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We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
If you want studio-grade wired headphones for critical listening, mixing and monitoring, choose Audio-Technica ATH-M50x; if you need a desktop audio control hub that mixes mic, game and chat audio for streaming or gaming, choose FIFINE SC8. These two products share almost nothing except a 3.5mm/6.35mm audio world — one is a headphone, the other is a mixer that sits between your mic, your console or PC, and your headphones. Picking the wrong one isn't a matter of taste; it's a matter of buying the wrong category of gear entirely.
• Audio-Technica ATH-M50x — biggest strength: 45mm large-aperture dynamic drivers with a 20Hz–20,000Hz range, a closed-back sound-isolating design, and three interchangeable cables (coiled and straight) with a 6.35mm adapter — a complete wired monitoring kit in one box.
• Audio-Technica ATH-M50x — biggest trade-off: It's a passive wired headphone. No mic input, no mixing, no surround processing, no USB — everything it does depends on what you plug it into.
• FIFINE SC8 — biggest strength: A 5-channel desktop mixer with an XLR input fed by 48V phantom power, a Dynamic/Condenser toggle, mic monitoring, a Game/Chat balance dial, virtual 7.1 surround, 3 EQ presets, 8 voice-changer modes, 4 customizable buttons and RGB lighting.
• FIFINE SC8 — biggest trade-off: It's not a headphone and it won't work with a USB mic — only XLR or 6.35mm mics — and the XLR cable isn't included, so cable quality affects your results.
• Pick the ATH-M50x if your priority is what you hear.
• Pick the FIFINE SC8 if your priority is controlling what you say and how your audio sources blend.
The ATH-M50x is a closed-back, over-ear wired headphone built around 45mm large-aperture dynamic drivers covering 20Hz to 20,000Hz. The design story here is control: a tight-sealing, sound-isolating closed-back cup that limits ambient noise and keeps bleed down, which is exactly what you want when you're tracking a vocalist in the same room as a live mic, or when you're mixing and don't want the room coloring your decisions. The earcups swivel 90 degrees, the headphone collapses for transport, and the aluminum-and-black build is aimed at daily studio abuse rather than delicate home listening.
What I like most about the package is the cable flexibility. You get three interchangeable cables — a coiled one and straight options — plus a 6.35mm adapter, a carrying pouch, and a spare set of HP-EP earpads. That means you can run a short straight cable at the desk, a coiled cable that stretches across a drum kit, or the 6.35mm adapter into an interface or mixer's headphone out without hunting for parts. The volume control sits on the cable rather than the cup, which keeps the housing simple.
Who should buy it: producers, engineers, podcasters and DJs who need one dependable wired headphone for tracking, mixing and monitoring, and listeners who want a closed-back pair that isolates well on a commute or a flight. Who should skip it: anyone who needs a built-in microphone, wireless freedom, or active noise cancellation. This is a passive, corded tool. If your real problem is "my mic sounds bad and my game audio is too loud compared to Discord," the ATH-M50x does nothing for you — it just plays back whatever you feed it. It's worth checking the current price on Amazon, since bundles and included accessories vary between listings.
The FIFINE SC8 is a completely different animal: a corded desktop audio mixer for live streaming and gaming, with five channels of control packed into a footprint of roughly 9.53" deep, 6.14" wide and 2.68" tall. At its heart is an XLR input with 48V phantom power that supports high-sensitivity microphones up to -50dB gain, plus a Dynamic/Condenser toggle so the same port handles either mic type. FIFINE rates the signal path at under 0.2% distortion and 75dB SNR, and the headphone amp drives 32Ω headphones at 93dB SNR. In plain terms: this is a box designed to make a decent XLR mic sound clean and loud without a separate interface.
The feature that sells it for gaming is the dedicated Game/Chat balance dial. You twist one knob to push teammate comms up or enemy footsteps forward — no alt-tabbing into a mixer app mid-match. Layer on virtual 7.1 surround and three EQ presets (Game, Music, Movie), and you get a quick way to reshape the sound signature depending on whether you're hunting a spike defuse or listening to music between rounds. Add an 8-voice changer, four customizable preset buttons for saving your own audio setups, synchronized RGB that reacts to audio peaks, and mic monitoring via an output knob, and you have a hub built for the streamer or squad player who wants tactile control.
Side-by-Side: Which Should You Choose?
• Best for critical listening and mixing → Audio-Technica ATH-M50x. 45mm drivers, a closed-back isolating design, and a flat-ish monitoring intent beat a gaming mixer for judging a mix.
• Best for microphone control → FIFINE SC8. 48V phantom power, a Dynamic/Condenser toggle, mic monitoring and push-mute volume knobs are things the ATH-M50x simply doesn't have.
• Best for gaming audio balance → FIFINE SC8. The dedicated Game/Chat dial and virtual 7.1 surround are purpose-built for competitive shooters and squad chat.
• Best for isolation from your environment → Audio-Technica ATH-M50x. The closed-back, tight-seal earcups reduce ambient noise passively; the SC8 does nothing for the noise around you.
• Best for streaming a console or TV → FIFINE SC8. Optical and AUX inputs plus USB-C across PC, PS5, Switch and mobile make it a switching hub; the ATH-M50x is a single 6.35mm wired connection.
• Best for travel and portability → Audio-Technica ATH-M50x. It collapses, ships with a pouch and interchangeable cables, and needs no power.
• Best for plug-and-play simplicity → Audio-Technica ATH-M50x. No drivers, no phantom power, no cable-type caveats — plug it in and listen.
• Best for a full desk setup with RGB flair → FIFINE SC8. Audio-reactive lighting, 4 customizable buttons and 8 voice modes are all desk-candy the headphones can't offer.
If I had to pick one, I'd buy the Audio-Technica ATH-M50x — but only because of what I'd be buying it for. My honest read is that these products aren't competitors; they're different tools for different jobs. The ATH-M50x is the safer universal purchase: it works with anything that has a headphone jack, needs no power, and gives you isolation plus three cables out of the box. I'd recommend the FIFINE SC8 instead to anyone whose bottleneck is their microphone and their mixed audio sources, not their playback. If you already own decent headphones and a gaming or streaming setup, the SC8 is the upgrade that changes your day-to-day. If you don't own a serious pair of wired headphones yet, start with the M50x.
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