I recently found a great deal on Amazon for the Audio Technica ATH-M50xBL headphones which was WAY too good to pass up. For some stupid reason, I got these things for less than $130 with free shipping from Prime.
http://www.audio-technica.com/cms/headp ... index.html
Having now spent about 50 hours listening to them powered by various devices, amps, and sources, I can say these are VERY good headphones. The frequency balance is very good, with only a slight boost in the low bass and top treble, but not so much as to make them decidedly "boomy" or "shrill". I have had several hours of nonstop use without experience traditional fatigue and irritation, which is pretty good considering my proclivities.
They are not as efficient as I expected, but everything I plug them into seems to power them well enough. And the multiple cable options, three of which were in the box, were very convenient for me.
The comfort level was surprisingly good. They just perfectly fit over my ears and clamp tightly on my head without causing discomfort where my classes run along my temples. This was great as I have several on ear and over ear headphones which become physically uncomfortable after just a few minutes of wearing them. This is their best attribute, in my opinion, as the tight, comfortable fit isolates outside noise fairly well.
They are not as transparent or accurate as my favorite headphones like the AKG K701 or Shure SE535 I used more than anything else.
After lots of listening, I have decided to take them to work and use them in my cube with my Fiio USB DAC/Amp. They replace my less comfortable Grado SR80 headphones I had been using at work for over a year. I will keep the Grados, but I have always found them too brittle and pushy for my tastes, and they are far from comfortable for me (which is okay at work since I never have time to wear any headphone for more than about 30 minutes at a time).
I recommend you guys check out these Audio Technical headphones as an alternative to the tried and true AKG, Beyer and Sennheiser models.
http://www.audio-technica.com/cms/headp ... index.html
Having now spent about 50 hours listening to them powered by various devices, amps, and sources, I can say these are VERY good headphones. The frequency balance is very good, with only a slight boost in the low bass and top treble, but not so much as to make them decidedly "boomy" or "shrill". I have had several hours of nonstop use without experience traditional fatigue and irritation, which is pretty good considering my proclivities.
They are not as efficient as I expected, but everything I plug them into seems to power them well enough. And the multiple cable options, three of which were in the box, were very convenient for me.
The comfort level was surprisingly good. They just perfectly fit over my ears and clamp tightly on my head without causing discomfort where my classes run along my temples. This was great as I have several on ear and over ear headphones which become physically uncomfortable after just a few minutes of wearing them. This is their best attribute, in my opinion, as the tight, comfortable fit isolates outside noise fairly well.
They are not as transparent or accurate as my favorite headphones like the AKG K701 or Shure SE535 I used more than anything else.
After lots of listening, I have decided to take them to work and use them in my cube with my Fiio USB DAC/Amp. They replace my less comfortable Grado SR80 headphones I had been using at work for over a year. I will keep the Grados, but I have always found them too brittle and pushy for my tastes, and they are far from comfortable for me (which is okay at work since I never have time to wear any headphone for more than about 30 minutes at a time).
I recommend you guys check out these Audio Technical headphones as an alternative to the tried and true AKG, Beyer and Sennheiser models.
