These have fantastic sound quality, and although they are listed as monitoring headphones, I bring these everywhere I go and they're good for listening, mixing, recording; pretty much a universal headphone.
Even for long listening, the extra thick padding makes for a comfortable fit. The seal is great and no outside noise will bother you even at a low volume.
If my previous posts about Ableton have you curious about music production, a good pair of headphones is a necessity. No computer speakers will ever match the sound quality and often times there's things that speakers won't even catch. For example when I use a very deep kick the sound is very short and hardly interesting, but with the headphones its a clear, deep bassy tone which is exactly what I want.
MSRP puts these at $199 but once again, Guitar Center purchase, they had them for $160. These are a recommendation from me, however, headphones often are all about preference. Sometimes you don't know why you're drawn to a certain pair, but it all comes to personal choice and comfort. Audio Technica is a stellar brand, but make sure if you're going to spend the money, spend it on what you really want.
**Note: These pair, ATH-M50 have two versions, an "ATH-M50" and "ATH-M50s". The "s" in "M50s" denotes that that pair is a straight cable meaning the cable is not coiled.
