Biggest Baddest Planar Headphone - Hifiman Edition XS Review (vs Hifiman Sundara)

[@guybuddy1]

Just got my Sundaras a week ago, and already want the XS...

[@erikleonardi6642]

If you can, the edition XS is in another league.

[@guybuddy1]

@@erikleonardi6642 dude, please don't. lol

[@darindotson2874]

Best headphone I've ever owned. Everytime I slip it on my head, I am rewarded with a wide stage and incredible details- even more so when I drive them with a little Neoteck NTK-106 amplifier. I encourage folks who have this to check out the Dekoni pads, specifically the Elite Fenestrated Sheepskin pair. Love my Edition XS's!!

[@ryanhostudio]

thanks for sharing yeah that soundstage is pretty nuts

[@huneyknuckles]

thanks for sharing your thoughts @darindotson2874 - specifically what do you like about the elite fenestrated pads? I've read seemingly "every" review of dekoni pads on the XS and preferences seem to be quite divided, 'Z reviews' seems to prefer the elite velour the best while others have touted the elite sheepskin to be the best due to it filling in the missing midrange. have you tried either of these as well?

[@mingkee27]

I am torn between XS and Sundara as next planar Deva Pro serves me well but it works better with CX31993 USB-C adapter than just plugged in phone headphones jack (way more volume and sounds less muddy)

[@ryanhostudio]

i think they all work about the same truthfully on whatever you plug it into the specs are similar

[@todd3351]

I immediately fell in love with the sundara. I ordered it along with senn 600 and 6xx. Those went back. I then tried out the edition XS. You lose a little of that brightness of the sundara (maybe 5-10%) but you gain low end and separation. Everyone talks about the 6xx being a great headphone you can wear all day. To me it was veiled as hell, but the edition XS was actually what they meant. If I had the money I would probably keep the sundaras also, but these are great. Only caveat is the squeak or creak a bit. I think it may be the pads.

[@eracermatt]

Hey , would the JDS Atom Amp+ in your opion would be enough to power the Hifiman Edition XS?

[@ryanhostudio]

yes for sure

[@eracermatt]

@@ryanhostudio thank you for the reply.

[@JTB--]

Problem with the Edition XS is that the Ananda Stealth Magnet just came out and is a benchmark under $1K

[@ryanhostudio]

cant wait to check it out. It is more expensive at $700 wonder if its tuning is better

[@JTB--]

@@ryanhostudio I liked the Edition XS. But i really liked the Ananda Stealth Magnet. If I didn't already have the HEKse I would have kept the Ananda SM for sure. The Ananda SM actually has some solid Bass that can dig pretty deep on songs that call for it now. Something the OG Ananda was lacking. If I was choosing between the XS and Ananda SM... I'd pay the extra $$$ for the Ananda. Hifiman has figured out how to give you just that little bit more for the extra money you pay with each of their HP's climbing up the ladder. But the XS are still really good too. Hifiman has really nailed it with these Stealth Magnet HP's sound signature's

[@Taco_Thief]

Xs still really awesome though

[@JTB--]

@@Taco_Thief It is. you can't go wrong with either one

[@MRFUTURETECHNOLOGYGAMING]

Monoprice M1570 Can find used and brand new Under 500 so And they have 106MM You forgot HE1KV2 master headphones have a 108mm drivers but those headphones are hand made not by a big company so if made by a high-quality company is what you want then 106mm from audeze is the largest driver you can get the egg shape hifiman have a 100mm planar driver 😀 and the earpads are made of REPREVE®, a soft, lightweight and comfortable performance material with low isolation. Made from high-quality fibers from recycled materials including plastic bottles which look and feel like cloth or looks like A Stretchy cloth Nylon Which Feels cool to the ears but has Less bass response Especially with the perforations inside the ear pad and a lot less isolation Like the Velour but without being a lint magnet and is stronger

[@a2raya772]

are they comfortable? and would you pick these over the DT1 1990 PRO?

[@ryanhostudio]

i find them comfortable because of big cups and light clamp. I personally like these better than dt 1999 pro, which has a huge treble spike

[@a2raya772]

@@ryanhostudio okay thank you, still trying to decide if I should go with XS or Focal celestee

[@Ghettochild.2600]

I have the DT 1990 pro and looking for something with a better soundstage. Considering the XS next. If you get the Dakoni Velor pads on the 1990 it’s helps a bit with the treble spike.

[@chrisasmith75]

Bought the the sundara used and flipped it for more money. I'm Going to save for the xs and just use my hd560s for now.

[@ryanhostudio]

560s is a very nicely balanced sounding headphone with good imaging! XS will sound massive though in comparison

[@chrisasmith75]

@Ryan Ho Thoughts on the hd560s vs sundara?

[@ryanhostudio]

@@chrisasmith75 560s might have slightly better mids and good imaging than sundara but I think sundara got it beat in everything else especially bass quality, soundstage, and detail

[@chrisasmith75]

@Ryan Ho Funny I thought the sundara had better imaging for music but the hd560s for gaming. To me the mids were equal but the sundara were more technically impressive especially for music

[@spamcan9208]

I can't stand my HD560, the treble grates on me for some reason.

[@rajeebdas1724]

Hello Ryan. Could you give an idea about the minimum power that would be required to drive them optimally? In terms of mW at 32 ohms. I don't want to compromise on the quality. But I also want to spend as little as possible on the dac-amp

[@ryanhostudio]

something like a fiio k7 would be good. www.audeze.com/blogs/technology-and-innovation/sensitivity-impedance-and-amplifier-power

[@ryanhostudio]

planars are actually easier to drive than dynamic drivers stated in this article as well if it’s helps www.audeze.com/blogs/technology-and-innovation/planar-magnetic-technology

[@rajeebdas1724]

@@ryanhostudio Thank you Ryan...

[@nature_sweet_vibes]

Does anyone drive the Edition XS with ifi Zen stack (dac + can) using the balanced cable ? It seems on the can with gain +6db if I pass after 12-13 mark on volume it starts to lag and interrupt the sound in headphones... does this happens to others too ? I am using foobar2000 with volume set to max. It seems the issue is with the zen CAN.... it doesnt have enough power to drive the Hifiman edition XS to max... on 0 gain it starts lagging and intrerupts with foobar2000 volume on max and volume to max on zen CAN. if I hit +6db gain on Zen Can it starts lagging and interrupting as I said at 60% of the max volume on Zen CAN. Maybe my zen Can is deffective ? I tried edition XS on FiiO K5 PRO directly and it can be really loud without interrupting.

[@Huttunen666]

Might be your can that's the problem. I use the same stack and I don't have any problems listening at 12db gain. I don't have a balanced cable (yet) though

[@laurentmoselle477]

Hi , thank you so much for the video. I have read that could be a wonderful gaming headphones. Can I use it one my ps5 , should I add a dac ? Is it very confortable ? Sorry for my poor English I.m French

[@ryanhostudio]

you would have to plug it into 3.5mm into ps5 but yeah it works

[@laurentmoselle477]

@@ryanhostudio thank you so much, should I buy a DAC or direct plug on the dualsense. I hesitate between this headphones and the beyerdynamic tugriks 300R . Confort is very important. Thank you so much

[@ryanhostudio]

honestly i would just plug in wireless first and see if you like it. it’s probably more convenient to use it that way and would sound better than plugging into dual sense if i had to guess

[@laurentmoselle477]

Thank you so much Ryan, but how can I plug in wireless , it’s a wired headphone ?

[@johnsoriano3812]

Awesome review!

[@ryanhostudio]

thanks!

[@gigihanmandarin]

Try to use it to listen to spoken words - some unnatural bass tone would come through - it is too bassy. Audiophile Beats maybe?

[@HonkeyKongLive]

I think that might be an issue with those recordings.

[@Jack-oc2fc]

7:38 video starts

[@Error_4x5]

You accurately described the sound of the headphones but you didn't mention how the lack of bass on both models just sucks the life out of some types of music. I had both headphones and electronic music, rap and some metal just sounded dead using these headphones because of the lack of bass and slam. If you dig jazz, classical or anime soundtracks, get these but if you like rap, modern pop, electronic music, rock and metal, avoid these like Covid. The headphones you want are the Monoprice M1060 (open back or closed). They have a huge 106mm planar driver, crystal clear highs, great mids and the bass goes super low and has that hard hitting planar slam that's lacking on the Sundara's and XS's. Listening to Massive Attack, Flying Lotus, Tool or Iron Maiden on these is amazing. They're the same price as the Sundara's ($299) but the tuning is night and day.

[@spamcan9208]

You're the first person I've seen that's said the xs has weak bass.

[@Error_4x5]

@@spamcan9208 That's because most reviewers don't listen to bass-centric music when testing headphones. The XS and the Sundara are excellent headphones, they just lack the bass slam needed for rap, house or techno.

[@SmokeyStoner]

So, it has big drivers. got it 😄

[@ryanhostudio]

HUGEEEEEEE

[@SmokeyStoner]

@@ryanhostudio just bought them 😉

[@ryanhostudio]

@@SmokeyStoner congrats!