This was my first pair of open back planar headphones..I had always used Beyerdynamic in my studio, but for crazy low price of these their flagships at $600 I thought why not ..they're big but well made, and very comfortable on my head..and the sound is fantastic..lots of definition and the frequency response is well balanced..they don't sound "plasticy" like some do?if you're looking for this style of headphone..get em..and look really nice on my walnut HP stand?

This monster met all my expectations for wonderful sound.

Great value for what they are. My only frame of reference is against Focals which do sound better to me, but are more than double the price. A little EQ goes a long way, but wouldn't hesitate to recommend them.

They're heavy and big. If you have a small head or ears these cans might not be the ones for you. If you have a melon head like me then it's not a deterrent. Great sound quality. Full spectrum, good dynamics and relatively wide sound stage, though not as great as much higher price headphones. At this price point it's hard to beat these.

Great sound and comfortable very well priced

Very good sound and response for the price range. The bass may be a bit heavy, and the highs aren't perfectly balanced, but that's to be expected for the price. With how much more pricey a set with say 5% better quality becomes these are a great option. Unless you're financially prosperous or your buisiness relies on the quality of your cans, I'd definitely recommend.

I'm not going to tell you about these headphones as a veteran of "audiophile" headphones and gear, because I'm not. I'm sure a portion of you (just like I was before this purchase) are also not going to be super experienced and know exactly what you are looking for in a headphone, which is why I (as someone newer to all this) am here to help. For reference, my past headphones were (in order from first to most recent) - Steelseries Siberia V3 --> Audio-Technica ATH-M50X --> Monoprice Monolith M1570. To begin, these headphones are absolutely the best sounding headphones I've ever had, and you can tell without a doubt the difference in quality when comparing the prices of the headphones mentioned above. If you are: 1. looking to get into higher quality headphones, 2. Don't want to absolutely break your bank but still want the quality of headphones that do, and 3., want exciting sound (compared to a very neutral sounding headphone), then these are the cans for you.

SOUND - The bass in the M1570's are absolutely stellar, and when I was originally looking at open back headphones to purchase, this was a huge concern for me, as the majority of music I listen to is EDM. The first time I put the M1570's on (using a Mayflower O2 DAC/Amp) it was like wearing glasses for the first time. This is genuinely the only thing I can compare it to. My jaw physically dropped from the sound quality compared to the cheaper ($150 or below) headphones I was used to. I was finally introduced to REAL sound stage, and vocals are never squished together with audio or drowned out. Each sound is powerful but at the same time you can distinguish every single little thing from each other. Very subtle sounds I would normally never hear because of the louder audio drowning it is able to be not only heard but has me wonder "how I never heard this tiny little thing until now?" I am not an expert in headphones, but I do know that this is worth every single penny that I paid for it. I would not be surprised if (not knowing the price) someone put these on my head and told me these were $1000 headphones. I know difference prices doesn't always indicate the difference in quality, but I cannot stress enough how good the quality is for the price. If you have never ventured into headphones of this price range, and are ACTIVELY considering this as your first pair of higher quality headphones, without a doubt in my mind I promise these are the ones. Please do yourself a favor and experience putting on glasses for the first time like I did.

(Side note with weight concerns - I wear these for 8-12 hours a day and have 0 fatigue, even after a month of constant use. For me personally. Other people think it's too heavy, but as someone who wears headphones a lot, I don't even notice they are on my head.)

Sound Demos
https://youtu.be/yljH8j4Ji_U?t=314
https://youtu.be/1kup8efewac?t=280
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEtmaw4Npt4
https://youtu.be/IlHTsCx913c?t=229 (VOCALS)

This is my first set of planar headphones (actually, they are my 16 yo's xmas present). They offer amazing sound which is airy, full bodied, and detailed. They are heavy and you have to be a bit careful of moving your head too quickly when wearing them. They are very comfortable, though, despite the size and weight. I have some problems with the connector jack pulling out when I move around too much. I have purchased an adapter to try to minimize this small issue. I may buy the closed back version when they go on sale at some point.

Take this with a grain of salt, while I?ve been listening to music for 35+ years (49 now), I?m not a music reviewer as I lack the vocabulary. I just know what sounds good to me. I wish I had two identical headphone amps so I could more easily do A-B testing. Right now I have a SMSL SU-9 and SP200 setup using J-River as my player. No EQ for this comparison, but I do recommend EQ because some headphones like the Audeze LCD-X sound bizarre without the proper Audeze provided EQ profile. I do use the Hart Audio Cables system of interchangeable headphone cables and connectors so that all my headphones can be wired and played back in balanced mode. Yes, the m1570 and m1570c need a specialty mini-XLR wiring because it is non-standard from my Audeze headphones.

The m1060c open back sound a bit hollow as compared to the m1570 and m1570c. The 1570's have an additional layer of air and a smoother presentation. I like the 1060c modified for open back, they are big name headphone killers for the price, but there is a definite level of refinement when stepping up to the 1570's. On Donald Fagen's "Morph the Cat" there is a lot of low bass with the bass guitar pretty high in the mix. The m1570's not only hit lower, they are significantly more controlled. "Into the Space Age" by the English band Amplifier is another bass heavy rock song where the controlled bass from the 1570's not only feels more robust, but also considerably more textured and detailed.

When the music is less complex on songs like Sting's "Shape of My Heart", the m1060's handle themselves rather well. The sound is intimate and direct. You can tell the acoustic guitar has nylon strings, but the notes decay fairly quickly. With the 1570's the nylon strings are much more profound, partly due to better refinement but also due to the much wider soundstage. You can really hear the width and depth of the room.

Vocals is another area that the m1570's are outstanding. One of my favorite vocalists is Annek Van Giersbergen (ex- The Gathering) because she has such an amazingly nuanced and powerful voice. On the Devin Townsend track "Hyperdrive!" you have Hevy Devy's trademark wall-off-sound. Here is a major difference between the m1060 and m1570, the ability to resolve details during complex passages. On the m1060's the vocals feel burried and almost over powered by the music. On the m1570's her vocals stand out and the wall-of-sound feels as wide as the Grand Canyon. Sonically night and day difference.

The 1060's are definitely brighter with the m1570's being a considerably darker by comparison. But don't think the m1570's as dark, just nowhere near as bright as the m1060. The soundstage on both isn't all that wide, definitely wider on the m1570's, but not as wide as the LCD-X or even the LCD-XC. Still, if you are stepping up from consumer grade headphones or near audiophile grade headphones like Beats or Bose, these will be a major revelation that will happily force you to relisten to all your music all over again. For example, Devo?s 1980 hit ?Whip It? has a lot more bass than you?d remember.

The amount of bass is pretty much on par with the Audeze LCD-XC and better than the LCD-X. Now the sound refinement of the Audeze is definitely a step above the Monoprice 1570's respectively. But I'd have a hard time saying that the sound refinement is worth the 3-4x price difference. Also, this assessment is made on the Sale Price for the m1570?s. At full price, the recommendation is still to get the m1570 if you can afford the double price over the m1060, but at the sale price, it?s a no brainer.

Keep in mind, these are weighty headphones (see chart below). The headband on the m1570?s is based on the Focal headphone band and is an ultra significant step up from the m1060 headband which is amazingly flimsy. I?m also weird, the weight of the Audeze and 1570?s don?t bother me. Even after 6+ hours.

Listening preference:
1.Monoprice m1570 & m1570c
2.Fostex T50rp (personally modified)
3.Audeze LCD-X (equalized with Reveal plugin)
4.Audeze LCD-XC (equalized with Reveal plugin)
5.Audeze EL-8c
6.HiFiman HE-560
7.Beyerdynamic DT199x Pro

Headphone weight:
?25.5oz - Audeze LCD-XC
?25.1oz - Monoprice m1570c
?24.1oz - Monoprice m1570
?21.9oz - Audeze LCD-X
?21.30z - Monoprice m1060c - open back
?19.2oz - Audeze EL-8c
?13.9oz - Fostex T50rp

They are heavy but so are the Audeze offerings that these clearly are targeting.

I love the Audeze LCD 4 but these actually do somethings better such as vocals and provide quick and impactful bass that is very satisfying.

Why did I wait so long ?

I'm kinda cheap lol