Want some audiophile quality headphones for gaming and listening to music and have already purchased a mod mic. I was wondering if i was making a huge mistake because cannot personally say i have researched every brand despite the ath-ad900x's great reviews. Are there better headphones out there in roughly the same price range (or lower) that are still open back for positional accuracy?
Thanks in advance.
The ad900x are great from what ive read. But i would personally get an AKG q701 or k701 in that price range
I've heard the ad900x are a nice medium in between closed back and open back when it comes to sound stage and bass. They aren't lacking as much as the ad700x and aren't as heavy hitting as the ath-m50s stock. However. i also heard if you want more or less bass eqs work really well with them without causing much if any noticeable distortion at comfortable listening volumes.
I'm not sure if "medium" is the word I'd use for them, sure you get substance in the bass compared to the 700x but it's not going to ever be on the level of a closed pair of cans (extrapolating this from my AD1000x). The better definition of medium is something like a DT880
The AD900x is a VERY open set of headphones, and honestly the AD700x has a good amount of bass as well, in fact all of the X refreshes have a healthy amount of bass compared to the original AD700 which had zero bass.
In terms of SQ I'm still a big Audio Technica fanboy, so I wholeheartedly recommend the AD900x. Similar options would be something like the HD598 (or HD 558s with the mod) or the Sony MA900s. Personally I don't enjoy the soundstage on Sennheiser cans (as /g/ says, "veiled") but basically you can't go wrong with the popular open back ~200 dollar cans.
I ordered a pair a few days ago. I can gladly let you know what I think of them once I get them. But from the reviews I read (must have been about 15 different reviews) they offer an extremely large soundstage, punchy and accurate bass and amazing mids/highs. The few negative aspects I heard about is that the sound can have a tiny echo and that they can be a bit fatiguing if you listen to music for hours because of the emphatic highs.
I also read that they are amazing for gaming in regards to positional audio. Music should be fine as long as you don't listen to anything extremely bass heavy. They are supposed to be amazing for female vocalists and classical music, and good for Rock/metal and Jazz/swing kinda stuff.
I look forward to it any reviews from actual people are more than welcome.
Okay then. I'll give you an update when I get them. Could take a while though since I'm ordering them from Japan and they have to ship them all the way to europe. Also, I'm not an "audiophile" by any means but I can definitely tell you my impressions with different kinds of music and gaming.
I have to agree with raimeken. I have the 700x's and they're very nice. I know the bass isn't as strong as a closed back set of headphones but the positional accuracy is on point. Why they aren't best suited for listening to music. They are still enjoyable and the 900's take it a step further being even more opened.
Okay, I've had a few days to play around with the Ad900x now and I can give you my opinion on them.
Comfort: You will need to do the rubberband "modding" to make them comfortable. They slide down all the time if you don't do this since the clamping force isn't enough to properly hold them in position. It's really not a big deal, but something you may want to consider. The earcups are extremely soft and comfortable, they don't get too hot either. They are pretty big though, I had the feeling that they were pressing against my jaw at the beginning, but I got used to that in a day or two and now they are really comfortable for me. They are also pretty lightweight, which is a plus if you wear them for a long time. Overall I'm really happy with the level of comfort those headphones provide.
Build quality: Everything feels solid. They have that high quality feel to them, they aren't flimsy or appear like they could fall apart every second (which actually was a concern for me judging from the pictures alone). The cable is nice and thick and both the connector and the 1/4 inch extension are gold plated and, again, just feel solid.
Sound quality (music): I used the headphones with my onboard sound, no soundcard or a DAC or anything fancy. I tested all kinds of genres like metal (Amon Amarth, Cripper, Blind Guardian, Behemoth, Slayer, The Apocalyptic Riders, Ensiferum), Jazz (the Seatbelts), Swing/Electroswing (Circus contraption, Little Violet, Swing Republic, Tape Five), House (Daft Punk), Classical music (Beethoven, Mozart, Brahms) and even a bit of J-Pop. They definitely don't sound flat or neutral, there is a clear emphasis on the mids and highs. The bass is definitely there and it is quite punchy and accurate, but if you are a bass head you won't be happy with the AD900x. So, everything that depends on the highs (female vocalists, guitar solos, violins, etc.) benefits from the extreme clarity. They worked really well for metal and rock (I also didn't have the feeling that growling or vocalists with deep voices were at a noticeable disadvantage here) and they were outstanding for classical music and Jazz/Swing. The only real "problem" I had was when I started listening to daft punk. Stuff like Robot Rock depends on the bass too much to sound perfectly "right" with the ad900x. The bass was definitely there and, as I metioned earlier, quite accurate, but the airy feel they have to them simply wasn't perfect for this kind of music. I imagine that the same logic applies to techno, drum n' bass and other bass heavy genres. If you like the sound signature they provide then they sound amazing, especially an orchestra or a bigband really benefit from the large soundstage and the emphatic highs/mids. I quite like them.
Sound Quality (gaming): Positional accuracy was amazing. Even without any additional software I was able to pinpoint enemy gunfire and footsteps very accurately in FPS games like BF, Arma or CS. Again, the focus on the highs and mids really helps you out here. At the same time explosions still packed a puch without drowning out any other noises. They seemed like the perfect balance between immersion and positional accuracy to me. I also tried using Razer Surround to further improve the soundwhoring capability. It worked pretty well and definitely gave them a nice boost, but even without any virtual surround sound they work surprisingly well.
Conclusion: I'd say that they are a really good all-rounder for what they are. If you know what you want (a VERY open set of headphones) and you like their sound signature then go for it. I don't know if they are worth the upgrade form the AD700x, I can just tell you that they suit my needs and that they do everything I use them for extremely well. Also, keep in mind that you don't want to use them if you listen to badly encoded music on youtube or other low quality sources (that also includes fake, bad quality radio calls in video games) since the emphasis on the highs really hurts your ears if you have cracking sounds or weird hissing in your music/game.
Thanks for the feedback!
Nice review! (and a side note, I love the Seatbelts (actually anything Yoko Kanno). But if you like the style of jazz that the seatbelts play, you might like the sound of Soil & Pimp Sessions, a japanese jazz group.)
I just got the AD900x. I have had Audio Technica M50's for years. AD900x's are definitely not for monitoring but they are just super fun. Crisp, clear and airy is the way to describe them. As someone used to very accurate monitoring solutions, the highs caught me off guard though the bass did not. The bass is great on these. Totally present all the way down. I figured it would take my ears a couple days to get used to this sound signature and I was right. They sound great now. I really missed having open back headphones (HD600's) that were so comfortable that I would forget about them being on my head and these seemed promising both for sound and comfort. As far as comfort goes, they fit VERY loosely. I may mod them for a tiny bit more clamping force. The pads are so comfortable that I do not think they would irritate if I do. So far I'm quite happy with them. It was difficult looking for open back headphones that had everything I wanted. I still would probably prefer a totally neutral version of these but overall I'm very happy.
No problem guys, and thanks for the tip! Soil & pimp sessions sound pretty damn nice (judging from a few songs now)
Neurot1ka did a very good summary on the sound signature:Crisp, clear and airy. That's exactly how they sound and the kind of feeling you get. Also, in regards to the "modding" for more clamping force: I simply put an old and kinda loose hair tie between the wings. It really helps, they don't get uncomfortable at all and it's black so it doesn't look as weird as a rubberband would.
I use a modmic with my Sennheiser HD 518. ($100) I've seen them more like $80 on amazon, but price started going back up. I also own HD 598, and really like them. They are great for movies, and super-comfortable. I tend to like Sennheiser's sound, I know some people say they don't. But, I can listen for hours without fatigue. The HD 598s could be awesome for gaming. I believe footsteps and gunfire is more mid-high range of sound. The 598s have great mids. The bass "rolls off"...not super bassy.