Are The Audio-Technica Ath-M50x Still Worth It In 2025?

The right ear in my pair just went today after 9 years, I bought another pair without a second thought.

[@SirNic4180]

Did you even try and fix them?

[@JaggychanG]

@@SirNic41809 years of duty not enough for poor headphones to enjoy retirement?

[@gingeralef1]

My left ear blew twice in the span of a year on these, the audio quality is good but for me the reliability is just piss poor. I owned a pair of M50’s of which also a speaker blew before I bought this one, that pair lasted quite decently though.

[@budthecyborg4575]

Should have bought the Sony MDR-7506, those will not break. After a decade of abuse (dropped regularly during workouts) there is still zero signs of fatigue.

[@bond8654]

I rocked the M50Xs for years, switched to DT 770s and never looked back. Loved mine for years, but after switching away from them I can definitely admit that I was heavily influenced by the fact that I saw so many people using them, rather than judging them objectively for what they were.

[@NobodyMetal]

Good review, thanks for given them a shoutout again, I think i might by a new pair now that my old one is almost worn out after 10 years of rough use

[@lijabeofficial2144]

i only got here just for research purposes but i sub because you deserve it man keep it up

[@AustinDavisYT]

Comments like these always mean the world to me, thank you!

[@MakotoHawkins]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts in this video. I have been rocking the original M50 for over a decade. Many years back, I cut the cord, installed a headphone jack, and attached a bluetooth receiver to make quasi M50xBT before Audio Technica even sold a wireless version. The headband has worn out, the earcups somehow have remained pristine. I will someday upgrade to the M50xBT2 when my pair gives out. All in all, these have been great to me and an amazing purchase.

[@kraseidon]

Damn that’s some insane production quality for merely 70 views! Subscribed!

[@AustinDavisYT]

Thank you! Hopefully my videos can get out there to more than 70 viewers sometime in the near future lol

[@kraseidon]

@@AustinDavisYT Maybe the tags could be an issue. I had to look up a very specific thing ("audio technical m50x 2024) to get this video lol. And even then it was like the 3rd or 4th video. Keep it going tho! Time will be the testament of your success on YT.

[@AustinDavisYT]

The tag game is definitely one I’m working on haha. Appreciate the tips and encouragement! 🙌🏼

[@azhiazim]

4months and this comment didn't age well lol

[@kraseidon]

@@azhiazim Haha i'm really glad it didn't. High quality stuff

[@jonathancraig9005]

I got the limited edition red version of these in maybe 2017. They were my go to for any longterm listening for a long time. But in the pandemic, working from home, I had to wear them for longer stretches than ever before. Over a week of 8 hour days the clamp force got to me, and I started looking for something more comfortable. Now, much as I love them, I think there are better value headphones in the same price range. If you want max comfort, I recommend the Rode NTH-100. The Alcantarra pads really are incredible on hot afternoons. But if like me you need something portable, the AKG K361 is a great all rounder. Both, to me, sound better than the M50X as well. That said, I’m very glad to have them still, and they will always stay in my collection. They have lasted very well despite the battering I’ve put them through, and if I’m ever recording and really need to make sure I have a good sound, they are so familiar that I always turn to them.

[@marhensa]

I'm happy that I revived my ATH-M50X from 2014, it's 10 years old, crazy, still great to this day. I changed the earpad and paired it with FiiO BTR15 Bluetooth DAC/AMP (best purchase I made yet), stick it to the left driver with strong outdoor-grade double tape, plugged it with a very short cable. I get clear and powerful audio source from DAC with great latest HiFi LDAC Bluetooth connection (in Windows, I have to use Alternative A2DP Driver to unlock the LDAC and aptX HD). As a bonus with FiiO BTR15, I can tweak the frequency response to match my preference and compensate for the change of earpads that alter the sound profile, to match the original M50X sound profile.

[@tokenrow669]

Where did you get the earpads? What music app do you use with amp?

[@sagi_tech_n_stuff]

They are BAD headphones! This review is not really a review. he just reads the marketing materials and quates bad takes by tech reviewer. Sorry to say but Austin doesn't know what makes a good headphone. The sound signature is a bad implementation of a V SHAPE, not accurate in any way. boomy bass unnatural midrange and harsh high end. They can be fine with EQ. Good headphones in this price rage will be k361 by AKG and FiiO FT-1.

[@so_sow]

@@sagi_tech_n_stuff Lol, cope. For consumer grade headphones this is a fair review. Can't expect everything to measure up against hundreds/thousands worth of amps & drivers.

[@sagi_tech_n_stuff]

@@so_sow You obviously didn't read anything i wrote and cluless about headphone. Many many cheaper headphones sounds alot better than the m50x including the cheaper m40x.

[@so_sow]

@@sagi_tech_n_stuff I read everything you said actually. Are you going off frequency response itself or a personal opinion? If it's about frequency response, sorry to tell you, but none of the consumer grade stuff comes even close to being accurate (as far as accurate goes atleast). If it's a personal opinion (or some bias against the headphones created by some random forum), remember that opinions differ, and are highly personal. You just sound salty because none of your videos are getting any real traction tbh.

[@vjvadgama7491]

Engineers out here may or may not agree, but I've been mixing and producing music with these headphones for 8 years, and I don't see myself stopping any time soon. I'm actually considering the M50xBT2 as an upgrade, as the sound profile for the M50x and the BT2's (WIRED) are identical. As for the audio via bluetooth, I'm not too fussed as the technology required to provide an identical sound to wired is not yet there, but it's not a deal breaker. Thanks for giving them a shout out!

[@RyanTheTastyPizza]

Great production and love the content! Just grabbed me a used pair of M50’s for 25$, I’ve already bought the replacement earpads and headband for another 11$ so hopefully I get to enjoy my refurbished pair of M50’s for quite some time!

[@AustinDavisYT]

Thanks so much! At $25 that is a STEAL, enjoy em!

[@hangar4avs]

OK. At 4:28, let's see if I understand this. You say that you have to make drastic adjustments in your mix once listening with your cans, because you mixed with your monitors? Or you had to make drastic changes because you mixed with cans and then compared that mix through your monitors? Which was your reference? Great video BTW.

[@AustinDavisYT]

I somewhat stumbled in my words there but what I say is “I rarely have to make drastic adjustments” I do most of my editing with the m50x’s on. Then test playing through my monitors to make sure everything still sounds mixed properly. Haven’t had many times at all where I’ve had to go back in and tweak audio because it sounds different coming out of the monitors after editing with the m50x’s. Hope this helps clear it up for you, appreciate the love!

[@hangar4avs]

@@AustinDavisYT Gotcha. It was probably me that didn't hear it correctly. lol Thanks for clarifying (as that's what I thought you meant). Do you use any spatial/room emulation plugin with the phones? Like CanOpener, Realphones, AutoEQ, etc.? Use the Harmon curve? Or just straight phones what you hear is what you get?

[@Rozwell007]

Great vid! I love these headphones!

[@jaypaulauskas7108]

Great job with excellent important information. Have had them for 5 years while wearing them out. Miss them so after watching your video that I just ordered them again.

[@AustinDavisYT]

Love it! Enjoy your fresh pair!

[@kiddynamite3931]

I just picked these up about a month ago. I'm loving these, for practicing with, or recording drums. I'm glad these were 1 of 6 pair of can headphones at CG. I waa ready to spend some money, but no need with these

[@AustinDavisYT]

Yes they're great! Back when I first bought mine I had the same mindset of spending a bit more on headphones until I found these. The best 💯

[@stevo6969]

Awesome video, Jutin. Enjoyed watching.

[@AustinDavisYT]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@wrbrown571]

I have an ATH-M50, before the X, and I prefer those for a less colored sound. But then I prefer my 560s over the M-50. Then I have an ATH-D40 that's 30 years old that was flat with a 20-200 hz boost That is still the best I ever had.

[@loveyourselfandme1283]

Just got one for the first time 😊

[@Sirfoodcrumbs]

Thanks man! Just solidified my purchase. Great production quality too. I do gotta say tho them room acoustics are wildin. Maybe add some padding to the walls? Other than that great vid!

[@AustinDavisYT]

Thank you, glad I could help you in your decision! My current room set up is definitely not ideal 😂 Having a closed office room would help tremendously, I’m in more of a den right now. Appreciate the feedback! I might see about getting some boards up soon!

[@Litassa]

Bought it used, for *80$* a few years ago and had to replace ear cups and headband cover :D Gotta say, it was kinda upgrade in terms of sound depth and clarity in comparisson to my old *Samson SR850* :D

[@OscarSabaterCruz]

subscribed my man, superb quality with so little subs, that's weird, i forsee a bright future here!

[@AustinDavisYT]

Appreciate you! Glad to have you here!

[@nefariouswatcher]

I used to have these. The treble could be a tad harsh on certain songs, and despite how comfortable people say they are, I just didn't get that. The padding on the headband felt lacking for their weight and their ear pads' shape is just not natural for the human ear, I ended up shoving part of my ear in between the drivers and the earpads, and having my ears sandwiched like that was not a pleasant experience (in addition to the pain on the top of my head due to the headband). That said, I see their worth, and their durability is something else. These days I'm using the Raycon Everyday Headphones, the comfort is just unparalleled on those (comparable to the legendary Bose QC15 on that front, I kid you not). Plenty of plush padding, a perfect size for the earpads, I can wear them all day and forget I even have them on. The sound quality isn't as crispy as the M50x but it's still vibrant, clear and punchy. More dynamic for sure, you don't want them for monitoring audio, they're designed to be FUN headphones, which works for me because I'm no audio engineer, I'm just some guy who likes listening to music while working on art commissions.

[@mediaikonz]

Sounds like they would be a standard like the SONY Mdr-7506. I've been an AKG fan until they discontinued my studio monitor headphones. I have some nice Bluetooth AKGs for travel, but I also like AT. I have a mini AT shotgun mic for streaming. Thought I might round it out with some of these.

[@GothamGohan]

Awesome video man, subscribed.

[@AustinDavisYT]

Thanks for the sub! Glad you enjoyed the video!

[@AB-fk4gw]

I bought these when youtubers were giving great reviews 8 years ago. They are no joke the best neutral headphones fucking ever and reliable as hell. Only today am I shopping to replace the cups. That's the only reason I came across this video

[@AustinDavisYT]

Hard to find products that match their price vs performance value these days

[@PixelPusher9000]

Just replaced mine with the Brainwavs lambskin cups. Highly recommend if you're still in the market

[@2koijmemeldaweed88]

J'ai un M50xBT2, je reconnais volontier qu'on peut trouver mieux en terme de qualité sonore dans cette gamme de prix mais, et tu le dit bien dans cette vidéo, avec ce casque on paye aussi une qualité de fabrication : c'est solide, robuste, on peut le maltraiter vraiment fort et il fonctionnera toujours. Pour un usage quotidien, dans les transports en communs, en voyage etc.. la solidité ça compte vraiment ! Je ne peux pas en dre autant pour d'autre marque (n'est ce pas Beyer ?)

[@AustinDavisYT]

I did my best to translate this but I apologize if i got anything wrong, I agree tho! The build quality is great on these things and a big reason why I love them. I haven't tried the BT versions but i've always been curious to see how they compare to the wired ones. The M50X's are HARD to beat so i'm sure the BT ones don't sound near as good.

[@mihaidamian3763]

These are comfortable headphones and sound good, however I would not associate them with build quality. The synthetic leather on the earpads and headband falls apart after a few years. While the earpads can be replaced, replacing the headband is difficult.

[@olbaze]

I looked into this before buying a pair, and there are several ways to deal with it. You can find bands that just go over the existing one and close with a zipper or velcro. I think the best one I found used a silicone material that actually looked very decent. There's also replacements for the band itself, where you cut out the old band and put in a replacement that closes with velcro From Audio-Technica themselves, your only option is a full headband replacement, which involves soldering the wires. I also saw a KZbin video of someone replacing the hinge mechanism, which again involves soldering, but the video was literally 2 minutes long.

[@gabrielgarciamarquez6431]

Amazing video and amazing content! very impressed. gained a new sub! thanks man

[@AustinDavisYT]

Thank you!! Glad you enjoyed and to have you as a new subscriber!

[@budthecyborg4575]

I still say the Sony MDR7506 are the best budget headphones ever made, call them tinny all you want the drivers are capable of reproducing 10hz, for $100 and with an EQ the MDR7506 cannot be beat. And I've been utterly abusing my set for an entire decade with zero sign of structural faults (constantly dropped during workouts, and yes the coiled cable can stretch across the room for workouts, just clamp the cable to your desk so it doesn't yank on your audio jack).

[@forrest___]

If I’m using this for a stream setup and I have a separate AT 2020 mic do I need a mixer or amp to go with it as well?

[@kareembigdream]

Had to sub nice video

[@AustinDavisYT]

Appreciate you!

[@fr3shm4n]

How is your channel not bigger?

[@AustinDavisYT]

Appreciate that! Hopefully I’ll get there. Just gotta keep going 🫡

[@StefanGenov7]

The best headphones for video editing

[@AustinDavisYT]

No doubt!

[@coldogno7]

can u compare with stax s3 planar headphone?

[@peter.palashev]

Hi can i connect my M50x with my laptop pc? And can i do it with cable?

[@AustinDavisYT]

Yes, as long as your laptop or pc has the appropriate 3.5mm headphone port you can plug these in no problem.

[@pro-villager5689]

someone told me m40x is a better deal than m50x .. is that true?

[@HozDHearts]

M40s are more neutral, better for monitoring, m50x have a little bit warmer audio with better bass, just as good for monitoring but better for listening to music for general public, they are still top for anything you throw at them though, I would go for the m50xs as I prefer consuming content rather than creating it.

[@AustinDavisYT]

I have only ever used the M50x’s so I don’t have an opinion but @HozDHearts came in clutch with the great info. 🙌🏼

[@hameleon80]

I had them for one day but back them because terrible bass booster

[@elliottsalt]

I own a pair of M50x, and tbh they are very overrated. the bass sounds a bit hollow and doesn't hit that hard. the mids/treble are also a bit wack for me. the comfort is meh because with the stock pads my ears touch the plastic. I swapped the pads for some perforated brainwavz ones, and then they just felt overly big and bulky on my head. they are very reliable and built like tanks, that's probably the only good thing I'd say about em. I much prefer my n700nc m2 (which are sadly now discontinued, although I got em for £50 barely used). it's no competition really, and the AKGs have the positive of being wireless (I use them to mix music and listen to music, and I trust them much more than the M50x). and while not having lots of low end extension, I honestly think koss' ksc75 is better for listening to music than the M50x (especially when you get yaxi pads+put them on a headband). both of em also don't suffer from the m50x's flaky headband issue as well, which is pretty nice :)

[@orlock20]

These are neutral headphones. Technically they are for mixing. The reason why the frequencies are bad is whatever you are listening to is poorly mixed. Since you don't like any of the frequencies, what you are listening to is probably overly compressed.

[@elliottsalt]

@@orlock20 actually no, neutral headphones don't sound bad. The sennheiser hd600 and hd650 (the hd6xx is just an hd650) are neutral headphones originally intended for studio use and are loved in the audiophile community, whereas the M50x are not. Plus, when looking at graphs the M50x don't measure as flat as the HD600 do (and on the two graphs of them that I looked at the M50x had pretty horrendous channel imbalance). I also know neutral isn't boring because I have speakers that I have EQd to be dead flat off of anechoic measurements, and they sound miles better than the M50x. The N700NC M2s I mentioned do have more subbass than the M50x (they are not bass canons though), but they are tuned smoother above 100hz. And don't have channel imbalance.

[@orlock20]

@@elliottsalt Those headphones cost 3 times as much as the M50X. At that price, they should be better.

[@elliottsalt]

@@orlock20 true, but just because something costs more doesn't mean it is better. There are a few examples in where expensive things are not worth buying or just plain bad. The KSC75 I mentioned, while not having much bass extension and being a different form factor, are still a headphone that cost 5*/4* less than the M50x yet have better channel matching between drivers and a smoother response than the M50x. I'd make a point that from 100hz and up the KSC75 graph better, and only get better when you put them on a headband+give them yaxi pads. from owning and using both for a long time I prefer the KSC75 (I say this as someone who *really* likes bass) My original point wasn't that you should buy the HD6x0 series over the M50x, they are 2 different headphones that do different things for different people. My point was that being neutral is not an excuse for being a bad headphone. If you want an alternative that's around the same price then I'd go for an AKG k361/k371 or the rode NTH-1 as they are just outright better.

[@Mope333]

@@elliottsaltSound ID with the M50x? , how that pair?

[@damiandice7324]

When im looking at the Peeling Problems of the Headband, these Headphones are totally trash in my opinion, and they still dont managed to get rid of the low quality headbands...

[@AustinDavisYT]

Yep the headband does peel over time. Still great headphones aside from that. The headband on mine didn't start peeling until years down the road too. Will have to agree to disagree here!

[@venkata7226]

My father bought these headphones in 2019 and have been using them every day for at least 2 hours. Several months ago, the earpads started to peel off, and the headband is slightly damaged. So five years ain't that bad for the money they cost. Keep in mind that Audio-Technica solds spare earcups. Even peeled off, they still sound amazing, and I am considering buying them again

[@imrickjames7012]

⁠@@venkata7226hey first thing I do with m50 is get velour pads they last pretty much forever and run less hot than whatever fake leather is used. I think there might be a silk type material headband wrap so it’s not a lot of friction and no peeling.

[@whitejodeci8926]

Mine haven't peeled....yet. have had them for 5 years now

[@neverendinchaos4800]

@@venkata7226 You can also buy headband covers for them too. I've replaced my earpads once and just have a headband cover on my pair nowadays. I've had mine for 6 years now. :)

[@WhatdaSigma05]

major flaws as with all the ATH, it's right between the screws, on top of your earmuffs.

[@sagi_tech_n_stuff]

They are BAD headphones! This review is not really a review. he just reads the marketing materials and quotes bad takes by tech reviewer. Sorry to say but Austin doesn't know what makes a good headphone. The sound signature is a bad implementation of a V SHAPE, not accurate in any way unlike what he said in the video. boomy bass unnatural midrange and harsh high end. They can be fine with EQ. Good headphones in this price rage will be k361 by AKG and FiiO FT-1.

[@AustinDavisYT]

Ok.

[@znoozaros]

You don't have any other headphone reviews and then you make a video claiming m50x to still be worth it ? There are so many better headphones for same/lower price. Fiio FT1 SLAYS these. m40x / k361 / nth100 are better budget picks

[@AustinDavisYT]

If you had to pick the best one out of those you listed, which would you pick?

[@znoozaros]

@AustinDavisYT fiio ft1 is the current budget king

[@AustinDavisYT]

I’ll look into them and see about trying them out for a video. Appreciate the suggestion!

[@pblogic007]

They were never worth it.....