Aune - AR5000

Agreed, not likely to buy any of these. I might buy the Audeze Maxwell on a great sale. I have a couple of headphones for console that can be powered by a potato, the PC38x and Aune AR5000. For PC, where I'd play competitive games, I use HE1000se, HE6se V2, and HD490 Pro. I've heard the Arya Stealth is also excellent for gaming, but I don't have that one.

So that's about $400 USD. Does he already have an amplifier? Most good headphones will need one but not all. Sennheiser has the HD560S. I thought the HD490 Pro, which is considered to be superior to the HD560S, would be in that price range because it is about $350 USD here, but for whatever reason it is $800 AUD on Amazon Australia. The Aune AR5000 is very easy to drive and doesn't need an amplifier to sound decent. It looks like it sells at $499 AUD, which compromises the value proposition a bit compared to prices here in the US. It is $299 USD, and I bought it on sale for $210 USD recently. I have a couple of HiFiMan headphones that are fantastic for gaming, but they are outside of that price range. I found the HiFiMan Arya Stealth on a huge sale, just over half off: [https://eliseaudio.com/en-us/products/hifiman-arya-stealth-magnet-version](https://eliseaudio.com/en-us/products/hifiman-arya-stealth-magnet-version) I think he'd be VERY pleased with this assuming he already has a headphone amplifier to run it. To go from an Astro to an Arya Stealth would be like a 2000 Honda Civic to a new Ferrari. This is a high end audiophile headphone good at just about everything that received very strong reviews and is considered elite for gaming. BTW, I don't know anything about Elise Audio and can't vouch for them. I've never bought anything from them. I just did a search and saw that sale.

El buen Aune AR5000, recomendado, lo compre hace poco y es super dulce para escuchar horas y horas

**HD 600** \- excellent, natural tonality with its early sub-bass roll off being its only weakness. I wouldn't say the bass is just decent because I actually find the quality to be quite nice and tactile due to its slight mid-bass bump, but it doesn't have that much low end oomph and fullness for my electronic music. Extremely durable and built to last. Lightweight and CAN be comfortable after you give the out-of-the-box clamp force some wear time. Other downside would be the earpads wearing down too quickly which can change the sound to be warmer and down tilt the treble (and the earpads are expensive to constantly replace if you like the stock sound profile). **AR5000** \- a great all-rounder headphone for both music and gaming. The low end is full and warm with a lush, natural sounding midrange, and a smooth upper treble. Very comfortable to wear for long hours because its suspension strap helps a lot with weight distribution and has a nicely built metal-plastic construction that's handles smoothly with no creaky-ness. I've used my AR5000 quite a lot for my electronic and hip-hop music because the bass feels so full and enveloping on tracks like *James Blake - Loading*. It's also awesome for gaming because the drivers are angled slightly aggressive which presents a soundstage that has great forward depth to it and precise positional imaging. That's its party trick because things can sound intimate and close to your face or be far out in front of you. A nice bonus that it has lower distortion than the HD 600, so you can EQ a bass shelf to it and it can punch way harder. There are other headphones like the HD 550, Sony MDR-MV1, FIIO FT1 Pro, Sundara, and Edition XS, but since I don't own any of them, I can't offer a fair assessment of their sonic performance. From what I read, general consensus is that the HD 550 is a great alternative to the HD 600 if you want better bass extension but less than sweet sounding midrange. Sony MDR-MV1 is a V-shaped, fun sounding headphone that can be too bright. FiiO FT1 Pro is a slightly darker sounding planar alternative to the Sundara and Edition XS. Sundara and Edition XS are bright-neutral planar headphones that needs an amp and their comfort and build quality are hit and miss.

The differences between headphones is often imperceptible at first listen but become more obvious over time. The human brain is just not well equipped to make these distinctions on the fly. As for price vs expectations, more expensive doesn’t often equate to “better tuned”. Money will buy you resolution, but not necessarily enjoyment. I think you went into the experience with the correct mindset, which is “what tuning speaks to me?”. The most enjoyable headphones are not necessarily expensive. As for the AR5000 - I love this headphone. It has a unique quality to the tonality. Kind of like a hint of harmonic resonance or reverb. I prefer the tuning of the SR7000 to the AR5000 but the SR lacks this resonance characteristic. It’s also $300 more expensive than the AR which I feel was a marketing blunder on Aune’s part.

These are my favorite headphones below $600. They just sound so balanced and… nice. They aren’t really the best at any one criteria, but they are pretty good in every criteria. And they have this very unique quality to the sound, just a hint of resonance that makes music sound like it was mixed with the tiniest bit of reverb. It’s interesting.

Interesting question. I own roughly 17 headphones from low to high end. It’s maybe an obsessive hobby for me that turned into a collecting endeavor. I’ve owned the older DCA Noire, the DCA E3, Audeze LCD2, HiFiman Arya V2 and HE1000V2, ZMF Atrium and Aeolus, Beyerdynamic T1 and DT1990 and DT880, Meze 99 Classic, both Aune AR5000 and SR7000, Sennheiser 6xx, and some bass cannons like the Modhouse Argon and Harmonicdyne Eris. And a bunch of others that don’t really meaningfully stand out. I tend to notice a disparity between my “best” headphones and the ones I listen to the most. The DCAs and HiFimans are objectively excellent, but I rarely pick them up. For me, personally, I’m in love with a rich, full-bodied and impactful sound. The ZMF Aeolus on an OTL Tube amp takes the win for me every time. It just makes every single song sound so enjoyable. It is soulful and “weighty”. Many of my headphones are technically better in many categories, but if enjoyment is the most important factor then the ZMF Aeolus hits the mark every time. It is just so well rounded and engaging with every type of music.

The usual recommendations for open headphones that can do competitive gaming are: $: Sennheiser 560s, the new ATH R50x, and maybe the upcoming ATH R30x in April $$: Sennheiser 490 Pro, ATH R70x (and new R70xa), Aune AR5000, Meze AER105, Hifiman Ananda $$$: Sennheiser HD800s I own the 560s and Ananda, and have tried the R70x, AER105 and AR5000. They're all great and how much you like them will depend on your ears preferences. Took me a while to understand, but it's like buying good shoes; everyone has a different fit and preference. Personally, the R70x and AR5000 were fantastic but I was looking for something with a bit more vocals. The AER105 were bass cannons to me, so if you like bass they're a bassy option. I haven't tried the rest so I cannot speak for them, but if you have any questions for the ones I've tried feel free to poke.

Current market disrupters for closed back are the Fiio Ft1 and open backs would be the Fiio Ft1 pro or Aune Ar5000. Insane value for money propositions. You will not find better under $300. I would get them before tariffs hit. Hifiman is great, but build quality seems to be hit and miss. The Edition XS is a potential pick if you like the sound sig and can find a well built pair. I mean honestly Fiio is putting out bangers in all categories lately. Daps, headphones, etc. I have their BTR17 Bluetooth adapter and it is a quality bit of kit. The Fiio FX17 iems are also reviewing well and I will be checking them out next. Yes, I am a bit of a Fiio fanboy. Also Razer is a Singapore brand. Just sayin.

AR5000s are a dynamic headphone so they have pretty good bass, I much prefer the bass on these to my edition xs, especially after EQ. There's definitely more bass heavy headphones out there, these are more mid-focuesed but I love them and the build quality is a significant step up from hifiman.

EQ is the way to get it all. AR5000 is good without. 105 AER likely has blunted detail like 109 Pro so AR5000 would be better from that perspective as well. X2HR are an easy comfy listen just a bit lofi and 130ish USD seems pretty pricy for them (often $80). HE400se, HD550 and Fiio FT1 are worth considering if you don't want to EQ. Ananda Nano with EQ is excellent for example, but almost unlistenable without.

Neither of the headphones you mentioned is more neutral than the HD600. I have all three. AR5000 is incredible, but slightly juiced. Pumped up bass and slightly exaggerated treble. The Beyer’s, unfortunately, absolutely have that crazy treble thing going on

I am looking for headphones for listening to music I want them to sound amazing doesn't need to be wireless or anything I just want a good pair of headphones that sound amazing for music listening. My budget is $300-500 USD, currently I'm using the Hyper X alpha wireless and they sound not that good imo I want a big upgrade. I also like bass too so there's that. I also want them to be comfy I can't stand headphones that hurt my head. Also don't want them feeling cheap either and fall apart lmfao. Also open back or closed back doesn't really matter to me whatever sounds the best is what I want. Just got the AR5000s thanks for all the suggestions I'll def be back on here in the future The AR5000s sounds great only small issue I have is it's a bit big on my head wish the band could go smaller but it's fine, I also EQ them for more bass then they're basically perfect

Been looking at these ones I see it being recommended everywhere I could get them on amazon for only 300 USD, seem to be what I'm looking for

Just got them I'm loving them they sound pretty good I also EQ them for bass then they're basically perfect, only thing bad I can say is they are a bit big on my head wish the band can go smaller

!thanks Just got the Aune Ar5000 been seeing people recommend it all over this sub