Pros: Feels sturdy; Secure clamping force; Removable cables; Relatively balanced sound.
Cons: Cramped soundstage; Lackluster sub-bass quality.
Tonal Balance: Nearly balanced sound
Style: Circumaural Over-Ear
Listening Set-Up: Musicbee (FLAC/WASABI) -> Matrix HPA-3u
Cost at Time of Review: $250
Reviewing Process
The Aria were sent to me as a review sample from Feenix. I’ve had them for approximately one month with the bulk of the use through my desktop set-up. I’ve listened to a wide variety of music through the Aria with a mix of passive and critical listening. I feel that I have spent enough time with the Aria to have a good feel for their sound, comfort, and build, to feel comfortable sharing my opinion in review form. With that said, personal experience is always the best way to form an opinion on a headphone, though I hope that my words may help your purchasing decision.Build & Fit
BuildThe Aria are sturdy when held and when worn, not a warning sign anywhere to note. The cables are removable with a non-proprietary 2.5mm female jack on both earcups. The cups are beautiful, crafted of Japanese Pine. I know nothing of this wood in regards to its acoustic properties or durability, but they sure look nice. The included cables are braided and feel sturdy, while flexible, not stiff like the god awful HiFiMan HE400S cable.
Overall impression is that they look nice and feel well built.
Fit
Clamping force is moderately high which keeps the Aria secure when worn, but the pads are soft which minimizes any uncomfortable pressure from the clamping force. Weight is about average, and much lighter than expected to be with the wooden cups, downward force is mild. Comfort is above average, better than portable closed options like the M50x or MSR7, but not as comfortable as the Sennheiser HD600 or the HiFiMan HE400S. Isolation is rather good though, keeping in sound well enough to not worry about using them in an office environment.
Sound Quality
BassUsing The Ultimate Headphones Test sample for bass response the Aria quickly shows some audible unevenness through the low-end frequencies. The dips are most notably somewhere right at the tail end of the sub-bass rumble, and towards the 200hz mark. I’ve had the Aria on my head for the better part of the past month and have never noticed it, though admittedly my bass heavy listening preferences have been slowed down as of late.
When listening to music the wonkiness that I heard in the tests doesn’t present much of an issue, though the low-end has other issues worth noting. The sub-bass extends well, but carries a cheap sub-woofer tone and texture to it, sounding artificially pushed to the forefront of the sound at times with little definition in the notes. The sub-bass extends well, but the tone and control miss the mark.
The mid-bass is punchy and forward though and integrated well with the midrange and treble. Unlike the sub-bass, the mid-bass is defined in texture with a realistic tone throughout, a step-up from the near onenote sub-bass texture. The main issue with the mid-bass is a slight sluggishness, though it doesn’t poke into the midrange.
Mids & Highs
The midrange is mildly recessed where the midbass meets the lower midrange, with a quick jump to mildly shouty upper-midrange/lower treble. Overall tonal balance throughout leans balanced without sluggishness, added sibilance, or excess grain. Slight grain is present, though mostly in the uppermids and lower treble where the shoutiness occurs. Tonality the midrange and treble leans slightly thin and dry, but rather clean and decently detailed. I imagine some EQ would fix these up rather easily.
I struggle to find any huge flaws throughout this area. That doesn’t mean that the midrange and treble are perfect, but I haven’t found any glaring flaws that would prevent me from enjoying whatever I’ve listened to with them. With the upper frequencies cleaned up and the lower mids a bit more in focus the Aria would have a darn fine midrange and up.
Presentation
The Aria have a narrow soundstage that I find nearly congested at times. Each instrument’s space is clearly defined, though they sound cramped and often on top of each other. Width is shallow, though the depth of the soundstage is just enough to avoid total congestion. Imaging is mediocre as well, hurt largely by the narrow soundstage. There’s very little sense of a hard left or hard right panning on these, the presentation is largely front focused.
Comparisons
Vs HD600
I have to say that I’m surprised how well the Aria compares with the HD600, offering lots of similarities, down to a similar tonal balance. The HD600 is the cleaner driver, with a smoother frequency response, but the Aria doesn’t sound incompetent in comparison. The HD600 does trounce the Aria in the sub-bass category though, which is a running theme here. The Aria is the more musical headphone, while the HD600 is the more accurate headphone. You’re not going to buy the HD600 over an Aria, but the Aria sound quite nice even next to such a phenomenal open headphone.
Vs M50x
The M50x wins in the low-end department in terms of speed, control, and detail, while also offering better portability than the Aria - making them a more versatile headphone. The Aria is much more comfortable, has more low-end, a smoother midrange, and lacks sibilance that is present on the M50x. Both carry a similar warm yet balanced sound, though the M50x has a fatiguing brightness that the Aria do not. Neither carry much of a soundstage, though the Aria seem to win in terms of depth while the M50x seems to have better positional accuracy.
There’s no clear winner here, though the M50x would be an obvious better choice if you’re looking for a dual-purpose travel/desktop headphone, while the Aria would be the better choice if you’re looking for an affordable closed woody for desktop use.
Vs A900x
Much like the M50x the A900x has better low-end control and speed, though texture doesn’t seem hugely improved over the Aria. Midrange is shouty and sibilance is noted when compared against the Aria and I dare say that the Aria have a cleaner midrange than the A900x. The Aria seem to be all around better with the exception of having a further recessed midrange and muddy sub-bass. I can’t think of much reason to recommend the A900x over the Aria if you could afford both. That isn’t to say that the A900x is a bad can, but they have a fatiguing upper-midrange whereas the Aria is smooth with a pleasant warmth throughout. Neither have an impressive soundstage, though the Aria takes a step ahead in every way but width.
The Aria is a pretty clear winner to my ears, though they’re twice the price of an A900x. The A900x is a great value at $130 or so, but the Aria trumps it otherwise.
Conclusion
The Aria do so much right, in-fact I actually enjoy these headphones from top to bottom; with the only caveat being the quality of the sub-bass. They’re a wonderfully competent closed headphone marketed towards gamers that bests two of my favorite closed headphones. I will gladly recommend the Aria to those looking for a closed woody that has a warm balanced sound - with the caveat that sub-bass isn’t important to them.Now here’s the issue, Feenix is a company with no presence in the headphone world marketing a $250 wooden headphone towards gamers. It’s a tough sell to the audiophile world, even though these are wonderful headphones that have grown on me greatly as I’ve spent more time with them. In all reality the only thing that makes these “gaming” headphones is that they’re being sold by a gaming company and they’re packaged with a clip-on mic. Don’t be cautious of these being a gimmick headphone, they’re entirely competent and make for a beautiful wooden headphone to add to your collection.
