[thpo]

I own these headphones now since mid of December. I would like to share my impressions with you.

For now I tested using an RME ADI DAC-2 FS (main device), Scarlett 816 3rd (two headphone amps, used for direct comparisons, the line out is somewhat shrill but the headphone amp seems to be fine to check the level of detail and stereo imaging of headphones), and Apple Lightning Dongle. I burned them in for about 30 hours.

These headphones were imho made for a certain purpose: recording and monitoring. This is exactly what I bought them for: during live sessions I do need good sound isolation, a more or less flat sound signature, I need to be able to detect muddy bass and midrange humps, and I need a tool to detect whether a De-Esser is needed to deal with ugly sibilances. I do not need at all a Hi-Fi headphone that turns bad music into something beautiful.

I have a relativly large head, and I am sensitive to aggressive highs.

They feel comfortable on my head. When I start using them I always think it could be a little less clamping force, but after a while it is kind of ok. The good thing is that you can move around, and the headphones will stay whereever you placed them. I can even lay down on my couch to some extend.

I do wear glasses, and it is no problem at all for me with the headphones on. The sound also does not change with or without glasses for me.

The headband is comfortable. I do not like the headband of a Denon 9200 for example.

My left ear touches the inside of the earcups slightly. This never happened to me before.

The sound signature of the Austrian Audio completes my collection of Audio-Technica ATH-R70X (open headphones), Audeze LCD-2 Classic Closed and Apple AirPods Max. I use all of them for a reason. The Apple APMs are only acceptable to me when they are EQed with a special iOS profile.

The headphones sound neither too dark or too bright to me. Bass is rather on the neutral/dead flat side, as written above. Voices sound balanced. The heights are ok - personally I prefer neutral or dark headphones (no Beyerdynamic or Sennheiser).

Some feelings with tracks that I know pretty well:

„44/876“ (Sting/Shaggy): bass is present, the voice are clearly to be heard, heights are just a tad before getting too bright (which is perfect for me)

„El Cuarto de Tula“ (Buena Vista Social Club): stereo effect is there, it‘s not a super-comfortable leather chair that you sink into, it‘s not an analytic sound, it just sounds ok

„Comfortably Numb“ (David Gilmour, Live at Pompeji): everything is there, again it‘s just close before getting too bright, the intro voice (before David starts to sing) has some artifacts inside that I can hear clearly

„On the Road Again“ (Katie Melua): the voice is rather on the bright side (as it should be), some artifacts in the voice around 01:30 are clearly exposed as expected, the following part until 02:00 is super relaxed

There is a comparison between a Neumann U67 and a Microtech Gefell microphone on the german site Bonedo - through the Austrian Audio headphones I can hear that the Neumann fits just right to the singer‘s voice, while the Gefell has a slight mid hump.

Comparing to the LCD-2, it‘s impossible to resolve the super-subtle differences from listening to classical recordings that I know. I excluded chamber orchestra recordings or large orchestras in my comparison, and also did not dive into Jazz music. „Love Song“ from Melody Gardot was rather lifeless in direct comparison, but of course everything is there and I can check the reverbs. „Tokyo Dance“ from Tingvall Trio shows all the instruments and their perfect tonal balance, but is also lacking the „wow“-effect. Maybe I could try to EQ the bass.
Please notice that the LCD-2 resolves details in classical music in a way that I never heard before. The Austrian Audio HI-X60 is neither better or worse compared to the Audio-Technica ATH-R70X when it comes to orchestras, and I am lacking details here.

Alternative, Rock or Metal sounds really good, as long as the recordings are good. This is superior to the LCD-2, of course.

Stereo imaging for me is on the larger side, but still natural. The LCD-2 offers a giant sound stage to me, in the Austrian Audio headphones it‘s a little more relaxed. Voices are never inside my head.

Build quality is outstanding. The black and red look is appealing, but I have to admit that the look is more like „made for the road“ (or studio) rather than „made for the high-end living room“.

The original carrying case is a little bit large. I do have a pouch case from f-stop which is a little bit smaller, and where these headphones fit in when folded with cable attached. The headband adjustment does not change when folded.

The isolation of pink noise is comparable to the Apple APMs with ANC, which is imho spectacular.

My ears get warm when wearing the headphones, of course it‘s a closed design, and probably because of the larger headband pressure to my large head. Maybe things get better here over time.

Finally I am looking forward to use these headphones during live performances. To me it‘s also a complement to my main headphones, the LCD-2 (for Hifi listening, and also checking reverb effects and transients) and the ATH-R70X (for long sessions, or stuff to be done in summer).

I found that using the Apple Lightning Dongle is not really a good thing with the Austrian Audio headphones. With my Hidizs DH80s plugged in to the Apple zoo and Qobuz the Austrian Audio sounds way better. It outresolves the Audio Technica clearly - even tried an alternative cable with the Audio Technica.

Because of this I think I have to correct my initial thoughts.

Austrian Audio is still a headphone which clearly tells you if there is something wrong in the music. Otherwise it is a joy to listen to it.

On my head the comfort is still neither better or worse compared to Audeze LCD-2, because Audeze has much larger earpads.

 

[plakat]

I found that using the Apple Lightning Dongle is not really a good thing with the Austrian Audio headphones. With my Hidizs DH80s plugged in to the Apple zoo and Qobuz the Austrian Audio sounds way better. It outresolves the Audio Technica clearly - even tried an alternative cable with the Audio Technica.

Because of this I think I have to correct my initial thoughts.

Austrian Audio is still a headphone which clearly tells you if there is something wrong in the music. Otherwise it is a joy to listen to it.

On my head the comfort is still neither better or worse compared to Audeze LCD-2, because Audeze has much larger earpads.

To me the X60 sounds quite fine with that simple Apple dongle, but yes, it does sound better out of my Hugo. I Don't use DAPs anymore, sold my AK380SS some time ago -- I just don't carry an additional device around. Same for the Hugo... so being able to work with that Apple dongle is an important feature to me.

Interesting that comfort is about the same to you with the X60 and the LCD-2, I've always had problems with the letters weight. But yes, the Audeze pads are quite good. I do like the Austrian Audio pads for being so compact yet so spacious inside.

 

[thpo]

Yes, I like how compact these can be folded. Thanks for sharing your opinion about the Apple dongle - I understand from ASR that it‘s one of the better ones, and I agree that it is a no-brainer on the road.

 

[plakat]

Yes, I like how compact these can be folded. Thanks for sharing your opinion about the Apple dongle - I understand from ASR that it‘s one of the better ones, and I agree that it is a no-brainer on the road.

Very nice photos
Yes, they fold into a very compact form, and the moving parts look quite sturdy.

The Apple dongle is of course not the answer to all questions. But given its size and cost, combined with its quite good implementation from a technical standpoint, I bought a couple of them and keep a set (Lightning plus USB-C version) with my cabled headphones. I'm happy that I have the opportunity to use those simple adapters with more and more headphones (e.g. the new Beyerdynamic DT700): they won't replace something like the Hugo for stationary use, but make mobile use much simpler. It's nice to see more and more manufacturers to keep this in mind.

 

[thpo]

Do you have the open version HI-X65 as well?

 

[plakat]

Do you have the open version HI-X65 as well?

No, my main focus are closed back headphones so I did not want to order them just for trying them out and I did not yet get around to try them out at a local shop

 

[aravaioli]

I got mine today and used to own the x55. I vastly prefer the X60 for my usage which is exclusively for pleasure. I like very detailed headphones with deep soundstage and non-dominant, tight bass. These do exactly that but the same can be said for the X55 which are more ruthless revealing (consistent with their design objectives) and can't really be listened at high volume (and I am 51...). The X60 are less revealing but more pleasant for music listening. I only listen Jazz and Flamenco and this are only outclassed, as far as xlosed back go, by my XC 2021. I prefer them to the Dan Cark Audio Aeon RT closed, which I also own, by a small margin. Another contender could have been my T5 2nd generation, which ultimately loses for having too much bass (and, yes, they are warmer snd some may prefer them,).
I believe most of the difference with the X55 is in a fairly narrow range of the frequency response in the mids, a bit more laid back on the 60. Both are fantastic (if not unrivalled) for low volume listening. They remind me quite a bit my Grados....

 

[cyh03176]

bought the hi-x60 today after comparing it with dt1770. i found dt1770 too bassy for my liking, like tying a 12inch subwoofer to my head. but the mid and high remain clear. impressive really. picked up the hi-x60 for its neutral signature, soundstage and airiness. hi-x60 sounds more like semi-open headphones like fidelio l2 rather than any other close headphones. oh, 1 more point, hi-x60 is easier to drive too. although it's not a major point since shanling ua2 can drive both with low gain (although dt1770 needs to max out and hi-x60 requires 88%) anyway, don't listen to either with a dongle, they deserve a proper amp, i am currently using topping a50s. hi-x60 is even more impressive with an amp, the dynamics improve a lot, and i mean a lot.

 

[b000merang]

Do you have the open version HI-X65 as well?

A few weeks ago I bought both X60 and X65 to test and compare them in detail.
I decided to keep the X60 because I have the feeling the stage is deeper. With the X65 the stage is wider but also flatter. Every sound event or instrument seems to stand on a wide line directly in front of my head. No room in depth. Frequency response seems more neutral on X65 with less bass. Especially for electronic productions it’s less fun.
I use the X60 for Hifi listening only and they make a great job. Very awesome with transients especially for percussions or drums.
At a local dealer I compared the X65 with the DT 900 pro x but I didn’t like the comfort of these Beyerdynamics. The pads are great but I feel they’re not tight on my head. They wobble because of thicker foam. The comfort and fit of X60/65 instead is superior!
Tuning of DT900 pro x is more on the mainstream side. More v-shape. Not as neutral compared to X65.
Comparison between X60 and Dt700 pro x wasn’t possible, because there was no demo model of X60. So I bought them both X60 and X65 and decided to stay with the X60 because of more realistic soundstage (depth).

 

[Mark Up]

Interesting review. Very analytical and unforgiving. It sounds like a bit less at 2.5 khz, and a bit more below 150 hz, especially low sub bass, and they'd improve more.

 

[parawizard]

I ordered from Thomann for $298 USD. Coming from Germany. Below MSRP even with shipping.

 

[JW1234]

I ordered from Thomann for $298 USD. Coming from Germany. Below MSRP even with shipping.

I've been watching Thomann's price, and thinking about ordering from them as well. My main concern would be the expense of returning the X60's if I don't like the sound (I live in the US, and assume I'd have to pay return shipping charges). Please let us know your impressions after you receive them!

 

[b000merang]

I've been watching Thomann's price, and thinking about ordering from them as well. My main concern would be the expense of returning the X60's if I don't like the sound (I live in the US, and assume I'd have to pay return shipping charges). Please let us know your impressions after you receive them!

I wouldn’t recommend ordering the X60 to US because the company seems to have a few quality issues with the X60. I bought it directly at the local store (session) and had problems with 2 models. First one with loose cable fitting and broken joint stop on left ear piece. Second one had heavy driver flex (annoying crackling noise when moving jaw or adjusting ear piece). Now the third one is without problems. Read about quality issues with X65 too at ASR forum. Austrian Audio seems to be too new in the market to handle quality management in big scale. But the SQ of these headphones is so damn good that it’s make everything else .

 

[jjss]

I have the X55 for over 4 years and X65 2 years and don't have any quality problem with these cans. Haven't tried X60 (not yet)! The X55 is very I mean very revealing with good imaging and ave sound stage (which is good enough for me) as its a HP I use to x-check music performance of a recording (like dynamics in music, timbre, details, imaging and separation, attack/decay, transient ...). Admittedly X55 may not be the 1st HPs I go to if overall music / emotion presentation (for music consumption) is what I'm looking for as X55 could be clinical at times (but good for monitoring). To my ears, the main diff between X55 and X65 is that the latter somewhat presents a larger sound stage but a tad less clinical (thus comparatively less revealing), otherwise the two are very similar.

 

[parawizard]

I've been watching Thomann's price, and thinking about ordering from them as well. My main concern would be the expense of returning the X60's if I don't like the sound (I live in the US, and assume I'd have to pay return shipping charges). Please let us know your impressions after you receive them!

They should be here tomorrow or Monday

I wouldn’t recommend ordering the X60 to US because the company seems to have a few quality issues with the X60. I bought it directly at the local store (session) and had problems with 2 models. First one with loose cable fitting and broken joint stop on left ear piece. Second one had heavy driver flex (annoying crackling noise when moving jaw or adjusting ear piece). Now the third one is without problems. Read about quality issues with X65 too at ASR forum. Austrian Audio seems to be too new in the market to handle quality management in big scale. But the SQ of these headphones is so damn good that it’s make everything else .

Fair enough. I heard they send replacement parts which is great. Crossing fingers everything is ok and if there are problems I get good service. I would have probably had to order no matter from where and frankly the shipping from UK is faster and less expensive than from the US.