[cangle]

Wanted to start a thread for the headphones made by Aurorus Audio since I don't see much about these headphones on Head-Fi. Right now they sell the Borealis, an open back dynamic, and the Australis, a closed back dynamic. Here's their website: https://www.aurorusaudio.com/Headphones-c34166183.

I own the Borealis myself and should have the Australis here soon. They are really solid headphones for the price and compete with more expensive models from other companies. For example I had the new Utopia on demo for a bit and found the Borealis to have a similar tonality although it leaned slightly warmer. The Utopia had better detail and imaging but otherwise I found them to be quite similar to each other which was surprising.

I can work on some more detailed impressions later on the Borealis and a comparison to Australis once that arrives. Here's a picture of my borealis:

 

[realbonk]

The Aurorus Audio Australis is my most used headphone, as I like having a closed back to listen to music during my work day. The headband suspension is well distributed and comfortable.

Australis has wider staging than an intimate open-back, like HD600. The width is the first thing I noticed when I first got them. Excellent vocal, drum, piano, and bowed instrument timbre. The natural sounding timbre is the main reason I love this headphone so much! Tonality is a laid back, relaxing, and warm listen, with a bass boost.

 

[cangle]

My Australis just showed up and am excited to compare with the borealis that I've had for awhile. Sorry for the mess but here they are side by side

 

[cangle]

Here are some very early impressions of the Australis that arrived today.

These are really comfy and lightweight. Pads are a tad scratchy but that should get better with time. The two things that stand out to me as I listen is the bass and the timbre. The bass is thick and punchy. Sounds a little muddy / boomy at times but it's very addictive and fun to listen to. The timbre is great as it is with the borealis. Just sounds very natural. However I do find things like cymbals to sound a little unnatural at times. Could just be the softer treble presentation of these headphones or the track I was listening to.

I did a quick comparison to the VC and the VC is airier with more of a treble emphasis. Bass is quick and snappy but not as dense on the australis. Both have pretty good timbre but I might give the edge to the australis there. VC sounds more netural while the australis feels like it has a warm tilt to me. The VC sounds a little bit wider too.

 

[cangle]

Wanted to start adding some comparisons between Borealis and Australis to the other headphones I have. Starting with a fun one, this will be Susvara and Borealis. I chose the Schiit Tyrs for my amp here but the rest of my source chain is in my signature.

To be transparent, I'm not a huge fan of Susvara but I appreciate what they can do with regards to spatial presentation and timbre of instruments. To do the comparison I used a playlist of some songs I've been listening to a lot recently. They are:
I see - Cam Cole, Ruminate - Slenderbodies, Jesus was an Alien - Perel, My Fav' Things - Camille Berthault, Saturnine - GoGo Penguin, We are the Night - PROGedia, and Mind on Fire - Aisha Badru.

This is a weird comparison given the price difference but I think they compete in some areas and there are other areas where Susvara is a few steps ahead.
I tried to break down the sound into some categories to help with the comparison. So this is category - which headphone wins.

Stage width - Borealis
Stage depth - Susvara
Separation (how distinct things sound) - About equal
Imaging (precision of sounds as they move through stage) - Susvara
Layering - Susvara
Timbre - For instruments both are good, but I think Borealis wins on vocals
Decay - Borealis
Treble air - Susvara
Bass slam - Similar with slight edge to Susvara
Bass quantity - Similar
Sub bass extension - Susvara
Detail - Susvara

So if you value detail, layering, spatial information then Susvara is an easy choice over the Borealis. But if you like an impactful sound with good timbre and vocals then Borealis is a good choice plus it costs a lot less. There were some instances with vocals especially on the My Fav' Things track that I found Borealis to convey the sound of breath and lip noises a bit better then Susvara. They were there on Susvara but it sounded more natural and present on Borealis. My big complaint with Borealis is that cymbals sound unnatural at times to me like it doesn't have the air or sizzle that I expect. It also doesn't have a great sense of depth to it and the treble has a darker presentation then Susvara. This sort of presentation of treble is nice for long term listening and not getting fatigued but lacks some realism vs Susvara.

The Borealis has a warmer tuning with emphasis on the lower frequencies which makes it a lot of fun for pop and electronic although it is missing some sub bass extension which can be problematic in some tracks. The Australis has more sub bass though so that is a good choice for that sort of music. Timbre on borealis is really good and if you don't mind losing out on detail then I don't think you need to spend more for something like a Susvara or another higher tier headphone.

The Susvara is very detailed with great timbre too but sometimes I find vocals to sound a bit artificial. It has really good slam but sometimes the borealis feels like it has a thicker low end presentation which I enjoy. My main complaint against susvara apart from cost is that it feels flat sometimes like it struggles to convey the dynamics in music that borealis handles much better. Other than that it's a really solid all around headphone I just don't like the idea of paying so much for a headphone when something like borealis or even 800S exists.

A bit of an odd comparison but hopefully that helps convey how borealis compares to a well known reference like the Susvara.

 

[xzackly7]

Recently got my hands on a Borealis and wanted to share some impressions. Not going to be super organized but I just want to shallowly cover most areas of it.

BUILD:

I quite like the feel of the build in the cups, its actually very solid. Headband is a bit jank/floppy and while not terrible, its not the best fit for long listening sessions for my head.
Pads are on the shallower/smaller side so if you have large ears they can tend to put pressure on your ear in longer listening sessions.

SOUND:

Bass is fairly well extended for a dynamic and takes EQ like a champ if you desire ruler flat extension. Slam is very, very good and rumbles very well with higher-end sources, bass is fast and articulated. Bass is just a bit warm but I would not say enough to satisfy bassheads without EQ. Sounds a bit flatter in the low mids than 6x0 from memory.

Mids are where I start to have some issues with my main music genre, mostly pop/hip-hop(Asian, western, etc). There is a broad elevation at 1khz which can come off as quite aggressive and add some honk to vocals. For vocal-focused music- which is a large part of what I listen to- it can be a bit too intense and abrasive. This is unlike the midrange focus of the HD6x0 which sounds better integrated into the rest of the sound. Bori sounds like the entire sound is centered around the 1khz area, which brings me to treble.

The treble is actually very interesting, there's a surprising amount of refinement present, it sounds like there's a slight low treble peak around 5-6k but after that it gets rather dark- certainly darker than the 6x0 series. This can be a good thing for music that is badly produced. The overall treble balance is excellent, but it can sometimes come off too soft. lacking air on cymbals.

This tuning lends itself well to genres with real instruments more than mainstream pop. Rock and Metal in particular are rendered the best I've ever heard them. Guitar sounds INCREDIBLE with that center midrange bump, very aggressive but somehow not grating to my ears, and drums are also amazingly articulated and engaging. If you're a metalhead, this is certainly WELL worth looking into. Orchestral is also quite nice, piano really shines with a very weighty and tactile feel, I found myself more engaged than usual with more instrument-focused genres.

TECHS:

Bori is technically competent in most areas but dynamics are what really stick out. Bori has superb microdynamics with a great ability to track the dips and peaks of any music, the best I've heard actually. Macrodynamics are similarly great with great slam in the bass, though I think Fostex biodynas can outdo it. It has a great sense of internal resolution for the price. Staging is not really the biggest but for a headphone it does just fine, besting the 6x0 series but falling short of my Philphones. Imaging is not quite pinpoint, but again, better than the 6x0 and it gets the job done just fine.


In conclusion, I don't know if I will be keeping my pair due to my qualms with the rendering of vocals, BUT if you listen to to things such as metal, rock and other genres with more focus on real instruments it is certainly worth a look and can be a very, very engaging listen.

 

[cangle]

Was going back and forth between Borealis and Atrium last night and was shocked by how much more open and airy the Borealis feels in comparison. It's not so much that it sounds wider although it does in most cases but it feels like they are not as congested and that there's less between me and the music coming from the driver.

It sort of reminds me of how open Susvara feels. In comparison the Atrium can feel stuffy or congested in how the stage is presented. The Borealis feels more immediate and clear. I have the mesh removed on my Atrium which helps with adding some air back to the treble and reducing the slight congestion. With the mesh installed the congestion issue becomes worse and the treble looses sizzle which to me I find is a bit unnatural especially when listening to music with cymbals.

The one place where I find the Atrium to outperform the Borealis is in the bass region. It has more of a fun bass to it where the mid bass is elevated. And the Atrium rolls off less then the Borealis does. The Atrium is more similar to the Australis in how it presents the low end but is softer overall and not as punchy as Australis. I also find the Atrium to be a bit more comfy then the Borealis. It's heavier, but the materials are nicer and the pads squish more.

 

[cangle]

I was in Chicago this past weekend and purchased a ZMF Atticus as it was my favorite ZMF I heard there. I think it competes nicely with Australis and after going back and forth between the two I think they are both really good closed backs for the price and offer slightly different presentations. Here are my notes I took while comparing:

Atticus seems to present vocals closer and with more smoothness. I was listening to the track Cassandra by Florence + The Machine and the Australis felt like I was a few rows away from the vocalist. But with Atticus it's like she's right in front of me. Both presentations I like but intimate vocals can be fun and really engaging too. On a bassy track, track07 by Denzel Curry, the Atticus struggles with sub bass whereas the Australis does a nice job. It's not like planar sub bass but it's really good for a dynamic driver. I want to say Atticus shows a bit more bass texture but it's close and the more full sub bass of the Australis makes it hard to tell. So as long as you're not listening to rap or electronic with a ton of sub bass, either will be fine.

The stage of Atticus seems a bit wider or more diffuse. It doesn't sound as precise as the Australis. Overall I think they both scaled on my main system. With both headphones the bass became more controlled, stage expanded, and timbre improved. The Australis is clear and punchy with better depth of stage. The Atticus is smooth, wide, and intimate. Wide and intimate might not make sense but it's more that the soundstage is wide but the vocal presentation is very close. Both are comfortable but the Atticus feels nicer to hold and to wear. The Atticus is also a bit harder to drive. I like both and will be keeping both for now. I'd take either over Verite Closed or Atrium Closed.

 

[smodtactical]

I really like the design of borealis. Seems so hardcore and solid.

 

[FossilKaseki]

I've dailied the Bori for a bit over a year now and would say that I love the headphones. I also got Aust in the other day, so I'll go over them both. I also own an HD6XX as a frame of reference.

First off is comfort. Bori is super comfortable for me stock, and I've tried out the Capra band too. I'd say I prefer the stock headband for Bori if only because I got used to it. Light clamp and seals well. That said, Aust is noticeably heavier and with only an hour listening session it developed a bit of a hot spot on top of my head. The Capra band that I had lying around fixed that issue. Aust also clamps a bit more in my opinion, if only due to the weight of the cups.

Reaching back to my first impressions of the Bori, the slam and instrument separation is better than the 6XX for sure. I'd almost consider the 6XX limp in comparison. Higher resolution too. The vocals are slightly less forward too. My only major complaint would be that at times the dynamics are just too much, almost making it fatiguing. But that's rare for me. It also is quite sensitive for me, requiring a preamp on my chain of Burl B2 Bomber to a BHA-1.

Aust, in comparison, is much more laid back. I can't imagine getting fatigued on these headphones. Vocals are 100% recessed, but only in a good way if you enjoy dark tunings. I'd describe it as warm and dark as the bass is much more prominent due to the lacking treble. There's a bit of oddity at times in the tuning, likely due to a 400Hz dip according to graphs, where male vocals can suddenly sound louder to me, but otherwise I love the tuning. Slam is a bit less than Bori, a bit smoothed over even. If Bori is like a loud crash, I'd say Aust is like a deep thud. Still present, but not interrupting the music as much. In fact, the darker tuning can even make the slam more prevalent.

Honestly, both headphones are great and compliment each other well. Really well. If you want to put some music on to relax while working, I'd recommend the Australis. If you're wanting something that's more aggressive and engaging, I'd recommend the Borealis more. Either way, I'm definitely keeping both.


Oh, and a quick anecdote to anyone looking to buy used. Please do NOT buy any with an Audeze headband. Or mod one on yourself. I 3D printed some adapters for their rods and headband as a different option to the Capra band before, and it just ruined the Bori. I imagine the Aust would have the same issues. Clamp became way too tight, tuning was ruined, and it was a waste of money. Luckily it was a soft mod instead of the hard mods you see for sale, and I could return the headband. If you're looking for a new headband for the Bori or Aust, check out Capra. Theirs works amazing, and they even modified it when I had some seal issues. Great customer support.

 

[Longfellow78]

I'm interested in the differences between the borealis and Australis. Does anyone know is they are literally the same headphone but with a different cover on the cup? So if you took off the Australis cover is it a borealis underneath? Is there any cup damping? I know they have slightly different pads (borealis has holes on outer edges, Australis doesn't).

It would be pretty cool to buy the Australis and be able to take off the cover and it's now a borealis. Anyone taken off the cover and seen what's underneath? Thanks!

 

[Fuku]

I'm interested in the differences between the borealis and Australis. Does anyone know is they are literally the same headphone but with a different cover on the cup? So if you took off the Australis cover is it a borealis underneath? Is there any cup damping? I know they have slightly different pads (borealis has holes on outer edges, Australis doesn't).

It would be pretty cool to buy the Australis and be able to take off the cover and it's now a borealis. Anyone taken off the cover and seen what's underneath? Thanks!

theres a lot different under the hood. I've taken apart plenty but theres a bunch more to it than just a cup on the back and different pads.

 

[Longfellow78]

theres a lot different under the hood. I've taken apart plenty but theres a bunch more to it than just a cup on the back and different pads.

Care to share what you found?

 

[Fuku]

Care to share what you found?

The baffle is different, theres sound absorption material in the rear, additional parts in the rear chamber as well. There's modifications to the driver as well.

 

[Longfellow78]

The baffle is different, theres sound absorption material in the rear, additional parts in the rear chamber as well. There's modifications to the driver as well.

OK thanks. Was hoping it was just the cover!