HIFIMAN Edition XS Full-Size Over-Ear Open-Back Planar Magnetic Hi-Fi Headphones with Stealth Magnets Design, Adjustable Headband, Detachable Cable for Audiophiles, Home, Studio-Black

I am very impressed
I am not an audiophile by any stretch of the imagination. I don’t know all the ins and outs of music production and sound. I can’t tell you about lows, mids and highs. But I do love listening to music, and I have a modest sound system in my office with that allows me to enjoy it. I had purchased a Topping DX3Pro+ about a year and a half ago or so and I also purchased some Sennheiser HD 660 S along with it. I like the headphones, but they don’t quite have the kick in the bass department that I like. I have tried using an equalizer to increase the bass output, but due to the setup of my PC and how I put it to sleep, that method inconsistent. So I convinced myself I didn’t need the bass in my headphones and I would just use my floorstanding speakers with 12″ woofer to listen to music that I want to enjoy some bass (my kids “love” when they are trying to play PS5 in the same room /s).Enter the HIFIMAN Edition XS headphones. After reading more about planar magnetic headphones and knowing that they can reproduce more bass than my Sennheiser’s, I was ready to pull the trigger at the $270 price point to give them a shot. And boy am I happy I did. The amount of bass in these headphones is considerable compared to the 660s and it is perfect for my listening preferences. It’s not too overbearing that it muddles the sound, but it’s just right for what I like. Even on my 12″ sub, I have it set around the mid point, maybe slightly less, as I don’t enjoy overbearing bass. These are perfect for me, and I enjoy the open back style more than closed back. Less warm on the ears and kind of opens up the soundstage a little bit. In some tracks you feel like the sound might be several feet away, it’s quite remarkable. Some songs just sound different in these in that respect and I like it. The music kind of feels like it’s around you, not right in your ear hole. I do not have any issue driving these headphones with my DX3Pro+, the volume is quite sufficient at around -20db on the readout with the boosted gain. I have gone louder closer to 0db, but this is higher than I would normally run them so I didn’t really listen for distortion at this level or check to see if my DX3Pro+ would crash due to the load. So far I haven’t had any issues whatsoever with this DAC and headphone combo working together and I am really happy with the sound quality.The overall size of the headband is quite large. I do have a slightly bigger head, but not gigantic. I adjusted the headband one click from the smallest for my head size. I could see some individuals with a smaller head having issues wearing these comfortably and still have the headband rest on top of their head. If you have a smaller head, you might want to try finding these somewhere to try on before purchasing or knowing that you might have to return them if they are too large.I do want to highlight two issues I have had the headphones, but not issues that I would dock a star for. The first issue is as others have pointed out in other reviews, the cord that comes with the headphone is quite short. I can’t lean very far away from my desk without risking pulling my DAC off the desk. Would have been nice to have a longer cable. The second issue is that they are quite heavy compared to other headphones I use, and there’s something about the headband that after about a half hour of listening, my head starts to hurt where the headband rests. I have to adjust slightly to relieve the pressure. I have noticed the longer I use these headphones that this becomes less and less of a problem, but I didn’t have this issue with the Sennheiser or the Audio Technicas that I have. It’s to the point now, though, where I don’t notice it and I was listening for several hours recently and when I was finished, I didn’t even notice it, so this issue may go away as you get used to the weight.I have seen some reviews on here where people say if you move, you will hear plastic cracks and creaks if you move your head with these headphones on. I don’t really notice this myself. Sometimes I wear glasses when using headphones, and they are plastic themselves, so I notice they will creak with any headphone I am wearing, so I might be desensitized to it. I was wearing contacts recently while wearing the headphones and tried moving my head around to see if I could get them to make noicse, and they did a little bit, but not so much that I would say I was annoyed or would notice during normal use when I wasn’t actively trying to focus on it.I have also seen some review about the build quality. I feel like the build quality is sufficient for the price I paid, and I’m not throwing my headphones around or dropping them frequently, so I think they will last for a long time with how I treat them. There is nothing about them that makes me feel like they aren’t worth the price point I paid.The foam stand that comes with the boxes insert is a little gimmicky, but I’m actually using it as my headphone stand already has my Sennheisers and my Audio Technicas hanging from it, so I do have a place to put them for now, but I won’t use it long term. The foam is quite stiff and if not careful, I worry it will cause wear on the headband. I haven’t noticed any yet, just a long term concern I have, and I will probably be purchasing a new headphone stand soon.Overall, as you can see from my rating, I am really happy with this purchase. The planar magnetic speakers in these really give a sound that I find quite appealing with great bass for my listening preferences. And at this price point, I have no regrets about buying these headphones whatsoever. These will be my daily drivers for headphone music listening from now on.

En cuanto a diseño son bonitos aunque el material usado en la diadema me parece que es piel sintética y con costuras no tan bien echas,En cuanto a la calidad de audio son muy buenos audífonos para alguien que está empezando en esto del audio en alta resolución, te hace sonreír al escuchar tu música y oír esos detalles que no sabías que estaban ahí, sobre todo con un buen DAC y archivos de audio de buena calidad me refiero a FLAC o WAV de 24 bits/96 kHz.

I’ll preface this review by saying this is the first set of mid-high end headphones. Previous to this I primarily used Sennheiser HD599 SE which was a taste of what a high quality headphone is like. I got hooked and after doing a lot of research and sampling of other headphones where I could, I landed on these HiFiMan headphones. I’m driving them from a Focusrite Scarlett Solo and Schitt Magni Heresy amp.I can’t compare these to previous offerings from HiFiMan so I can’t comment on the “stealth magnet” technology. I can comment on the raw sound quality, sound stage and build quality.Pros:- Very detailed sound. I’ve heard things in music and other media I’ve never heard before.- Sound stage is the most open that I’ve ever heard in a headphone.- The sound is not “colored” too much. To my ear it’s a bit V shaped but stays relatively close to reference.- I’ve never heard bass delivered with such clarity and “slam” before these. Very fun to listen to all different kinds of electronic music.Cons:- Build quality could be better. They don’t feel like they will break too easily but I also don’t feel like I can just throw them down.- The headband is a bit uncomfortable when wearing over a long period of time (>2 hrs).- Clamping pressure is very low, to the point where they do like to slide around a bit too much.- The cable is not very good.It’s pretty clear what HiFiMan has done here. They aimed to deliver one of the best sounding headphones at this price point and hit it by cheaping out a bit on the materials that don’t matter quite as much. The result is a headphone that maybe isn’t the most comfortable to wear for a long time and makes you feel like you need to be gentle with them, but once you start listening to your favorite music, that no longer matters. Sound is crisp all throughout the frequency range with no signs of distortion even at uncomfortable listening levels. The highs are well controlled and not too sparkly, mids are a bit clinical but well balanced and lows are simply amazing. Oh that bass. It’s just perfect the way it is but if you like a bit more these take to EQ very well.Sound stage is unlike anything I’ve heard. Very open although my ears aren’t good enough to place instruments even with Sennheiser’s HD800 series so take that as you will. There’s no feeling of being closed in with these.If I could change one thing about these headphones, I would probably make the midrange a bit warmer. Other than that, I would hesitate to say they are perfect only because my sample size is just too small. I haven’t heard everything in this class of headphone so maybe there’s some show stopper out there that blows everything else away that I haven’t heard. However I absolutely would recommend these to anyone interested in headphones with planar drivers. The price is certainly justified.Remember to give these headphones a bit of break in time. When I first plugged them in I was turned off as the highs were too present and shrill at times. That went away over time and they sound fantastic now.

I will cut to the chase. Fantastic detail, soundstage and resolution for the price. Maybe the best. However there are a few concerns that need to be addressed. I run these with eq, but stock tuning is well done.Firstly, these headphones are huge. I require an aftermarket headphone headband to position my ears in the centre of the cup. This also helps comfort issues as well.Secondly, these require amplification. Testing desktop and mobile setups, I have concluded 4Vs and around 220mw is the sweet spot. They do get loud enough off 2vs but I do feel for headroom especially if you run preamp to avoid clipping 4Vs is worth it. Quedlix 5k (in balanced) can drive the edition xs easily. Tube amps do not sound good on this headphone.Build quality is an achilles heel for hifiman. No complaints so far but will update if they do fail and the subsequent warranty claims.All in all, at this price ($449 AUD) it is a no brainer buy. End game for most users.