The Upgrade from Empyrean - Meze Elite Review

[@JKHYT]

Hifiman, Focal, etc could take notes from Meze. When you spend 4 digits on headphones this what they should be built like. There's absolutely no excuse for anything but great build quality and materials in this price range. If I were spending this kind of money I would have to be talked out of Empyreans.

[@daretobe957]

Exactly! It's been a bumpy ride owning hifiman and focal high-end headphones.

[@finasteridesolution3849]

The sound alone will talk you out

[@varunnarain50]

When the audio hobby becomes the build quality hobby I’ll take Meze seriously. Sound wise it doesn’t compete whatsoever.

[@CriPPleR_HD]

The Meze Elite hits the best balance of comfort and sound signature for gaming. Got them for music and was blown away when I tried them with games. More weight and slam than the HD800s while still having a wide and layered sound stage. Plus you can wear them for hours! Huge bonus for audiophiles who also game. :)

[@iikatinggangsengii2471]

when he said it sounds like youre in recording studio, it really is mainly bcs i dont feel like wearing anything, its like personal 1x1m speaker room

[@mikylenaidoo1779]

Having lived with a detail "king" - He1000se for more than 3 years... I now appreciate my Elite soooooo much. It DOES have all the details , it just presents them in a different way , and it is just pure Joy to listen to music on them. It's not trying to throw those details in your face , but they're there if youre looking for them. It puts the music first. Great review

[@mareknowakowski1692]

I agree , the details are there but the tuning of the Elites makes MUSICALITY their biggest advantage.

[@mikylenaidoo1779]

@@mareknowakowski1692 yeah exactly , it presents them in such musical , fun and enjoyable way. Do not miss my he1000se at all

[@mikeg2491]

I dont have the elite but picked up a used empyrean and what amazes me is how it is detailed yet has the smoothness of warmer cans at the same time, never do I feel fatigued or get a cringing ringing sensation listening to a bad recording.

[@NoKNOTsense]

The Elite's amazing comfort and relaxed sound are the perfect combination for listening when you're tired after work.

[@robertnoblitt518]

The Meze Elite is my favorite headphone ever. I returned my Susvara.

[@0rogontorogon]

I got the Elites and the HD800S. They complement each other very well as both cans are very good at different things.

[@LordOfFreedom]

I've been wondering about this exact thing. It'll be a while before I can get either one of these for myself but I'm super curious as to the genuine use case for both of these high-end headphones.

[@0rogontorogon]

@@LordOfFreedom hd800s is awesome for most acoustic and live music. Classical instruments have a beautiful color and texture on this one. Elite is kind of a jack of all trades. Everything sounds good, even bad recordings but there is very little that will blow your socks off. There is something about it that makes you want to keep listening to it. Also: nice void ray :)

[@LordOfFreedom]

@@0rogontorogon Thanks so much! I really appreciate the overview and comparison. Both of these sound right up my alley (I also hear that the HD800 S is great for games too). Now to find a headphone store where I can try at least one of them! I love that you switched your portrait to the Protoss icon too :)

[@jk9436]

I would be interested to see what happens if the pads from the Elite are mounted to the "regular" Empyrians. Pads tend to have quiet dramatic effects on the tuning of headphones. Very informative and interesting review for the Elite - thanks DMS.

[@arielext]

I've done that: I like how it brings the mids a bit more forward and lowers the bass-bump Emyrean's normally have. It's expensive but I find it worth it.

[@mikeg2491]

@@arielext just got a used empyrean and ordered the elite pads, I liked the empyrean as-is but the pads made a night and day difference, didn’t sacrifice too much of the fun bass but everything feels clearer and more open.

[@Tidwillshare]

2:41 balanced and clean is the way I like headphones to feel tonight. It's hard to let it go.

[@klaus2325]

Disagree that the thinner pads are more comfortable as the thicker Empyreans pad. Not for me! With the thinner Elite pads my ears touches slightly the grill :-(

[@dougquesnel5613]

Great review. Just got it the other week. It was the headphone I didn't know I wanted. Comparing it to the DCA Stealth, and HD8XX (EQ'd, which BTW you should do a video on the tape mod for the HD8XX). It's absolutely my favorite sounding headphone. I'm not sure about the pad size though, I ordered the Empy Leather pads to compare. My ears touch :( minus that it's the most natural and real sounding headphones I have heard.

[@SkywhiteChannel]

Great review. Very balanced. I’m already reading owners trying to justify their purchases by claiming “all the detail is there, it’s just presented differently”. But that’s ok, it doesn’t matter. What matters is whether they like the sound. Period.

[@fatdoi003]

one of the hardest recommendations i've seen from DMS

[@f.evangelista]

Next Meze Liric! Top👌

[@ethanwong859]

I think the copper Empyrean look better then Elite. the price upgrade too much.

[@NushiSama]

would love to see 2 reviews on the Final D8000 and D8000 Pro then a comparison between the 2

[@geereesh77]

It is a massive improvement as compared to Empyrean. However, I still find the Elite a bit laid-back. They do look beautiful and the build is solid, still not a great choice for someone who likes precision and attack. Also with that price, I can have 2 headphones serving varying genres.

[@mr.dynamite2543]

??? Strongly disagree.

[@ora6925]

I actually prefer the Empyrean over the Elite. Less colored midrange.

[@Armbrust210]

Will you review the Liric's as well? Some people really like them and they're the "cheapest" of the bunch.

[@hartyewh1]

The most open sounding closed back I've heard, but a bit of EQ is welcome with them. Less so than these for example though.

[@chungang7037]

Detail does not always make my music sound better, will have to try these out.

[@Martijn1234]

These are superbly balanced, natural sounding headphones. Any more detail and they would be ruined but the detail is absolutely still there. The technicalities stop just shy of being too bright or fatiguing. Quite an an achievement as this is a difficult balancing act to do all of that. Just put them on and enjoy your music.

[@chungang7037]

@@Martijn1234 Exactly what I thought, I am just afraid to put them on and have my wallet with me ;)

[@kyron42]

As soon as I saw it on your head my first thought was Cyberman for some reason.

[@bladelefusyn3337]

That's one of the more popular responses. It personally reminds me of Vocaloid stuff. But I love the way they look in general, & intend to get the Elite if one day opportunity presents itself.

[@aeisbaer8042]

I liked it more then the Empyrean but I find the treble really piercing :/

[@TheSPazCORE]

I actually like the Empyrean more than the Elite. Yes, the Elite is more resolving and detailed etc. but while the Empyrean is bassy and darker, smoother in the treble, the Elite is the opposite. It's more neutral in the bass and brighter in the treble. I'd take the Utopia or D8000 Pro over the Elite and I'd take the Empyrean over most other dark/warm headphones like the Audezes and ZMFs etc.

[@mikeg2491]

I just bought an Empyrean used and at first regretted not getting the “newer” model but I slapped elite pads on it and it is a really smooth HP with just enough detail to not sound veiled like my LCD-3 or HD6xx but still very resolving. I can even listen to bad recordings and not feel like I have to stick to only listening to ultra-mastered FLAC files borne from audio wizards and dragon glass. It sounds like from your description I’m not missing much.

[@prytud]

this against an arya organic, which one is the best ?

[@ianmason313]

Please can you change the left and right cable sides to the correct cup, it's freaking me out.

[@turbomustang84]

A $4000 headphone sounds reasonably good ? I'm not shocked lol

[@hartyewh1]

The shock is that it's sounds only reasonably good. A lot of people find it very unimpressive even with EQ.

[@ZiggieZoo]

I really like my Shure SRH1540 headphones with Lqi Cables balanced cables with Sony NW-WM1Z and Lotoo Paw Gold Touch. I have reached a combination that has ended my portable audio quest.

[@Kmikko91]

Joshua Valour

[@lingonberryjam320]

JOSHUA VELOUR PADS

[@bladelefusyn3337]

@@lingonberryjam320 Finally, someone said it. Or, I finally come across someone who said it. =)

[@lingonberryjam320]

@@bladelefusyn3337 JOSJUA VELOUR PADS ARE COMFY ASF

[@illustrious420]

I found out that the arya still out perform this in detail and soundstage, tonality wise(for my taste) and nearly everything else, so this headphone is just bad for me tbh I will put the technical ability of this headphone like this : it's a edition xs soundstage + lcd 2 everything else intangible wise

[@CrazyAboutVinylRecords]

C Tier?

[@oliverhintz594]

What dac-amp combo with the elite do you recommend?

[@chungang7037]

supposedly it is very easy to drive

[@mareknowakowski1692]

ACRO CA 1000 is the way to go :)

[@PianoTopia]

Can we see more IEMs tnx

[@erincorrea]

What headphone did you just buy?

[@hartyewh1]

ZMF Atrium I believe?

[@sjqideez6626]

DMS mentions the $4000 price yet there are more expensive headphones that have worse build, design & comfort than the Elite (Shangri La Senior, AB 1266 Phi TC, Susvara, etc). Also the camera work on some of the close ups was laughably bad, was the camera person drunk or something?! And finally, it’s called the Meze Elite. Not Empyrean Elite. #FacePalm

[@mr.dynamite2543]

Agree on all points.

[@mareknowakowski1692]

Yeah, just Elites

[@DibsonAlexaBliss]

"Clarity is good,i am not getting a ton of detail". This is being spoken of a 4000 dollar headphone.lol. overpriced junk.

[@h.hristov]

Comfort matters