Audio-Technica ATH-M40x (2014) vs TaoTronics SoundSurge 85 (TT-BH085)

The Audio-Technica ATH-M40x (2014) is a great Over-Ear Headphone for its $99 asking price.

The TaoTronics SoundSurge 85 (TT-BH085), on the other hand, is not worth its $49 price tag and should be avoided by most people. We strongly suggest that you take a look at some better alternatives if you're considering spending around $50 on a Over-Ear Headphone.

The Audio-Technica ATH-M40x (2014) was loved by reviewers at SoundGuys, a highly trusted source that performs reliable in-depth testing. It did great in its "Best Audio-Technica headphones" roundup where it was named its "Best studio", which, in itself, makes it a product worth considering.

Taking a look at the TaoTronics SoundSurge 85 (TT-BH085), it got featured in roundups from two reliable sources that conduct their own testing - TrustedReviews and Wirecutter (NYTimes) - but it fell short of earning a top spot in either.

We couldn't find any sources that tested both of these Over-Ear Headphones, so we only analyzed how they performed in reviews from different sites.

We first examined which sources rated each of these best and found that the Audio-Technica ATH-M40x (2014) got its highest, 9, rating from SoundGuys, while the TaoTronics SoundSurge 85 (TT-BH085) earned its best, 7, score from TrustedReviews.

Lastly, we averaged out all of their review ratings and observed that the Audio-Technica ATH-M40x (2014), with its 7.6 average, performed considerably better than most Over-Ear Headphones - the mean score for the product category being 7.5 out of 10 - while the TaoTronics SoundSurge 85 (TT-BH085) managed an average of 7.0.

There's one caveat here - it might not be entirely justifiable to do a direct Audio-Technica ATH-M40x (2014) vs. TaoTronics SoundSurge 85 (TT-BH085) review average comparison since they aren't priced the same and more expensive products tend to get higher review scores from some sources.