I started listening to music regularly in 1981. I know the year cause that was when Soft Cell came out with Tainted love. I was 11. Thats when i started listening to top 40 radio. And not long after that to cheaper cloned walkmans. At first i just used whatever light on ear headphones that came with the walkman. And yeah sometimes the pads where orange lol. After a while i discovered Koss headphones. and started listening to those. Then my eyes where opened when i got a pair of Bose speakers then Elex speakers and after the complaints back to headphones lol. Started with
Grado 225e - Nice but boring
Sennhieser HD600 - Impressive but didnt like the veil
Hifiman Sundara - This was the first headphone that made me cry. really good but i disliked the air on it
Nueman NDH20 - This headphone taught me what dark headphones where like. on top of that they were wolly. i didnt like it
Sendy Aiva - This headphone blew my mind. I couldn’t believe how good it sounded. The detail was superb and more than i’d ever heard before. The close soundstage was delightful and what i wanted compared to the Sundara air. Just what i was looking for. V signature but the midrange was present. Problem was the treble was a little too much. I could have stopped here. but i was curious.
Focal Elex - At first i thought this headphone wasnt as good as the Aiva. But i began to love its W signature and controlled treble. One of the things that bugged me about the Aiva was the treble. But with Elex it was just right. The Elex was perfect. its fantastic with its dynamic range, imaging, detail, soundstage is a little more than the Aiva unfortunately but its not too much. Its my favorite so far and ive been looking for a higher end version since. its not Neutral. And a lot of audiophiles believe neutral are “serious” headphones, and headphones like Elex are “fun” “exciting” headphones. i dont agree with this. I prefer headphones like the Elex.
ZMF Aeolus - These are default dark headphones with the stock pads. i hated it but kept trying to listen to it. it brought me down and i stopped wanting to listen to music. So i emailed Zack and told him i was returning it. He recommended the Suede pads. i tried them it totally changed he headphone. This sounded a lot like a upgraded Elex to me. Its tone and timbre was so nice. imaging was fantastic. it sounded so rich and musical. W signature like the Elex. But i wanted more detail and it lacked that.
ZMF Auteur - So Zack swapped the Aeolus for a Auteur. This headphone was fantastic. it had more detail but the thing is its the first really great neutral headphone ive heard. Music sounded the way i remember from the stereo i had as a kid.
Hifiman Arya - This headphone came to my attention when Joshua Valor said it was the best headphone he’s heard. I know we have similar tastes, so i got it. This also sounds like a neutral headphone. But it sounds better than the Auteur imo. Something about this headphone. Its marvelous. Like they say it has a depth to it. more detail than the Auteur. imaging is amazing. its really blown my mind. But it has too much treble for my tastes. And it doesn’t react well to EQ. It has too much soundstage. But the soundstage can sound close sometimes. really close. and almost everything sounds great in it. I listen to Duran’s first album in the Aiva’s and the synth sound primitive and crude sometimes. but with this they sound great. but sometimes the soundstage is so wide i cant hear the details in certain tracks. and its not a W shaped headphone like the Elex. It is exciting though.
Future - So where do i go from here? I want a “fun” “exciting” headphone. I Want a W signature. I want detail. detail to me is king. I want close soundstage. I want the other technicalities too. Dynamic range, great imaging, speed, ect. Logic would dictate i go for the Focal Utopia since it has a W signature and more detail. People say the Elex sound like it. But i hear the Verite is like it and i love Zacks tuning and to be able to use it with tubes too? and the chameleon effect pads have on his headphones?. but idk people dont seem to like it that much. maybe something new and great will come out? idk
with shorter cable
M40x to AKG 712…looking at getting the Elex and Argons next.
