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Pros: Detailed, sparkly treble. Warm, engaging mids. Good sound stage and positioning.
Cons: Bass too boomy and not linear enough.
Comparison Review: ATH-A9X, ATH-A900X, AKG K550
Edition 2
I have decided to update this review, not only because I've spent some more time with both the K550 and the A900X, but because I found frequency response measurements for both of them on Golden Ears. I know not everyone likes the way they measure, but since there are no professional reviews of A900X other than on DigitalVersus, and since you shouldn't compare measurements taken by different websites/reviewers, I felt this was the best course of action to take. I have also updated/adjusted several observations in the sound quality section, a lot of which I feel is much more quantifiable now that I have reliable graphs from the same source to look at.
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1. My Audio Preferences:
- I listen to mostly new age and orchestral pieces, so natural/realistic instrument presentation and strong vocal performance is important to me (good timbre).
- I like rich and lively sound presentation. So warm, pronounced mid-range; clear, sparkly, but unoffensive treble; and tight, controlled bass (that isn't overly loud).
- I dislike over-abundance of bass. My ears are very sensitive to bass; headphones with bass-emphasis make my ears uncomfortable very quickly and gives me a headache after a while (to put things into perspective, the Superlux HD668b is considered bass-heavy by me).
- I've been a long-time Audio-Technica owner, because their traditional sound signature is very much in-line with what I like: Rich, full-bodied, warm and engaging, with an emphasis on mids. The treble and bass presentation are typically pleasant and unoffensive on the AT's that I've tried. Aside from its narrow soundstage, my old ATH-A9X has always been my absolute favorite for music listening.
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2. Reason for Choices & Purchases:
While I love my ATH-A9X, I have been looking for a worthy upgrade that will improve upon its main weakness - the narrow soundstage (as well as having just a bit more substance in the bass region - the A9X is pretty bass-shy). After some research, I narrowed it down to two cans: The Audio-Technica's own ATH-A900X, and the AKG K550. Both of these are hailed as having very expansive soundstage for closed-cans, and both supposedly have a warm, "musical" presentation. They are reported to sound fairly similar to one another, according to several Head-Fi'ers.
While professional reviews of the AKG K550 are abundant in the English-speaking side of the world, reviews for the ATH-A900X were unfortunately very hard to find. The only two good reviews I found were the one on DigitalVersus (an European site) and one by our fellow Head-Fier, Mysteek. Impressed by the sound frequency measurements posted by DigitalVersus, I ordered a pair of A900X from a Japanese merchant on Amazon.
While waiting on the A900X to arrive, I noticed a few "comparison reviews" between it and the AKG K550 here on Head-Fi, most of which favored the K550. But opinions regarding K550's sound quality varies very drastically, and since sound is such a subjective experience, I decided the best way to determine for myself whether or not the K550 truly is superior in every way to the A900X is to listen to both of them.
So, having found a good deal for an used pair of K550 on Amazon, I placed my order.
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3. Objective of This Review:
The most detailed comparison review done for the A900X and K550 was written by Katun, whose neutrality I personally found questionable (not just the kind of word choices used in the review, but the attitude toward a few people who disagreed with his assessment).
That said, there's nothing more subjective than asking someone what "sounds good" when it comes to audio equipment - not only do people's tastes differ, but I suspect people's hearing ability also vary greatly - for example, I sometimes wonder if bassheads have poor bass perception, which is why they need their bass boosted that much... Okay that was a bit rude, for which I apologize. But in all seriousness, it is very possible that people who listen to bass-heavy music on bass-heavy equipments all the time suffer from hearing degradation, which affects their subjective listening assessments. This is why when I look at professional reviews, I like ones that are accompanied by graphs of actual measurements.
While I have no measuring equipments on hand, my hearing should be fairly "undamaged" (I don't typically listen to music very loud, and I am very sensitive to both sharp treble and loud bass), so my goal is to (hopefully) provide a neutral, unbiased assessment of the aforementioned headphones - not just by my listening experience alone, but by comparing them against the various reviews of them, both on the forum and on professional sites, and see if there are any consensus (to ensure that it's not "just me" that's arriving at these conclusions).
If you have either the A900X or the K550 on hand, and have a measuring equipment that can confirm my analysis, that would be great! For now, I will be attaching the frequency response graphs from Golden Ears in my comparison.
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4. Burn-in Status:
Both cans are fully burnt-in for this review (100+ hours); I now own both cans for over a month now.
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5. The Scoring System:
I will be using a scoring scheme to assign points to the "winner" in each category (between the A900X and K550). The score listed at the end of each category is the number of points assigned for that category only - the total number of points will be tallied at the end of the review. The old ATH-A9X will also be mentioned for comparison, but it will not be participating in the "match" since it's an old model that nobody likely owns in the U.S. and Europe anyway.
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6. The Review:
I. Packaging & Presentation:
Audio-Technica ATH-A900X: The A900X comes in a fairly subtle and classy paper box. The kind of cardboard used on the packaging isn't as thick and sturdy as those used on the AKG packaging, but it doesn't really hurt the presentation. What does hurt the presentation of the A900X a little is the plastic piece that held the headphone in place and kept the cups separated - it's made of thin and cheap plastic and looks a bit tacky in context of the otherwise excellent packaging.
AKG K550: The K550 has a stronger, more aesthetically-pleasing presentation in my opinion. The box is made of very heavy duty, thick cardboard that is surprisingly hefty. The plastic holder is covered by a layer of velvet finish, which lends a strong sense of elegance and class. While the packaging of the A900X is not shabby in any way, it lacks the same kind of presence K550's packaging has. Opening the K550 is akin to unwrapping a piece of expensive jewelry. This round goes to AKG.
Score: A900X - 0, K550 - 1
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II. Design, Aesthetics, Materials, & Craftsmanship:
Audio-Technica ATH-A900X:
- The A900X is not a pair of bad-looking cans by any means, but it also doesn't look extraordinary. It just doesn't stand out as something classy or luxurious. I don't love it, I don't hate it. It's better-looking than its predecessor, the ATH-A900, at least.
- I don't have any complaints about the craftsmanship of A900X - it's well-designed and constructed, and though I wished for a bit more metal than plastic on the frames, the plastic doesn't look or feel cheap. These looks like sturdy and durable cans.
- One particular thing that Katun complained about repeatedly was the "poor quality" of the wings on A900X. I took extra effort to look into this issue, and did not personally find his claims to be true. Below are my observations:
- On the old, old model like the A9X, the wings only pivot in one direction (let's call it the Y-axis), which is up and down.
- On the A900, AT implemented the "3D Wings" which pivot in two directions (X- and Y-). The way they achieved this is by making the wings themselves into a 2-piece design - there's an "outer ring" that pivots around the Y-axis (like the old wings), and an "inner piece" that pivots back and forth (X-axis). This is actually a fairly intricate design and I imagine, harder to manufacture.
- On the A900X, AT simplified the "3D Wings" to ease manufacturing process while still retain pivots in both directions. The wings themselves are now back to a 1-piece design and pivots up and down (like the old wings on A9X), but the T-shaped joint where the wings are clipped onto the arms now pivots back and forth (in the older models, the joint is fixed). This new system is slightly looser, giving the appearance of flimsily-build wings, but I personally don't find the design or construction to be lacking in quality.
- That said, materials used on the A900X could have been better. I read in a Head-Fi post saying that A900X's stock earpads are the same as the A1000/A900Ti, but that is not true (because I just replaced my A9X pads with the A1000 pads, and I am 100% certain they are better quality than the A900X). The pleather used on the A900X earpads are of a cheaper, stiffer material - similar to the kind used on the Superlux HD668b. The headband's wings still use fabric padding, while my old ATH-A9X has pleather padding (which feels more classy). I feel like in the materials department, the A900X sits squarely between the A900 and the A9X - definitely a step up from A900, but not quite back to the glory days of A9X.
- One design nitpick - the audio plug used on the A900X is the exact same one used by the A9X; while it isn't bad-looking, it is a bit outdated in style, lacks elegance, and doesn't blend with the design of the A900X. Audio-Technica really needs to update this on their next product cycle for the Art Monitor series.
Audio-Technica ATH-A9X:
- In comparison to the A900X, the A9X is a lot more eye-catching. It's a bit "out there" in terms of design, but imagine seeing these cans back in the mid-90's - they must have looked sharp.
- In terms of craftsmanship, the A9X is on the same level as A900X. It's very sturdy, though to be fair, it has less moving parts (the cups don't pivot vertically, and the wings don't tilt in both directions)
- The materials used on the A9X is superior to the A900X. The stock earpads used the same kind of soft, supple pleather as the A1000/A900Ti pads. The padded wings are enclosed in thick, durable pleather as well (mine hasn't cracked after 10 years), which just looks better and blend in with the earpads when the headphones aren't in use.
- The fabric used on the audio cable is the same as on the A900X, but it's colored a deep brown to match the color of A9X's frame. It looks gorgeous, and more classy than A900X's black cord (which can easily be mistaken for a typical plastic cable if not examined closely)
- Oh my goodness... where to even start. I am sure I am not the only one who was blown away by the design and aesthetic value of these cans. The K550 is hands-down one of the most beautiful set of headphones I've ever laid my eyes on (right up there with my favorite AT woodies). All the lines just melt into one another... a true work of art. AKG wins out by a huge margin here.
- Craftsmanship on the K550 is good - that is, as far as I can tell (there are complaints about the swivel mechanism snapping easily because it's simply glued-on, and the headband seems to be very loose in general and lacks clamping force. This I observed as well). One thing I did immediately notice was that the swivel mechanisms are fairly stiff, and therefore the position of the cups tend to "stick", and often don't conform to the contours of the wearer's head automatically when worn. The headband is fairly loose and does not provide a lot of clamping force, which doesn't help the problem. This, I suspect, is the reason a lot of people have trouble achieving good seal on the K550. What the user needs to do is center the cups before putting them on, or at least adjust them after you put them on so they are flat against the sides of your head. Otherwise, I can find no issues with the craftsmanship here... I'll call this a tie between AKG and Audio-Technica.
- When it comes to materials, I cannot be happier with the K550. The cups and frames are almost entirely metal, so is the headband. The type of pleather used on the earcups and the headband are top-notch, and the type of padding used for them also feels very good - they feel like high-quality memory foam rather than the regular type of "cheap" foam used by most headphone earpads. Lastly, the audio plugs on the K550 are simply gorgeous - AKG spared no expense at making the K550 look and feel luxurious. AKG easily scores a victory here again.
- One material nitpick - the plastic used for the signal cord, while fairly high-quality, is still more prone to tangle and deform in comparison to Audio-Technica's fabric-wrapped cords, which retain their shape very well. Not going to discount AKG here though.
Score: A900X - 0, K550 - 2
(Two points awarded to AKG for winning "Aesthetics" and "Materials"; no points awarded to "Craftsmanship" due to a tie)
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III. Comfort & Isolation:
Audio-Technica ATH-A900X:
- While a lot of people have reported comfort issues concerning the A900X (specifically due to the wings system), I personally found it to be the more comfortable of the two. The wings do not put pressure on the top of my head at all - to the point I often forget that I am wearing anything. The headband also provides a very strong clamping force - these cans do not slide around on my head at all. Audio-Technica scores a win in this one (for me).
- Isolation is pretty good; these cans seal very easily and very well (thanks to strong clamping force).
Audio-Technica ATH-A9X:
- The A9X is actually more comfortable than the A900X in my opinion - it has less clamping force than the A900X, and is therefore more comfortable for prolonged use. The downforce provided by the wings are a bit stronger than that of A900X.
- Isolation is the same as A900X.
- The headband on the K550 does not provide much clamping force at all - and that's coming from someone with a big head (the headband settings are at 11 on both sides). While this makes the cups very comfortable around the ears, it also means most of the weight press down on the top of my head. While the headband is very well-padded on the K550, it does still exert enough pressure for me to constantly realize that I am wearing something on my head. The lack of clamping force actually allows the K550 to slide around slightly when I lower my head. Considering how many complaints regarding this the K550 has received in its own Appreciation Thread, I think it's safe to let Audio-Technica win this one.
- Due to aforementioned issue with the cup joints being too stiff (as well as lack of clamping force), isolation can be an issue if you don't be careful about achieving proper seal. Once fully sealed, however, the AKG seems to provide slightly better isolation. The difference isn't big, but I'll let AKG walk away with this one.
Score: A900X - 1, K550 - 1
(AT wins comfort, AKG wins isolation)
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IV. Sound Quality:
While most comparison reviews regard the A900X and K550 as similar-sounding (with K550 being better overall), I have to strongly disagree with these reviews. These two cans, to me, sound significantly different from one another - to the point where it's no longer apple-to-apple. It's most definitely apple-to-orange to my ears. This was actually rather shocking to me, because I expected very similar presentation with minute differences.
Audio-Technica ATH-A900X:
- Treble: Personally, I think the A900X easily wins the treble presentation. There are a lot more details in the treble compared to K550 - I think the main reason is because the treble is significantly rolled-off above 15KHz on the K550, while the A900X doesn't roll-off until close to 20KHz. I know human hearing isn't very sensitive above 16KHz or so, but the difference is definitely there. Another reason may be the K550's upper-mids/lower treble is way too bright and energetic, thus burying the details in the upper registers. A lot of subtle instrument textures come out easily on the A900X but are barely audible on the K550. But do not mistake A900X's treble as sharp or sibilant - because it's not. I actually hear a lot more sibilance on the K550 (details discussed under K550's section) - a good test track is Phil Collins' Two Worlds: hardly sibilant on A900X, very sharp and unpleasant on the K550. The overall treble presentation on the A900X is lively, sparkly, without being sharp or sibilant. Just the perfect balance for me - beautiful, beautiful treble.
- Mid-Range: It was interesting to see how many other comparison reviews claim that K550 has a warmer, more lively presentation, because the moment I tried out both cans I experienced the exact opposite. The mids on A900X are significantly more pronounced and warmer than those of the K550, especially in the lower-mids, where the K550 has a recess. This results in the A900X's sound having a lot more body (the perceived difference for me is bigger than the frequency response graphs may show). According to the frequency response graphs, while A900X's mids response is fairly linear (except for the down slope in the upper-mids), K550 has a dimple around 500Hz, and its overall mid-range response is more jagged / not as linear. The down slope in the upper-mids also helps A900X's lower- and mid-registers sound much more hefty and robust. Vocals sound more intimate, full, rich, and lively on the A900X. Orchestral instruments have both intimacy and presence. Personally, I prefer the mids on A900X; it sounds a lot more natural to me. Another point to Audio-Technica.
- Bass: The bass is my only issue with A900X's sound presentation. The extension in the sub-bass, while present, isn't pronounced like on the K550 (the one thing about K550 that I really really like). Also, there's a fairly wide peak between 50-250Hz, which makes music drony/boomy to my ears. Instruments that have a lot of both bass as well as lower-mids (such as cello) tends to have their mids drowned out by the bass, which is very unfortunate. I have tried EQing out the peak on the A900X and indeed, all the details in the lower-mids immediately came back. I'll admit that I am a bit of a purist in this regard and would prefer headphones to sound good without EQing or modding. Within the context of a review especially, I don't feel EQing is appropriate; these headphones simply are too bassy for my taste (without EQ), which is a shame because it has an otherwise perfectly balanced presentation in my opinion. It is possible to reduce the bass with different earpads though (see section at end of review).
- Soundstage: The soundstage on the A900X is very wide - especially for me, coming from the (in)famously narrow A9X. Sound positioning also feels better on the A900X than the K550 - sounds are more "focused" and easier to pinpoint (I had my wife test both cans and she actually pointed this out as one of her first observations, without any prior inputs from me). Additionally, the soundstage on the A900X feels more "layered" / has more depth (more details explained under K550 soundstage section). I think the point goes to Audio-Technica here.
- Instrument Separation: In my opinion, instrument separation is better on the A900X due to two reasons - more detailed upper-treble, and better sound positioning. Don't get me wrong, the K550 is a very clean-sounding headphone (I would argue quite a bit cleaner than the A900X), but I think its fuzzier sound stage and overly aggressive upper-mids/lower-treble hurt separation in busier tracks.
Frequency Response Graph of Audio-Technica ATH-A900X
Audio-Technica ATH-A9X:
- Treble: The A9X is actually more similar in this regard to the K550 than the A900X. It is very soft on the treble, especially in the upper region - the details are present, but you have to listen for them. Extension isn't naturally as good as on the K550 - though the A9X's drivers are capable (need EQ boost).
- Mid-Range: The mids on the A9X are some of the most beautiful I've heard (in my limited experience). It has that very old school Audio-Technica warmth and intimacy. I actually still like the mid-range on the A9X better than the A900X; it is fuller and more engaging, even though it doesn't have quite as much clarity - but nothing's perfect in every way.
- Bass: The A9X is fairly bass-shy, but that in itself is a pleasant quality for me since I get annoyed with bass-heavy cans very easily. The amount of bass present is more than sufficient to give orchestral instruments proper presence and impact. The quality of bass is also good - it is fast, tight, and clean. Once again, the drivers are capable - and can be EQ'd to provide appropriate bass for heavier genres like trance or techno.
- Soundstage: The A9X has one of the narrowest sound stage you'll ever hear, I promise you! I have no idea why it was made this way, but on these cans, vocalists often sound like they are singing right next to your ears; and orchestral pieces usually sound like it was performed in a small room with you standing right in the middle, amongst all the musicians. This makes certain pieces sound very intimate, but it's also a disservice for some music. That aside, sound has good focus and positioning is good.
- Instrument Separation: The A9X doesn't do particularly well here compared to either of the other two cans; partially due to the rolled-off treble & smooth mids. It's also possible that the older drivers on the A9X just don't offer the same kind of resolution as newer generation stuffs. That said, it doesn't really do all that bad.
- Ear Cups Placement: Okay... there's a lot of complaints in K550's appreciation thread regarding the clamping force and achieving proper seal affecting sound quality. While the K550 seals fine on my head without me having to hold the cups to my face, the K550's sound changes VERY drastically with cup positioning (as opposed to the A900X, which sounds pretty much the same regardless of whether you have the cups slightly forward, slightly back, or press them closer to your head). The K550 sounds very thin and distant if you don't press the cups to your head after you put them on; it becomes much warmer and more full-bodied if you press the cups in. If you move the cups forward, the mid-range is recessed but the bass comes out. If you wear the cups dead-center over your ears, the mids are more pronounced but the upper-mids get way too bright, and the bass gets buried. If you wear the cups back... well, forget it, you get the idea. It's very hard to gauge what these headphones are supposed to sound like, as per manufacturer intended - so I am going to go with what I think is the most pleasant-sounding wearing position, which is having the cups slightly forward (the rear of the cups rest gently against the outer edges of my ears).
- Treble: - Personally, I feel the treble is K550's weakest point. There are three issues with K550's treble presentation - the first of which is the significantly rolled-off upper-treble, which takes away quite a bit of subtle textures from instruments and vocals. The second is the overly bright upper-mids/lower-treble. As you can see in the frequency response graph, the area between 5.5-8KHz are significantly boosted on the K550, while on the A900X this region is deeply recessed. I think this is what's primarily responsible for the slightly unnatural, "plasticky" treble signature of K550 (several Head-Fi'ers attested to the unnatural treble; Tyll on InnerFidelity also mentioned it). While it might not be considered a sharp headphone in the grand scope of things, the K550 is a lot pickier with recordings than the A900X, and the excessive brightness can get fautiguing after a while, depending on what you are listening to (a lot of my J-Pop and trance collections are almost unlistenable on the K550; just way too busy in the upper-mids/lower-treble, but not enough bass and lower-mids to offset it). The last issue with K550 is that I actually find it fairly sibilance-prone - at least, much more so than on the A900X. And no, I don't believe the aforementioned peak in the upper-treble/lower-mids is to blame. I suspect the actual culprit for K550's sibilant tendencies lie in the small - but rather pronounced - peak at 12KHz, where the A900X already pushed its treble back down. Overall I find K550's treble a bit disappointing; even though it's not an issue in most music I listen to, when the problems do come out, it isn't very pleasant.
- Mid-Range: The mids on the K550 is interesting. Let's start by saying the K550 is relatively thin-sounding. Yes, the K550 is a thin-sounding headphone - this opinion has been voiced several times in various Head-Fi threads as well as professional reviews (Headfonia, Sound & Vision, just to name a few). It's not thin to the point of being unenjoyable, but compared to the A900X, the lack of upper-bass/lower-mids body is very apparent. As you can see in the frequency response graph, there is a dimple around 500Hz. While this is what, I think, lends the K550 its clean, near-black acoustic background, I really do feel it could use a bit more lower-mids presence. Percussive instruments and male vocals often have trouble achieving their full weight on the K550 (female vocals usually sound great, however). The second issue is of course, the aforementioned upper-mids/lower-treble peak, which makes a lot of orchestral instruments sound way too bright (the best example would be trumpets). I seem to remember Tyll on InnerFidelity mentioning that a downward slope between 1-5KHz is desirable - and the K550 indeed showed this downward slope in his measurements. However, the K550 displayed no such slope in Golden Ears' measurements - with the exception of a small dimple at 4KHz, the entire mid-range is fairly flat. The A900X on the other hand displays such a downward slope in the upper-mids. Not sure what's "better" in this case - but personally I find the A900X more natural-sounding and has better timbre.
- Bass: The bass presentation is definitely in K550's favor. I find K550's bass a lot cleaner-sounding, with much more audible extension. Looking at the frequency response graphs you can easily see why - the sub-bass region is significantly boosted whereas it is rolled off on the A900X. Since human hearing is less sensitive to sub-bass, this was probably a good tuning choice on AKG's part. I was surprised to see that K550 also has a mid-bass bump between 60-200Hz, because these cans sound a LOT less boomy than the A900X - which is a huge plus for me. The aforementioned dimple around 500Hz is probably the reason for the cleaner-sounding bass, though I am not sure. In any case, I like K550's bass presentation a lot more than that of A900X's.
- Soundstage: This is where I found things interesting. In terms of sheer sound stage size, I feel the K550 actually isn't quite as wide as the A900X. However, the K550 has a very interesting "spatial" quality to its sound stage. While sounds on the A900X seem to stretch out onto a 2-dimensional plane, the K550's sound stage sounds sort of airy and 3-dimensional. I suspect this has to do with whatever this "Real Image Engineering" AKG used to simulate the soundstage of open-backed headphones on these closed cans. Personally, I like this effect - however, sounds also feel a less focused compared to A900X, and positioning takes a hit as the result. Furthermore, the K550 seems to push sounds "back" within its soundstage - for example, a vocalist who sounds like she is singing only 1 meter away on the A900X will sound like she's 5 meters away when listened to on the K550. The effect is similar to listening to sounds through speakers (which, to my understanding, is one of the qualities of open-headphones?) Again, I do like this effect; it makes the presentation less claustrophobic and more relaxing. But it also means the K550 has trouble achieving intimacy or make things sound nearby. This issue is most apparent In movies: when objects fly past the viewer, on the A900X the proximity effect is very convincing, but not so much on the K550. This is what I meant by the A900X sounding more "layered" and has more depth - for example, listening to African vocals on the soundtrack for The Last Lions, both my wife and I can easily tell which vocalist is standing closer, and which is standing farther away. On the K550, this "depth positioning" is more difficult, because everything sounds farther away.
- Instrument Separation: As I mentioned in the A900X section, I feel the K550 actually doesn't do as good a job at separation, despite it being cleaner-sounding and having a blacker background (paradox!). The missing details in the upper registers and its tendency to get too bright and busy in the upper-mids/lower treble are the primary culprits - and the fuzzier sound stage contributes to it.
Frequency Response Graph of AKG K550
Score: A900X - 4, K550 - 1
(AT wins treble, mids, sound stage, separation. AKG wins bass)
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V. Total Scores & Final Verdict:
The Audio-Technica ATH-A900X and K550 both finished with 5 points - and believe me when I say this was not the intended result. I went into this review expecting two very similar-sounding pairs of cans, with K550 consistently out-classing the A900X in every way - and this was not the case at all. As you can see, the K550 won most of its points in aesthetics and materials, while A900X won most of its points in sound quality. This would indicate that A900X has superior sound quality overall.
However, this is not necessarily the case - because this is where the listener's subjectivity as well as needs come into play. Do I prefer listening to music on the A900X over the K550? Absolutely. But would I entrust the A900X with video-editing or audio-mixing work? Probably less so. The A900X does beautify the recording a bit more, in my opinion - and the K550's cleaner sound/black background are good qualities for sound mixing. One also needs to take overall sound balance into account - the A900X's heavy bass gives me a headache after a while; the K550, while being overly bright on occassions, doesn't have this issue. If I keep the volume down, the K550 is the less fautiguing of the two for long-term sessions.
In summary: If you like a rich, lively musical presentation that isn't overly exaggerated and sounds natural, the Audio-Technica ATH-A900X is the choice to go with. If you want a clean-sounding headphone with a fairly black background and fairly relaxed presentation (either for sound mixing or listening to slow music), then the K550 is for you. Personally I can't really recommend the K550 for general music/multimedia usage, especially not for the average user. It is simply too picky with recordings and genre.
Like I said before, apples and oranges.
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Usage in Video Games & Movie-Watching:
Since a lot of people were wondering how these two cans compare for usages outside of music, I did some testing with both cans. And to put it simply: The A900X is much, much better for entertainment usage.
ATH-A900X: My observations in music listening tests are confirmed once more - the A900X has much better sound focus, and therefore much better sound positioning in games & movies. The perceived difference is not small, either - one particular film I love to use for testing surround effects is the anime Sky Crawlers; it has one of the best surround sound mix I've heard in any film. The aerial battle sequences sound nothing short of spectacular, and listening to it on the A900X is like having an eargasm. The sound stage is very wide, and like I said the sound positioning is superb; you can hear all the planes circling around you and accurately pinpoint each of their individual location within the soundscape. Another movie that had very audible difference in sound positioning for me is Summer Wars, in a scene when a bunch of books were falling down from the shelves - you can hear the books land all around you on the A900X, but on the K550 the positioning just sound kind of fuzzy and indistinct Lastly, the boosted bass on the A900X, while an annoyance in some music, serves movies & games very well here. Car engines and airplanes have that proper weight and roar; gunshots and explosions have tremendous impact.
K550: The K550 is simply not that ideal for movies and video game usage. I am not saying they are bad for such purposes - I just watched Jurassic Park on them and they sounded fabulous. But the aforementioned "airy" and "3-dimensional' soundstage creates some issues with sound positioning/focus, and the "thin" mids on the K550 make things like car engines and machine gun fire sound overly bright and "hollow" (since there's no meaty bass or lower-mids to give these sound effects weight and presence, and the aggressive upper-mids/lower-treble contributes to this issue). To help you understand what a big difference this makes: A machine gun that goes "tuk-tuk-tuk-tuk-tuk" on the A900X sounds like "tak-tak-tak-tak-tak" on the K550.
So if you are looking for closed-back headphones for games & movies, the A900X is simply the far more ideal choice.
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ATH-A900X Earpads Replacement
I ended up doing a little tweak to the ATH-A900X since I wanted them to be less bassy, and it turned out the solution was staring me in the face. :)
I was looking at my ATH-A9X and the ATH-A900X side-by-side. My A9X has the A1000 pads installed (which is similar in shape and material to its stock pads; it has better pleather than the A900X pads). The A1000 pads has oval opening, while the A900X pads have round opening (which makes the holes a lot bigger).
Bigger holes = more trapped air = more bass.
Since the A9X is bass-shy, and the A900X is too bassy, I came to the sudden realization: Why didn't I think of swapping their pads???
The ATH-A9X with ATH-A900X earpads installed.
The ATH-A900X with ATH-A1000 earpads installed.
The result? Fantastic! :) The A900X is no longer droning whenever there's even the slightest bass present; the bass no longer bleeds into the mids and I can actually hear the sub-bass extension now. xD The A9X on the other hand received a bass boost - still far from as bassy as the A900X, but since the A9X doesn't even have D.A.D.S., to expect otherwise would be silly.
The A900X is very clearly superior in every way to the A9X - much better treble, much better bass, and much much better sound stage and positioning. Aside from the subpar stock earpads, I really can't complain.
So, A1000 pads on A900X - simple and highly recommended mod! Not only does it clean up the bass, but the pleather is a lot softer, more supple, and hugs the face better (which helps reduce sliding - especially if you have issues with the wings). So it's both a comfort & sound quality mod. :)


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I'm trying to use the new "three finger drag" gesture in Lion and it's not working. There isn't a preference setting for it in TrackPad -> Point and Click either. Does anyone know how to turn it on?
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Ask Different is a question and answer site for power users of Apple hardware and software. It's 100% free, no registration required.
Some older Macs only support two finger scrolling on the trackpad, not three. Since you're not seeing a setting for three finger drag, I'd guess your hardware just doesn't support it.
Are you able to do other gestures that require more than two fingers? If not, it's probably a hardware limitation, and you could just get a Magic Trackpad.
I've been trying to figure this out as well and found it on another site , so here you go:
System Preferences->Universal Access->Mouse and Trackpad->Trackpad Options-> then you have your choice of dragging with or without draglock :)
Hope this helps!
Source: http://hints.macworld.com/article.php?story=20110630003322997
If you look under all your settings, you have the option to change to 2 or 3 finger swipe.


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- Janielle Guzinski
- Springfield, OR
- United States
Graduate Student - Landscape Architecture,
This conversation is closed.
What will happen when the world speaks only a few languages?
Increasing levels of globalization are causing a few languages to spread at unprecedented rates. But many less common languages and their associated cultures are going extinct. Programs exist for the conservation of species and habitats at risk of extinction, but very little attention is given to language extinction. Some scientists are suggesting that there are more languages at risk of extinction than bird or mammal species
Does language extinction really matter? It is hard to imagine how the loss of a language halfway around the world would impact your life, and diversity in language makes it difficult to understand one another. But should that diversity be preserved?
Jun 5 2013: In the 1990s the idea of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) was developed in order to establish a universal value for indigenous cultures that would hopefully help protect them. One very practical and global incentive for preserving indigenous language is that if the language is lost, then TEK may be lost with it. This is possible as there may be no English or other major language with words to articulate many traditional ecological concepts. However, TEK can be observed if cultures and languages are protected along with the habitats in which they practice TEK. Perhaps we should protect indigenous cultures for many reasons, but one Eurocentric reason is that embedded in TEK are many of the ideas that developed nations ought to consider in order to correct the consequences of centuries of biosphere mismanagement.
Jun 7 2013: I agree Robert, I think we could learn a lot from how many of indigenous cultures value, treat, and interact with their ecosystem on a different level. this reminds me of the TED talk that Janielle and Ben posted for us to watch before their presentation, where the people ( I forget where) could identify 12 species of ayahuasca at a far distance, that we would all categorize as the same species. It was pretty amazing.
Have you ever heard of Darrell Posey?? He was an anthropologist that worked hard to protect the rights of indigenous people in Brazil in the 90s. He also helped develop the idea of indigenous intellectual property rights, protecting the knowledge of these cultures and giving them legal rights to their ideas. I think you might like his article, Intellectual Property Rights: and Just Compensation for Indigenous Knowledge. It discusses the issues faced by the Kayapo people and how they fear turning to the ecologically destructive ways that are encroaching upon them in order to persist. It also touches on the medicinal advantages we have derived from plants discovered by indigenous people. In 1989 an estimated 155 million dollars in sales of 3 drugs based from plants that had been shown to researchers by indigenous people, but less than 0.001% of profits were allocated to these people.
http://www.jstor.org.libproxy.uoregon.edu/stable/3032735?seq=3Jun 6 2013: I think that language diversity is important because no two languages convey the exact same meanings with every word said. For example, in English you can say "My friend and I went to the park yesterday" and no one knows the gender of your friend, but if you say the same thing in Spanish, the listener has to know the gender of your friend (amigo vs amiga). These differences affect how you can convey spoken information to others in a language.
There are also many types of slang that make sense in one language but are impossible to translate to another. For example, one of my favorite insults in Spanish is "La madre que te parió" lit. "The mother who gave birth to you." Depending on the context it can be very offensive, but I've most often heard it used in a more friendly context, to express astonishment or admiration for someone you know when they do something crazy/outlandish. (I'm obviously not an expert on Spanish, this is just how I've heard and used this phrase in Spain. This may not be true in other Spanish speaking countries). It's hard to explain but I really like the phrase and what can be conveyed by using it and I can't think of an equivalent in English.
It's hard for me to convey these ideas in a comment, but what I'm trying to say is that different languages allow/require us to interact with others in different ways, by the implicit and explicit information the grammar and syntax require us to provide when speaking and by the unique words and phrases that exist in every language. Losing languages entails loosing this diversity in expressing ourselves and in some ways our ability to describe our experiences and the world around us. So, I do think that language extinction matters
Jun 6 2013: Wonderful contribution Christine. (your first paragraph)
- +1
It made me think of the Greek language, and the many words for love.
Some languages are richer than others.
Now if we could combine all these into one........well then......Jun 6 2013: How do new technologies change languages? Since the advent of text messaging, chatrooms and other types of digital communication, we have seen significant changes in the written language. Are these changes permanent and indicative of continuing future change? To what degree might changes in written language become integrated into spoken language?
Related articles:
Jun 6 2013: I think that text messaging and chatrooms could change spoken as well as written language. I also know that languages evolve. English has adapted many words from French, German and Latin, among other languages, so who's to say that now English won't adapt what was originally just written words? We've already (in the USA at least) turned nouns like 'Google' or 'Facebook' into verbs, something which I think is really cool.Jun 7 2013: Gwynne and Christine, did you see John McWhorter's talk, "Txting is Killing Language... JK"?
Jun 7 2013: Thank you, Lizanne. That was an interesting talk - I had been aware that there was quite a bit of controversy over the effect of texting and tweeting on literacy. It seems like much of the most recent discussion is in support of that language change, while the slightly older literature bemoans the downfall of good writing skills. Lol.Jun 5 2013: We have not yet discussed the future of language change - at the same time that we are losing old languages, new ones are being invented. Right now I am thinking about the urban dictionary for slang (which I use often!), hip-hop language (apparently it has the acronym HHL) and African American Vernacular Language (AAVE). Possibly what prevents them from becoming truly "speciated" is simply that there is so much communication enabled by new technologies, i.e. not as much isolation as in past history.
I just found this relevant article printed in Science: "The Future of Language Change" by David Graddol, 2004 (http://www.sciencemag.org/content/303/5662/1329.full). One of the quotes is:
"However, while we lose older, rural languages, new urban hybrid forms may help maintain global diversity. Cities are places where languages mingle and where language change speeds up. And the fast growing urban areas of the world are breeding grounds for new hybrid languages—just as hundreds of new forms of English have already been spawned around the world."
Jun 6 2013: This is an interesting point. It makes me think of how much fun it is to mingle with multilingual people at school. I am pretty sure that in our conversations, in attempting to overcome the language barrier, we have done our share of contributing to urban slang.
Gallagher makes fun of language:
Jun 6 2013: Nice video Robert! It definitely got some chuckles out of me. I especially liked the end because my spelling is atrocious!
I think my interactions around language barriers often end up in big hand gestures or what might look like an awkward game of charadesJun 7 2013: Gwynne, going off what you said about hundreds of new forms of English around the world, you might like these maps. They show how English varies even across the US.
"22 Maps That Show How Americans Speak English Totally Differently From Each Other"
Jun 7 2013: Nice map. I didn't even know some of the phrases they used exist!Jun 5 2013: I notice here in the Netherlands, that people not only speak impeccable English, but over the past decade or so, more and more English has been integrated into Dutch. You get this sort of Dutch-English combination that is actually called Dunglish (the are hilarious examples of Dunglish gone wrong, though). I think this combination and integration has to do with internet, since most of the English terms I hear have to do with it.
It makes me wonder, if languages around the globe will gradually start incorporating other languages, and eventually all merge into one? In fact, many words in English are derived from French or German, languages with the same linguistic backgrounds have so many similarities, you'd think it would be easy to just merge them.
Nationalism plays a big role in keeping that from happening, though, I think.
Jun 5 2013: We have Swing-lish here in Sweden! :DJun 5 2013: I could see over time having a mixture of languages. It's hard to say which language would be the prominent language, but here in the U.S. many people incorporate french and spanish words casually into their daily conversations, not to mention many businesses often take on foreign names that people then become familiar with. I think as more people, particularly in countries like the U.S. and England where only knowing one language is very common, become bilingual you'll see more people incorporating multiple languages into their conversations.
Jun 6 2013: That's the thing, Ryan, I wonder if then no language would be prominent - it would literally evolve into a sort of linguistic mashed potatoes. It comes down to broadening horizons, though, and still today there are people who are born, live and die in the same small town, never exposing, or getting the chance to expose, themselves to other languages. You can then turn to the media, where programs of all languages are offered, but lots of countries (France, Italy, Germany) synchronize everything.
Jun 5 2013: And we have Span-glish here in South Florida.
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Jun 6 2013: I had to grab this from Wikipedia:
"One of the best quoted examples of Dunglish was said to have taken place between the Dutch foreign minister Joseph Luns (a man whose main foreign language was French, the language of diplomacy prior to World War II) and John F. Kennedy. At one point Kennedy inquired if Luns had any hobbies, to which he replied "I fok horses" (the Dutch verb fokken meaning to breed). Likely taken aback by this strangely obscene reply, Kennedy asked "Pardon?", which Luns then mistook as the Dutch word for "horses" ("paarden") and enthusiastically responded "Yes, paarden!"[1]"
Jun 6 2013: Ha!
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Can you imagine?
Well, have you heard of Spangland?
Look at this article of an American married to a Spanish woman.
WARNING: Do not have hot coffee in your mouth as you read...you might accidently spit some out.
http://www.freeworldgroup.com/humor/humor2005spanglish.htmJun 7 2013: Thanks for the warning - the chicken feet killed me, then the 'spaghettis', but my favorite has to be: "Was bob wire really named after its inventor, Bob?" Wonderful!!
Language is such a joy.!Jun 6 2013: I've seen this with Spanish a lot, especially with new and technology based words, like wifi and internet which are spelled the same in Spanish but pronounced differently. But, even with those examples I don't think languages are going to merge into one anytime soon.
Even though many English words are derived from romance languages like French or Latin, other parts of the language are more like German, so it still seems like it would be hard to merge them together.
Jun 7 2013: True, languages stem from everywhere, this tree shows how:
You can see how English, though based on Germanic, also has Italic roots.Jun 5 2013: I think that it would be great if everyone spoke the same language. There are however many things that can be expressed in many languages that other languages can't express (or express in the same way). If/when they are lost humanity looses a way of expression that we may never regain.
Further more understanding language is really important for history scholars, to help us understand who ewe are and where we came from.
So my position is this: it's going to be a great cultural loss and a gain in effective communications. I just hope that we record every language we can before they go extinct.
Have you read the Wiki? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_death
Jun 5 2013: I think it would be a cultural loss to lose languages. However, you can't force people to speak a language they don't want to. We should record as much as we can of current languages in order to preserve them for historical value. I could see many languages persisting for a long period of time, especially when the languages are characteristic of a large country. But we may see a more universal language develop in the long-term that represents a combination of some of the most common languages.
Jun 6 2013: Ryan I agree that it would be a cultural loss for the world if individual languages were to disappear. This BBC article from 2009 addresses that topic. Globalization has open up a world of opportunity but it also puts cultural identities at risk unless people make an effort to retain their cultural identity.
However, I did find this article interesting because it aludes to the importance of knowledge of a second language that may well be universal in order to facilitate social mobility and modernization as they put it.
Jun 6 2013: I agree with you Sonja, the globalization of the planet will make it increasingly important for people to communicate. 100 years ago we still thought as nations but now we must think "globally." In order to solve the worlds problems communication between all of the nations is important.Jun 7 2013: Jimmy, in response to the Wiki link you shared on language death, did you try the hyperlink about language attrition, "the loss of a first or second language or a portion of that language":
"The term 'First Language Attrition' (FLA) refers to the gradual decline in native language proficiency among migrants." In the process, the common language of that country would slowly become integrated into the migrant's use. I am a migrant, 'imported' to Holland from the states, and experience this first-hand.
Perhaps this is more the direction we are going, linguistically?
Jun 7 2013: Yes, I fully agree that that language attrition has it's parts to play. (I checked it now, very interesting)
But I think that it's all going to be an altered version of English that continue to be to be the dominant language in the world. And that's because English happened to be the biggest and most spread language when world-wide communications became available. It's also the best way of finding viable information, not that many research papers made in Swedish compared to English. So curious minds tend to learn it.
Not to mention medias part in it, Hollywood films being the biggest consumer option in the world for movies, mostly in English. And most music that is listened to is in English, many don't understand the words that they are singing but they get a little and that puts English in their language.
The world's most famous word is "Okay".
But with better and better technology we're able to record and understand languages better and learn them when we want to. Just look at all the computer software like Rosetta Stone that is out there with recorded languages, those aren't going away.
Some people (quite a lot when you think about it) know how to read Hieroglyphs today.
But yeah, language attrition swallows the really small ones while all the bigger languages will be preserved in different types of recordings while they are spoken less and less.
Mandarin and Spanish (or versions of them) will probably stick around for quite some time though.
Jun 7 2013: Even as language attrition is occurring, I find it interesting to consider the pieces of language that have been conserved over time. Maybe there are some types of words or ways of expression that are simply too important or intrinsic to the human condition to be lost. The example that I'm thinking of is the word for "Mother" - in a great number of wildly different languages it begins with a sound that babies tend to make when they put their lips together as though for nursing. According to this news article:
the root "ma," meaning "breast," may be the most widespread word in the world. For that matter, now that I'm thinking about it, that is also the same sound used by baby calves when they are hungry.Jun 7 2013: Thanks for the link, Lizanne.
From my personal experience - I live in a country where the community, or one of communities I am a part of is bilingual - speaking both Polish and Norwegian at different levels. Most of the members of the community came here in their mid twenties, have their families and friends in both countries and partners from either one or the other. Some of them do not have partners. From my observation language attrition that you brought up is an issue for those members of community who came here as children or teenagers, but it's not on morphological or syntactic level, but on cultural level. You cannot share all of the cultural or semipolitical jokes or comments with them as it is meaningless, they can understand the words or lines, but not read between them and/or react with laughter as a result. They were simply never exposed to either literature, films or phenomena that are the base for some of the sociolinguistic trends and have little or no cultural adherence to them in their, let's say, memory, which makes understanding of some things difficult.
Conversely, the members of the community that came here later and do not have the experience of childhood/teenage years in this country may have difficulty understanding some of the Norwegian jokes, comments or trends that are native or a natural part of experience of those who came here as children/teenagers. Those experiences build the language, or the sociolect that they have and share. Level of education plays a role here as well, but that's not what I'm referring to, just linguistic dynamics.
All this cannot be compared to what happened to Gaelic, it's actually rather new - attrition of cultural aspects of some parts of the language. Or even deletion. But who knows what will happen to the very language in the future, I mean the language on the level of morphemes/syntax, not semiotic entities (forgot the term...)Jun 7 2013: Hi again,
Just another thought and a memory - language attrition among the migrants can be effectively battled especially if the migrants were moved somewhat against their will - either had no choice, were left behind due to geopolitical trends (like moving of borders etc.), or had to escape, seek asylum, were sent to a foreign country as a punishment.
All this may lead to strenghtening of emotional ties with country, culture and language of origin and consequently - the need to preserve it in the community, sometimes in secret, sometimes in the open depending on the situation.
Example - I remember visiting a neighbouring country of Lithuania at the age of about 13. That was before the internet and before gaining access to TV or radio from other countries was as easy as it is now. The place where my sister and I were staying had a Polish community that had a strong goal and dedication to the goal which was preserving the native language (Old Trakai just outside of Vilnius, nice place with a castle).
I remember being stopped in the streets by seniors, one of them began to cry saying "Polish children came to visit us!"... and her Polish was better than the Polish of some of the children in our group. The pronunciation was a bit "non-modern" and influenced by Lithuanian, but still... It was the language of literature. I remember other interesting episodes as well that support the idea at the top of this comment - language attrition can be battled if the will is there.
And I paid for the trip myself after earning money working in the fields in West Norway! :) Just bragging, probably ;-)
Best wishes.Jun 6 2013: Answer to the main question : Then we will be able to communicate better and easily.
Language, culture evolves that's it beauty....language become enriched with entry of new words from foreign languages...the language that is more receptive to that adoption is more vibrant.Jun 6 2013: Just to play devils advocate but will the homogenization of language around the world lead to an increase in the understanding between people? If we all spoke the same language it would make it more possible to spread ideas to each other. Just a thought.
Jun 6 2013: Kind of going off what you said Nick, what are the harsh downfalls of language homogenization? I believe having so many different languages is a beautiful thing personally because it gives us so many different cultures in which we can gain endless knowledge and perspective. But really, what bad things would happen if we all spoke the same language?
Jun 7 2013: I don't know that there would be a "bad" thing to language homogenization. It may allow for greater acceptance of cultures and increased communication because maybe people would not look at others so differently and would feel more connected. I would hate to lose languages, because like you said Laurel, they provide us with knowledge about unique cultures. Cultural loss would be a big effect of language homogenization, but I'm not sure if there would be major negatives to language homogenization.Jun 7 2013: I agree that culture loss would be a huge downfall of language homogenization. To me, it would make the world too uniform. It would be weird if every country we traveled to, we could read the signs, and speak the language, I think that is part of the adventure.
Also, I think it would depend on what stage of homogenization we were at. What ever language we all were merging to, at some point native speakers would be at a social and economic advantage than people trying to learn it or not as fluent, this could lead to underrepresentation of certain groups at world events.
This article kind of touches on that, and discusses two paradigms: promoting English across the board or promoting multilingualism.
English only world wide or Language Ecology
http://www.jstor.org.libproxy.uoregon.edu/stable/pdfplus/3587692.pdf?acceptTC=trueJun 5 2013: I think we should also consider the multiple functions of language and whether moving towards a small number of commonly spoken languages would actually fulfill all of our needs. Yes, of course, language is used to communicate, but it is also used for social cohesion and to create boundaries, as a way to define who is and who isn't part of a group. The need to satisfy these other functions may ensure that there will always be niches for the less mainstream languages.
See this article for more info: http://www.hunter.cuny.edu/english/angela-reyes/repository/files/18942789.pdf
Jun 5 2013: I agree with Gwynne and think that language is so much more then communication and has strong ties to social/group cohension and, to an extent, culture. This importance of language has long been recognized I think - see any example of dictators, colonialists etc repressing the language of some unfavored group within their territory throughout history.
Also, I think the invention of modern Hebrew is very interesting to think about in these situations. It is one of the only examples I can think of where there was a deliberate revival and modernization of an ancient language.Jun 6 2013: I think that moving towards a small number of commonly spoken languages may result if people are not culturally attached to their language. Hebrew is an example of once dead language that is not considered to again be a living language as the Jewish population has taken great care to reincorporate it into their identity.
This also brings up the point that knowledge of a second (or more) language(s) is a useful skill to have that seem to be undervalued in the United States because English is such a commonly used language worldwide. Here is a link NEA research study about the benefits of studying a second language .
I think you might find the California Foreign Language Project's (CFLP) interesting:http://cwlp.stanford.edu/resource/Stanford_CFLP%20Handbook.pdf
Jun 7 2013: Sonja I think it should be mandatory in our school system that kids are taught a 2nd language from the beginning of their education. Not only would this create a more diverse workforce in the future, but it would improve the overall education (including cultural education) of our children. I do notice that people that are either fluent or very familiar with a 2nd language are usually better workers and study much more in school (I've observed this not only among my friends but also my students).This study talks about many of the benefits of knowing a second language.
Jun 7 2013: yeah, I agree Ryan, second language should absolutely be part of our curriculum. The list of benefits you posted is incredible, I was surprised it could have such positive influence in other areas of study too, such as math?!
Jun 5 2013: I would say it really does matter, and for the same reasons that Jimmy Strobl cites. I believe our strength comes from our diversity. Language reflects the way we think and how we perceive the world. If we allow languages to continually decline in variety, then our ability to conquer new problems and see advantages in new opportunities will decline also because of the resulting aggregate cognitive skill reduction. Language homogenization therefore makes us weaker. Many will view the subject of 'single language' as a solution to confusion and increased costs of inter cultural exchanges, citing it would be so much 'easier' to conduct ourselves if we all spoke and thought the same. I would see that as the beginning of the end of us. But, if most agree with that 'singular' perspective, I would suggest we annihilate their language(s) and culture(s) first.Jun 5 2013: janielle, did you want more time on your conversation, you can click edit and add more.
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probably I don't care too much if a language is lost, because language is a tool to live our lives, and as long as we have some high-quality language we can live effectively. It's not like losing the language means we forget about the people who spoke that language, we still remember and appreciate them. Also, I don't think any language is ever 100% lost, every language touches all the other languages and they all give and take to each other, so that whatever language "wins" still is shaped by the "losers."
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Jun 5 2013: I see the parallel between species extinction and language extinction. Species can evolve or die out naturally over time or humans can over exploit them and degrade their habitat, causing them to die out in a relatively short amount of time.
Similarly, as people interact with the world and each other in new ways, language will change. I do think the means by which this change occurs and the time scale over which it occurs matters.
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Jun 5 2013: Yes, but is it "natural" when these people have basically been forced into assimilation because of years of oppression and turmoil? What would have happened if Europeans had recognized different Native American peoples as independent nations with unique cultures and let them be?Jun 6 2013: Sadly it is true that many native american languages have died out because there is not necessarily the need for them on a day to day basis. Nevertheless I think that they are important to each tribe in retaining their cultural identity. Also, if anyone remembers the film "Windtalkers", it brings to light the story of how the Navajo language was used in WWII as a code that remains unbroken to this day (http://www.navajocodetalkers.org/ is the official website of the Navajo codetalkers). For me this was an interesting example to read about given the U.S.'s history of oppressing the Native American people and forcing them off their native lands and on to reservations (Trail of Tears). Despite all of that in the U.S's time of need, despite the history with the government the people of Najavo nation were instrumental in the outcome of WWII.
Nowadays maybe it is necessary for governments to intervene. Overtime we've recognized the importance of regional languages or native people's languages to their cultural identities and history...maybe it's time to work with the people to ensure the survival of these languages. Thoughts?
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Comment deletedJun 7 2013: LaMar, your comment rings true with the Dutch people - it is a small nation, but extremely densely populated (16 million people crammed into a country the size of Maryland.) But, the Dutch were a force to be reckoned with in the 1600s, and hung on to their language for hundreds of years while in America, despite other language influences. This article outlines how language has been affected and survived throughout the world, despite the fact that "More than 25% of all the languages in the world have fewer than 1000 speakers.":


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Hang tight!
Recipe by brookes
"Quick, easy, yummy homemade pizza dough, which you can top any way that you like. This makes a thin crust but it can be doubled for a thick crust."
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1 (.25 ounce) package
active dry yeast
1 cup
warm water
2 cups
whole wheat flour
1/4 cup
wheat germ
1 teaspoon
1 tablespoon
Wonderful recipe. You'd never know it was healthy! I've found that if I heat a glass of water for a minute in the microwave, the microwave becomes a great place (warm and humid) to stash the dough for rising.
I would have given this recipe a higher rating (since it was tastey), if I hadn't been stuck prying the pizza off of the pan. I usually grease the pan before I bake pizza dough on it, but since this recipe said to roll the dough onto a "floured" pan, I decided to give this idea a try. BIG mistake... make sure you grease the pan before spreading the dough on it. Also, the dough was way too sticky to spread - so I had to use quite a bit of extra flour to make it workable (next time I'll cut down on the water). Thanks for the recipe though - I'll give 'er another try.
549 Ratings
This is excellent. As written, allow a little time for the dough to rise initially but then allow it to again for another 5-10 minutes on the pan before you bake it. The result is a nice "pan pizza" like crust - GUILT FREE! I agree wholeheartedly with the recommendations to pre-cook at 350 for 15 minutes or more (depending on thickness) and then add toppings and cook again. My husband kept "oohing" and "ahhing" about the crust. I think the honey really makes it. For those of you who mentioned it was tough - perhaps you kneeded it too much. You want to mix with greased hands just until the ingredients are incorporated. We made individual pizzas which was really fun for the kids (ok - and me and hubby too!)
I made it in my food processor and added a couple swirls of olive oil to make the dough easier to work with... Then I covered the dough and stashed it in the fridge all day. I took it out of the fridge an hour before I wanted to use it to warm it up. Cut it into 4 pieces and rolled it onto parchment, brushed with a touch of olive oil, and baked on a pizza stone at 450 degrees for 3 minutes or so. Then took it out, put some pesto, cheese, tomatoes, and whatever else. Fresh cracked pepper on top, and back on the stone for 4-5 minutes or until the cheese was melty.
I will never make white pizza dough again....this was so incredibly good! Love the honey in it!
This recipe is similar to a Betty Crocker whole wheat recipe I have always used except it is even more healthy! I really like that it has wheat germ and honey in it instead of oil and sugar. Prepared the dough in my breadmaker which allows it to rise for an hour, then pressed it into a medium size pizza pan sprayed with canola oil. Let rest for 15 mins and then precooked in 425 oven for 2 minutes before adding all the other toppings. Turned out great, crunchy on the outside and chewy inside!!
This recipe is quick, easy and tastes great. I tried it because it was cholesterol free. I was in search of a whole wheat pizza dough and this one is great. My family likes it with olive oil, fresh home grown tomatoes, fresh garlic, italian seasoning and mozzarella cheese. I suggest NOT doubling the recipe your first time. This recipe is substancial for a family of 3-4.
Yummy! :) I did what STARS4BEA did below, I prebaked it for 17 minutes @ 350, put the toppings on, then baked it again for 20 minutes @ 350, then for an additional 5 minutes @ 400. I floured my pizza stone a little and used a thin spatula to loosen the dough off the stone after the first 17 minutes. It came out DELICIOUS! I had actually kneaded the dough and let it rise longer because I had the time. My only complaint is that it wasn't very crispy on the bottom, but this was my first time using a pizza stone, so I think I'll just have to practice. ;) All in all, the dough was VERY tasty, VERY quick, and a GREAT healthy alternative to regular pizza dough!
Very good! I used this dough to make two round 12" thin crust pizza's. It was a little softer than we like (we like crisp crust) but such a great flavor and we can adjust to the softness because it is sooo much better for us than jiffy pizza crust! Very easy to make. I did a few things differently. After I let the dough rise for 10 minutes in a warm oven then I kneaded it for a few minutes on a lightly floured surface. I greased the pizza pans and my hands with cooking spray and pressed the dough onto the pans. Very easy! I let the crust rest for 10 minutes then poked holes and baked for 4.5 minutes @ 425 degrees. Added toppings and baked for 11 minutes @ 425 degrees. Great recipe, thank you!
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
Whole Wheat and Honey Pizza Dough
Serving Size: 1/12 of a recipe
Servings Per Recipe: 12
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 83
Calories from Fat: 6
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See how to make healthy homemade whole wheat pizza dough.
This pizza crust is light and crispy, just like your favorite pizzeria's.
See how to make a pesto and potato pizza.


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Nice portable stand.
Results 11 to 17 of 17
Thread: Portable Welding Stand
11-23-2008, 05:10 AM #11Senior Member
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- Aug 2007
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- Honolulu, HI
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- 103
11-23-2008, 10:14 AM #12Senior Member
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- Nov 2007
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- Central Idaho
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Greaat idea! I'm going to build one today.
BTW, looking at the stand itself, it looks like the ones I have gotten from HD. Only difference is that the HD stands have yellow handles and work great. I use them for feeding some very heavy steel to my bandsaw and they have never failed.
I built one several years ago using 1" square tubing & expanded metal. It works pretty good, is at a height I can work with (read, not on the floor) & I can attach the ground clamp to it.
When I'm done with it, it folds flat & stands against the wall. In these pics I was building entrance ramps to the house for my M-I-L's wheelchair & walker.
11-24-2008, 01:37 PM #14Senior Member
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- Sep 2008
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- southwestern ohio
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- 272
could you tell us about what you were doing (in detail) and your expiriances repairing the bots? Great stand.
11-25-2008, 05:55 PM #15Senior Member
- Join Date
- May 2008
- Location
- Troy, MI
- Posts
- 388
One of the teams that my company sponsors is team 217 out of the Ford transmission plant in Sterling Heights MI. We have enough machinists, technicians and engineers associated with the team that we staff a complete portable machine shop for all of the teams at the Wayne State University regional.
We brought five band saws, three belt sanders, two portable lathes, one portable milling machine, drill press and arbor press for broaching keyways as well as the Dynasty 200 DX welder. We had 5 machinists available so we could pretty much make any part required, without any wait. I did all of the welding.
Some of the grippers were made of 1/16 wall x 1 x 1 square tubing. The original welds weren't the greatest and they failed during the competition. This particular team had three grippers. I repaired the cracked welds and ground out and re-welded all of the welds that I didn't like. I had finished one and was working on the second when they came outside to the welding trailer during the finals because the third one had failed.
One robot was about 1" too high, so it didn't pass the tech inspection. I cut it down and re-welded it. It was made of 1/8 inch angle and plate. The robot had an aluminum hinge on the top that I had to cut down and re-weld.
I hope that this gives you an idea of what it was like.
Miller Thunderbolt
Smith Oxyacetylene Torch
Miller Dynasty 200DX
Lincoln SP-250 MIG Welder
Clausing/Coldchester 15" Lathe
16" DuAll Saw
15" Drill Press
7" x 9" Swivel Head Horizontal Band Saw
20 Ton Arbor Press
Miller Spectrum 375 Plasma Torch
Nice stand, it looks like two of side tubing pieces go to the inside of the stand when it's set up, is that what's "locking" it into place?
Miller 140 w A/S
HF 90 Amp Flux Core
Dewalt Chop Saw
Smith O/A Torch
Ryobi, HF grinders
Harley Electra Glide Classic
Yes. It is a simple "X" bracing for the legs with a bolt where the "X" meets. I have one side of the "X" permenantly mounted to the table with bolts on the outside of the angle frame, the other side just swivels up to the inside of the angle iron frame of the top.
As long as you aren't lifting up on the top, the table is pretty stable. When your done with the table, the legs swivel away from the top & it folds flat to store against the wall.
If I needed to make it more stable, I could drill a hole in the angle & legs then run a pin through it so it doesn't fall. But for me, I don't need the pin.


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Clinical Mental Health Counseling
Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
The Clinical Mental Health Counseling degree program is designed to provide students with theoretical and practical training and research skills along the lines of the scientist-practitioner model to prepare them to work in a variety of counseling and mental health settings and for acceptance into a doctoral program in psychology. Our Clinical Mental Health Counseling master's degree also prepares students to become licensed professional counselors.
The Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling program at Evangel University is designed to prepare students to become licensed professional counselors. Courses are offered during afternoons and evenings in the fall, spring and summer semesters. The program has seven objectives:
- Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of both counseling and human development theories and apply this information to demonstrate skills to diagnose and treat persons with psychological disorders
- Demonstrate knowledge, understanding and skills to administer, score and interpret relevant counselor-based assessment instruments
- Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of theory and demonstrate skills necessary to design, conduct and analyze research and evaluate programs
- Display an appreciation for – and sensitivity to – the unique characteristics and heritage of people of diverse cultures and value systems
- Demonstrate knowledge, understanding and skills needed to develop rapport, interview, assess, intervene and treat both individuals and groups in counseling
- Demonstrate knowledge, understanding and practice of ethical, legal and professional responsibilities
- Demonstrate knowledge, understanding and practice of integration of Christian psychology (intradisciplinary, interdisciplinary and faith-practice) within a Christian worldview
|Daytime Courses
|Evening Courses
|Online Courses
|Starting Semester
|Clinical Mental Health Counseling
Program Plan (pdf)
|Want to see exactly what classes you will take? The Program Plan (sometimes called a degree sheet) includes all specific requirements - including University proficiencies, Frameworks courses and degree requirements.
Each of Evangel's academic programs is made up of a set of core curriculum, program requirements and electives. The courses listed below are just a small sample of courses that might be taken as a part of this specific program.
The Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling requires 60 credit hours. Below is a sample of the classes you will take. For a full list of courses, see the Program Plan (pdf).
|Methods of Research and Statistics
|Overview of basic research processes and the skills necessary to develop and conduct graduate research projects. Addresses issues related to the philosophy of science and the development role of scientific inquiry in research along with specific issues related to research design.
|The Helping Relationship and Clinical Intervention
|Acquaints the novice counselor with basic skills necessary for counseling. Discusses, demonstrates, and practices listening skills, reflection, confrontation, interpretation, diagnostic interviewing, and crisis intervention. Students participate actively in exercises and role play and engage in the process of self-understanding and self-assessment.
|Theories of Counseling and Psychotherapy
|Examines the major contemporary theories of counseling and psychotherapy and the relationship of the theories studies to clinical practice. Addresses how the different theories view counseling as a potential means of change, growth, learning, and/or cure. Discusses the components of an adequate theory. Students then define their own theoretical orientations.
|Integration of Christianity and Psychology
|This course is one of a series of one-hour integration courses and is designed to facilitate the process of theoretically integrating Christian beliefs with the science of psychology. This interdisciplinary integration is explored through various models of integration. Students will engage in thoughtful discussion on difficult integrative topics and develop their own perspectives and convictions regarding integration.
|Group Counseling
|Explores group development, dynamics, and counseling theories. Addresses group leadership styles and group counseling methods and skills. Reviews several approaches to conducting group counseling.
Evangel University's world-class faculty is made up of caring, Christian professionals who are distinguished in their fields and dedicated to the development of tomorrow's Christian leaders.
- Licensed professional counselor
- Case manager
- Mental health agency director
- International counselor
- Inpatient counselor
Pre-requisite hours:
- 9 pre-requisite credits in Psychology including statistics
- APA writing sample
The following are general requirements for all students beginning a program at Evangel. Applicants who have met the following criteria will be considered for admission to the Graduate Studies program:
- Hold an earned baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university.
- Have a grade point average of 3.0 or better in the last 60 hours of undergraduate work or last two years as a full-time undergraduate or graduate student.
- Provide official results of required entrance examinations.
- Meet specific departmental requirements as stipulated in the individual program descriptions.
If you have any questions about admissions requirements for Evangel's Graduate Studies program, don't hesitate to call 417-865-2815 (ext. 7229) or email our Graduate Studies Admissions Counselor.
There are no links for this program at this time.


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Just listening to Blueprint and decided to read the sleeve notes.
Totally forgotten about the bold claim that "808 State will return"
2 years on and no sign of any new material, was this false promise or a reference to the live shows?
It would be marvellous if it happened, but alternatively I'd love to be put out of my misery and extinguish the last hope that it may come to pass so I can get on with the rest of my life!!!


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Found an old tube of copper coated steel rod. I think this was purchased for oxy-acetylene welding. Haven't tried it yet but can't see why not since I just want to use it for practice.
Distributed by Hobart
Weldit Part Number 70141
Labeled as: 3/32 steel rod, RG45
Y'all think it can it be used for Tig practice?
Results 1 to 5 of 5
07-26-2013, 10:11 AM #1Member
- Join Date
- Nov 2012
- Posts
- 85
Can I Practice Tig With RG45 Rod?
The more you know, The better you know, How little you know
The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten
Buy the best tools you can afford.. Learn to use them to the best of your ability.. and take care of them...
My Blue Stuff:
Dynasty 350DX Tigrunner
Dynasty 200DX
Millermatic 350P w/25ft Alumapro & 30A
Millermatic 200
TONS of Non-Blue Equip, plus CNC Mill, Lathes & a Plasmacam w/ PowerMax-1000
07-26-2013, 08:00 PM #3Senior Member
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- Jan 2007
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- 393
yes..it will do.
07-29-2013, 12:10 PM #4Member
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- Nov 2012
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- 85
Jeffus' Welding Principles book has the answer also.
Can use RG45 for TIG practice running beads but not for production work as this filler rod has no deoxidizers
08-05-2013, 11:56 AM #5Member
- Join Date
- Nov 2012
- Posts
- 85
Tried this out last night.
It does work and will make just as nice a bead. Don't know about structural strength but I wouldn't use it for that anyway.
Great for practice though.
One note: Keep a short arc. If the arc lengthens sparks will start flying out of the puddle. I haven't seen this happen with ER70S6 but it will with RG45. :-)