SUNDARA Closed-Back

Hifiman Sundara Closed backs. I don't care much for them while critically listening, but they are fun for the just enjoying music listening.

I got tired of gaming headsets and the mics breaking so I bought these [HIFIMAN SUNDARA Closed-Back Over-Ear Planar Magnetic Wired Hi-Fi Headphones.](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BF58RZQK) Got a separate mic with an arm and never looked back. I freaking love these so much, best sounding setup Ive ever had. I bought them in 2023 and they are still going strong, I replaced the ear cups once. Highly recommend.

I really like my closed-back Hifiman Sundara headphones. I’ve seen that many people say they are terrible, and unfortunately that’s true without EQ, but with EQ they sound magnificent. Very detailed and pleasant headphones for their price.

I’ve had the Audeze lcd-x and sold them for both the lcd2 and lcd2 closed. LCD X are fantastic but I can get what I like outa the lcd 2 for 99% of what I use my headphones for, they sound so similar for most things just a little less bass imo, and the other 1% the lcd2 closed does its job (stupid lots of bass lol) I’ve had the sennheiser 660s and gave them to my best friend, I always felt like I was going to break them, But they sound great. I have both the hifiman sundara and sundara closed, these were replaced with my Audezes. They sound good for the price you can get them today but I like my audezes more. I also have the Moondrop Venus, those sit on a stand and I don’t use them. They weigh a damn ton and are no better than a sundara in sound but they’re beautiful lookin lol.

I’ve had the Audeze lcd-x and sold them for both the lcd2 and lcd2 closed. LCD X are fantastic but I can get what I like outa the lcd 2 for 99% of what I use my headphones for, they sound so similar for most things just a little less bass imo, and the other 1% the lcd2 closed does its job (stupid lots of bass lol) I’ve had the sennheiser 660s and gave them to my best friend, I always felt like I was going to break them, But they sound great. I have both the hifiman sundara and sundara closed, these were replaced with my Audezes. They sound good for the price you can get them today but I like my audezes more. I also have the Moondrop Venus, those sit on a stand and I don’t use them. They weigh a damn ton and are no better than a sundara in sound but they’re beautiful lookin lol.

I have 11... (not counting my cheapies I used before getting into the hobby), and I only use a few of them regularly. I think I just finished my collection a couple days ago when I finally bought a good closed-back planar to replace my Sundara Closed, which I never really liked much. Now I have 4 closed-back dynamic, 2 closed-back planar, 1 open-backed dynamic, 1 open-back planar, and 3 Bluetooth headphones. Definitely overkill, but OH well. Time to save some money, lol.

Also "both Sundaras". Is he implying that the notoriously underwhelming Sundara Closed is in fact a better value than the XS? Because that statement tells you everything lol

Oh god no, the Sundara Closed are awful. Hifiman doesn't seem capable of making a decent closed back, weirdly. Sorry I missed where you said Sundara Closed. I think people on here exaggerate the differences between planars and dyanmics a bit; I own a lot of dynamic driver headphones and I've rarely had a problem with applying EQ. but, my favorite closed back planar is the DCA x Drop Aeon x Closed and they're in the $400 range new.

Amex has (had?) an offer where they'd give you 50% off on something (discount up to $80) if you paid in points. I have ... like 200,000 Amex points because I basically don't ever use them. So really I didn't pay anything, but I used $79.50 + tax worth of points for them. Which was maybe the single biggest no-brainer of my audiophile journey. Do I think I'll use them very much? Nah. But having them on my wall for that price? Totally worth it for review comparisons.

I tried them six years ago and they weren't for me, then a friend lent me a pair to review this summer and damn. What an exceptional pair for the value.

The way I have to wear them to be comfortable on my ears means that most of the weight rests on top of my head; I don't find it super problematic (and they're far from my heaviest headphones, but I wish they had a little of adjustment on the suspension strap. It's a ... weird design, even for Hifiman. If I were wearing them for a long period of time, I'd probably put on a hat. But I'm also the guy who prefers the older style 5XX strap or the single-band from Edition XS or HE6se v2 over the Arya-style headbands.

It's not as much of a slam dunk as the FT1 was, price wise, but it's a solid headphone. I prefer the 6X0 to the Pro (though they're all more expensive other than the 6XX), and I'd say they're about on par with the Sundara, but I'd take the Pro over the Edition XS anyday and twice on Sunday.

If you really want closed, the FT1 is the only one I recommend without reservations under $500 (for gaming, the fractal scape at $200). If you’re open to open backs, the Hifiman Sundara is on a great sale right now and is a great gaming headphone.

I would definitely skip the Beyers; they're funky tunes. Honestly, in that price range I'd probably go with the Fractal Scape; they're a great pair of wireless headphones for music and games, and the EQ is incredibly well designed. If you want to go wired, I'd recommend the Hifiman Sundara or Fiio FT1 Pro plus a $9 dongle (Apple in the US, JCALLY elsewhere) and a Schiit Magni/Topping L30/JDS Atom Amp.