Audio-Technica ATH-R70 X

Reference Headphones

Image Audio-Technica ATH-R70 X

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Latest User Reviews

2 years ago

I like it so much

It is so light weight such that I will never get uncomfortable even wearing it for the whole day and it also sounds incredibly wonderful as a reference headphone. It is also super enjoy to use it for movie and orchestra.

2 years ago

These are excellent headphones for working with music, you can hear all the nuances and the frequency response of these headphones is very smooth, there is a slight roll-off at high frequencies, but this is a small problem if you use several sound sources to work with sound. very comfortable headphones, it’s impossible to say anything bad about them

2 years ago

dissapointing

I've been working with HD600 for a couple of years now and wanted to try something new. these were extremely comfortable but I could not rely on them for critical monitoring because they have too much 3khz which made me doubt vocal levels. I returned them and went back to the HD600

2 years ago

Fragile, but stellar sound and comfort

I chose those headphones, as a pure audiophile, by reading and watching a lot of reviews. Notably, I saw that they are some the highest scoring headphones relative to their price in Crinacle's ranking. It seems clear that there is a consensus that those headphones have an incredible sound quality for their prices.

To be short, they completely met my expectations. I have a few comparison point of references of quality, the Beyerdynamic DT990 600ohms, the iBasso SR2, The Audio-technica AD500X and the AKG Q701 are the best ones I have I can compare to those R70X.

If they weren't so fragile(and leak so much sound too, although that's not something I would complain about because I understand it is a necessary caveat of the design for them to sound this good), I would listen to the R70X all the time. They are absolutely stellar.

The bass is strong, vibrating, breathtaking, a tad boosted but tastefully, not so much to ever be annoying and stomp over the rest of the frequencies.

Mids are on point, voices can be particularly beautiful, Sade's voice never sounded better to me than with those ... They do take a slight step back compared to the lower and high frequencies, but even on badly mixed hiphop that already has the voice behind the instrumental they are not muffled by them. They are not as forgiving as other headphones but still would quality them as forgiving, the precision, the fidelity they have in fact makes for an interesting listenning session finding issues that I couldn't notice much or at all on other headphones, like bad mixing, mastering, background noises, even grain.

The highs are also impressively good, way more appreciable than in the DT990 for instance.

The spatialization of course is grandiose, that open back design with the fidelity of te drives can hardly disappoint on that, although maybe the sound stage might disapoint at the first listen, it often feels closer than with other headphones probably because the driver is closer to the eardrum than on an AKG K7XX for instance, but the brain gets used to it and then the layering becomes in fact quite impressive. One of those headphones that convinces me brain burn-in is a big deal.

They do need an amp, that must be said, you can technically use and enjoy them from a phone, but you would need at least a somewhat powerful DAP to get it to the volumes where you will be having fun with music(and I don't listen that high, I let my xDuoo basic amp on the first power step and barely go above 2-3 o'clock on the knob with those. 12-1 o'clock on my Little Dot mk2, sometimes 3 o'clock), it's just "usable" if you need to a phone for instance.

So in conclusion they are totally worth the money imo, it's an hard competitor for this price, audio quality is crazy good, and they should be some of the most comfortable headphones for most(although I would rank the iBasso SR2 higher on this criteria) the only downside is the fragility of the frame, the plastic parts are quite thin, that sure is great for the weight and price I guess, but I personally wouldn't mind them if they weight more and using sturdier components. Fortunately Audio-Technica will sell you replacement parts if you contact them, and the repairs are usually easy, the design is well made for repairability.

I couldn't get parts where I live in Andorra someone from the community helped me and them to me, the audiophile community is awesome and you will probably find help if you need it!

3 years ago

Comfortable and Neutral

This headphone is very comfortable from the 3D wing system and its light weight. I'm able to wear these headphones for multiple hours with no fatigue. The sound signature is also neutral with a warm tilt for my ears. They also respond well to EQ if needed, though I prefer to keep them with no EQ for my purposes. The ear cups are also a bit shallow, though for my anatomy, it is fine.

3 years ago

Best headphone so far for gaming

I mainly use these for gaming but I also use them for everything. So easy to hear footsteps and gunfire in a game but during music listening it sounds very neutral but also not dead neutral. It has a bit of life in the sound. Would buy again. One thing, the cord is super long if you use at a computer like I do. I usually have to keep the cord on my desk or in my lap!

3 years ago

Loved it straight out of the box

Simply put, a must-own for any audiophile. Its sound signature was very intimate and neutral. Many have compared this to Sennheiser's HD6XX. But honestly, I never liked that model for the whole year I spent with it. It had weird clamping pressure points and was always uncomfortable when I'm wearing my glasses. Having to bear with the discomfort makes the flat sound signature seem even duller. This is where the R70x really shined.

While having a relatively high impedance, the R70x was surprisingly easy to drive and had a really pleasant and neutral sound right out of the box. It is literally weightless and doesn't even seem to push down my hair at all. Great music sessions can now last all day long thanks to its wonderful sound signature and creature comfort.

So my conclusion is, if you loved the sound of HD6XX, you are gonna fall in love with R70x with no problem at all. If you didn't enjoy the legendary 6XX just like I did, get the R70x and it should satisfy all your needs.

4 years ago

A Pretty Fantastic Experience

Been looking for more sound accurate headphones to get a better view of my mixes, and this one definitely is it.

On it's own does a pretty great job of keeping the EQ curve as flat as possible (even better paired with something like Sonarworks).

The bass response is the first thing is jumped out right at me, after using another pair of headphones for years, using this one was an eye opener, the lower frequencies are so much clearer and I was even able to hear lower ones than ever before.

The lack of need to adjust it thanks to the wind system makes it just great to wear with no hassle, also makes passing it to other people with differently shaped faces completely seem less, and it feels like there's nothing on top of your head either.

Nothing to say about the build quality, pretty impeccable to say the least, it's sturdy, made it fall a couple of times by mistake and there isn't even a single dent in it, the cable being detachable and replaceable is also great for long term use.

My only complaint would be a slight discomfort sometime if the ear pads aren't lined properly due to my big ears and glasses, it's just a matter of putting the cushions in the right place tho, so not a big complaint in any shape or form.

In conclusion, it's a great way to mix on headphone when you don't have an alternative to headphones, it's light, doesn't need adjustments, sounds great when listening to pretty much everything, really not much to say about it beside that.

4 years ago

Satisfied

I got this for music production and mixing a year ago and could not be happier. Very clear representation of lows mids and highs. The fact that it is open back headphones reduces sound pressure on your ears which is good to reduce ear fatigue.

4 years ago

Wanna hear your every mistake?

These headphones are great! but brutal... They'll make you hear everything.

If you're working on music and want a truly reliable pair of headphones that translates and catches everything? Get these.

If your in the market on the consumer side of things, I'd only recommend these if you're a jazz or classical fan. Genres which need some more impact are more fun on other headphones.

For my purposes, I'm really happy. Paired with a bit of Sonarworks correction EQ, these stand up even to Sennheiser 650's no problem.

Read all reviews >>

Technical Data

  • Manufactured by Audio-Technica
  • Released in 2015
  • Average price : $338
  • Circumaural
  • Open
  • 3D wing system
  • Cable routing on both sides
  • Breathable ear pads
  • Highly efficient magnets
  • 45 mm driver
  • Frequency range: 5 - 40000 Hz
  • Max. Input power: 1000 mW at 1 kHz
  • Impedance: 470 ohms
  • Sound pressure: 98 dB
  • Weight : 210g (without cable)
  • Colour: Black
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