Audio-Technica Ath-A900x Audiophile Closed-Back Dynamic Headphones (Discontinued By Manufacturer)

Audio-Technica ATH-A900X Audiophile Closed-Back Dynamic Headphones (Discontinued by Manufacturer)

• Audiophile -quality headphones with aluminum housing
• Closed-back Double Air Damping System for deep bass reproduction
• Large aperture 53 mm drivers for high-fidelity playback

Buy Now : Audio-Technica ATH-A900X Audiophile Closed-Back Dynamic Headphones (Discontinued by Manufacturer)

Brand : Audio-Technica
Category : Electronics,Headphones, Earbuds & Accessories,Headphones & Earbuds
Rating : 3.8
Review Count : 101
SalesRank : 0

Audio-Technica ATH-A900X Audiophile Closed-Back Dynamic Headphones (Discontinued by Manufacturer)

• A few words of warning upfront:THESE HEADPHONES ARE NOT PORTABLE. If you are looking to buy a high-quality closed back headphone for listening to music while commuting or just walking around, look elsewhere. The ATH-900x comes with a 9-foot cable that is neither detachable nor thin. Unless you\'re 7 feet tall, you\'ll have to wrap this chord quite a few times around your DAP+amp before sticking them in your pocket.THESE HEADPHONES ARE NOT ADJUSTABLE. This is a one-size-fits-all situation. Unlike most sensibly designed headbands that one could make wider/taller or tighter/smaller by moving the band up/down by a few notches, the ATH-900x have a wing-design. If a smaller or thinner sized head (like me,) these cans will slide down your ears 30 seconds after you put them on. However! This can be easily adjusted by affixing a rubberband between the two wings, thereby applying more pressure and pulling them together. With this slight modification, the A900xs fit me perfectly.THESE HEADPHONES HAVE A SLIGHT \"V-SHAPED\" SOUND. The mids here are better than those on most lower-tier models or a noise-canceling headphone like the ANC7b, but they often live in the shadow of the bass and treble without equalization. The sound is colored for more brightness and bass response than what was originally intended by the record you\'re listening to, but not egregiously so.So, if none of that scared you off, you will love these headphones. For the quality, they are very cheap. The sound, though V-shaped, is clear and powerful. I recommend driving them with an amp. Plugging them directly into a computer or DAP will resort in music riddled with digital distortion. At a lower-mid level impedance of 42 ohms, even something like a Fiio E6 should provide enough energy.Also let me say that these headphones have an awesome soundstage. I realize open-back designs have the edge on soundstage, but honestly these are very close to the Sennheiser HD600 in terms of their aural expansiveness.Buy these, you will like them. For a ridiculously low price like 160 dollars, you almost have to, being that these do well when compared to other headphones twice their price.
• Let me start this review by stating that I have bought roughly five different pairs of headphones in the last two years to replace my original ATH-AD700 headphones by Audio Technica. The AD700 were my first foray into \"good headphones\", and I haven\'t looked back since.In 2013, I began expanding my interest in audiophilia by buying the following cans:Audio Technica ATH-AD900XAudio Technica ATH-A900XSennheiser HD 598Philips X2/27 FidelioAdditionally, I bought Audio Technica\'s M50x for my significant other as a Christmas present.All five pairs could be described as smattered across \"mid-fi\". I don\'t have the funds to descend in buying headphones greater than $500 (\"hi-fi\"), and I\'m satisfied with remaining in \"Mid-Fi Purgatory\" for the time being.After two years of experimenting with my set up, I\'m convinced that the A900X are my best pair of headphones for numerous reasons.Build:The A900X were developed and made in Japan, and it shows in its solid construction. One of my favourite elements of the AD700 (made in Taiwan) was its sturdy build. The open aluminum honey comb cups, velour pads and the metal jack really blew me away when I first bought them in 2009. I\'d seen nothing like it before and I instantly fell in love.The A900X, being a closed headphone, is a little different. I\'d honestly argue that it manages to achieve an even higher quality than the AD700, which makes sense considering the ATH hierarchy. Solid closed black metal cups replace the open air grill of the AD series and feel fantastic. This along with the pleather ear pads, a braided cable, and the sturdy metal headphone jack make the A900X a joy to hold in your hand.Compared with its open brother, the AD-900X, there\'s no competition. The AD-900X is made in China, feels cheap and flimsy, and sports a nasty rubber cable and headphone jack. I don\'t know what possessed Audio Technica to outsource their labour to China for some of the mid-fi ATH-X models as it really sullies the brand. The HD 598 and the X2 are also all made in China, while the M50X are made in Taiwan. While they feel less cheap than the AD900X (especially the M50x), they lack a certain refinement that the A900X brings to the table.A downside of the A900X is that the cable is microphonic and hard wired. Your mileage may vary on this, but these elements don’t bother me at all. My A900X remain constantly plugged into my desktop amp, and the microphonics are a small price to pay for the handsome braided cable.Comfort:This is where things get sticky for the ATH-X series. I found that my ATH-700 fit me perfectly out of the box. Before buying I\'d heard that the 3D Wing system was hit or miss depending on the person. I was glad that the AD700 felt like I was wearing a sofa cushions on my head, with no pressure or excess clamping. Very comfortable and I was able to wear them for hours on end.When I opened up my A900X, it was sadly a different story. The bottom line is that the 3D Wing system is a lot weaker in these newer models, and the A900X is a much heavier headphone generally. The end result is that if you don\'t have a large head, these headphones will slide down your head and onto your ears. This unfortunately requires user modification to rectify.The most popular modification to achieve comfort is the rubber band mod. This involves stringing an elastic band through the hinges of the 3D wings and joining them across the top of your head. I was semi-satisfied with this method for about two years using the A900X. However around a month ago, the rubber band began making my head sore and inducing incredibly intense headaches that ruined my whole day. Given how much I love these headphones, this was very upsetting and I desperately sought another modification to alter the fit again.I had seen the headband bending technique before, but had dismissed it out of hand due to not wanting to \"damage\" my A900X. I was now at the point of possibly begrudgingly selling the A900X, and was ready to try anything. I can confirm that slowly bending the headband worked WONDERS, and the A900X now fit me as well as my old AD700 did. I can wear them for hours on end and feel extremely relaxed and comfortable. It\'s bizarre that mutilating a part of the headphones achieves this perfect fit, but I\'m not going to complain about it. I only wish I had tried it soon. I missed the airy feeling of having a pair of Audio Technica\'s floating on my head unrestrained.Out of the box, both the HD 598 and the X2 are a little more comfortable than the A900X with the headband bending modification. The M50x are a little less comfortable than the modded A900X. It seems fit isn\'t the Audio Technica\'s strongest suit. The HD 598, in particular, is astoundingly light and has practically no clamping pressure. If the HD 598 had the sound of the A900X, they would be my perfect headphones. As it is, let\'s move onto what the A900X excels at.Sound:The meat and potatoes of this review. Forgive me if I muddle some audio terminology here and there, but I\'ll try my best to describe what makes the A900X such an amazing sounding piece of kit. For reference, my source is Schiit\'s Magni (amp) and Modi (DAC) plugged directly into my desktop PC via a powered USB hub.The first thing to note about the A900X is that they are very mid-centric, with slightly exaggerated highs and lows. If you\'re used to the more laid back sound of the HD 598 or the warm and \"fun\" X2, the A900X may be a bit too upfront for you. Being that my entry to the world of headphones was with Audio Technica, I honestly adore their house sound.As with all models of ATH, the A900X has magnificent sparkling treble, and really shines with female vocals. I listen to a huge amount of Trip-Hop, which features breathy female singers, and the A900X really brings me into the room with them.While the ATH-A900X and AD900X share these qualities, the A900X has the added advantage of having amazing bass. Going from an open headphone to the A900X may be jarring at first, and I\'ve seen the A900X\'s bass described as \"boomy\". I find this to be a knee jerk response, and urge you to stick with the A900X. The more you listen, the more you realise that the slightly exaggerated bass really works with the sparkling treble and up-front mids to create a most engaging signature sound. And if you\'ve listened to sets of really bloated closed cans, you know that the A900X is FAR from boomy. Returning to the AD900X after listening to the A900X makes the AD900X sound thin and reedy. It will completely ruin the AD900X for you, to be honest.The sound stage of the A900X is very impressive for a closed headphone. While it\'s a little more intimate than the AD900X, I think it retains a lot of the incredible imaging and separation. This could possibly be attributed to the angled drivers, but I\'m not sure. Either way, it\'s very spacious and accurate.If you listen to a lot of electronic, hip hop, and Trip-Hop, the A900X is a requirement. It takes these genres and does beautiful work with them. I also consider it to be a very competent all-rounder and some lighter genres (classical, jazz) sound very good.So, how does the rest of my collection compare to the A900X sound-wise? Well, the Sennheiser HD 598 holds its own by providing a more neutral take on tracks and excelling at classical music, but it lacks a lot of attack and impact due to the bass roll off for other genres. Both the X2 and M50x have a quite V shaped sound that some people enjoy, but I find overbearing. The X2 neuters the mids and vocals to a degree that a lot of high quality music sounds badly mastered. On top of this, its elevated treble does not sound natural and makes a lot of instruments sound very artificial. The M50x suffers from this as well, and also has genuinely boomy overbearing bass that destroys mid clarity. To be fair to the M50x, a lot of this is probably a compromise to be more portable and cost $60 less at RRP. The X2 at $300 has no such excuses and really only has a nice construction going for it.Conclusion:If you couldn\'t tell already, I adore these headphones. I originally wanted to stick with an open set of cans when I upgraded from AD700, but the A900X suckered me in thoroughly. With appropriate modifications, it\'s a headphone that I can listen to for hours and hours and become utterly absorbed in the music. It\'s taken me two years to find my \"perfect\" headphones, but I think I\'ve managed it. I plan on returning my X2 and selling my AD900X \'phones as soon as I\'m able. I will probably keep the HD 598 as a backup or a more neutral option if the mood takes me.Highly recommended.

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