While it’s a bit late, a few people asked me what I thought were the best products of 2018. That’s a difficult choice, as I didn’t get to experience as many as I had wished, and some are still due to be reviewed. As well, I didn’t get to explore Bluetooth headphones as I had hoped, so they will be missing in this comparison. I went over everything where I’d posted a review in the last year, added items that are here for review, grouped them and selected the best of each. Here is the list. Best closed-back headphones $500-1000 […]
HiFiMan
5 posts
The first time I auditioned the Susvaras was at the last Tokyo Fujiya Avic headphone festival. The test system consisted of an EF1000 amp and Weiss DAC of some description. I also briefly tried them with the Hugo 2 in place of the Weiss. First impressions were of insane dynamics. I’d read about people being enamored with the HE-6, the much cheaper predecessor in a similar manner so it gave me some understanding of where they were coming from when I tried this system. I’d just finished a loaner of the Focal Utopia which had impressed me enough to become […]
A few years ago I remember that the big deal about HiFiMan IEMs was their low price. It was hard to argue with good sound for $99, so it is something of a surprise to end up reviewing the gold-plated HiFiMan RE2000 flagship. While another entry into the category of high-end IEMs at the $2000 mark may not be a surprise, the announcement of the price generated some skepticism, as there had been issues with the build quality of their flagship components in the past, most noticeably the original HE1000, which was re-released after only a year with considerable improvements […]
Back when I owned a modified Denon D5000, I went to a local hi-fi store and demoed a Stax system. I almost bought it on the spot, only hesitating because it would have been the most expensive audio purchase I’d ever made. Later on I ended up using a vintage Stax rig as my primary system which I’ve since regretted selling. It consisted of the Lambda Nova Signature, but with newer, thicker ear-pads and a borrowed SRM 717. The thicker ear-pads increased the bass, resulting in very entertaining listening. I don’t know what made me decide to sell them, as […]
With the release of HiFiMan’s HE1000 at $3000, there was a large gap between their lesser planar offerings, such as the HE560 and the flagship. Filling that gap, originally at $1799, the Edition X set to compete with the Audeze LCD-X, LCD-3 and MrSpeakers Ether. Updates to the design for the HE1000 V2 also trickled down into their younger sibling, resulting in the Edition X V2. In the two-and-a-half years since their original release, the price has also dropped, and they can now be found on amazon.com for $1,199. One of the key aims HiFiMan had with the Edition X […]