Audio-Technica ATH-WS1100iS Solid Bass Over-Ear Headphones with in-Line Microphone & Control, Black

So, this is my 3 day review of the AT-WS1100is from a complete headphone noob. Up until this point, my highest quality pair of headphones was my stock apple earbuds. But, 99% of my music listening/gaming/movie watching over the last 6 years though have been through a “gaming” headset and I decided I wanted to see what a real set of headphones was like. I’ll go into detail below, but overall my impressions are WHY have I been letting my ears wither away inside those gaming headsets. I am using the headphones paired with a V-MODA BoomPro and using my Realtek ALC1150 onboard audio or my a iPhone 8 with the adapter, no AMP/DAC's here.(iPhone can get louder, but I feel like the onboard has cleaner sound) Some of the songs I listened to over the past few days to compare: Outro - M83, Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen, The Funeral - Band of Horses, Creep - Radiohead, Shelter - Porter Robinson & Madeon, Lucid Dreams - Juice Wrld, Rich and Sad - Post Malone, Take me Home, Country Roads (original) - John Denver, Sea of Voices - Madeon, and bunch of other edm/hip hop/lofi. Sound I really don’t know anything about sound profiles, balance, how bass or treble should sound. But what I will say is these headphones sound miles ahead of anything else I’ve listened to music with. There is bass, but like have others said it’s not over powering. You feel it there, and it's nice. Mainly, the thing I notice the most is that instead of just hearing “sound” now I hear each individual instrument and voice in their own place within the song if that makes sense. Like if I close my eyes and listen, I can say ok so the drums are over there, the guitar is here, the piano is there, etc.. also, each is their own individual sound that makes up a song, instead of it just being one big cluster of sounds. And they are all so clean and... crisp I guess would be the word? For instance now hearing a snare has such a nice “SNAP” to it, like I can feel it almost. I can hear things I never have before, like little inflections in a singers voice, or a slight breathe before a verse, the sound of their lips opening to sing. It’s feels like I’m in the same room as the person signing now instead of just hearing a mush sounds together to make a song. Maybe I’m just trying to harder to listen now, so sorry if I'm not making sense. Sound is hard to describe :). Switching between my old headset and the WS1100is is immediately 100% noticeable. I was worried that I may not be into music enough to appreciate the difference but boy was I wrong. It’s as if I’m listening to the music through some cotton balls in my ears or something now when comparing the headset to the headpones. Overall, coming from someone who is a COMPLETE noob, they sound great listening to music. I also game heavily, and so far all from above applies with game sounds. There is a bit less of a difference here because when playing a game I’m never really focusing on how a sound sounds, more so where it comes from. But when switching between the headphones and the headset, again everything is just so crispy. Comfort I have a pretty large head. I don't wear snapbacks because I'm usually down to the last snap or two. But these don't seem to give me much pain. The first day I felt a little on the top of my head and by the ears after ~3 hours, but the second and third day I didn't notice any discomfort at all. The pads feel very soft and the whole thing is pretty light. Much lighter than my old headset. I was also worried about how hot my ears would get and if i would have to buy different pads. So far, it has been fine, no profuse ear sweating or anything. I'm usually taking them off fairly often to talk to my parents/go to the bathroom or something so getting a little air probably helps. So overall, again I'm a headphone noob but no comfort complaints here. Style Probably the least important thing to me, but personally I love the way they look. I've always been a fan of brushed aluminum. I was unsure about that brownish purple mixed with the gold, but I really like it. No complaints here either, but it's really all opinion. From here down are some other concerns I had when buying my first pair of headphones. I figured I would throw it here in case anyone making their first purchase finds this post. Sound Leakage and BoomPro So, if you are like me one of the main thing driving you towards these headphones is one of a popular Youtuber's reviews and the fact that these have a 3.5mm jack for the BoomPro. I was very worried that sound would leak into the microphone since I am literally in discord 90% of the time I am online. Well, first thing I did was turn off all windows enhancements on the BoomPro and head into discord and blasted some music louder than I ever listen. I changed the discord sensitivity to pick up my voice when talking, and none of my music leaks through. My friends in the server confirmed it. The sound leak from the headphones is noticeable for sure if you are sitting next to someone when playing at a decent volume. But I highly doubt anyone is going to hear it through a wall or door or anything like that. I originally was looking into the M40x, but not being compatible with the BoomPro without modding steered me away a little. I thought I really wanted closed back for that isolation, but I'm kind of happy I didn't get them. I didn't account for how strange it is to not really hear yourself talk. The WS1100is are semi open, so it's only kind of muffled and it threw me off pretty hard. I don't think I'd love closed back too much for that. Sure I can't use them as loud as I'd want as a car passenger now, but that situation rarely arises for me. Amp This one I really asked around a lot about. The Youtuber's review said the WS1100is are kind of hard to drive, so that threw me off. You can't run an amp for the headphones and run the BoomPro back to your motherboard because it makes a bunch of buzzing from a ground loop. So I wanted to be sure I didn't need an amp. After some confidence from poking around online I picked them up. As you can see from my description I think they sound great, I could see them being a tiny bit louder on the PC but I don't listen that high anyways. As far as I can tell there is no loss of sound quality or anything. Especially for games. TLDR: Compared to gaming headsets they sound great, feel good, look good. No complaints and totally worth $120.

I've had these for several months, and let me tell you, they will do whatever you need them to do and then some. I'm gonna be comparing these to the Sennheiser HD 650s a lot since that was another pair of headphones in the same class that I had a lot of access to. Sound quality: 5/5 I consider myself an audiophile, and I have another pair of headphones that I always considered pretty good but not audiophile grade. Upon wearing these, I was able to hear the differences that audiophiles always listen for: there's no drowning out of mids, no muddiness, no distortion at high volumes, no overpowering bass (but very present bass, more on that soon), and no tinny or sharp highs (unless at SUPER high volumes, more on that soon). Let's talk about the sound. These are bass headphones, yet the bass isn't this overpowering noise you get with a lot of other bass headphones. Instead, you get a really immersive kind of bass that puts your head in the music you're listening to. Whether it's a phone or laptop, the sound is amazing, though an amp will always benefit you. This review is assuming you don't have an amp, and are just getting into the audiophile experience. These headphones have a very wide frequency response range, and the subsonic sound present in many music files adds to the rumble of the bass. Take Lemon by N.E.R.D. and Rihanna. That song already sounds pretty good. But throw on these headphones, and you actually hear BOTH walking bass lines instead of just the main one. It adds much more forward momentum to the song. The bass doesn't overpower the sound however. The mids and highs are also quite clear. I compared these headphones to a friend's Sennheiser HD 650s (another wonderful pair of headphones I might add), and genuinely preferred the sound of these headphones. The ATH-WS1100is is like the Sennheiser HD 650 plus bass. You're able to listen to and enjoy pretty much any genre of music without issue (whether you're into classical, rock, metal, EDM, trap, house, twerk, etc; every single song I've listened to has been a treat). The highs are very tasteful (an issue with several other pairs of headphones I've tried), but can become a bit sharp when listening at super high volumes. You shouldn't be listening at super high volumes for extended periods of time in the first place, but of course some of you may want to know that. The Sennheiser HD 650s are slightly better for classical music in my opinion (since they remain a bit more true to the experience of being in the actual hall) but the difference is slight. You can still pick out all the instruments clearly, and even when turning up bass in an equalizer like Peace, orchestral pieces and symphonies are still as if you're actually THERE. Another part of sound that is important is open vs closed. These headphones say they're "semi-closed" or "semi-open" but they're basically open. This has its advantages and disadvantages. Advantages are improved sound quality, significant sound stage, and, in my opinion, improved integrity of music overall. The disadvantage that you run into with open headphones is the fact that noise isolation basically doesn't exist. You can definitely hear your surroundings about as well as when you don't have the headphones on. However, the sound leakage (i.e. how much other people hear your music) is surprisingly low. I had several other people wear the headphones and listen to music at varying volumes to see how well I could hear it in different environments. In dead quiet libraries, you barely hear the percussion at moderate volumes (25/100 on my laptop, Bluetooth Headphone 1 setting in Peace Equalizer), barely hear the bass and lower frequencies at 40/100, and start to hear the music in totality at about 55/100, still at low volume. You only start to go "bro I can hear your music" at 70/100, but that's unbearably loud already. When compared to the Sennheiser HD 650s, which are fully open, you hear much more music much more quickly, and hit the "bro" point at about 55/100. In noisy environments, both headphones are fine in that no one is going to be disturbed by your music anyway, so listen as loud as you want. Noise isolation is a minor factor when listening, unless listening to quiet tracks. Generally, you can drown out your environment no matter how loud it is when playing music by just turning up the volume, but if you're listening to the beginning of Rite of Spring, you'll be able to hear the environment no matter what the volume. This would be my only point of contention, though I'm not personally perturbed. Comfort: 4.9/5 You can wear these all day, day in day out, weeks at a time. I'm currently a med student getting ready to sit for BOARDS. The comfort is absolutely crucial. I only got fatigued from wearing them when I had them on, sitting and walking (and accidentally sleeping) for 30 hours straight, took them off for an hour, put them back on for another day with no issue. The ear pads are an interesting design that I had actually been worried about at first (coming from always wearing the Brainwavz custom ear pads with other headphones). However, putting them on, I've actually come to prefer these. The layer that touches your head is the soft layer, and is incredibly plush while not cramping on your ears at all (these ear cups are pretty large as well, so my ears have all the room they need). The layer that contacts the ear cups is a bit harder (altho not hard), and so provides stability on your head. The clamping force is good. Tight enough to keep the headphones secure on your head, but not so tight as to exhaust your jaw. They're not heavy either, and I never get the feeling that the top of my head is being weighed on (however I'll admit that my hair is dense, and possibly helps cushion the headphones, altho the headband on these cans is plush with a strong core). The build quality is superb as well and I foresee these headphones lasting a very long time (since it's been three and a half months and they're still like new). Literally the only reason this isn't a 5/5 is because the Sennheiser HD 650s have ALL these comfort pluses, in addition to their ear pads, which are literally pillows on your head. The Sennheiser HD 650s are also a bit lighter on the head, and are so comfortable and natural feeling that you actually do forget you're wearing them (that's not an exaggeration, even though I bet it sounds like one). Finally, your ears may slightly heat up with the ATH-WS1100is, but not a lot (and it never bothered me unless I was in a hot environment), whereas my ears never heated up with the Senneiser HD 650s. Both headphones are top tier comfortable, but I concede the comfort category to the Sennheisers. Miscellaneous This price is VERY incredible for what you're getting. These headphones could be 500 dollars and it would still be a phenomenal deal. Best uses: listening to things in depth and deconstructing music, studying, any genre of music (especially because the headphones are very responsive to equalizers and amps), gameplay (PC games have very good direction and sound output/localization through these headphones and I was able to get slightly better performance out of these headphones than the IdeaUSA V201s both noise cancelling off and on). Pros: pretty much all of the above: sound quality is audiophile quality, bass doesn't overpower but it's deep and immersive with incredible rumbling and head thump, comfort is top notch Cons: noise isolation is nonexistant, ears slightly heat up if you're already warm, bass doesn't overpower/drown out (if you prefer that kind of bass then these won't do that even with equalizers) I would for certain recommend these to my friends, I already have UPDATE: It's been 2 years, still rocking STRONG with these headphones. This coronavirus pandemic has had me listening to music pretty much constantly and day in day out I'm not getting any listening fatigue, they're still comfortable, the original earpads have held up very well (but I've also been taking care of them and only wear them when studying, probably contributing to the lack of wear and tear. I do use the original travel pouch and have them in my bookbag all the time as well). The ear heating up issue I had 2 years ago hasn't really been a bother since, so likely I just got used to the headphones. They still continue to wow me with their quality of sound. Looking into getting amps, so will update this review with that as well. Absolutely still a 5/5 pair of headphones, would STILL buy, and would STILL recommend to friends (still do whenever relevant).

I bought these headphones to replace my soon to be extinct Vmoda M100's. I had absolutely loved my Vmodas, but they were rather uncomfortable to wear for long periods of time due to the design and shallow depth of the earpads (even with XL cushions). I went after these headphones in particular because I remember having good memories on the ATH-M50s but wanted a bit more bass. That's where these WS1100i headphones came into play. These headphones offer ton of room and definitely sit OVER the ear. This makes them pretty comfy even for stock ear cushions. The cushions are stellar in fact. Rigid to hold the driver off from your ear but light and springy to not cause pressure/soreness. Sound Quality: With the included cable, you wont be getting the full performance. In all honesty, it sounded a bit tin-y and weak with the in-line mic one. However, using a straight 3.5mm cable or an amp if you have one, these things are amazing! They seriously feel like you're wearing open back headphones, but you get nice isolation of as expected with a sealed back. Quick note as well. Anyone that is planning to use a mod-mic for gaming. You can use 3rd party mics no problem with the jack on this headset. Sound is pretty good coming directly from a PS4 controller and I was surprised how well 3D soundscapes were coming through. Only gripe is that due to the headphone design you have limited movement of the mic.

I hesitate to give any audio device 5 Stars these days because in addition to fast approaching the Big Six-Oh, with its attendant reduction in hearing fidelity, I also have nerve damage in one ear that’s resulted in some hearing loss and permanent tinnitus, so I can’t exactly critique these cans from an “audiophile” perspective - LOL! - but hey, as far as I’m concerned these are a 5 Star product, so let me explain. I’m coming to these from a pair of Philips SHP9500S’; I enjoyed the soundstage from the “open” design, and the sound itself, but found them incredibly uncomfortable to wear. The ear pads are shallow and very dense, there’s no “give” in them; my ears were being pressed against the inside of the cans. I also wear glasses and the pressure on the arms from the cups resulted in a vice-like grip on my head; after wearing them for about 20 minutes I developed a thumping headache. If I adjusted the cans to take the pressure off my ears and glasses they were so loose they felt as if they were flopping around on my head, which is not a good feeling; I briefly considered the “ear cup mod” which many people have had great success with, but couldn’t be bothered in the end. So here I am with the ATH-WE1100iS Solid Bass cans; my initial impression was that in their presentation and finish at least these are superior to the Philips in every way, the whole look and feel of the packaging says that this is a “Premium” product. There’s a large, soft, vinyl drawstring bag in the box, along with two straight cables; a 3ft cable with an inline mic and right angle connector to your equipment, and what looks to be a 9ft cable without a mic, which is the one I’m using. Putting them on confirmed my first impressions; the cups are large and deep, although not as physically large as the Philips, with a dual-layer memory foam construction that doesn’t crush my glasses against the sides of my head, I’ve worn them for hours at a time with absolutely no discomfort. One thing I will say is that these are a “Semi-open” design by virtue of the bass vents on each earpiece, so there is some “leakage” of sound into them and out of them, although it’s not serious like on a fully open design such as the Philips. But these are headphones, so the sound is the most important thing here - right?! - and for me they don’t disappoint. I wouldn’t say I’m a “bass head,” but I do enjoy hearing the bass in my music, and to that end the following were my immediate go-to tracks to see if the “Solid Bass” name tag was more than just marketing BS. JS Bach’s “Toccata & Fugue in D Minor” played by Daniel Chorzempa in 1982; sadly out of print as far as I know. Ray Barbee’s “The Mingle” from “ Ray Barbee Meets The Mattson 2 " Dave Brubeck’s “Take Five” from “ Time Out " John Campbell’s “Firin’ Line” from “ Howlin' Mercy " The Comsat Angels’ “The Cutting Edge” from “ Chasing Shadows " The English Chamber Orchestra’s 1971 recording of Handel’s “Water Music” conducted by Raymond Leppard, also out of print. Goldfrapp’s “Ooh La La” from “ Supernature " Iona’s “Wisdom” from “ Journey Into the Morn " Pink Floyd’s “Money” from “ Dark Side Of The Moon " - of course! – and the pulsing machine ambience and bass line from “ Wish You Were Here's " “Welcome to the Machine.” Chris Rea’s “The Road to Hell Part II” from " The Road to Hell " Obviously these aren’t neutral, they’re tuned for bass after all, and I think Audio-Technica have done a terrific job; the bass is there in abundance, but it’s tight and articulate, not a booooming, bloated mess that overwhelms everything else you’re trying to listen to, something that seems to be acceptable in “bass” cans these days. A couple of the above sample tracks stood out immediately, namely Bach’s “Toccata & Fugue” and Brubecks “Take Five;” I’ve heard full-size systems struggle to control the lower frequencies on both of these tracks, with the upright bass on “Take Five” seeming to be a particular challenge to reproduce accurately. Joanne Hogg’s delicate vocals on Iona’s “Wisdom” are clearly separated from the synth bass chords, kick drum, and bass line present throughout the track. And most surprisingly, the lower register strings and wind instruments on Handel’s “Water Music” impart a pleasing “fullness” and “warmth” to the overall sound without feeling “amplified” or forced. Everything I’ve listened to so far has been a joy, including an electronic music genre known as “Dark Ambient,” which is practically built on visceral, growling, deep bass drones and textures, as well as the classic “Berlin School” sound as exemplified by ‘70’s era Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze etc, and the more recent Modular Moog driven albums of Red Shift. Taking the articulate and refined sound, build quality, comfort, and current price of $129.00 together, these cans are an easy 5 Star purchase in my opinion; anyone considering the Philips really should check these out, although not as “open” as the Philips due to the “Semi-open” design, I would say these are sonically superior in every other respect. FYI: I listen via an Origen+ DAC on my desktop, and a Sony NW-A45 DAP when on the go; the Sony drives these cans without any problem, and all music on my desktop and the Sony are stored as FLAC files.

I should probably start by saying I am not an audiophile but appreciate a quality sound and own a couple dozen pair's of headphones. The majority are a good deal more expensive then these. I also own a few decent amps and dacs as well so I do have a few different configs I try headphones on. With that out of the way I will move on to the important stuff starting with comfort. COMFORT This is something I thought would have been great when I took these out of the box. They weigh almost nothing and the pads looked very nice. Considering a popular reviewer on youtube praised these for comfort and labeled them one of the best gaming headseats I was shocked to find how uncomfortable they got after an hour of use. The clamp is very tight surpassing the hd600's and the padding on the headband is very stiff and only a small part of it actually touches your head. After an hour I found myself needing to take them off to rub around my ears and cool down. They are very stuffy which isn't something unique to these but could have been less if the clamp wasn't so tight. I also noticed after about an hour the ear pad would seem to compress more and allow the aluminium grill from the drivers to touch my ears adding further discomfort. I'm sure over use the clamp force will decrease partly solving some of those issues but what I really find unpleasant is the sound from the ear pads when you talk or chew. They have that grocery bag sound when compressed so if you happen to be chewing gum while listening to music or playing a game it sounds like someone is playing with a grocery bag next to your head. It is not loud like some other cheaper pads I have come across but it does get annoying so a pad swap may be in order. BUILD QUALITY I am kind of mixed on this subject. I think they look gorgeous but I also think they feel cheap. It could just be a result of how light they are compared to everything else I own but I do think some of it comes down to the type of plastic used. If you own any beyerdynamics or sennheisers you know plastic can still feel durable and of good quality. These do not have that same kind of feeling to them. It doesn't feel like it will break anytime soon but it does feel noticeably cheaper and possibly more brittle then what is used in those others I mentioned. With that said they did a wonderful job with the details. The finish was perfect and the aluminium looks great. The pads and headband are well done and fitted perfectly. They even put a little pad on each of the ear cups to prevent the arms from marking up the cup if they touch. Small details like that are greatly appreciated and something you don't even see on more expensive headphones at times. Even though I am not a fan of some of the materials everything is put together perfectly and despite being made in China it appears great care was taken in the assembly process. Despite my feeling about materials I can't fairly say it will have longevity issues and as of now can only say the build quality is good. SOUND This is the part me 3 star rating comes in. I do not seem to be hearing what many others are hearing or I am being a little harder on these then others are. I purchased these when they sold at $129 and even judging these against other headphones in that price range I am still finding it hard to understand the 5 star ratings. On my phone they sound absolutely horrible. Extremely sibilant and cold with weak thin bass. Detail was extremely lacking and separation was very poor. I am still using an old nexus 5x that has terrible audio and no power but things like the beyerdynamic dt880 and dt990 at 250ohm sound fine despite a lower volume. Things like a jbl s700/s500/slate perform great on that phone but these get very loud but clearly lacking the power they need. Once I tried a couple of my solid states or a tube these performed much better. The bass became very pronounced with all amp/dac combos I tried. Overall experience became much better but the limitations became much easier to notice. The bass can hit with thunderous authority when properly powered but it isn't all that textured and relatively slow when compared to the headphones I mentioned earlier. With that said there are some low frequencies it does extremely well and it seems to compliment rock very well. The bass from Renegades of Funk sounds incredible on these. It's hip hop that I find these tripping up with in the lowend at times. It also freaks out with Kanye West's Power. It almost leaves the song completely bassless and does the same with Stronger and a bunch of other songs from that genre. I wish I could say the mids did better but I have a similar feeling about them. Vocals are very dry sounding and almost scratchy in some cases. It's a strange experience since the bass makes it seem like it should be a warm sounding pair of headphones but the rest of the frequency range is dry and cold. Some vocals have a slight sibilance to them. It's not always sibilant but you can tell even when they aren't they are right at the edge. It's not painful like what you get from the dt990's without an eq but it's very similar in occurrence. The difference is the detail isn't there that the dt990's/dt880's have. I know it's a bad comparison since those are open but even the ignored and lowly thought of jbl s700/s500/slates have more detail and air in vocals. At the end of this I will bring up those jbl's again but I want to touch on the highs real quick. Just like the mids they are dry sounding and almost scratchy. Snares can pierce at times and highs are just overall slightly elevated. These seem like they are trying to be an analytical V shaped headphone. The problem I find with these trying to be the V shaped analytical headphone is it makes it very easy to notice what sounds are getting lost. The soundstage isn't the greatest and at times seems even smaller than the completely closed jbl's and instruments sound all bunched together with some stuff getting lost in the process. This isn't always a problem but when listening to things like Rage Against the Machine some of the music is completely lost. When things get heavy you lose a lot of detail from the bass and it blends in with the guitar making everything sound congested. When things are a bit slower that problem doesn't seem to be there. Things can sound great and very enjoyable in those more relaxed cases. GAMING This is the category where a certain reviewer praised them but even here I feel there are better options around the price of these. Despite that these are great for gaming. These seem to be very good for positional audio. It is very easy to hear a footstep or gunshot and know almost exactly where the enemy is. What impressed me the most was the front and back positioning. A lot of headphones seem to slip up a bit here but these make it very easy to distinguish the two. A lot of headphones leave me spinning at times in pubg trying to figure out whether the shot was from the front or back but these have never let me down and allowed me to react quickly with confidence. The sound quality in games is amazing as well. Footsteps, gunshots, and explosions all come across clearly and accurate with pinpoint precision. There sound is great for gaming and only a couple of my headphones compete. My problem is the comfort for gaming. These things get hot and after a game or two of pubg they start to get annoying to wear. It's not terrible but not as nice as my normal gaming headphones like the he 400i's or dt 990's. The comfort is the only thing that prevents me from replacing one of those for gaming. CONCLUSION If you are somehow still reading this or just skipped here I will try to sum things up. Comfort is ok but not ideal for extended use. Detail can be good but falls flat when a lot is going on and things tend to sound bunched together at times completely losing instruments. Laid back songs sound incredible on these and a good tube will get rid of some of the dryness of the mids and highs but never get the lost detail back. These are one of those headphones where some songs sound great and make you love them but others sound terrible and make you wonder what the thought process was originally pricing these above $200. These headphones definitely have a place in my collection and I actually recommend them to people who don't own a bunch of other nice headphones. I know I probably made them sound terrible but they are not. They can be a very enjoyable listen. They are just an obvious step down from most of the other well known headphones in the music category. They do surpass most in gaming and at $129 it is hard to argue against them outside of comfort for that use case. If not for the jbl s700/s500/slate I would have given these 4 stars but I paid $30-$50 for each of those on clearance and they do a lot of what these do minus the dryness and loss of detail. The bass is even faster on those an vocals are silky smooth but soundstage is smaller and positional audio is not as good. They are more enjoyable for music which is why I am slightly disappointed in these. If you are buying your first $100+ headphones for only music there are many better options but if you are buying something for gaming and listening to music these are a great buy at sub $150. At $200 or above I would pass or if you looked at these thinking they are a hidden gem at a great discount but own other well known headphones I would pass as well. There just isn't anything special here outside of the looks.

Audio Technica has hit some home runs with their headphones, as well as some misses. The original ATH-M50, the newer ATH-M50x, the ATH-M40x, and the first generation of the ATH-PRO700 SV DJ headphones were all amazing examples, many of which I still own and regularly use. The only 2 "misses" (in my opinion) were the ATH-MSR7's due to their insane clamping force, and the second generation ATH-PRO 700 Mk2 headphones, also for the same basic reason. It's a shame too, because I thought the MSR7's had a beautiful, detailed sound, and the 700 Mk2's were absolutely amazing for bass. Since there are not too many reviews of these new WS1100 headphones out there, I took a (slight) chance and ordered them, hoping they would capture everything I love about Audio Technica headphones, without any, or too many, negatives. The good news? These are definitely another home run for Audio Technica. Starting with the packaging, there are certainly plenty of diagrams, exploded views of speaker/speaker housings, and lots of good reading about the specifics of this headset. The headphones are snugly placed in a cloth-covered holder of sorts, and in the box you'll also find the standard warranty/information paperwork, a carrying pouch, and 1 cable. The cable seems well made, and terminates in standard headphone jacks on each end (L-shaped plug on the end going into your media player), meaning if you really don't like it, it will be extremely easy to swap out. There is a single button remote/mic on the cable, and it too seems very well made. As for the carrying pouch, if you're familiar with the ones that come with ATH-M50x models, it's very similar, just slightly larger. The size increase is necessary because these headphones only fold flat, they do not actually collapse. The build quality on the WS1100is is very, very nice. The actual ear cups housing the speakers are made out of aluminum, and have a really cool sort of machined finish. There are vents surrounding the middle AT logo (which I also believe is aluminum), and there are also vents located on the underside of each ear cup. Metal is also present in the headband sliders, which are solid and lock nicely into place. All of the plastic that is used feels durable and well made- my M50's and M50x's are primarily all plastic, and they have held up over the years remarkably well. The padding used on the ear cups is pretty ridiculous, and I mean that in the best way possible. Audio Technica claims to have used a soft outer padding, with a harder inner padding. Whatever the deal is, they are super soft, and very roomy. The headband is also nicely padded, and doesn't wrinkle in the middle like my M50's do when I'm wearing them. Basically, I expect these headphones to last a very long time, due to how well they're put together. Now onto comfort, the only area I have ever been able to fault certain AT models. I was worried that this set would see the return of the headache inducing MSR7 clamp, something that was so severe (to me), that I ended up returning them. From the first time I put these on, to now, many days and hours later, I can happily say that the clamping force on these is very mild. It's hard for me to wear a pair, and then quickly throw on another, and try to remember which set clamps more. That being said, these feel pretty much like the ATH-M50x's in terms of how they grip your head. However, because of the insane amount of padding on the earpads, these are immediately more comfortable, and also much easier to wear for long periods of time. I suppose if you thought they clamped too tight you could try stretching them out, but I really don't think it's necessary. I have a really large noggin (size 7 3/4 to 8 in fitted caps), and these feel great to wear. I have had headphones that I tried to ignore the brutal discomfort *cough* PRO700mk2 *cough* but in the end I realized, if something is painful to wear, it sadly doesn't matter how good it sounds. Thankfully, these are comfortable in pretty much every aspect: ear pads are soft, large openings, headband is padded, and the pressure holding them on is minimal. Sound quality...where to begin? While I waited on my pair to arrive, I must've scoured the internet for every forum post, blog review, youtube video, basically any information I could get on these headphones. Reading and watching everything left me with mixed ideas of just how these were going to sound. I guess I'll come right out and say what everyone wants to know: these are not the most insane, over the top, bass monster headphones I have ever heard. For example, I think the VModa Crossfade LP (not the M100) ARE insane and over the top, but they also sound like (to my ears) listening to everything underwater. The Sony MDR-1a's have the ability to be over the top with the bass, but seem just a little bit muddy and sloppy. They also cost more than these, so keep that in mind. Having owned the MDR-1a's for about half a year now, I always loved the "Wow" factor of the bass, but kept returning to my M50x's for the detail and clarity. That's were the WS1100is come in. Take the overall sound of the M50, considerably widen the soundstage, make the bass hit cleaner and harder, pump up some of the sub bass, and (what I thought was most surprising) add in some of the awesome detail from the MSR7. What I'm trying to say is, these cans sound really, really good, and I think putting a giant "SOLID BASS" logo on the box might actually turn some people away who would otherwise really like the sound. That's not totally to say that the bass on these can't approach godlike quality or quantity- the 53mm drivers are extremely easy to power, and they do pound with authority. If I had to rate the overall sensation of how hard they actually "hit", like with a tight kick drum, I'd give them a 10 out of 10. The all encompassing sensation of sub bass, that fills the ear cups and pushes against your eardrums, is literally one teensy, tiny, notch below the MDR-1a. Remember though, these are cheaper, and none of the other frequencies suffer for the bass hitting like 2 12's in the trunk. If the song has a generous helping of sub bass, or just bass in general, these will blast it out, yet you'll still be able to hear everything else in MSR7-style quality. Playing something that doesn't have very much bass, like older Modest Mouse or Grateful Dead recordings? Don't worry, it will sound amazing on these headphones, without any added crazy bass. These headphones I think are audiophile headphones disguised as bass head cans... I primarily listen to hip hop, everything from early 90's west coast underground like Freestyle Fellowship, to modern "popular" rappers like A$AP Rocky and SchoolBoy Q. Hip hop and rap sounds brilliant on the headphones (as well as bass centric electronic music), but so does metal, rock, and even more mellow stuff like Johnny Cash. Hell, I recently bought that Dion track "The Wanderer", and it sounds fantastic on these. The bass is present, powerful, but never interferes with the rest of the sound (something I think happens a lot on my MDR-1a's). Mids let vocals and guitars shine in a way that really reminds me of the MSR7, something I wasn't expecting with these headphones. The highs are nicely defined, and aren't so over-emphasized that they start sounding harsh or shrill. I always thought the soundstage of the M50 was decent, but these definitely sound more spacious and open, probably due to all of the vents on the ear cups. These are the perfect headphones to find a really good record, or even a lossless audio file on your computer, and just zone out hearing all of the details in the music. Like I mentioned earlier, the marketing of these solely on their bass capabilities might be selling them short. They are easily the most comfortable closed back headphones I own. Best soundstage, too. Heck, the overall blend of lows/mids/highs along with the general sense of extreme detail and clarity pretty much make me want to use these, nothing else, and just forget about the rest. Still, a couple cautions to those who have stuck with me through this long review (or perhaps skipped to the end); these are not totally closed back, meaning you can hear things a little bit better than you would with perhaps a set of ATH-M50s. Will this affect performance in an airplane? I haven't had the chance to try, but my guess is yes. Do I still love them enough to want to travel with them? Yes. Also, if bass, and bass alone is what you seek, even if it means potentially sacrificing clarity or the other frequencies, then you may want to keep looking. From personal experience, the VModa Crossfade LP's and LP2's both have skull shaking bass (with the LP2's being just a bit clearer). Still, I plugged my LP2's into my Xbox controller the other day, and was amazed at how congested and dark everything sounded- I had been switching between my MDR-1a's and M50x's when I played for the majority of this year, and both units are brighter and less "underwater"-ish as the VModas. The MDR-1a's also have the ability to pummel you with bass, but they typically cost more than the WS1100is, and I personally don't think they match the detail of even the M50's. In the end, maybe instead of just "Solid Bass", these should be marketed as "Generally Great at Everything". Ok, that probably isn't what marketing would come up with, but you get the idea. To sum everything up, these are a ridiculously comfortable set of closed back headphones, that excel in playing pretty much whatever you throw at them. Oh, and the bass somehow has this magical ability to pound your eardrums when needed, and yet keep it calm enough to enjoy more vocal/acoustic themed music like old Johnny Cash recordings I mentioned earlier. Seriously, if you're debating about ordering these, DO IT. You will be happy you did.

I've been using the MSR7s for about a year now. I really enjoy them but started looking for something a little more well-rounded and relaxed. I shopped through Sennheiser, Sony, Monoprice, B&O, and a few other brands. None of them felt like a good addition to my MSR7s and were more of a downgrade even though most headphones were more expensive. Then, I figured since I like my MSR7s so much, why don't I look into another pair of ATs? I wanted something that still has incredible detail but was warmer and had more bass. The WS1100iS accomplish that and then some. Build: The WS1100iS are sturdy but are built with cheaper materials than the MSR7s. The plastics feel cheap, the leatherette feels cheap, the cord material feels cheap. The only thing that feels good is the metal portion of the adjustable headband. That being said, the headphones are gorgeous and feel like a tank. I would have no issue folding the cups flat and throwing them in a backpack. Even though the cable feels cheap, I think actual cable is of good quality on the inside; I haven't noticed any interference from the mic and the headphones sound great from any source. The build of the WS1100iS is different from the MSR7. The WS1100iS uses cheap materials but feels sturdy, whereas the MSR7 uses gorgeous materials but it very creaky. Even the carrying pouch of the WS1100iS uses a cheaper leatherette material. Comfort: The ear pads on this headphone is interesting. They're the opposite of plush. They're actually very stiff and deep. The circumference is huge, I'd say on par with certain high-end open back headphones. These should fit over anyone's ears quite easily. The clamping force is significant but not uncomfortable because of the large ear cups. I think the clamping force was adjusted to provide the proper seal and to allow for "portable" use while walking around; however, I don't think these are good for portable use and I'll get into that in the sound section. The headband is well cushioned, it's wider than the MSR7's, and distributes the weight relatively well over the top of my head. I find these headphones to be more comfortable than the MSR7. Sound: The sound of these is why I'm shocked you don't hear much about these headphones. Since I've gotten them, I can't put them down. They take what the MSR7 does well and combines it with a beautiful bass that's punchy and crisp. From my perspective, the WS1100iS have the perfect treble for comfortable listening. The clarity of the treble is on par with the MSR7, yet the WS1100iS never gets close to sibilant. The MSR7 is slightly more detailed but also starts scratching the surface of sibilance in certain genres. The mids is where the 2 headphones separate. The WS1100iS mids are rolled back slightly behind the bass. The frequency separation is fantastic though and the clarity remains great. That being said, the WS1100iS is not good for piano. The rolled back mids make piano seem veiled. Aside from piano, all other genres are fantastic. With the MSR7, the mids are presented forward which makes them AMAZING for piano and classical; the detail and clarity is simply unmatched with the treble and mids of the MSR7. Lastly, the bass is perfect in the WS1100iS. It's slightly boosted from neutral, but that's what makes the sound so unique and pleasant. It's not the boomy and rattling bass that Sony likes to have or the muddy, rumbly bass that so many other consumer headphones use. The bass in the WS1100iS is very much audiophile quality. It's CLEAN, strong, with great extension into sub-bass. I've had a dozen headphones in the past, ranging over $500 and the WS1100iS provide the most pleasant listening experience to any of them... for under $150! Overall, the sound is smooth with fantastic detail, clarity, separation, and articulation. What surprised me most was the imaging and soundstage. In terms of soundstage and imaging, these headphone sound similar to expensive, open-back cans. It blows my mind! There are ports on the back of the ear cups that pass a lot of sound. This is why I don't think these are good for portable use. If I sit at my desk with the headphones on and nothing playing, I can hear my desk clock ticking pretty clearly. That's how "open" they are. But that's a huge plus for me because these headphones create the intimacy of a closed back headphone while having the sound stage of an open back. I think the big 53mm angled drivers contribute to the great imaging; it's like being surrounded by your own private band. Combine the soundstage, imaging, and the amazing sound, I would be happy paying over $300 for these. Yes, I think they're that good, but sound is subjective. Overall, I'd say these are perfect for any genre except for classical music that has piano. If you wanna listen to a violin concerto, these will reproduce the music amazingly well, on the other hand, a piano concerto will leave you unsatisfied. The interesting thing is that I find the WS1100iS and the MSR7 to compliment each other very well, which is why I decided to keep them both. Now the WS1100iS gets the majority of the use because the music just puts a smile on my face, but when I want just that ultimate detail and articulation, I reach for my MSR7. Summary: You need to try these! They are inexpensive and punch way above their price range. These are designed with the audiophile in mind. These don't have skull cracking bass or ear piercing treble. What these do well is having incredible frequency separation while having enough treble and mids to create a blissfully smooth and clear listening experience.

This, this is the specimen of the decline of the Japanese industrial might.... Looks very good on the outside, but as soon as you put it on your head you start to notice the problems immediately: The hinge seen on the photo with the crack under it is crooks when you put the headphones on your head, due to the tension in the hinge (and due to the piss-poor engineering of the hinge), which then leads to all sorts of creeks and pops whenever there is the slightest change of net force on the headphones. What I mean by that: turn your head to the side - "pop", lean back - "creak" , look down - "creak " again. And these are VERY LOUD and after some time EXTREMELY ANNOYING noises. This hinge also feels sticky when you turn it. This can be made significantly better by taking the hinge apart and adding some PTFE lube. However, some PTFE lube will not fix the abhorrent structural design of the headphones, which will eventually lead to catastrophic material fatigue. As others have mentioned already, AFTER ABOUT 1 YEAR OF USAGE A THE HEADBAND SNAPS RIGHT UNDER THE HINGE (see photo). Now, when it comes to repairing these headphones, they are absolutely disposable. While I was taking it apart I almost threw up by what I saw: half of the headphones is held together by double-sided tape. You also have to cut open the padding and the fake leather in order to disassemble the headphones, so forget putting them back together right now. When it comes to the sound of these headphones, they sound like crap as they come out of the box. HOWEVER, the drivers are very capable, and after applying a heavy EQ correction to approximate the Harman target, the headphones sound amazing. Although, you have to be lucky enough to obtain the frequency-response measurement of the headphones and then now what to do with them... The comfort of these headphones is rather poor. After a couple of hours of usage, the rather under-padded headband starts to hurt your head. So just to summarize: Pros: 1. These headphones lead to personal development - at least I learned how to 3D print because this sh1t broke... 2. It is fancy. Cons: 1. Your average 40 buck "gamer" headphones sound better out of the box than these. 2. Outrageously bad engineering. It creaks, pops, bends abnormally, and then after some time it finally cracks... 3. Poor comfort. 4. Very poor customer service by Audio Technica; when I told them about the issues of my headphones, they rather chose to arrogantly defend this piece of junk than giving me instructions on how to fix them (which later turned out to be simply impossible)

I've been trying almost every model in the $300 model range - to try flat studio type monitor headphones, that had a bit of kick to the bass, without pushing the vocals to the back. The best for bass and overall quality is the V-modas - great value for your money - extremely well built, long cords, or short, and a hard cover carry case. Excellent value. Only problem for me - the bass overpowers the vocals to the back - sometimes bleeding into it. Still, it was the best overall. Tried Technica mx50 - really, really good - especially when hooked up to an amp desktop. Almost perfect. However, they slid around a lot on head, AND when hooked up to a portable amp not as good as before. Also didn't like they had a propierty cable ANSWER - tried not the most popular version - of the WS100is - amazing. Great Bass - Great Vocals - lightweight - and cups are super comfortable. Only drawback - no hard case protector, only one cable - short. But you can sub cable with a normal one you have. Easily the best headphones under $250 if you want some great bass without overpowering the vocals or your head!

قمت بشراء هذه السماعة من الامزون الامريكي سابقاً, صوتها ممتاز جداً واضح ونقي ولايسبب الماً في الاذن حتى عند الاستماع لمدة طويلة وبصوت مرتفع. للإسف طلبت سماعتين منها من الامزون السعودي واستغرق الامر شهران وبعد ذلك فشل التوصيل.

I cant fault these headsets... 1. Crystal clear with any source I've tried 2. Awesome Bass, especially when used with amp 3. Very comfortable 4. Well built/quality product finish... 5. VERY affordable for what you get... I can't recommend these enough... honestly, just "quality" all around.. FYI: I use with my main PC and my android phone.

These are powerfull and aggressive and I love them. First of all they are clearly meant to be portable. They are super light and comfortable, they come with only one cable with in-line microphone and a call/play/pause button, the sound is punchy and exciting which is good for noisy environments. However - these are the size of a studio monitoring headphone and are not exactly compact as they don't fold (the cups turn 90° flat and that's it). They are not hard to drive, most phones should power them just fine, but they can handle up to a full watt of power. And oh boy when you feed them power... They will rattle your soul. I'm using them on the go with a Little Bear B4 hybrid tube amp and it just brings the best out of them. So about the sound... These have very crisp, detailed and slightly elevated highs. That actually bothers me a little so I'm using the EQ on the picture. As you can see it's a very minimal tweak so it may not bother you at all, it could be just my ears. The mids are very neutral and theres not mutch to say about them. They are just there and they are accurate. Vocals apear slightly pushed back. The bass... It says Solid Bass on the box, and they deliver if the seal is right. With the stock pads I didn't get that "solid bass". They are not memory foam and the opening is pretty large and they are relatively thin so the result wasn't really worth of a "solid bass" label on the box. So currently I'm using them with a pair of Brainwavz angled pleather (I've tried the flat pleathers but they make the mids a bit muffled). With them these are bass monsters and the sound stage get slightly more airy as a bonus. But the bass is not just muddy booming mess. It's tight, quick and puchy and doesn't colour the mids at all. Sound stage is typical for a good closed back e.g. not very wide but definitely exists. Imaging is absolutely perfect. So overall these are a great headphone if you like aggressive and punchy sound. Great for on the go if the fact that they don't fold is not an issue. They also give you more if you feed them more power and also benefit from tubes so they are fit for audio enthusiasts. And last but not least - they look gorgeous.

Amazing pair of headphones, don't let the tag line bass heavy fool you, this is not meant to be a head numbing bass headphone. These headphones have a more clean and crisp sounding bass and it took me by surprise as I was expecting a strong overpowering slightly muddy bass. The only slight problem I have is with the cable, it's too short for my liking but I can easily buy a good braided 3.5mm cable so it's not much of a problem. This headset works really well for gaming as well, it works with the vmoda boom pro as and has a pretty good soundstage, Imo this is one of the best headsets I have ever owned and would highly recommend to anyone looking for a good headphone to invest in