 Sony or Panasonic headphone from Target or Best Buy. You might have even bought something for $60-$100 in retail, like Beats. All of the terms that you'll eventually become familiar with i.e. extension, forwardness, sibilant, sub-bass, punch, bloated, sound stage, etc. are foreign to you. None of what you've bought up until this point usually excels in one or more of these dimensions.

So you're hoping that for $100, you can buy a headphone that rights most of the wrongs of previous headphones.

The M50 mostly does that. That's why it's a reference point. It's not perfect. It's just that you can't get a headphone that meets all the minimum audiophile requirements for $50 or even $75. You can get one that hits one or two of them (if you're a basshead, then the MDR X500 or JVC HA-500 will do it, but they'll be lacking in other areas. A SR80 will give you audiophile highs for $100 but lack bass, etc.) but you can't do it all for less than $100, roughly speaking.

So the M50 does do it all, so it's the yardstick we use. But there are other headphones that do various things better and you pay more for them.

I've owned the M50 now and I can say that it's bass is fantastic when amplified properly, not nearly so great if you're just using a laptop or iPod jack. The highs are crisp and detailed, yet somewhat sibilant. The biggest drawback and the reason I'm returning mine is that the range is so forward that the audio is crammed together. It doesn't feel claustrophobic right away, but it sets in after about 30 min of listening. I also game on my cans and the lack of soundstage destroys Dolby Headphone, which may not affect most listeners here but is something I care about. 




 

 

[nicko7i]

I had pretty much the same impression as Dongle when I listened to a co-worker's pair.  He got his fairly recently, within the last month or so, for about $100.  Right now the Amazon US price is $160.  A friend is thinking of putting a toe in the audiophile water.  I'd reccommend them at $100 but not $160.  I saw a DT-880 the other day for $210.

 

[kimvictor]

Sure, M50s are solid, but they don't stand against higher end hps. I remember someone asking David Mahler to add M50 to the battle of the flagship tread. That is just nonsense, we don't need a tread like "M50 vs HD800 vs TH900"

 

[kyokosakura]

I own a pair of these and aside from being very durable they also sound very good. Sure they aren't perfect but for $120 they are very good regardless. I wouldn't say they are overrated. Maybe they are a little over recommended? I've seen them recommended on other websites and even facebook. 

 

[stillshot2]

I think nearly anyone who isn't extremely experienced with headphones or knows exactly what sound they are looking for would be perfectly satisfied with the m-50's, which is why I would recommend them to lots of people if it wasn't for their price.  And that is probably why they are overpriced- because they please a large audience

 

[kimvictor]

Quote:

I think nearly anyone who isn't extremely experienced with headphones or knows exactly what sound they are looking for would be perfectly satisfied with the m-50's, which is why I would recommend them to lots of people if it wasn't for their price.  And that is probably why they are overpriced- because they please a large audience

Generally, people like that extra bass boost and treble boost. But for mid heads, like me, M50 is a wrong choice.

 

[stillshot2]

@[size=18.18181800842285px]kimvictor[/size]:
Have you tried the fostex t50rp's? I hear their mids are awesome

 

[takato14]

Quote:

@[size=18.18181800842285px]kimvictor[/size]:
Have you tried the fostex t50rp's? I hear their mids are awesome

Ew. I wouldn't call distant, muffled, and edgeless awesome.
 
The M50 is sibilant as all hell, has a gaping hole in the lower mids, and doesn't have any real bass or impact. It's just a wooly, muddled mess of midbass with intensely hot treble. The build feels like a cheap toy compared to most of my other cans and they're unstable as hell on the head. Maybe the new versions are better, but I'm telling you right now, the M50 as I know it is overrated garbage.

 

[donunus]

The m50s really did change because I owned one before and feel the same way just like you posted but just recently heard the m50LE and they were much better than the old black ones that I once owned.

 

[kimvictor]

Quote:

The m50s really did change because I owned one before and feel the same way just like you posted but just recently heard the m50LE and they were much better than the old black ones that I once owned.

How are they different? Are they tuned in another way?
 
Quote:

Ew. I wouldn't call distant, muffled, and edgeless awesome.
 
The M50 is sibilant as all hell, has a gaping hole in the lower mids, and doesn't have any real bass or impact. It's just a wooly, muddled mess of midbass with intensely hot treble. The build feels like a cheap toy compared to most of my other cans and they're unstable as hell on the head. Maybe the new versions are better, but I'm telling you right now, the M50 as I know it is overrated garbage.

Ah, I think he was talking about T50rp being awesome, not the M50. Anyways, I didn't like the M50 either.

 

[takato14]

The m50s really did change because I owned one before and feel the same way just like you posted but just recently heard the m50LE and they were much better than the old black ones that I once owned.

How are they different? Are they tuned in another way?

Ew. I wouldn't call distant, muffled, and edgeless awesome.

The M50 is sibilant as all hell, has a gaping hole in the lower mids, and doesn't have any real bass or impact. It's just a wooly, muddled mess of midbass with intensely hot treble. The build feels like a cheap toy compared to most of my other cans and they're unstable as hell on the head. Maybe the new versions are better, but I'm telling you right now, the M50 as I know it is overrated garbage.

Ah, I think he was talking about T50rp being awesome, not the M50. Anyways, I didn't like the M50 either.

I know he was talking about the T50RP. The M50 isn't the only piece of garbage that gets unspeakably large amounts of hype.

 

[satanigatan]

I still own a pair. I think they are probably one of the best headphones you can buy in terms of the value/performance ratio. They are also the perfect headphones to suggest to casual listeners when they ask advice for better cans. All that said, I can no longer listen to them after owning some of the best headphones. It's just a night and day difference listening to my LCD-2's and HD-600's, and M50s feel lacking. 
 
I keep them around, because they are great for traveling. Very sturdy, and do the job when I go on vacation. 

 

[kimvictor]

Quote:

I know he was talking about the T50RP. The M50 isn't the only piece of garbage that gets unspeakably large amounts of hype.

So you also think that T50rp is crap. Never heard that before. I wish I could demo the t50rp to see what the hype is about.