Master & Dynamic MH40 Over-Ear Headphones with Wire - Noise Isolating with Mic Recording Studio Headphones with Superior Sound

After using earbuds and in-ear monitors for far too long, I'm finally returning to over-ear headphones. I'm not a huge fan of active noise cancelling headphones (though they have their uses). And I wanted something strong and long-lasting.These Master + Dynamic seem beautifully designed, well thought out, and sturdily built of mostly metal and covered with real leather. The sound quality is fantastic, listening to my favorite music with these after so many years with in-ear buds/monitors is - as the cliche goes - like listening to it for the first time. Be aware though, if you are listening to compressed audio files through a streaming device, cellphone, or other low-quality source, all of the audio defects of the files & cheap device DAC will be pretty obvious. Blaming these headphones for poor quality source material is just blaming the messenger (and likely the cause of 99% of reviews that dislike the audio). Seek out better quality source material and you'll hear the difference. These are wonderful, comfortable, and sound fantastic.Some things I'd change/improve... the adjustment posts seem to slide a bit too easily and don't have a way to "lock" the setting, I'm frequently adjusting the fit as they tend to slide after a while. Also, the leather on the earpads seems extremely thin and delicate. I'm a bit concerned about the durability here, and some reviews bear that out. It seems they may have addressed the earpad build quality, and I think I saw some alcantara replacement pads that “might” hold up a bit better, but for now all is well. Thinking about getting some replacement earpads to have on hand just in case, along with an M+D lightning cable but as of now M+D seem to be out of stock for those items.These are great headphones, designed with an attention to quality and detail that is hard to find these days. I admire the brand for their sense of design and social commitments. I look forward to using these headphones for a good long time.UPDATE 2024Ok, I know that everyone uses wireless headphones these days but I need to mention something about these wired M+D headphones. After several years of use I can say they are still excellent and have held up well. The most ANNOYING thing about these are the cable. The wire is coated in a textured fabric and it transmits an incredibly irritating dragging noise into the headphones if it moves even slightly against your clothing. Slight movements of my head or shoulder cause an abrasive scuff sound into the earpiece. It's annoying enough that I've thrown them off and gone back to Shure monitors. The hole on the headphone earpiece is very small and standard aftermarket headphones have barrels that are too large to fully insert. This is a shame because I need to use wired headphones with my musical instruments (can't use bluetooth due to latency) and the cable-drag noise is unbearable.

Now I will say that both headphones sound great for different purposes. I compared the headphones with music preloaded and played from TIDAL using Master quality tracks.The Sonys have deeper bass that is really powerful but almost clouds the mids a fair amount and the highs are a bit sharp and harsh when the headphones are on and plugged in. (With Rap and hip hop they sound really great, beating the MH40 with ease!)The MH40 has bass that is really cool but weird, it feels as if the bass is playing near your ear and you hear it but it feels separate which is really nice for music with vocals. When listening to Hello by Adele, the MH40 really shines the vocals are not destroyed by the bass and I can hear the background vocals in a relaxed and natural yet prominent way, it feels as if the mids and high are neutral. When Adele sings the focus feels very neutral and warm.The MH40 wired has very very very nice highs! When Adele in Hello hits her high notes, I hear Adele actually singingI can hear her voice not the treble aspect of the headphones.The Sonys feel artificial in the highs in Adele's Hello but not too bad. I found a natural reaction by me when Adele hit her highs, I began clapping as if she was in person with the MH40 not with the XM4. When the Sonys are turned off yet still plugged in, they sound a lot better and relaxed and almost match the MH40 in every way except the highs. I'm no audiophile, but I can gather when I listened for hours focusing on the music.So overall both are very good headphones, if you listen to rap and hip hop the XM4 is for you! Great bass, I love them and crisp and sharp highs as rap isn't very treble-focused so it does very well with rap and hip-hop.If you listen to Opera/Vocal focused music the MH40 is for you! The smoothness and warmth of the highs are very pronounced yet never sharp and not fatiguing at all!Both very good! Now I will say the cable with the mic and volume controls for the MH40 came with some gunk on it or it was corroded I will be contacting them for a replacement and hopefully, it will be fulfilled I'll update a customer service review.Be sure to use a nice leather conditioner on all leather parts of headphones before use especially the sheepskin earpads. I used one drop of leather conditioner, rubbed and spread in my fingers then rubbed into the sheepskin ear pads. Don’t forget the leather outer ear cups and headband outside and inside. Doing this will protect and soften the leather to provide a better fit and to be sure it is properly hydrated to ensure decades of use. Condition maybe every 6 months to one year depending on use. With heavy use, use a leather cleaner followed by a conditioner to clean oils and sweat from headphones from fingers and ears and whole head hahaha. The build quality of the MH40 is out of this world! Love them!2 MONTH UPDATE: The headphones have only gotten better! Using a leather conditioner (Lexol conditioner and Lexol cleaning and conditioning wipes) coupled with using the headphones have broken in the ear pads making a hugly beneficial improvement in comfort and audio quality!Bass hits harder compared to out of the box and noise isolation is 10x better now! I will be buying spare ear pads and audio cables, as I know these beauties will truly last decades. After use sometime for prolonged storage put back in factory package not canvas bag.

The good:Beautifully made in aluminum, stainless steel and leather with a retro modern styling giving it a timeless look. They feel solid and probably will last decades.This is the second pair of hm40s I've gotten, the first pair I've used over a year and show little wear.The bad:These cans are heavy and for some might be too heavy. Adjustment of the headband is limited and maybe a problematic fit for some. In spite of memory foam in cups, these are not the most comfortable headphones and extended wearing will eventually lead to discomfort. Initially they clamp a bit hard and I had to carefully bend out the headband to get the right force. The included cords are OK but not at the same level of quality as the cans. The mic on the one cord is not very good and sounded soft and a little muddled.The sound:The cups isolate and keep out external sounds well. Sound quality is good with a softly V shaped sound. Bass is very solid and reasonably detailed. Mids and highs are good and detailed as well. Highs are slightly bright but not sibilant. Staging is OK but lacks precision and airiness. Overall comparable to headphones in the $100~150 range.Conclusion:The hm40s are headphones for someone who wants both solidly built beauty and good sound and are not effected by the limited size adjustment nor the weight. For the money thier are better sounding cans out there thought, especially at the original price of $300. If you can get them for $150 or less it's a good to excellent deal that you will not regret.

Acabo de recibirlo.No me considero un experto en audio, pero he tenido audífonos de alta gama, bose, harman kardon bt, onkyo, los primeros beats studio, sony mh-1000xm3, sennheiser. Hice una búsqueda muy bien documentada de estos audífonos hasta que estuve seguro de pedirlos.Conectados directo al jack de mi laptop HP Omen suenan muy bien, los bajos son profundos sin llegar a opacar el resto del rango de frecuencia. He de decir que el sonido es menos cristalino o claro que los sony, pero al conectarlos a un DAC (soundblasterx g5) y aumentar la claridad estos realmente sacan todo su potencial.1. Comodidad:Sorprende su tamaño, son bastante pequeños para ser over-ear. Son algo justos la primera vez que se los coloca, pero rápido se pierde la noción de traerlos, incluso aunque pesan un poco mas de lo normal son muy cómodos, la banda acolchada es delgada pero no hace falta mas. Las orejas caben muy bien y eso que las mías son grandes.2. Construcción:Lo mejor! El material realmente es muy bueno, la construcción es lo mejor que he probado en audífonos, similar a los Harman Kardon BT, solo que estos no incluyen plástico. La marca no redujo presupuesto en nada. Los cables son al mismo nivel de los audífonos son de material trenzado, muy flexibles y conectores chapeados en oro. No incluye funda dura de transporte, pero incluye una bolsa suave, pero no es cualquier bolsa, es una tela muy resistente incluso impermeable, con cierre por imán y una bolsa interior para los cables.3. Sonido. Lo mas importante que se debe buscar en un audífono. Recién al escucharlos se nota que son de gama alta, la definición es muy buena. Aíslan muy bien el ruido exterior, un 60 % de lo que aíslan los sony mh-1000xm3, considerando que esos cuentan con NC. Se debe tomar un tiempo en ajustar el ecualizador, y en mi caso el DAC. Recomiendo ampliamente quitar el surround para mejorar la calidad en todos los audífonos. Sorprende que se lleva al 100 % del volumen en ganancia baja del DAC y no distorsiona. Los demás audífonos al 60 % ya los graves distorsionan y la calidad del audio se pierde por completo.4. Micrófono. Es raro, pero el micrófono incluido en uno de los cables (el pequeño) realmente suena muy bien, mejor que los audífonos por bluetooth, buena definición, claridad, y sorprende a los que lo escuchan.Finalmente, recomiendo ampliamente, por el precio que los encontré, no hay nada que se le compare. Habrá algunos otros audífonos en la misma gama con el mismo precio y calidad de audio, pero ninguno de los demás se vera tan bien como estos, por el estilo retro.Para describirlos en una palabra: DIVERTIDOS!

Warm and musical sound signature, ideal for long listening sessions. The weight and the lack of headphone padding to complement that, less so.

There is a lot to like about this headset. Great materials and design quality, I wanted real leather as PU Leather seems does not seem to last for me. Audio quality is great, but I am no audiophile, lave that the cable can be switched between ears and that you can daisy chain the headset to share what you are listening to. I would have given 5 stars but personally find them uncomfortable during prolonged wear, both on the ears and the top of the head. This is not unusual for me. My Bose Quiet Comfort have been the only overear headset that has not caused discomfort, but cannot wear these in public anymore due to the PU leather being a mess and unable to get replacement pads for the headband.

These headphones are amazing, build quality and materials are un matched. The sound quality is very dynamic, clear, and not insanely base boosted like many other brands. I’m using a Cambridge Audio AXR85 to drive them.Only minor complaint is the ear cups are small and don’t fit 100% of my ear into the cups, and on my big head the strap just barely make it to where I need at full extension.

Gran calidad de materiales, muy buena calidad de sonido, un producto pesado pero de buena calidad, bolsón de transporte junto con estuche en piel para los cables