Arya Stealth Magnet Version

As somebody that has owned both, they are both great for gaming. The HD800s is better in every way for me, music, movies etc., not considering price. That being said, I could have stopped at Aryas and been perfectly happy. Neither of these headphones are going to provide a massive competitive advantage over a $300 set of gaming headphones. But the sound quality will blow them out of the water in every aspect, other than that boomy gaming headphone bass. You also have to accept that open back headphones and computer fans do not play well together. Also everybody within earshot can hear your in game chat. A Topping DX5 II will run either of headphones nicely without breaking the bank. Wouldn't dream of using either of them without a dac/amp though.

You actually get bass from the Momentum 4’s? I heard good reviews about their bass, but I feel it’s lacking unless I’ve got something set up wrong. I fell my Arya Stealths, which are open back seem to have quite a bit more bass than them. Maybe I’ll try a side by side comparison again

They were my endgame until the right cup went out 2 weeks in. Noire XO is better but not 2.5x better.

Finally someone else that doesn’t like the Meze sound. I wanted to like the 109 Pro so badly because it just looks so so good and feels great. But the sound profile is not for me at all. If you’re looking for some that fits between the HD600 and the Noire, the Focal Hadenys is worth a look - you can catch a deal on them if you’re patient and they are a good set. I also think that you will like the Arya Stealth if you get to try them. They were my endgame until one of the speakers died like a week after I got it. If you get one that works, they are an amazing daal.

The Arya is a vast improvement over the XS in fit. The XS comes off with even the slightest movement unless you mod it.

Listener is my spirit animal. Resolve and GoldenSound rate the Arya Stealth very highly, which is the opposite of my taste. Listeners take on it is practically identical to mine.

If you are treble sensitive it makes sense. The Arya Stealth is basically unlistenable for me without EQ.

Such a tierlist doesnt really make sense with EQ though, you can tune almost every headphone to be very close to taste. The Arya Stealth is actually an exception for me. I dont know what it is, but I just hate the treble on that headphone, its something about the tone of it. Even with EQ it doesnt sound good to me, just less painful. I get that other people like it though, it just doesn’t work for me at all.

Thats so funny because its the other way around for me. I sold my Arya Stealth to buy a 660S2.

The Arya Stealth is a very different headphone though. Just look at listener, he loves the Edition XV but hates the Arya Stealth (like me). The Arya is not an upgrade from the XV, its a different headphone entirely. Do you want a bright egg-shaped Hifiman? Arya Stealth. Do you want a warm smooth egg-shaped Hifiman? Edition XV.

>However, with a good peq it is easy to make the Aryas smooth as well, if that is the preference.  No, thats my point. The Arya Stealth has wild treble peaks. Its not easy to PEQ at all. The Edition XV behaves much more linearly on a variety of heads, same as the other newer Hifimans like the Arya Unveiled. Ive owned a Arya Stealth, I have never had any other headphone that were as frustrating to EQ as the Aryas. >Arya is definitely a step up in technical performance "Technical" performance is kind of an audiophile myth IMO. The Arya Stealth is significantly brighter, which may be perceived as being more detailed, apart from that its not more advanced than the Edition XV. I might even argue that the more predictable treble performance of the Edition XV is a "technical" strength because that is very hard to impossible to replicate with EQ.

I got and returned the 109 Pro after few weeks. They are super comfortable, nice sounding and that is it. They are nice they didn't do much for me no complaints it just OK. I found my self going back more and more to my older Arya Stealth and 6xx. Obviously everyone is different but I think under $1000 there is much better at least objectively better headphones and you can listen to them first. Focal Clear, Arya Stealth, LCD-2C (used) I would even throw in 660S2. All these to me sounded better than 109 Pro.

Well it's very hard and probably not within the budget but given your current setup I think you will do well as a first step with an open back with a wide stage think Arya from Hifiman with an amo/dac this will be within the defined budget. I use to have the XM4 and Arya will be a big step. Good luck!