Audio-Technica M30x Professional Studio Headphones for studio recording, creators, podcasts and everyday listening

Product Information

Audio Technica have put comfort at the forefront of the M-Series design and the ATH-M30x is no different. The ATH-M30X's closed-back design and effective sound isolation make it the perfect companion for noisy recording sessions where - for example - the drum tracks are being recorded in the same room. The headphones are steplessly adjustable, and the earcups are also generously padded and can be swivelled by 90°, allowing them to be set to any desired position. They are on the larger side of over-ear headphones but unlike the Audio-Technica ATH-M20x, they fold into a more compact format that will fit in a backpack or handbag but will be too large for most jacket pockets. It sounds less boxy than the ATH-M20X headphones, but it feels like it’s lacking a little bit in clarity.

I'm aware that many may scoff at the fact I picked up the M30X, but it was a distinct enough upgrade for the premium I was paying over M20X, and the M40X was just too far out of reach. It’s not too bad for casual listening at home either, so long as you’re game for the aforementioned long cable. Each "tink" of the cow-bells was very clear and distinctive, and the low vocals could be heard clearly enunciating "Bass Cannon".I’m a serial apartment drummer, having lived in apartments for the last 15 years or so and trying to keep up my drumming chops at the same time. Some distorted guitars in heavier music sounded a little harsh in the lower high end, probably due to that spike in the 6-8kHz range.

Lower bass notes have more thump, likely because those land in the parts of the frequency spectrum output with a subtle bump in decibels. The comfort level of the Audio-Technica ATH-M30x has been slightly improved from the Audio-Technica ATH-M20x model. Granted, everybody's ears and their sound preferences are slightly different, but to me, the M30x sound the best. The bass line still came through very clearly and every single element that built up to the climax could still come through clean.Maybe pricing in other countries makes that an easier option, but, here at least, it was too big a gap to cross.

With that said, the ATH-M30x doesn’t sound a lot different, though it places a little more emphasis around 2kHz, and some under-emphasis in the mids.Even though the highs are very clear, sibilance is not a problem (for those who do not know, it is the annoying hissiness of the “s” sounds). These headphones are additionally suitable for DJs and for use in noisy environments thanks to their good sound isolation. The ATH-M models also have relatively low impedance values, which means they can provide a reasonable level of volume even when used with mobile devices that perhaps lack the output power of a headphone amplifier or audio interface.