Hifiman Edition XS vs Ananda Nano vs Arya Stealth review from a musician - best open back under $500
Рет қаралды 2,652
9 ай бұрынHifiman Arya Stealth: store.hifiman.com/index.php/a...
Hifiman Ananda Nano: store.hifiman.com/index.php/a...
Hifiman Edition XS: store.hifiman.com/index.php/e...
Ear pads on my XS now: Voarmaks Polyester Fenestrated Memory Foam
www.amazon.com/dp/B0CFXDJH9Z
Preamp/Amp I use: Syba Sonic w/3 band EQ www.amazon.com/dp/B00TYYMHQS
(not mentioned in the video, but a super convenient micro size alternative to larger headphone amps)
For those interested in trying Dekoni aftermarket ear pads:
“Big ups to dekoni for creating 4 different pads for the Hifiman headphone, and providing frequency response graphs for each one - such a huge help in the research phase!! Like many other reviewers, I wasn't quite satisfied with the comfort of my Edition XS headphones and based on the graph of this reviewer (usercontent.one/.../Hifiman_E...) I first opted for the elite sheepskin since it supposedly brought the frequency response of the XS closer to the harman curve. While it definitely did bump up the mids a little, I was dismayed to find pretty much all the upper mids and most of the highs to be gone, as well as some of the sub bass as well. I then tried the Elite Velour (both of these from Z's youtube reviews) and while it was definitely closer to stock than the sheepskin, it still removed too much high end for my tastes. Finally I tried the Fenestrated Sheepskin and was pleasantly surprised with the results - incredibly comfortable with only just a slight reduction of the upper mids with most of the highs intact!! If I were to nitpick I would vote for the whole line to not carve out quite as much of the upper mids, however, these were made for the Arya which is supposedly brighter and more analytical than the XS. Regardless, overall well done Dekoni!! I do feel like the price is a little steep for what you get, especially considering the fit is not consistent. Both pairs of the sheepskin and velour were relatively easy to install and remove, however the fenestrated pads sadly didn't quite fit right (were a little too tight) and were extremely difficult to remove without breaking the mounting tabs, such a bummer because they were honestly the most comfortable out of all the pads I tried!"
@Prashanth12344 5 ай бұрын
Very informative, I was debating returning the XS and getting the Nano for better detail retrieval, but I love the very neutral tuning of the XS and I'm worried the nano will sound too bright and sterile compared to the XS. I think your video just confirmed it for me.
@alexaxy3328 2 ай бұрын
Can't you just eq it?
@nickapalooza861 2 ай бұрын
Sterile is exactly how I would describe XS
@gordonosterhage2439 3 ай бұрын
thanks for this video. I have the edition xs for mixing mastering and was wondering if i should return them and upgrade to the nano. You cleared my conscious, thank you
@Barncore 5 ай бұрын
What were you powering the headphones with? Is it possible than the Nano and the Arya weren't going through a good enough amp? They are more power hungry than the XS i think
@huneyknuckles 5 ай бұрын
At the time I was powering them all with an Universal Audio Volt 476p running through a Syba Sonic SD-DAC63106 preamp/headphone amp. They were all loud enough, however i have no doubt a dedicated headphone amp could have made them sound even better
@Barnsey87 2 ай бұрын
Nanos have 14ohms so using an amp is not needed. Anything can power them perfectly fine.
@CoffeeGameMovie Ай бұрын
@@Barnsey87 Its not true, they easy to drive yes, BUT if u dont drive them from a proper amp u will NOT hear what these HPs can really achieve!
@henryfeige8596 Ай бұрын
@@CoffeeGameMovie Yeah, most Hifiman stuff needs a lot of power to wake up. Most of them just sound shallow without a powerful dac and amp.
@kineticdyslexic3093 8 ай бұрын
i have heard the ananda stealth is pretty much the same as the xs, but a better headband.
@huneyknuckles 8 ай бұрын
It’s similar yes but has a slightly different tuning, if you like midrange oriented tuning like the sennheiser HD600 series it’s a bit more detailed in that department however the XS has the edge in sub bass and upper treble sparkle IMHO
@Jootn2kx 7 ай бұрын
@@huneyknuckles I agree here too, I kept the editon XS and send back the Arya last year. Arya is maybe 3% better in resolution but you pay up double price. Also I feel the edition XS was a bit a wider soundstage and bigger sound which was for me the main reason I kept the XS. This headphone is hard to beat man, I listen from electronic music to classical music and metal, it does it all and it Annihilates every other headphone I tried in it's price range and twice it's price range lol
@mateuszprygon9551 6 ай бұрын
I would buy Edition XS, I like this headband, but Stealth is almost the same price now and for me it sounds better (on YT comparisons), has more precised, clearer bass and great mids...
@nickapalooza861 2 ай бұрын
Nah, Ananda Stealth is more pleasantly tuned, musical, better soundstage and balanced. XS to me anyway was too dry and technical, no musicality at all too me
@CoffeeGameMovie Ай бұрын
@@Jootn2kx From what source u heard them? I cant imagine that a properly drived Arya is not better just about in everything than the XS.
The Headphone Show
Рет қаралды 33 М.
HiFi Zone
Рет қаралды 1 М.