After viewing literally hours of headphone reviews, I decided to get the Sundara's. They finally arrived and they really turned my head on fire...I love them!! I've been listening to Classical music, Opera, Symphonic Rock, Classic Rock, Jazz, Michael Jackson, etc. and I really adore them!! The depth and color of the bass is beautiful and natural, mids and treble are crispy clear and very present. Regarding quality, I feel them sturdy and well built. The ear pads are very comfortable too. The headset fits perfectly well. I really think that above this level you're in the situation where you experience the same difference as there is in wines where when you go over 20 bucks the bottle you realize that it's all bs, status and marketing (said by famous enologists). So if your looking for something fantastic and affordable, don't even hesitate one second. Just do it!!
Hey may i know what dac amp youre using. Do you think its okay to buy it without a dac/amp? How is it after a week using it? Sorry for having lots of question XD
@@detectiveapollo I recently bought them (they are the last revised version), so I'm still testing them (it says that they take as long as 150 hs of listening until they unleash their full potential). I've used them with my iPhone, MacBook pro and with an AMC 3050 amp. With the first two they sound very well but of course with an amp, they perform much better. For casual listening, I think there's no amp required. If you want full power, an amp is necessary...
you deserve a bigger following, in terms of quality you're one of the best in the audio tech youtuber space. Love how organized your videos are, and the use of b-roll and great lighting just makes the viewing experience excellent!
I've had this headphone for a few months now and what he describes above is pretty much what it sounds like when new. I thought it a tad bright at the beginning but now with adequate run-in time, the bass is more prominent now and this gives it a slightly warmer sound signature. It sounds great paired with the smooth and musical Audio-GD R2R-11
I still haven't heard a person that ever said his headphone got worse over time, after it's sound signature was changed by the burn-in. Funny huh? I have quite a few headphones myself, but I still never found any evidence of burn-in. But I do tend to get used to them after a while when I switch between them after a long time.
Hey man I have Sundara for about a year now and it’s sound signature is warmer compare to first months and the highs are even better controlled which is pretty awesome and the base gets a more solid punch and depth. I do highly recommend this headphone to others especially for 350.
@@manueljenkin95 The quality control of Hifiman is an old story. The Sundara has a metal frame !!! The cushions are very comfortable and the vibrating membrane is protected by a metal braiding !!! No problem here !!!
Not that people are buying headphones for heirlooms or anything, but Hifiman and Audeze still have a fair share of QC issues and deterioration. Every other Hifiman and Audeze owner I know IRL has had problems either with their initial unit or slightly down the line with driver and frame failures while I haven't heard anyone talk about a dead HD800. I love my LCD-X but I would definitely keep these things in mind while buying.
i love the frequency of uploads, you are so deliberate in the way you are describing how exactly you hear the sound in every aspect, so much more in depth then most other reviewers especially more than that hippy zeos. metal user is great too. if you listen to zeos you just dont know what you are buying exactly. your video editing is quite pleasing to the eye as well, very professional
The album he talks about is really good. Don't even like the music that much but you feel like you are in the room and that room is perfect and your ears weep with joy.
I'm here commenting without watching the video. I don't wanna hear how good they are, I just had to sold them to found a year of studyes outside my country 😭
I tested these headphones today, and your review is pretty spot on. Only thing I’d add in terms of comfort is that if you live in a warmer more humid climate, all that cushion does tend to make your head sweat. Ultimately I’ll be returning them and keeping my beloved HD650 for their comfort and less sweating.
Yes they do back their warranties, recently had to send them my headphone for repairs/exchange and a great review but I would have liked to see this compared a bit more with the he 4xx
I do not own phones under the $900 mark except for the Sundara, of which I have two because that phone has gone through several "stealth improvement" that are never mention by the secretive Dr. Bian yet resulted in a serious upgrade over the original model. The difference is tremendous. Gone are the 200 hours of break-in and just as gone are those sizzling high-mids and a treble that nearly made me go berserk, the wince factor was worse than any dynamic phone I own, which may sound counter-intuitive but is a common topic around headphones enthusiasts. You tell which one you have either through wincing, reading the serial number, or just looking ad the pads, the latter ones having a more pronounced version of the Focus pads. And for the build it may appear flimsy... until you compare it with that of its "plastitcky" predecessors that made us look like robots. HFM derived the frame from the $3,000 HE6e and intends to use it on all of its models in a near future. As for SQ I spent two years comparing the Sundara with the Focal Clear (using aftermarket cables to replace the garden hose-like originals on the Sundara, which are too short to begin with) and in the end I concluded that even though the Clear was the better headphone (I may biased because I prefer dynamics, but I honestly don't think it blurred my imprssions and the Sundara held its own against its fancy competitor and was't far behind, For a phone that costs about 75% less that's very impressive, HFM is to headphones what Paradigm is to speakers: a fast climber catering to the layman as well as to the millionaire with prices ranging from $249 a pair to $55,000 each. Focal is also a very fast climber but it caters to a different customer base: the wealthy and the not-so-wealthy who'll sacrifice almost everything they own just get theirs on those cans and the pricey paraphernalia they require. I should know. Thanks for review, I enjoyed it a lot!
Ho Ly Shit the sound quality of that Amber Rubarth album is absolutely insane!!!! I am blown away (listening to it with my Sundara's and a Dragonfly Red DAC). Thanks for the advice! Do you have any other god-tier soundquality albums you can recommend?
Yes Josh, u was right i went to try the Amber Rubarth as you said, and the instrument separation on that tracks through my Hifiman sundara is amazing!!!
I saw that it was on sale ($350.00) and pulled the trigger on the purchase. I too ordered a Periapt cable and will get it Friday. I am using my pair on an Enog2 Pro DAC and a 789 amp. I am glad I bought them. They sit on my printer by my small desk along with my 600s and my Alaras.
I'm interested in the M1060, and am torn between these and the M1060 but have no idea which one to test out. I'm not ready to just jump into planars with $700 Audeze LCD-2C.
Do not judge the Sundara until it’s had at least 30 hours of break in. They recommend 150, but I’m not there yet. If the break in curve continues to the 150 hr point I think my head may explode. The Sundara is also very source critical. If you play crap, you’ll get crap. As I write I’m listening to Rubenstein play Chopin Ballads on a Steinway D Concert Grand piano on RCA living Stereo Vinyl. Straight from the hand of God. Happy Easter everyone.
Joshua Valour Joshua Valour low effort reference on my part, sorry. the font (which is awesome) looks like blade runner font. if you’ve seen blade runner 2049 during the ‘Voight Kampff’ tests there’s a line that I referenced. th-cam.com/video/vrP-_T-h9YM/w-d-xo.html
Your videos have came a long way and you keep improving. I took a long break and this is a completely different channel. Hifiman gave me a pair of these before they came out. They are bright but these headphones have a lot of wiggle room if you eq them. I turn up the low end and turn down the high end and these sound like a crisp 6XX with better tighter bass.
For those are curious to compare it to hd600. You shouldn't, I thought I had to compare the sundara and hd600. But I realized that they go quite well along . I mean if you own à sundara you should get a hd600 and if you own à hd600, take a sundara.
Received my Sundara today, they sound absolutely lovely. Agree that the bass is slightly more recessed than I'd like but with a little tweaking they're easily my best pair of cans already! Completely agree on the cable, it is garbage. Holding the curl from the way it was packaged, and the outer material feels pretty cheap and nasty. The connectors are sturdy though so I might just hold onto it for that reason. I've got a balanced cable on the way to replace it, thankfully!
I really like how Hifiman tune their sound. I bought a HE-350 for 50 USD (from a friend). I like almost everything except those piercing highs/treble (used a tissue paper mod to tame it). and build quality issues is still there. The yolks broke on my HE-350 (without doing anything) after a few weeks of use. Hopefully they would have a better quality control and those trebles need to be tame. These are the only reason i'm skeptical in getting another Hifiman product. Anyways! Good Review man!
@@Moreeke why is a very common problem? Is it because it is badly manufactured at the factory? Or is it because the driver is not very good quality and eventually breaks down?
Thank you so much for the amber rubarth sessions from the 17th ward recommendation! I don't really listen to that genre but the quality of the production really blew me away, I was able to hear everything so clearly
@@dark-california I haven't listened to the Sundara in a few months but I can say yes the Sundara is still better imo. I listened to the LCD-2C the other day and it still doesn't impress me at all. I mean it's good but the dip in the mids and the lack of top-end sparkle make it just not worth it to me.
@@dark-california I'm mean if you're looking for a balanced good sounding headphone then the Sundara is the way to go. The one thing the LCD-2C has over it is the bass but with a little EQ'ing you can get the Hifiman to have a good amount of quantity because the quality is already there.
Which Spectrum Visualizer do you use ? Is there a mac os app which would let me see the spectrum live based on what I am playing on spotify or youtube or tidal ?
I've had a couple of different models from Hifiman in the past. 560 & 400i. I never had any quality issues with either. I sold both, the 400i to a close friend and he's had no issues either. That said, I've read about enough people having problems, and a lot of different problems at that, that I wouldn't buy anything from them at this time. If they as a company would come out and admit there are problems, and hopefully own up to them in some way, I might change my mind. It's a shame, because I like the look and what I've heard about the Sundara. I just can't bring myself to take the chance once again of something happening with them and having a company that refuses to do anything about it.
Hi. I'm not fluent in English. I'm happy to meet you. I'm hesitant between dt 1990 pro and hd 600 and sundara. What is the enjoyment of music between these 3 models? Or in short, compare these 3 models. Sorry, it took a long time.
I own this and yeah, the sound is good and everything,but Hifiman really needs to improve their quality control. Small things like earpads coming off may not be huge issues to some, but for headphones that cost this much, it's inexcusable imo
Came across your channel recently when looking for quality reviews on Cavalli CTH and I am hooked ever since. You bring a different perspective with focus on music rather than just talking about charts and numbers and love your playlist videos. Please have more of those, great to discover new songs through your videos like Amber Rubarth in this video. Keep up the great work!
I compared the Sundara to the Utopia, the Elegia, the Arya and the HD660s. Then came to the conclusion that the Sundara was the best buy. The sound is very close to the Arya without costing as much. The Elegia was a little too sharp for me. I had the pleasure of listening to the Utopia and here we are at the high end, both in terms of sound and budget !!! So, for the little scratch on the notch: I don't care, and for the thread: I will eventually change it! But for the sound ... the Sundara was an obvious choice for me!
@@SUKHWINDERSINGH-ub5yq I don't even have to equalize the bass, because the Sudara has enough. As I listen to them via my Astell & Kern Kann decoder (which I strongly recommend: I found it for $ 350 on eBay. It even plays native DSD 256 !!!), we can use the Pro equalizer option and we then have a great sound. BUT, this is not necessary, because the Sundara reproduce bass up to 7 Hz !!! They easily go down to the bass. Me too, I love the bass and believe me, it digs brilliantly into the bass without distortion!
I have some hifiman sundara headphones, I haven't really heard many other headphones so I can't compare them to anything in their price range... However I found when I tried one or two affordable headphone amp/DAC's it can often sound like it has the very low bass roll off a bit sharply and would need some equalizer to *subtly* correct its really really almost unhearably low bass ranges to make it sound a bit more life like. However using the optical port on my PC into my headphone amp suddenly made it sound a bit deeper and my headphone amp has a bass boost option which does a great job of adjusting if anything its slightly too bassy for true to life sounds but for listening to music with synthetic bass its more enjoyable.. I found that when playing back binaural recordings even from youtube like 3dio's channel "nothing to see hear" video or the youtube video "binaural acoustic recording - harry keyworth with 3dio binaural mic" when played through youtube in the edge browser in an up to date version of windows 10 using optical output from PC to a headphone amplifier to my ears it sounds rather like how sound is supposed to sound depending on the amplifier you are using you may get a rather great experience.. I believe its been calibrated to reproduce live recordings of bands and other such things as these are open backed they make things sound a touch more live than closed back headphones in my untrained unqualified opinion. I think this is why it lacks in directional/positional accuracy I believe it was intentional or else you would be constantly looking around everywhere and probably driven insane because you would think everything you hear is in the room with you. It sounds cool but with the he400's plugged straight into my cheap nasty terrible onboard soundcard lots of youtube older videos with shaky handcams were "too" accurate and positional for sounds like running water or footsteps or breathing and every 2 minutes you will look over your shoulder and hearing people breathing in the room that aren't in the room is plain disturbing. I think the he400s were made for use with some of the worlds worst audio devices, specifically iphones and other apple products, so using the cheapest nastiest onboard sound on a PC motherboard made them sound like they were approaching pitch perfection with some audio recordings and it was cool at first but enentually annoyed the heck out of me and I was furious that any high quality audio device made them sound like dirt and not good at all the better the amp the worse the he400s sounded. Maybe I could have saved some money and gotten he4xx's but I wanted a local retailers warranty on them so I could take them to store to return if theres a fault or issue as I'm from Australia. I'm unclear of massdrops warranty but it probably involves weeks of waiting and postage costs to return things. So the sundara being made for use to work good with optical headphone amplifiers without driving you mad looking around the room is a great thing as far as i'm concerned. They maybe aren't perfect but for me I doubt i'll need much better because if they got any better it might make them worse in some ways. My cheap quad driver kz zs6 in ear headphones with a KZ usb type C cable into my LG v30 sound almost as good as the hifiman sundara but in different ways. I'm using them with some spherical memory foam eartips and those kz zs6's only cost under $50 but are amazingly uncomfortable and aren't as detailed/lifelike as these but still sound pretty darn close and in some ways better so you don't need to spend $500usd for a good sound but for me these are importantly comfortable and sound better when used with better audio amplifiers/devices. The sundara are maybe expensive and you do need an amp with optical and hopefully bass boost or an equalizer for them but I don't regret buying them.
After listening to these for a few hours, I can see what all the hype is about, but they need a bit of EQ. They were too harsh for me at first. They EQ very well and sound incredible now.
Could you please explain what EQ change you did ? I’m a noob in audio but I recently bought them and I’m curious to know how I could make them even better. Thanks in advance.
Hi, great review and channel! Hope you can answer me a question: I’m using a Macbook, a Meridian Explorer 2 DAC with my Sundara with Tidal Hifi. Is the Meridian Explorer 2 enough to get the best out of the Sundara? Second option: i have an old Amplifier from Sony, a TA-FE520R, which i connect with the Meridian... and the
I'm using a Fiio K5pro. My brother used ifi zen can amp, and dragonfly (I think this is the name) dac. He doesn't use the sundara anymore so I dunno about his opinion on performance, but Fiio is great!! I dont EQ my headphones, still the sound is great.
Holy hell, that Amber Rubarth album sounds AMAZING on my 6xx's! Cant wait to try in on my Sundaras when they arrive! Thanks for the rec and great reviews Josh!
I really enjoyed your videos, jejeje the last ones with Grado @.@. I would like to ask what do you recommend to upgrade my SHP9500 go for H58X, dt990, dt880, dt1990 or some AKG? For AMP I have a iFi micro. Regards
Not sure about the 990 and 880(still haven’t heard them). But the 9500 has a (somewhat) close sound to the 58x. So, I would go for something different like the 1990. Although the 990 and 880 might be awesome options, I just have no experience.
Hi..!!!I would like to bring your consideration to the following few lines... Most of the Hifiman names are derived from ancient sanskrit... Even these words are used in Hindi (Indian national language) Sundara - shouldnt be pronounced as "Su " as in 'Sun' but should be pronounced as "Su" in 'Sue'. also "dara" shouldnt be pronounced as "d" as in 'dare' but should be pronounced as "dh" as in 'dhole'... (Sundhara means Beautiful) Aarya - pronunciation is simple and all people get it right.. (Aarya signifies power and majestic) Aananda - again "d" not as in 'dare' but should be pronounced as "dh" as in 'dhole'... (Aananda means joy) Suswara - Su + Swara means (Su- pure or clean) (Swara- voice or notes) pure notes... Whoever is naming them surely has a knowledge of sanskrit and fascinated in ancient languages.. Thanks for reading..
Cheaply made, That pretty much sums up my experience with Hifiman. I do not recommend making an investment in their products until the build quality improves. HE 1000 v.2 being the exception. Plus Hifiman (and Audeze) are constantly tweaking the sound so that you don’t know what edition you are buying. The quality control of these companies pales next to the consistency of a Sennheiser. Grado RS2e Might be my favorite headphone, but Sennheiser is my favorite company overall, the most consistently good company. Shure is pretty solid, too, I love the SE535, (Even though I think they are a bit expensive, I cried when I paid for them, but I’ve been crying tears of joy ever since), and I love that you can make them wireless now. And I use their microphones in church. But their over ears, well, they are ok.
The quality control of Hifiman is an old story. The Sundara has a metal frame !!! The cushions are very comfortable and the vibrating membrane is protected by a metal braiding !!! No problem here !!!
Hi! You guys might help me here. I bought the Sundarars and a Ifi Zen dac. I wanted to plug my headphones to the balanced output so I bought an extra 3.5mm female to 4.4mm male jack adaptater. The problem is that it got worse, so much worse... there was a buzz sound and the music got all messed up. Si I send back my adaptater thinking it had an issue... So my question is : is the Sundara stock cable balanced ? Do I just have to get a working 3.5mm to 4.4mm adaptater to use the Ifi zen dac balanced output? Thanks. Hope someone find this message
oh no please do not use the 3.5mm single-ended cable with the balanced output the circuitry can either A.) screw up the audio because balanced circuitry is different to SE or B.) straight up blow your headphones/IEMs up
broke away from the video for a second and well that album is pretty awesome. listening from Philips fidelio x2hrs but i have on order the hifiman sundaras with a dac amp and cant wait to compare the 2.
I got a pair of these about a week ago. So far, I think they sound great and have had no issues with them other than the cable. I just ordered a new cable from periapt by your recommendation. The cable that comes with the cans is truly miserable.
As i figured you basically described a update to the HE400i (which I own) which is -not- like a HE400/HE4xx. Great review, thanks! I will note that my HE400i's mellowed on the sharpness over time, and that a Genalex Gold Lion tube sounds fantastic with them.
Really noob question, but would connecting a tube amp with a portable dac/amp (such as a fiio q1 mk2) make a difference in sound? I have a pair of hd600 and im looking for a set up that would allow me to use it around the house for portable use and when im just chilling in my room i could connect it straight away to a pair of tube amps. As i said, im still new to amps and dacs so any feedback would be appreciated :D
I found the Sundara's to have a lot more depth of soundstage over the DT1990s, which I find are very rarely in front and mostly behind or to the sides.
I see the Sundara's ear pads are similar to the ones that come with the HE-4XX. Pads with bigger openings (more space around the ear) will increase sound-stage. With spare Hifiman attachment rings, I installed Brainwavz XL pads on my 4XX. Depending on the music, the velour, perforated pleather, and hybrid models are the ones I use. Avoid any solid material pads, like the pleather or leather.
Hey Josh, I recently got some crackling in my Hifiman 4xx left earcup and decided it's time for an upgrade. They're 3 years old and from what I can tell from online, it's probably time for a replacement. I'm thinking of going with the Sundara's for my upgrade and I was wondering of your opinion on that. For reference, it would be paired with my Magni Heresy and Modi 3. I mainly game, but after using the Hifiman 4xx with my amp and dac, I find myself listening to music at my PC more often. Thanks for all the help and getting me into this hobby!
Assuming my headphone budget is around $350 and I spend a lot of time listening at my desk, would you just get the Sundaras or go with the HE4XX or Jubilees AND some Ikko OH10s or similar? I don't currently have any decent headphones and I only have budget IEMs.
HI Joshua, ya doing verry nice and informative videos. What do you recomment the Sundara or the Beyerdynamic DT 1990 PRO? Actually I own the Sundara, but as you mentioned the are some disadvantages.
I literally went to my local high end audio store to demo these yesterday with my dragonfly black and I did not see enough of an upgrade from my current he400i headphones to warrant the purchase. I did try a few Grado's and yes the build quality over their entry level models does not warrant the inflated price. Sound was more upfront and not as smooth and natural as the two Hifiman cans i extensively tested. The HE 1000's were the revelation though but much much more expensive.
Thanks for posting your experience comparing the Sandara to your 400i. Did you compare the AQ red v black before buying the black? If so, how did they compare using your 400i?
@@bassandtrebleclef i didnt consider the aq red because my three headphones did not need that much power. But simply put the Sundara is an evolution of the HE400i not a revolution. The HE1000 is a revolution but at a steep price. Also to back up Josh the cables aren't that good and I personally replaced the cables on my HE400I some time back.
Hey Josh have you heard the Hifiman Jade 2 electrostatics? I listened to them on an audio show and thought they were very nice, though the available music was limited. HP+Amp for $2500 usd seems like it's a competitor to the Stax L700
@@intoitreviews if any other massdrop product is to be trusted, sound will be pretty familiar with a boosted bass. The build quality always takes the biggest hit
@@electricant55 not sure about that... elex and 6xx seems built just as well, and I'd say the 4xx is built better than the previous versions, even with the headband issue, but if you want to paint with a wide brush, go for it.
Great Sundara review. Bought a set for £299 new. Very happy with them. I actually like the cable...listened to 10cc Une Nuit a Paris on Qubuz on my Samsung S8. Great piano sound. These will reveal the deficiencies of recordings, for sure.
I have them and I love them. I had no quality problems until now (1 month). I preffered them over the beyerdynamic t5p2nd (didnt like the signature). For 350 Euros, they are perfect for me.
Great review I just started following you. I think I'll have to bite the bullet and buy the Sundara too, I just got the 4XX and I want to test both against each other to see which one I prefer, but so far the 4XX are amazing. Thanks again for all the good reviews.
Another nice video Josh. I was wondering why it is so many folks have multiple headphones. I have hd660’s and they tend to do it all. Maybe that’s an idea for another video?
Would you recommend this as a first planar headphone that would complement existing dynamic headphones? FWIW my current headphones are an HD6XX and an E-mu Teak.
It is near on impossible to find a balanced cable that terminates in 2.5mm for these headphones! I am in Australia and want to use the balanced out on a Quidelix 5k.
It's available through Amazon as either downloadable or the CD is available, the download might only be mp3 but you can buy the CD and upload it in wav or flac to your computer. Also if you look around I'm sure you can get the CD cheaper somewhere else, that's my preferred method so I could have the wav file safe on storage and then enjoy the CD.
Hi, do you know if the Sony NW-ZX300 can drive this headphones I have the Sony, and I may also get the FiiO M11 pro or the M15 wich one do you think will work better with this headphones? Thank you
*at first i bought the Sundara i am disappointed that it isnt much improvement over my previous headphone, then once i play Billie Eilish album all of sudden i hear ASMR WTF*
My problem with Periapt is they are pretty rigid, I find im untangling it a lot and trying to get it to sit well, I think its less of an issue with connectors like 1/4 inch that spin, but mine is mini xlr and 4 pin xlr balanced.
After viewing literally hours of headphone reviews, I decided to get the Sundara's. They finally arrived and they really turned my head on fire...I love them!! I've been listening to Classical music, Opera, Symphonic Rock, Classic Rock, Jazz, Michael Jackson, etc. and I really adore them!! The depth and color of the bass is beautiful and natural, mids and treble are crispy clear and very present. Regarding quality, I feel them sturdy and well built. The ear pads are very comfortable too. The headset fits perfectly well. I really think that above this level you're in the situation where you experience the same difference as there is in wines where when you go over 20 bucks the bottle you realize that it's all bs, status and marketing (said by famous enologists). So if your looking for something fantastic and affordable, don't even hesitate one second. Just do it!!
Hey may i know what dac amp youre using. Do you think its okay to buy it without a dac/amp? How is it after a week using it? Sorry for having lots of question XD
@@detectiveapollo I recently bought them (they are the last revised version), so I'm still testing them (it says that they take as long as 150 hs of listening until they unleash their full potential). I've used them with my iPhone, MacBook pro and with an AMC 3050 amp. With the first two they sound very well but of course with an amp, they perform much better. For casual listening, I think there's no amp required. If you want full power, an amp is necessary...
@@igancedo thank you for the response sir.
@@igancedo Do you know which amp would go best with these headphones?
@@keatonpage509 I previously stated what I personally use…the more power you give them thru a good amp, the better they sound…
you deserve a bigger following, in terms of quality you're one of the best in the audio tech youtuber space. Love how organized your videos are, and the use of b-roll and great lighting just makes the viewing experience excellent!
Thanks 🙏 I appreciate the support as I work hard to do exactly that ^^
Only found this Channel yesterday and can only second what Viola said! Subbed obviously!
Glad to have you here!
g i r t h
Yeah, how the hell does this video from almost a year ago only have 35k views? This guy is easily the best headphone reviewer on TH-cam.
I've had this headphone for a few months now and what he describes above is pretty much what it sounds like when new. I thought it a tad bright at the beginning but now with adequate run-in time, the bass is more prominent now and this gives it a slightly warmer sound signature. It sounds great paired with the smooth and musical Audio-GD R2R-11
I still haven't heard a person that ever said his headphone got worse over time, after it's sound signature was changed by the burn-in. Funny huh?
I have quite a few headphones myself, but I still never found any evidence of burn-in. But I do tend to get used to them after a while when I switch between them after a long time.
Ooh nice. I just got an r2r11 and was looking to pair this with it. Except I'm prob going Ananda
Hey man I have Sundara for about a year now and it’s sound signature is warmer compare to first months and the highs are even better controlled which is pretty awesome and the base gets a more solid punch and depth. I do highly recommend this headphone to others especially for 350.
Are you sure it's not your ears going deaf?
He’s no going deaf......He’s absolutely right. If you don’t hear it, look to your source for the answer.......
@@manueljenkin95 The quality control of Hifiman is an old story.
The Sundara has a metal frame !!! The cushions are very comfortable and the vibrating membrane is protected by a metal braiding !!!
No problem here !!!
@@gregbelemjian2515 so he changed the amps?
Not that people are buying headphones for heirlooms or anything, but Hifiman and Audeze still have a fair share of QC issues and deterioration. Every other Hifiman and Audeze owner I know IRL has had problems either with their initial unit or slightly down the line with driver and frame failures while I haven't heard anyone talk about a dead HD800. I love my LCD-X but I would definitely keep these things in mind while buying.
i love the frequency of uploads, you are so deliberate in the way you are describing how exactly you hear the sound in every aspect, so much more in depth then most other reviewers especially more than that hippy zeos. metal user is great too. if you listen to zeos you just dont know what you are buying exactly. your video editing is quite pleasing to the eye as well, very professional
The album he talks about is really good. Don't even like the music that much but you feel like you are in the room and that room is perfect and your ears weep with joy.
I love mine, I use it for Vinyl only via the Schiit Mani phono-stage and the Monoprice Liquid Spark Amp, I preffer the Sundara over the Ananda.
I'm here commenting without watching the video. I don't wanna hear how good they are, I just had to sold them to found a year of studyes outside my country 😭
Schooling is important.
I tested these headphones today, and your review is pretty spot on. Only thing I’d add in terms of comfort is that if you live in a warmer more humid climate, all that cushion does tend to make your head sweat. Ultimately I’ll be returning them and keeping my beloved HD650 for their comfort and less sweating.
Can we get a round up of the 4XX, 560, and Sundara?
Don't need to they all sound the same
Yes they do back their warranties, recently had to send them my headphone for repairs/exchange and a great review but I would have liked to see this compared a bit more with the he 4xx
I do not own phones under the $900 mark except for the Sundara, of which I have two because that phone has gone through several "stealth improvement" that are never mention by the secretive Dr. Bian yet resulted in a serious upgrade over the original model. The difference is tremendous. Gone are the 200 hours of break-in and just as gone are those sizzling high-mids and a treble that nearly made me go berserk, the wince factor was worse than any dynamic phone I own, which may sound counter-intuitive but is a common topic around headphones enthusiasts. You tell which one you have either through wincing, reading the serial number, or just looking ad the pads, the latter ones having a more pronounced version of the Focus pads. And for the build it may appear flimsy... until you compare it with that of its "plastitcky" predecessors that made us look like robots. HFM derived the frame from the $3,000 HE6e and intends to use it on all of its models in a near future. As for SQ I spent two years comparing the Sundara with the Focal Clear (using aftermarket cables to replace the garden hose-like originals on the Sundara, which are too short to begin with) and in the end I concluded that even though the Clear was the better headphone (I may biased because I prefer dynamics, but I honestly don't think it blurred my imprssions and the Sundara held its own against its fancy competitor and was't far behind, For a phone that costs about 75% less that's very impressive, HFM is to headphones what Paradigm is to speakers: a fast climber catering to the layman as well as to the millionaire with prices ranging from $249 a pair to $55,000 each. Focal is also a very fast climber but it caters to a different customer base: the wealthy and the not-so-wealthy who'll sacrifice almost everything they own just get theirs on those cans and the pricey paraphernalia they require. I should know. Thanks for review, I enjoyed it a lot!
Ho Ly Shit the sound quality of that Amber Rubarth album is absolutely insane!!!! I am blown away (listening to it with my Sundara's and a Dragonfly Red DAC). Thanks for the advice! Do you have any other god-tier soundquality albums you can recommend?
Where's the dt1990 comparison man?
Yes Josh, u was right i went to try the Amber Rubarth as you said, and the instrument separation on that tracks through my Hifiman sundara is amazing!!!
Josh please, next time also add some links to the music you are mentioning in your vids, okay?
Lmao aggressive
just got sundaras, and my god everything sounds so amazing.. listening to this again with the sundaras lol
I need a hip dac or dac amp recommendation for these please..
@@luiscardenas2924 mm I use full sized amps so I can't help
I saw that it was on sale ($350.00) and pulled the trigger on the purchase. I too ordered a Periapt cable and will get it Friday. I am using my pair on an Enog2 Pro DAC and a 789 amp. I am glad I bought them. They sit on my printer by my small desk along with my 600s and my Alaras.
Great choices
Noooo i want to watch the compairson to the 1060s first ;~;
Where did you get it for 350?
snazzy sailor They were on sale at Hifiman.
@@snazzysailor amazon. They are still on sale
For HifiMan you should make a Review for L + R drivers differently :)
I will be waiting for your comparison with m1060, i beleive it will be very informative! Greetings from Argentina, excelent video!
And the comparation of the m1060 with the argons
I'm interested in the M1060, and am torn between these and the M1060 but have no idea which one to test out. I'm not ready to just jump into planars with $700 Audeze LCD-2C.
It is a sign been looking at these for some time then this review dropped
Apparently there has been an update to these in 2020. Have you re-visted them since?
Do not judge the Sundara until it’s had at least 30 hours of break in. They recommend 150, but I’m not there yet. If the break in curve continues to the 150 hr point I think my head may explode. The Sundara is also very source critical. If you play crap, you’ll get crap. As I write I’m listening to Rubenstein play Chopin Ballads on a Steinway D Concert Grand piano on RCA living Stereo Vinyl. Straight from the hand of God. Happy Easter everyone.
Man I can't believe youre not getting more views, also looking forward to that DX7s review!
That thumbnail is perfect; like hot DAMN!
Pretty cool right?
INTERLINKED. INTERLINKED.
@@WitzyZed huh?
Joshua Valour Joshua Valour low effort reference on my part, sorry. the font (which is awesome) looks like blade runner font. if you’ve seen blade runner 2049 during the ‘Voight Kampff’ tests there’s a line that I referenced. th-cam.com/video/vrP-_T-h9YM/w-d-xo.html
Ian Fitzpatrick oh. Gotcha. It is a blade runner font actually. Good spot.
I'll second the Amber Rubarth(17th ward) album. You nailed it Josh! Phenomenally recorded bro!
Listening now on just some AirPods and it’s still mind blowing
Your videos have came a long way and you keep improving. I took a long break and this is a completely different channel. Hifiman gave me a pair of these before they came out. They are bright but these headphones have a lot of wiggle room if you eq them. I turn up the low end and turn down the high end and these sound like a crisp 6XX with better tighter bass.
For those are curious to compare it to hd600.
You shouldn't,
I thought I had to compare the sundara and hd600.
But I realized that they go quite well along . I mean if you own à sundara you should get a hd600 and if you own à hd600, take a sundara.
Received my Sundara today, they sound absolutely lovely. Agree that the bass is slightly more recessed than I'd like but with a little tweaking they're easily my best pair of cans already! Completely agree on the cable, it is garbage. Holding the curl from the way it was packaged, and the outer material feels pretty cheap and nasty. The connectors are sturdy though so I might just hold onto it for that reason. I've got a balanced cable on the way to replace it, thankfully!
I really like how Hifiman tune their sound. I bought a HE-350 for 50 USD (from a friend). I like almost everything except those piercing highs/treble (used a tissue paper mod to tame it). and build quality issues is still there. The yolks broke on my HE-350 (without doing anything) after a few weeks of use. Hopefully they would have a better quality control and those trebles need to be tame. These are the only reason i'm skeptical in getting another Hifiman product.
Anyways! Good Review man!
Just received them, and I can hear sound only from the left side :-/
Try switching the cables from side to side. If you still only hear the left side you have a failed driver on the right. It's a very common problem
@@Moreeke why is a very common problem? Is it because it is badly manufactured at the factory? Or is it because the driver is not very good quality and eventually breaks down?
@@caeeesette9604 It's a Quality Control problem from the factory
Guestimator welcome to HiFiman
I was going to buy these but so many people are complaining about the build quality. So I just went with HD600. Maybe next time Hifiman.
Good choice
Side question: is there any way to tweak a headphone to give it better imaging? Like would adjusting EQ help at all?
@Mr.DuckyBeats suca a helpful rely. Well said
You mentioned a company to replace the cable for the headphones, can you post a link for the site?
Updated. Periaptcables.com
Thanks for reminding me.
Ah, I remember when I asked for this review back when this channel had only like 20 something videos. Ah, time flies...
Thank you so much for the amber rubarth sessions from the 17th ward recommendation! I don't really listen to that genre but the quality of the production really blew me away, I was able to hear everything so clearly
Keep up the great reviews Josh. Really enjoy them and they make purchasing decisions way easier !!
I got these a few days ago and I find them to sound every bit as good as my LCD-2C and almost as good as my Aiva and HP-3.
Are the Sundara still sounding as good as your LCD2 today ?
@@dark-california I haven't listened to the Sundara in a few months but I can say yes the Sundara is still better imo. I listened to the LCD-2C the other day and it still doesn't impress me at all. I mean it's good but the dip in the mids and the lack of top-end sparkle make it just not worth it to me.
@@TechnoGuy11 So this means I should get a Sundara and forget Audeze ...
@@dark-california I'm mean if you're looking for a balanced good sounding headphone then the Sundara is the way to go. The one thing the LCD-2C has over it is the bass but with a little EQ'ing you can get the Hifiman to have a good amount of quantity because the quality is already there.
@@TechnoGuy11 I have my HE400i normally end if this week
And pretty sure Sundara will follow in 2021 ... 😉
Which Spectrum Visualizer do you use ? Is there a mac os app which would let me see the spectrum live based on what I am playing on spotify or youtube or tidal ?
I've had a couple of different models from Hifiman in the past. 560 & 400i. I never had any quality issues with either. I sold both, the 400i to a close friend and he's had no issues either. That said, I've read about enough people having problems, and a lot of different problems at that, that I wouldn't buy anything from them at this time. If they as a company would come out and admit there are problems, and hopefully own up to them in some way, I might change my mind. It's a shame, because I like the look and what I've heard about the Sundara. I just can't bring myself to take the chance once again of something happening with them and having a company that refuses to do anything about it.
Hi. I'm not fluent in English. I'm happy to meet you. I'm hesitant between dt 1990 pro and hd 600 and sundara. What is the enjoyment of music between these 3 models? Or in short, compare these 3 models. Sorry, it took a long time.
Found you under recommended channels and loving the content. Dope review.
Thanks! Glad to have you here.
Joshua Valour how would you compare the fidelity x2 to other open backs headphones
I own this and yeah, the sound is good and everything,but Hifiman really needs to improve their quality control. Small things like earpads coming off may not be huge issues to some, but for headphones that cost this much, it's inexcusable imo
Came across your channel recently when looking for quality reviews on Cavalli CTH and I am hooked ever since. You bring a different perspective with focus on music rather than just talking about charts and numbers and love your playlist videos. Please have more of those, great to discover new songs through your videos like Amber Rubarth in this video. Keep up the great work!
Would like to hear your thoughts about Hifiman HE-5se.
I compared the Sundara to the Utopia, the Elegia, the Arya and the HD660s.
Then came to the conclusion that the Sundara was the best buy.
The sound is very close to the Arya without costing as much.
The Elegia was a little too sharp for me.
I had the pleasure of listening to the Utopia and here we are at the high end, both in terms of sound and budget !!!
So, for the little scratch on the notch: I don't care, and for the thread: I will eventually change it! But for the sound ... the Sundara was an obvious choice for me!
Hlo sir can you please tell me the bass response of sundara as compare to arya can it satify the bassheads if we increase the bass in equaliser
@@SUKHWINDERSINGH-ub5yq
I don't even have to equalize the bass, because the Sudara has enough.
As I listen to them via my Astell & Kern Kann decoder (which I strongly recommend: I found it for $ 350 on eBay. It even plays native DSD 256 !!!), we can use the Pro equalizer option and we then have a great sound. BUT, this is not necessary, because the Sundara reproduce bass up to 7 Hz !!! They easily go down to the bass.
Me too, I love the bass and believe me, it digs brilliantly into the bass without distortion!
@@pinkyfloydyfan1 thanks for the reply what are the other options for planer magnet headphone for bassheads apart from this
I have some hifiman sundara headphones, I haven't really heard many other headphones so I can't compare them to anything in their price range... However I found when I tried one or two affordable headphone amp/DAC's it can often sound like it has the very low bass roll off a bit sharply and would need some equalizer to *subtly* correct its really really almost unhearably low bass ranges to make it sound a bit more life like. However using the optical port on my PC into my headphone amp suddenly made it sound a bit deeper and my headphone amp has a bass boost option which does a great job of adjusting if anything its slightly too bassy for true to life sounds but for listening to music with synthetic bass its more enjoyable.. I found that when playing back binaural recordings even from youtube like 3dio's channel "nothing to see hear" video or the youtube video "binaural acoustic recording - harry keyworth with 3dio binaural mic" when played through youtube in the edge browser in an up to date version of windows 10 using optical output from PC to a headphone amplifier to my ears it sounds rather like how sound is supposed to sound depending on the amplifier you are using you may get a rather great experience.. I believe its been calibrated to reproduce live recordings of bands and other such things as these are open backed they make things sound a touch more live than closed back headphones in my untrained unqualified opinion. I think this is why it lacks in directional/positional accuracy I believe it was intentional or else you would be constantly looking around everywhere and probably driven insane because you would think everything you hear is in the room with you. It sounds cool but with the he400's plugged straight into my cheap nasty terrible onboard soundcard lots of youtube older videos with shaky handcams were "too" accurate and positional for sounds like running water or footsteps or breathing and every 2 minutes you will look over your shoulder and hearing people breathing in the room that aren't in the room is plain disturbing. I think the he400s were made for use with some of the worlds worst audio devices, specifically iphones and other apple products, so using the cheapest nastiest onboard sound on a PC motherboard made them sound like they were approaching pitch perfection with some audio recordings and it was cool at first but enentually annoyed the heck out of me and I was furious that any high quality audio device made them sound like dirt and not good at all the better the amp the worse the he400s sounded. Maybe I could have saved some money and gotten he4xx's but I wanted a local retailers warranty on them so I could take them to store to return if theres a fault or issue as I'm from Australia. I'm unclear of massdrops warranty but it probably involves weeks of waiting and postage costs to return things. So the sundara being made for use to work good with optical headphone amplifiers without driving you mad looking around the room is a great thing as far as i'm concerned. They maybe aren't perfect but for me I doubt i'll need much better because if they got any better it might make them worse in some ways. My cheap quad driver kz zs6 in ear headphones with a KZ usb type C cable into my LG v30 sound almost as good as the hifiman sundara but in different ways. I'm using them with some spherical memory foam eartips and those kz zs6's only cost under $50 but are amazingly uncomfortable and aren't as detailed/lifelike as these but still sound pretty darn close and in some ways better so you don't need to spend $500usd for a good sound but for me these are importantly comfortable and sound better when used with better audio amplifiers/devices. The sundara are maybe expensive and you do need an amp with optical and hopefully bass boost or an equalizer for them but I don't regret buying them.
Would love to see this compared to the mm100 when you get your hands on it. I know it’s coming!
After listening to these for a few hours, I can see what all the hype is about, but they need a bit of EQ. They were too harsh for me at first. They EQ very well and sound incredible now.
With a bit of Eq is the best Headphone under 500 i Think
Could you please explain what EQ change you did ? I’m a noob in audio but I recently bought them and I’m curious to know how I could make them even better. Thanks in advance.
@@NayveYT Look up Oratory1990, he has the full pre-sets for the Sundara with the 2020 ear pads. I use a modified version of that, but start with that.
Hi, great review and channel! Hope you can answer me a question: I’m using a Macbook, a Meridian Explorer 2 DAC with my Sundara with Tidal Hifi. Is the Meridian Explorer 2 enough to get the best out of the Sundara?
Second option: i have an old Amplifier from Sony, a TA-FE520R, which i connect with the Meridian... and the
Hi Joshua, Could you recommend a dac / amp for hifiman sundara?
I'm using a Fiio K5pro.
My brother used ifi zen can amp, and dragonfly (I think this is the name) dac.
He doesn't use the sundara anymore so I dunno about his opinion on performance, but Fiio is great!! I dont EQ my headphones, still the sound is great.
Would this be an upgrade from my HD58x???
Holy hell, that Amber Rubarth album sounds AMAZING on my 6xx's! Cant wait to try in on my Sundaras when they arrive! Thanks for the rec and great reviews Josh!
Enjoy! Slightly narrow soundstage but detail is amazing. Sound good with vinyl too.
I really enjoyed your videos, jejeje the last ones with Grado @.@. I would like to ask what do you recommend to upgrade my SHP9500 go for H58X, dt990, dt880, dt1990 or some AKG? For AMP I have a iFi micro. Regards
Not sure about the 990 and 880(still haven’t heard them).
But the 9500 has a (somewhat) close sound to the 58x. So, I would go for something different like the 1990. Although the 990 and 880 might be awesome options, I just have no experience.
@@JoshuaValour Thanks for the fast reply. I will try to check the Beyer 990 and 880 first.
Hi..!!!I would like to bring your consideration to the following few lines...
Most of the Hifiman names are derived from ancient sanskrit...
Even these words are used in Hindi (Indian national language)
Sundara - shouldnt be pronounced as "Su " as in 'Sun' but should be pronounced as "Su" in 'Sue'. also "dara" shouldnt be pronounced as "d" as in 'dare' but should be pronounced as "dh" as in 'dhole'... (Sundhara means Beautiful)
Aarya - pronunciation is simple and all people get it right.. (Aarya signifies power and majestic)
Aananda - again "d" not as in 'dare' but should be pronounced as "dh" as in 'dhole'... (Aananda means joy)
Suswara - Su + Swara means (Su- pure or clean) (Swara- voice or notes) pure notes...
Whoever is naming them surely has a knowledge of sanskrit and fascinated in ancient languages.. Thanks for reading..
So do you specifically try to make the background tracks ones that sound particularly good on the product you're reviewing?
Cheaply made, That pretty much sums up my experience with Hifiman. I do not recommend making an investment in their products until the build quality improves. HE 1000 v.2 being the exception. Plus Hifiman (and Audeze) are constantly tweaking the sound so that you don’t know what edition you are buying. The quality control of these companies pales next to the consistency of a Sennheiser. Grado RS2e Might be my favorite headphone, but Sennheiser is my favorite company overall, the most consistently good company.
Shure is pretty solid, too, I love the SE535, (Even though I think they are a bit expensive, I cried when I paid for them, but I’ve been crying tears of joy ever since), and I love that you can make them wireless now. And I use their microphones in church. But their over ears, well, they are ok.
The quality control of Hifiman is an old story.
The Sundara has a metal frame !!! The cushions are very comfortable and the vibrating membrane is protected by a metal braiding !!!
No problem here !!!
Hi! You guys might help me here.
I bought the Sundarars and a Ifi Zen dac. I wanted to plug my headphones to the balanced output so I bought an extra 3.5mm female to 4.4mm male jack adaptater. The problem is that it got worse, so much worse... there was a buzz sound and the music got all messed up. Si I send back my adaptater thinking it had an issue... So my question is : is the Sundara stock cable balanced ? Do I just have to get a working 3.5mm to 4.4mm adaptater to use the Ifi zen dac balanced output? Thanks. Hope someone find this message
oh no please do not use the 3.5mm single-ended cable with the balanced output
the circuitry can either A.) screw up the audio because balanced circuitry is different to SE or B.) straight up blow your headphones/IEMs up
Comfort and sound is all I care about build quality isn't a must.
Dammit! Just checked out that amber rubarth live album... and although i dont normally listen to that music much, it was so good! Using the DT 1990
personaly had alot of problems with build quality on longer term with hifiman
broke away from the video for a second and well that album is pretty awesome. listening from Philips fidelio x2hrs but i have on order the hifiman sundaras with a dac amp and cant wait to compare the 2.
I got a pair of these about a week ago. So far, I think they sound great and have had no issues with them other than the cable. I just ordered a new cable from periapt by your recommendation. The cable that comes with the cans is truly miserable.
As i figured you basically described a update to the HE400i (which I own) which is -not- like a HE400/HE4xx. Great review, thanks! I will note that my HE400i's mellowed on the sharpness over time, and that a Genalex Gold Lion tube sounds fantastic with them.
@@jkteddy77 Ya might be something in my future, we'll see how that goes, happy with my 400i's but yeah, at 350$, it's compelling.
Really noob question, but would connecting a tube amp with a portable dac/amp (such as a fiio q1 mk2) make a difference in sound? I have a pair of hd600 and im looking for a set up that would allow me to use it around the house for portable use and when im just chilling in my room i could connect it straight away to a pair of tube amps.
As i said, im still new to amps and dacs so any feedback would be appreciated :D
What amp would y’all recommend for these headphones? Especially for bass heavy music, nothing overly-expensive if possible
Something from IFI...... Try the zen can....
@@shreyanshyadav3285 i did some research and decided to go with the topping a50s, I’ll let you know how it goes. Appreciate you!
I bought these headphones, based on this review. Really excellent channel! Love the videos!
I found the Sundara's to have a lot more depth of soundstage over the DT1990s, which I find are very rarely in front and mostly behind or to the sides.
Really? Huh. I’m not getting that at all.
@@JoshuaValour Yeah it's weird, maybe the shape of my ears makes the DT1990 more behind than in front..
Have both Sundara and Ananda. They are great headphones.
Awesome reviews, really enjoy the channel. Any thoughts on gaming with the Sundara? Looking for that all-in-one... 65/35 gaming/music.
I see the Sundara's ear pads are similar to the ones that come with the HE-4XX. Pads with bigger openings (more space around the ear) will increase sound-stage. With spare Hifiman attachment rings, I installed Brainwavz XL pads on my 4XX. Depending on the music, the velour, perforated pleather, and hybrid models are the ones I use. Avoid any solid material pads, like the pleather or leather.
How do these compare to the Focal Elex?
Hey Josh, I recently got some crackling in my Hifiman 4xx left earcup and decided it's time for an upgrade. They're 3 years old and from what I can tell from online, it's probably time for a replacement. I'm thinking of going with the Sundara's for my upgrade and I was wondering of your opinion on that. For reference, it would be paired with my Magni Heresy and Modi 3. I mainly game, but after using the Hifiman 4xx with my amp and dac, I find myself listening to music at my PC more often.
Thanks for all the help and getting me into this hobby!
Which cable did you get for the Sundara? The cable link goes to the product page
Assuming my headphone budget is around $350 and I spend a lot of time listening at my desk, would you just get the Sundaras or go with the HE4XX or Jubilees AND some Ikko OH10s or similar? I don't currently have any decent headphones and I only have budget IEMs.
HI Joshua, ya doing verry nice and informative videos. What do you recomment the Sundara or the Beyerdynamic DT 1990 PRO? Actually I own the Sundara, but as you mentioned the are some disadvantages.
Listening a Sundara Review on Sundara. #inception
More like Sundarecption
I literally went to my local high end audio store to demo these yesterday with my dragonfly black and I did not see enough of an upgrade from my current he400i headphones to warrant the purchase. I did try a few Grado's and yes the build quality over their entry level models does not warrant the inflated price. Sound was more upfront and not as smooth and natural as the two Hifiman cans i extensively tested. The HE 1000's were the revelation though but much much more expensive.
Thanks for posting your experience comparing the Sandara to your 400i. Did you compare the AQ red v black before buying the black? If so, how did they compare using your 400i?
@@bassandtrebleclef i didnt consider the aq red because my three headphones did not need that much power. But simply put the Sundara is an evolution of the HE400i not a revolution. The HE1000 is a revolution but at a steep price. Also to back up Josh the cables aren't that good and I personally replaced the cables on my HE400I some time back.
@@kawada1 I agree with you on the quality if the hifiman cables that came with the 400i. They fray early and often even when treating them nicely.
Listening to this on my Hifiman Sundara, very satisfied with my purchase
Midrange not thick
Hi, how is the combination of the sundara with the dragon fly cobalt?
Hey Josh have you heard the Hifiman Jade 2 electrostatics?
I listened to them on an audio show and thought they were very nice, though the available music was limited. HP+Amp for $2500 usd seems like it's a competitor to the Stax L700
I hope you will get Hifiman Ananda and review it!
Or massdrop edition Xx
@@intoitreviews There's no point, he already reviewed HE1000. Massdrop headphones are just cheaper, shittier knockoffs.
@@electricant55 from a sound perspective I'm not sure that's always a good conclusion to draw, but you're entitled to your opinion.
@@intoitreviews if any other massdrop product is to be trusted, sound will be pretty familiar with a boosted bass. The build quality always takes the biggest hit
@@electricant55 not sure about that... elex and 6xx seems built just as well, and I'd say the 4xx is built better than the previous versions, even with the headband issue, but if you want to paint with a wide brush, go for it.
Sundara or the monolith m1070 ?
Great Sundara review. Bought a set for £299 new. Very happy with them. I actually like the cable...listened to 10cc Une Nuit a Paris on Qubuz on my Samsung S8. Great piano sound. These will reveal the deficiencies of recordings, for sure.
I have them and I love them. I had no quality problems until now (1 month). I preffered them over the beyerdynamic t5p2nd (didnt like the signature). For 350 Euros, they are perfect for me.
Great review I just started following you. I think I'll have to bite the bullet and buy the Sundara too, I just got the 4XX and I want to test both against each other to see which one I prefer, but so far the 4XX are amazing. Thanks again for all the good reviews.
Did the HE1000 have that thick bass you like in planars?
Another nice video Josh. I was wondering why it is so many folks have multiple headphones. I have hd660’s and they tend to do it all. Maybe that’s an idea for another video?
Would you recommend this as a first planar headphone that would complement existing dynamic headphones? FWIW my current headphones are an HD6XX and an E-mu Teak.
Budget?
I’d say about 300-500 max.
@@leops1984 Either Sundara, Argon or M1060 (unless I am forgetting one)
Would a 100$ amp like an atom drive this?
Should
I don't think there's a headphone out that the Atom can't drive.
@@vmi4172
Yup the argons
It is near on impossible to find a balanced cable that terminates in 2.5mm for these headphones! I am in Australia and want to use the balanced out on a Quidelix 5k.
I own the Hifiman 400s and the Sennheiser 58x Jubilee. Would the Sundara be enough of an upgrade?I’m older and don’t listen at a very high volume.
Looking everywhere for Amber Rubarth - Sessions from the 17th Ward. Not on my Spotify or Tidal. Where can I find it? Can anyone help?
Google play or TH-cam.
It's available through Amazon as either downloadable or the CD is available, the download might only be mp3 but you can buy the CD and upload it in wav or flac to your computer. Also if you look around I'm sure you can get the CD cheaper somewhere else, that's my preferred method so I could have the wav file safe on storage and then enjoy the CD.
@@JoshuaValour Wow!
@@lumntoob999 listened on youtube & my ears are happy. Need to find flac or cd now.
@@MisterChibs It's available on Spotify
Hi, do you know if the Sony NW-ZX300 can drive this headphones I have the Sony, and I may also get the FiiO M11 pro or the M15 wich one do you think will work better with this headphones?
Thank you
*at first i bought the Sundara i am disappointed that it isnt much improvement over my previous headphone, then once i play Billie Eilish album all of sudden i hear ASMR WTF*
Hai... Josh... Just bought a sundara based on your review... Now please suggest me a good portable dac amp to drive that well
My problem with Periapt is they are pretty rigid, I find im untangling it a lot and trying to get it to sit well, I think its less of an issue with connectors like 1/4 inch that spin, but mine is mini xlr and 4 pin xlr balanced.
what do you recommend a DAC for this i'm running this headphone with Xduoo TA-05 amp..
how does it sound starts at 4:08