Audio-technica ATH-AD 500X vs 700X

[ganderthepanda]

What audible difference is there between these two headphones? is it worth the difference in price? Thinking of picking up a pair, Thanks

Prices ; (Amazon.co.uk)
AD500x - £120
AD700x - £160

If you have another suggestion please list it, budget is around £100, looking for good soundstage for fps games.

 

[RazerZ]

Others which owned both have agreed that for the average listener there is no major audible difference b/t the two and the price increase is not justified. for the most part.

They have been described as bass anemic which would be a turn off for most listeners. Generally open back headphones have a wide soundstage but will leak badly and do not isolate well either. Some open back headphones around 100 pounds which have more fullness/warmth to them and are very comfortable would include Sennheier HD 518/558, and Beyerdynamic DT 990 PRO 250 ohm. For closed back I would look into a pair of Brainwavz HM5 or Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro 80 ohm. The Beyerdynamic's might need an amp to bring them up to comfortable listening levels depending on your motherboard's audio chipset or will improve from an amp. If you're buying a pair of headphones you might as well find a pair which suites your music tastes as well. What genres do you listen to?

 

[sora]

I would personally just go for the AD700X!

 

[ganderthepanda]

Others which owned both have agreed that for the average listener there is no major audible difference b/t the two and the price increase is not justified. for the most part.

They have been described as bass anemic which would be a turn off for most listeners. Generally open back headphones have a wide soundstage but will leak badly and do not isolate well either. Some open back headphones around 100 pounds which have more fullness/warmth to them and are very comfortable would include Sennheier HD 518/558, and Beyerdynamic DT 990 PRO 250 ohm. For closed back I would look into a pair of Brainwavz HM5 or Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro 80 ohm. The Beyerdynamic's might need an amp to bring them up to comfortable listening levels depending on your motherboard's audio chipset or will improve from an amp. If you're buying a pair of headphones you might as well find a pair which suites your music tastes as well. What genres do you listen to?

I'm more of a 90% games 10% music type, so I'm really gunning for the sound stage, I'm not all that bothered about bass, most people are bass heads so I'm fine as long as there is just enough, which I'm guessing by "anemic" means normal bass levels for me.

Thanks for the reply.

 

[ssddx]

the ad500x is anemic on bass and while many might say it is bass-less this is not completely true. it has punchy mid-bass however it doesnt extend very far (which is why its called anemic and bass-less). this lack of low end bass however gives a distinct advantage in fps games since you can more easily hear footsteps. the ad500x (and upper level models) also have one of if not the widest soundstages for your budget.

its worth getting the ad900x over the 500x but not so much the 700x over the 500x. some people have even used the ad500x and bought the drivers for the ad2000/ad2000x and stuck them the ad500x frame for a cheap version of the top tier AT offers.

normal bass levels would be something like the hd598/558/518. the ad500x is a bit anemic on anything low end but still is tight and punchy on mid levels.

 

[ganderthepanda]

Hi again ssddx, I'm planning to pair a modmic with the headset, which will bring everything to £160 with the ad500x's which is literally my top dollar (or pound ^^), I'm still skeptical about that ebay offer as it does, as you say, sound too good to be true (haha just noticed that was a pun)

Thus I'm looking at amazon since I know I can trust them.

P.S. I may try that driver mod if I get the 500s, how much are the drivers usually?

 

[ssddx]

if the ad500x + modmic is as much as you can spend right now, then it would work for you provided of course you realize they do not hit low notes well. otherwise they are fantastic headphones for gaming. for a fairly low budget solution its nice.

i dont know much about modding them although i did read a little on it over at head fi. an example of one such thread http/www.head-fi.org/t/651490/complete-ad900-ad2000-driver-transplant-mod/15 in another thread i read something about someone getting them for $70 (not sure if that was each or for both). given that the ad2000x is a $500 headphone (msrp $900) i wouldnt expect the drivers to be dirt cheap. i suppose the reason people do it is to shave $200-300 off the top of the 2000x. just thought i'd mention this fact since i read it recently (not to get your hopes up).

i will say this however: uk prices are odd. the dt990pro250 is cheaper than the ad500x yet i would say is a better headphone. different sound signature though. the 990 is a bit recessed in mids however is capable of deep bass which makes it a bit more exciting sounding albeit it loses a bit of that bass-less footstep advantage the 500x has. you would need an amplifier with the 990 however its a stellar headphone. the 800 is the more neutral sounding model. just thought i'd throw that in there given that the 990 is 102gbp and the 500x is 120gbp.

 

[ganderthepanda]

think the 990 is better for gaming competitively?

 

[ssddx]

well, i would say the dt990 is going to be a bit more "exciting" sounding. you would however need an amplifier for it or at minimum a powerful soundcard like the Z. the ad500x is going to give you a little more advantage in fps since you can hear footsteps better (due to almost no low end bass) at the expense of being less "exciting".

your call, just figured i'd note it since i saw the prices were lower. (but remember you would need to factor in an amp which would likely raise your cost a bit over what you would pay for the 500x

 

[ganderthepanda]

well, i would say the dt990 is going to be a bit more "exciting" sounding. you would however need an amplifier for it or at minimum a powerful soundcard like the Z. the ad500x is going to give you a little more advantage in fps since you can hear footsteps better (due to almost no low end bass) at the expense of being less "exciting".

your call, just figured i'd note it since i saw the prices were lower. (but remember you would need to factor in an amp which would likely raise your cost a bit over what you would pay for the 500x

I'm starting to come around to the idea... just out of interest, do you see any other headphones that are cheaper than they should be? since I'm new to the headphone buying space

 

[ssddx]

not of the cans i normally recommend anyways. the dt990. in the usa the dt990 is about $200 and the hd598 is $150, in uk it comes out to $158(102gbp) and $233 (150gbp). the ad500x is $79 in the usa but $186 (120gbp) in uk. is the dt990 better than the others? while i'd call it better than the 500x (likely even with the 700x or 900x) all 3 headphones have different "types" of sound which makes it really hard to call one better than the others. they are all good cans for what they do.

 

[ganderthepanda]

not of the cans i normally recommend anyways. the dt990. in the usa the dt990 is about $200 and the hd598 is $150, in uk it comes out to $158(102gbp) and $233 (150gbp). the ad500x is $79 in the usa but $186 (120gbp) in uk. is the dt990 better than the others? while i'd call it better than the 500x (likely even with the 700x or 900x) all 3 headphones have different "types" of sound which makes it really hard to call one better than the others. they are all good cans for what they do.

"Types" care to expand? Please ^^

And any examples?

 

[ssddx]

basically what i meant by "types" of sound is how they portray sound.

for instance the ad500x feels more heavy in the mids and treble area due to having little low end. or you might say it sounds neutral but lacking in low end.

the hd598 feels more neutral across the board with no one frequency having more presence than the others. this gives you the most natural (as it was recorded) sound.

the dt990 has what is called a v-shaped sound profile. mids are slightly recessed with highs and lows given a more prominent place. this often gives sound more vibrancy and exciting quality to it however mids might seem a bit lacking for people who like mids.

a good way to explain it would be an equalizer. the ad500x would be akin to a flat cutoff with all low end dropping off. the hd598 would be more akin to flat and the dt990 would be more akin to a slight dip in mids with treble and bass boosted.

while this is not a 100% accurate representation (the audio is being played over your existing headphones or speakers) the following site which uses audio recorded from headphones playing music can give a rough idea how they compare http/www.sonicsense.com/resourcecenter/app/audio?load=featured&preset=over_ear_headphones&source=result&track=sennheiser_hd800 keep in mind that how low, how high and how clear they sound might vary from the recording due to the equipment you're listening on but its a good resource for getting an "idea" of how they relate to one another.

also, soundstaging is different. the ad series has a huge soundstage which means very accurate positional audio. the dt-990 is not quite as large but still significant. the hd598 somewhat behind that in the more average category. generally what people call a bigger soundstage is the feeling of being able to point out in virtual space where sounds are coming from. left, right, forward, back, up, down without having any virtual surround technologies active.

 

[ganderthepanda]

Great answer, this really helps to make sense, thanks

 

[ganderthepanda]

If there was something else worth saving up a bit more for what would you recommend?

 

[ssddx]

if you were going for the ad500x... it may be worth saving up for an ad900x or ad1000x as they are improved versions.

if you were liking the hd598 then there is the hd600 and hd650. they are a bit "slow" and more "mellow" than the hd598 which makes them easy listening but perhaps not ideal for all people.

as far as beyers are concerned, going premium is worthwhile only if you get 600ohm cans which do sound better than the 250 version if you have the cash and a decent amplifier.

generally this can be said: either people tend to like the dt990 or dislike it. those same people who dislike the dt990 tend to like the hd600/hd650 while those who like the dt990 tend to dislike the hd600/hd650. this is due to them being different in sound signature. the dt990 is more bright, energetic, and acute on audio while the hd600/hd650 are more mellow. the 990 for some can be fatiguing to listen to for long hours although others like it. the hd600/hd650 is easy listening for long periods of time however some might find them more boring or too slow to fit their preferences.

given how uk prices are high however, it would be a significant jump up from the level i discussed before which makes it questionable unless you wanted to invest significantly more into them. the $100-250 market (which includes the hd598, dt990, ad700x and similar) is the sweet spot between sound performance and value. the more expensive you go up the line the less performance gets added per additional cost.

something worth saving up for... perhaps http/www.amazon.com/STAX-SR-009-Electrostatic-Earspeakers-Japan/dp/B004W1S0BY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1437567075&sr=8-1&keywords=stax+headphone (i joke, although they are really good headphones)

 

[ganderthepanda]

if you were going for the ad500x... it may be worth saving up for an ad900x or ad1000x as they are improved versions.

if you were liking the hd598 then there is the hd600 and hd650. they are a bit "slow" and more "mellow" than the hd598 which makes them easy listening but perhaps not ideal for all people.

as far as beyers are concerned, going premium is worthwhile only if you get 600ohm cans which do sound better than the 250 version if you have the cash and a decent amplifier.

generally this can be said: either people tend to like the dt990 or dislike it. those same people who dislike the dt990 tend to like the hd600/hd650 while those who like the dt990 tend to dislike the hd600/hd650. this is due to them being different in sound signature. the dt990 is more bright, energetic, and acute on audio while the hd600/hd650 are more mellow. the 990 for some can be fatiguing to listen to for long hours although others like it. the hd600/hd650 is easy listening for long periods of time however some might find them more boring or too slow to fit their preferences.

given how uk prices are high however, it would be a significant jump up from the level i discussed before which makes it questionable unless you wanted to invest significantly more into them. the $100-250 market (which includes the hd598, dt990, ad700x and similar) is the sweet spot between sound performance and value. the more expensive you go up the line the less performance gets added per additional cost.

something worth saving up for... perhaps http/www.amazon.com/STAX-SR-009-Electrostatic-Earspeakers-Japan/dp/B004W1S0BY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1437567075&sr=8-1&keywords=stax+headphone (i joke, although they are really good headphones)

Here we go... Whats the difference between the 500x vs 900x ? Lol

 

[ssddx]

if i recall correctly a bit more improved quality to sound, a bit more bass and slightly less separation in audio as you go up the line. there isnt as much difference from 500x to 700x or 700x to 900x (there is some) although going 500x to 900x you might notice a more significant improvement.

the best value for budget (in the ad-series) would be the 500x however they are a bit overpriced in UK. hard to make the call between 500x and the dt990 though given the pricei difference (if buying an amplifier isnt a concern) but that depends on your preferences and your ears.

i would try to listen to all the headphones above locally if you can. we can describe them all you want however you will not really know what you like until you hear them.

 

[RazerZ]

Might also be worth looking into a pair of Planar magnetics if you're going to save up. Hifiman has some great stuff relatively cheap. They just came out with their HE 400S which goes for $300 USD, not sure of UK pricing. Compared to the other models around that price range such as the HE 400/400i they got rid of their odd screw-on connections and fit them with dual 3.5mm plugs, they have a more neutral sound signature which by your comments it seems you would like, and they are greatly improved in the comfort department with a weight of 350G and improved headband design compared to the bulkier HE 400. Reviews are just starting to come in and they seem to have a neutral sound signature. Full and lush mids, very detailed across the spectrum, and of course you get the fast planar bass with quality favored over quantity. Sound stage seems to be on par/ just above the DT 990 Pros.

That is just an overview of initial impressions from owners of the 400S, if you are serious on saving up for a pair I would wait till someone more reputable like Tyll from Inner Fidelity reviews them. His first impressions were great however,

http/www.innerfidelity.com/content/show-newport-2015-showstopper-hifiman-he-400s-low-cost-planar-magnetic-headphone#Gu71M8qlE0BBbd8K.97

I also agree that listening to them in person would be your best bet. If you join headfi they have local meets now and then, you might have one in your area.

 

[ganderthepanda]

Thanks for the input guys, I'll look into it.