Great series !

Thank you for posting your honest opinions! I completely agree with this verdict. Susvara’s timbre is unbeatable and with a 2db bass shelf it can play other genres very well. I also pair it with my SVS SB16 ultra

Great discussion on tonality!

I sold my TC and went Susvara. Comfort matters a lot. Also, with a stereo amp, the Susvara is king. Tc gets a little bright at times, some fatigue. Never with Susvara

Thank you for your work , I can only afford one headphone and you helped me decide on the Susvaras ,.

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

Glad I was able to help

Enjoying this a lot, thanks for your thoughts. I have the 1266 and lcd-5 which have been great so far. Still need to get my ears on a susvara to see what I think. I love the sound of the 1266 with the modern music I listen to so have been hesitant to try a susvara. Have you heard some of the dan clark offerings like voce or the new stealth?

Ok, i think the next logical review/preview should be the chord dave since you "nonchalantly I might add" mentioned and you own it. and of course thank you very much for the all the informative content you're putting on youtube and on the head-fi community. cheers.

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

Welcome, mate

Finally!!!!

Another great shoot-out! Thank you, Sajid, for this and for all your three very interesting parts!!! You should definitely listen to and test the new Stax SR-X9000. If the SR-009s is already your number three of best-in-class headphones in the world (in your eyes), there's a good chance the X9000 will become your best overall headphone in the world (X9000 paired with the KGSSHV Carbon which fits very well). The X9000 outperforms the 009s in all categories, setting the bar so high that it's at least one "league" above the 009s (I'd expect it to be “a league and a half” above). It's more precise, it's faster, it has more airiness and an almost overwhelming spatially precise presentation. Just another dimension. And at the same time - although "razor sharp" - never annoying or being "bright", but so natural and pleasant to listen to and so beautiful in sound. This is to be expected especially with highly complex music (large orchestra), natural acoustic music and human male (bass, baritone, tenor) and female (soprano, alto) voices. However, the full increase in performance of the X9000 over the 009s can only be heard with natural and/or highly complex natural music. With “kind of artificially” mixed and mastered modern music (mixed studio music or even live music as coming technically amplified through a PA sound system), it's still significantly better, but the gap between X9000 and 009s isn't as audible as with natural music. In my view, the X9000 is a truly incredible (revolutionary) achievement by Stax, based on their 80 years headphone heritage and deep e-stat experience. "The Empire Strikes Back" ;-) after long 10 years of “silence” in a truly vibrant decade regarding emerging new competing flagships in the domain of dynamics, planars and e-stats. SR-009 was released in 2011. SR-009s in 2018 was technically considered no real step above, it was just a “reform” (more or less other tonality tuning), but far from a “revolution” (half of the fans prefer the 009s over the 009, the other fraction vice versa). But the X9000 from 2021 is a technical revolution, a contemporary masterpiece. So, please try to listen to X9000, Sajid 😊

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

Okay, mate. I'll have to buy it now given your glowing feedback.

@qauau

2 жыл бұрын

"Please try before buy" ;-) That said, you won't be dissapointed, I am sure ... ;-) Especially as you already have a Carbon :-)

@davidpilon9433

2 жыл бұрын

I'm not sure the X9000 can compete with the subass of the 1266TC.

@qauau

2 жыл бұрын

@@davidpilon9433 No, of course it cannot compete with TC regarding quantity and punch. But it goes low regarding its lower cutoff frequency and the bass quality is excellent and accentuated. I like to EQ with +5dB below 200 Hz for bass-head pop/rock music. Still then it won't compete with the bass monster 1266 phi TC (but with headphones of the Utopia class) but it has more than enough for those genres for my very personal taste. More does not sound natural for me. For absolute bass heads I would not recommend E-Stats. Even the CRBN wouldn't suffice there. So, then I recommend the TC, of course. For classical and acoustical music I like to use no EQ. Because in that case without bass enhancement it sounds most natural to my ears. IMHO and YMMV!

@davidpilon9433

2 жыл бұрын

@@qauau I agree with everything you said

Please try kennerton headphones, I heard good things about them specifically bass response and for soundstage.

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

So I hear. Would love to try them sometime.

Great shootout, thanks ☺️ I'd probably be saving for either of the top two if it wasn't for the accompanying gear that's also needed. Not saying that it can compete on paper with the top two, but it sounds like given the ease of synergy, low power requirements and no obvious shortcomings (perhaps not "best in the world" in any aspect, but also free from any flaws that would make it genre-specific) the Utopia could still be the perfect headphone for someone who is unable/unwilling to buy extra gear and is not looking to collect different headphones for different genres.

@HercahyoAdiSaputro

2 жыл бұрын

Actually Utopia is slightly picky on amp, as wrong amp will emphasize its metallic upper mid/lower treble. It does not need expensive amp or speaker amp, just an amp with smoother mid and high

@KenMoreira

2 жыл бұрын

i found the utopia to be amazing at strings and such. but it was way to narrow for me. I went back to my arya after only 2 weeks

@MistaLova-Lova

2 жыл бұрын

@@KenMoreira I get what you're saying, I also had an Arya at the time but just couldn't go back to it because the gap in resolution, detail, punchiness was too big, it's like once you hear the next level it's hard to come back down (even when I had the Focal Clear the gap in those qualities was already evident, although the Arya's soundstage/presentation was delicious), hence I upgraded to the HEKse; I still consider the Utopia the better overall headphone but sometimes I just like the big soundstage and the see-through quality of these planar drivers.

@aceofspades6667

2 жыл бұрын

Lcd4 can be had sub $2k used. Final d8k for $2k and d8k pro sub $3k used. These along with utopias are all a good deal. You can get a few totl or new flagship cans for price if one of the others.

@KenMoreira

2 жыл бұрын

@@MistaLova-Lova I want the he1 se how is it compare to Arya

What do you guys think of the DCS lina amp for Susvara and what cables?

Damn, son. Let me borrow a few of those for a bit :)

Is there a good budget dac/amp for LCD-5 with broad and airy sound stage?

How has your thoughts on the Susvara changed after getting the Ferrum stack if at all?

Great final video of this series. I agree 100% with your comment about Susvara needing a good, warm amp. I find mine shines best with my old HK-870 power amp. Heddphone and everything else I own except for He6se v2 & Susvara runs perfectly fine off just a Burson Audio Soloist 3X. Those two headphones are the only ones that really NEED that last mile of performance to sound their best.

I'm contemplating whether i should spend over 500$ on a headphone meanwhile you have probably over 50k worth of audio equipment in one room. Wouldn't it be better to sell all or most of your equipment and just get the Sennheiser He- 1 instead?

...And your comment about Susvara being best "all-rounder"? I can see that. While it doesn't have as much "flash" or "bling" as some as my other headphones, it consistently reproduces the sound characteristics most adeptly in listening sessions for every genre from Wintersun to Roger Waters to Holst.

We all knew the verdict in advance 😂. Now that you have all the best headphones in production, you need to search for the legendary ones: Sony MDR-R10 and Sennheiser HE90. Gotta catch’em all!

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

Lol.

@haberdasherrykr8886

2 жыл бұрын

I bet sony qualios would surpass he1k v2

I like the content you gave on tuning. Resolve has done several videos on harman and the different curves and how they are fitted/scaled against a target. Many reviewers have developed their own preference curves and measure against that. They then use objective measurements to speak in relative terms to a subjective curve. I tend to prefer deviations to the curve on tuning and I like different flavors. The phi tc and 009s would be the perfect combo for me. I own the Phi tc and have been searching for a second paring. Also looking at verite closed and d8k pro. I think you might actually be able to do better than chord Dave and Holo May for similar money.

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

What do you prefer to the Dave and the May?

@aceofspades6667

2 жыл бұрын

@@amplifyaudioreviews at the May price point try Rockna Wavelight or Aqua La Voce S3. At the chord price point try Mola Mola tambaqui, Berkeley Alphas Ref 2, Aries cerat Kassandra, nagra HD, or total Dac d1. You might have to search used for a bit to make the budget work but these do come up. Msb select II is ultimate end game but you’re buying a house with that.

Bro your chin whiskers are scratching your mic , beyond that very nice vid Bro.

the hairs on your chin is touching the mic and can be heard. Thanks for the review. As always quality review.

What are all your degrees/awards/certificates on the wall? :)

It is a very engaging statement to say: This is the best headphones! There are a lot of variables like: how your hearing does work; what is your library; what a rig you have;.... I will dare to mention only headphones I had deeply tested. 1/ I still cannot justify 4 times more expensive Susvara over the Arya 2021 ed.; yes, the Susvara is definitely better but what about the cost!?; 2/ If you have a good rig with a good R2R dac and a Burson 3XP with Arya, HD800s and LCD-4, what gives you the real upgrade? I was straggling for long. And I found the answer for me - it is a Stax. A LNS gives you the warmth, bass and supreme vocals, followed by well detailed and smooth highs; the bass is very similar to 007mk1 but mids and highs are better, for me; If you want to upgrade - it is the 007 mk2; a bit less bass but far better control, supreme mids and highs detailed like HD800S but with far better smoothness and the sound stage = an Arya, not that exaggerated like HD800S; vs 009s - bass is deeper and far more authoritative and mids and vocals are not that recessed, or lightened if I may say. The 007 mk2 runs on 007t modified by Mjolnir, sourcing from Ares II. The rig of an Ares II and Soloist 3XP or 007t Mjolnir gives you the tools to judge any DD, Planar or Electeostatic. All other rig upgrades are just improvement to the reply but are not changing the performance of the mention above headphones in a reranking way. The series you did is close to perfect but the final conlusion is lucking variables and the library.

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the feedback.

The HE-1 is the ultimate Harman tuned headphone because it has the bass shelf and the treble clarity as an open back. Ignoring the price and knowing that you've demoed it, would you say the HE-1 has better clarity and nicer timbre than the Susvara or do they offer comparable performance/sound quality?

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

Yes, I would say they are comparable in quality. The HE-1 does sound like a better performing headphone but despite the bass shelf, the drivers, being estat, just don't produce the sort of visceral impact that planars and dynamic drivers can. So the bass sounded elevated but still lacking in timbre if you know what I mean. But the bass aside, it did seem to outperform the Susvara in terms of resolution.

@DEALUX

2 жыл бұрын

@@amplifyaudioreviews I highly suspect the bass shelf is DSP-ed. Physics wise it doesn't really make sense otherwise.

@iikatinggangsengii2471

6 ай бұрын

itll be comparable and most important will lower price abit, not to 'bridge-ey'

What did you think of shang jr?

The focal all the way in back 😂.

Thanks for the shootout! Whats the crunching sounds Sajit lol

@sonicvisions6491

2 жыл бұрын

Oh might be the beard :)

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

Lol. Probably the beard. I apologize!

Nice 3 rounds! How would you compare the hd800s with susvara?

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

I love the HD800S but the Susvara is a little more technically proficient while not having the HD800S's stage

@trigeger

2 жыл бұрын

@@amplifyaudioreviews Just "a little"? Expecting to be "much" better from a top planar ) (especially bass/separation)

@Skeith89

2 жыл бұрын

@@trigeger And Sajid says HD800S timbre is better than Susvara. HD800S is truly have the best price to performance ratio among all headphones.

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

@@trigeger It's better and its perceptible. On some days, I find it a looot better. On others, not so much. I suppose it depends on how your mind makes sense of the difference. You know how they say a 10% difference can lead to 100% more pleasure.

Hey will you be trying any vintage stax like lambda signature

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

Yeah I plan to

Try goldplanar gl 1200, stax l700 mk2, Abyss Diana TC, MEZE Empyrean Elite

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

Have tried the Elite

@harnoorsingh2866

2 жыл бұрын

@@amplifyaudioreviews you like it? because I like it more than any Audeze headphone.

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

@@harnoorsingh2866 I certainly liked it. I wis Meze had eked out more technical performance for it though. But overall, a great all-rounder and nice package in terms of comfort, design, technical and tonal performance.

Where do I get the resolve EQ for lcd-5? I’ve just recently ordered it

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

YOu get it on the headphones dot thread for the LCD5

@thinkbeforeyoupost9766

2 жыл бұрын

Sorry where? Could you please link it to this reply? Sorry I can’t seem to find it mine are in transit

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

@@thinkbeforeyoupost9766 This is from Chrono: Low Shelf at 85hz, +4dB Q of 0.7 Peak at 3000hz, -3dB Q of 3 Peak at 5500hz, -2.5dB Q of 4 High Shelf at 6000hz, +4dB Q of 0.7 Peak at 8000hz, +1dB Q of 2

What rank is Verite Open, ADX5000, and 007 MK2?

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

007 MK2 I didn't like because of the bass bloat. ADX5000 is a wonderful headphone as is the Verite Open. I would rank the Verite Open in my top 20 I think. Have to revise my ranking.

where would you place the h31k se ?

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

Let me think and get back

Why is it that so many KZreadrs proclaiming to be deeply attuned to the quality of sound don’t know how to create a good mic set up? In this case Discussing intimate details of SQ with constant static like interference. Odd.

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

Lol, I am an audiophile first and more of a reluctant reviewer. Audiophiles are better at consuming sound than in producing, naturally. :) But it's good feedback and I have been lazy to fix my mic setup. In fact, I am probably clueless as to how to go about fixing my mic setup lol. I may be better critical listening and sharing impressions.

@tobefree3718

2 жыл бұрын

@@amplifyaudioreviews fair enough, and should be easy to fix - otherwise good reviewing

@amplifyaudioreviews

2 жыл бұрын

@@tobefree3718 Thanks. Do feel free to drop a video or suggestions on how to improve my SQ. I should also get back to reviewing at some point.

As much as I love my LCD-5 and think the sound is truly world class, I feel Audeze really cut some corners regarding its design. From the insane clamp of the initial headbands to the twisting issue which was not mentioned, to some connectors being pulled out of the cups, to my personal experience of the Audeze logos being loose on the cups (just barely glued on apparently) and the glued on faux leather pads, I feel Audeze shot themselves in the foot because they wanted the largest profit margin possible. Really too bad. I will continue to love my LCD-5, but I question where Audeze stands ethically and will be hesitant to buy from them in the future.

@michaelp.3485

2 жыл бұрын

@@Neutrality10 Well considering you said my comment is "stupid" you ARE attacking me so I am not going to engage with you any further. I feel the way I feel and if you don't agree then just move along.

@Borednlonely

Жыл бұрын

I would have to say this about headphones in general. I’ve been in this hobby for some time but not as long as I’ve had speaker rigs. I cannot believe the failure rate I read about in headphones. When I buy a pair of speakers I’m confident they will out live me. I buy a pair of 6k headphones and I’m keeping an eye on the warranty in case the driver fails. This is disgusting from these manufacturers. There should be a lifetime drivers warranty.

Why no one is talking about the Warwick acoustic aperio headphone system ? It's such an amazing product from what I've read

@adamp6862

2 жыл бұрын

Because it’s $35,000…. I will say, I was blown away by the Sonoma One System from Warwick at CanJam a few years back. It was the highlight of the show for me. I enjoyed it more than the 009 on the BHSE. If one ever comes up used for a decent price I think I need to have it

@x32i77

2 жыл бұрын

@@adamp6862 its 25k€ only here in Germany

@x32i77

2 жыл бұрын

@@adamp6862 great to hear that 🙂 Warwick acoustics has released it's newer sonoma M1 model called the Bravura . Did you hear that ?

@qauau

2 жыл бұрын

@@adamp6862 Yes, the Aperio is an amazing system but it is very expensive. But the Sonoma One (M1) is really an amazing system, too. But even one level better is the new Warwick Bravura (based on the Sonoma M1 Driver, i.e. Amplifier/DAC/DSP), released end of last year, i.e. four years after Warwick's first model. The Bravura even raises the bar, the 3D spatial presentation being much better, deeper. Moreover, the sound is more colourful, more body, more bass and the overall tonality is even better balanced and full bodied. The Sonoma and the Bravura are very dynamic although being electrostats. But they use a new "cassette" construction with many small diaphragm segments thus reducing resonances and distortions at the diaphragm. But the main trick behind the perfect Harman tonality and room presentation is a DSP which performs spectral and room correction. So, it is a closed system incorporating a DSP for signal processing, a DAC (and ADC+DAC for analogue input, i.e. ADC=>DSP=>DAC), and a class A solid-state amplifier. The DAC has an excellent sound, so it's good for people who use digital sources. But for puristic vinyl fans it might not be a feasible solution because vinyl fans typically want to avoid digital signals and to avoid digital processing, i.e. ADC and DAC. Moreover, many high-end afficionados like to optimize their rig by exchanging amplifiers, DAC, interconnects. Also the option to apply a tube amp and even tube rolling. All this is not possible because it is an optimized closed solution. A really great sounding closed system, but closed! And due to this you will not find a lot of hobbyists posting in forums and KZread/Facebook/etc on Warwick's systems. Closed systems are not the target of audio freaks ;-) My 2 cents, only! (I may be wrong!)

@qauau

2 жыл бұрын

Please see my reply to Adam (sorry, I should have replied to you and all others here). For further info. I have both at home, Sonoma and Bravura, so could carry out in-depth comparisons.

the Abyss look stupid on - seriously thats why you didnt even show the camera with them on your head

if you can move your microphone away from your neck, that'd be nice D:

Sorry to say that, but as an audiophile one should look for basic sound reproduction as well and sound here is terrible, not just because the beard is scratching on the mic all the time.

@Konspiration100

Жыл бұрын

Nevertheless interesting video like so often.