HIFIMAN - Arya V2 (Non-Stealth)

XK-Audio Serene lol With the right pads and amplifier, they are heavenly. Like beyond Susvara heavenly. In terms of headphones that made the biggest impact in the industry. I put the following: HD600/650 series. I personally never liked their tuning, but plenty of others do HD800 made kilobucks more mainstream. Industry benchmark for 16 years Focal Clear OG & Hifiman egg series. IMO the first mainstream headphones that can be considered a legit HD800/800S alternative as an all-rounder (at least sonically) Hifiman Susvara. It has been the new benchmark since 2018.

Welcome to the chase, my friend!!! I've never heard the EdXS, but I've had these: OG Sundara, HE4xx, and Arya v2 - while still owning these: HE400i 2020, OG Ananda, Arya Stealth, and HEKSE. The first HFM can that I bought was the OG Sundara - and OMG, they blew every other dynamic can that I'd heard before then out of the water! That was until I bought the OG Ananda and then quickly said: "Effit, I'm taking the plunge" - and bought the Arya v2. Prior to the Aryas I couldn't fathom spending ~$500+, then ~$750+ and THEN ~$1,000+ on a headphone....that is, until I heard the Ananda and wondered "What if"? When I got the Arya and first heard them I was very impressed, but still kinda "Is this it"? Until I read that they took a few days or weeks to burn in before they'd sound their best. I let them marinate over the nights with some pink noise and bass heavy music for a few nights and then listened. HOLY MOLY - they had totally transformed and expanded in every direction (HxWxD + midbass, subbass, texture, and smoothness)!!! Like a "Shaking your head because this is TOO GOOD - my goodness!!!" kind of emotion, LOL. Of course, then I had to buy the requisite source chain to "maximize their SQ" - so I bought a used Gustard H20 Class A BAL amp and later on a Gustard x26pro DAC to stack with it - both working together to mitigate the roughest treble edges from both my Arya Stealth and HEKSE. I'm still in Bliss..... As you can guess, I'm still stuck - but I think I'm holding off right now on even hearing the HEK Unveiled and sticking with my HEKSE. They offer me literally everything there is to offer, IMO - not lacking in any facet of SQ, especially after experimenting with ZMF hybrid and perforated lambskin ear pads for the "cherry on top" effect. Happy listening - and keep us posted....

whatever is most comfortable. because I can use EQ to make almost anything sound the way I like. but I can't make hifiman egg shape cans fit and I stopped buying them because unlike EQ, I can't form them to my head. right now, most comfy is probably a senn HD variant... 6xx 600 700 etc. those go on and almost immediately disappear. and again, as far as sound. well, the best sounding cans have DSP because it's basically built in EQ/signal correction. so THE best sound isn't coming from any default pair minus that correction. it's why old school audiophiles are shocked when they try new BT cans with anc and DSP. real talk the momentum 4 or ak9 n9 sound "better" than anything in your collection because they come out the box with EQ applied. way too long, probably didn't make it this far? I prefer comfy cans cause sound can be manipulated, hardware can't

Arya's are a improved version of the edition XS, better and smoother high's and less sibilant, similar tuning.

There is no best, it's subjective. Though I would generally prefer open-backs over closed backs, especially when you're just using them in your chair and not a noisy environment. "Audiophile grade" is also not a clearly defined term. There are a lot of good options available for under 1000$, I would recommend ordering a few different pairs and comparing them. Like, as far as open-backs are concerned, get a Hifiman Arya, Sennheiser HD 6XX and maybe a Beyerdynamic DT1990 (note that there's two versions, you can get some great deals on the older MK1 but it has a very spicy treble). If you really need/want something closed, your options will be more limited, you could try a Senny HD620 and Beyer DT1770. Personally, I think the AKG K702 (open) for 180 USD is an incredible deal, but some don't like the mid-heavy sound. And there's no doubt there are better headphones to be had for three or four times the price, but they won't really sound three of four times better, and whether it's worth it spending so much is up to you.

i did. i use hifiman arya and an el2 amp. way more expensive but you only live once so yolo.

My DT990s blew my mind when I first got them. The soundstage is incredible. I then picked up some Aryas that are even better again, proper endgame.

You got lucky then, I liked the Ananda Nano a good bit but just couldn't get a proper seal with them. The headband design of the Arya just is a lot better in that regard, if you want to stay within the Hifiman family :)

Get an Ananda or Arya. Hifiman is tops in price for performance in that range. You may need to deal with their customer service (although I never have). And go for the older models, which have steeper discounts.

109 Pro's have really poor sound quality for the price. They sound muffled and the treble is boosted to hide that a bit. Literally an HE400se is more "technical". Love the design as well, but for sound quality a poor choice. I also prefer the Anandas to Aryas since the bass is better and timbre is a bit better.