Audio-Technica ATH-M50x (2014) vs TaoTronics SoundSurge 85 (TT-BH085)

The Audio-Technica ATH M50x (2014) is a great Closed-Back Headphone for its $149 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 Closed-Back Headphone.

The Audio-Technica ATH M50x (2014) has done great in a couple of roundups conducted by highly trusted sources that perform objective in-depth testing, like Rtings, SoundGuys, and TechGearLab - it earned the "Best DJ Headphones" title from Rtings, "Best Style" from SoundGuys, and "Best Wired Model" from TechGearLab. Any product that's held in high regard by such reliable sources should be considered by anyone that's looking for a Closed-Back Headphone at this price point.

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.

When we thoroughly analyzed their review scores, we learned that all of the sources that tested both Closed-Back Headphones, including TrustedReviews, preferred the Audio-Technica ATH M50x (2014) over the TaoTronics SoundSurge 85 (TT-BH085).

We also took a look at which sources they managed to impress the most. The Audio-Technica ATH M50x (2014) was liked best by Pocket-lint, which gave it a score of 10, while the TaoTronics SoundSurge 85 (TT-BH085) got its highest, 7, score from TrustedReviews.

Lastly, we averaged out all of their review ratings and observed that the Audio-Technica ATH M50x (2014), with its 8.3 average, performed considerably better than most Closed-Back Headphones - the mean score for the product category being 7.4 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 M50x (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.