I am going to compare the Celestee to the Aeon 2 Closed w/ Noire pads (and white felt filters) since that's what's on the headphone now and one of the standard pads ripped slightly when taking it off. I am also going to include a few mentions to the Hifiman Sundara since I have compared the Celestee to that in a few previous posts.
Note: The white felt filters in the Aeon make the soundstage size sound slightly smaller than without them, but the difference is very minor. I felt like I should mention I am using them for context.
I realized I had a 1/4" to 4-pin XLR (SE to Balanced) adapter to use with the Aeon so the comparison should be fair now. Both headphones can be powered from SE output.
Test setup A2C vs Celestee: Lenovo Work Laptop -> Lenovo Thunderbolt Dock -> Soncoz LA-QXD1 (USB) -> Schiit Jotunheim 2 (balanced input) -> SE output to headphone
TL;DR: Both sound like they're closed back headphones, so neither is winning any awards in the soundstage or imaging departments, BUT the A2C Noire wins in both categories.
Celestee:
Soundstage and Separation:
Very in-your-head sound, to the point where I could mistake it for an IEM if it weren't for the physical feeling of the headphone on my head. Soundstage width goes to (about) where my ears attach to my head. Soundstage depth is practically non-existent. Even on some binaural tracks, vocals are produced in the center of my head, directly between my ears. I don't get a sense of the vocalist(s) being in front of me, but this is something most headphones kinda struggle with.
As someone who regularly listens to IEMs and prefers a more intimate sound from headphones (Utopia, HD600, etc), I am not too bothered by the small soundstage, but I can see how some people might consider this a deal-breaker. For example, the thought of getting used to the sound of something like an HD800S and then trying the Celestee makes me feel queasy.
Thankfully, instrument separation is very good/great for a closed-back headphone. I think this saves the Celestee from sounding too claustrophobic and closed in. Even though the space is small, each instrument (somehow) has enough room to come through clearly. Sometimes lower-frequency instruments like bass guitars can sound somewhat masked (for example, in some poorly mastered rock tracks) but I attribute this more to the frequency response than technical capability.
Imaging:
I have touched on this before (post #245 in this thread) and my impressions of the imaging haven't changed.
The center image is somewhat fuzzy/hazy, making it a little difficult to pinpoint a vocalist that is mastered centrally on a track. Instruments and vocals that are further out to either side are clearer in the image and easier to pinpoint exact location in terms of left-to-right. Soundstage depth is essentially non-existent so that means imaging depth is similar. Every instrument sounds essentially the same distance away from me.
Aeon 2 Closed Noire:
Soundstage and Separation:
Much wider sounding than Celestee. Soundstage width is very good/wide for a fully closed headphone. The width sounds about as wide as the drivers sit when the headphones are on my head; roughly an inch or two past my ears. I know this doesn't seem like a big difference, but it does sound (subjectively) significantly wider. I believe some of this could be due to the more v-shaped signature of the Noire. In my experience, headphones with a v-shaped signature pull the midrange back in the mix which can "simulate" a wider soundstage just because of the frequency response. Vocals are intimate, like the Celestee, with voices coming from the center of my head, but they sound a bit further away. I do not mean further away in the sense of soundstage depth, but just held back into the mix with the instruments, rather than front-and-center with the Celestee.
Instrument separation is good, but not at the level of the Celestee. I get the feeling if you took the soundstage of the A2CN and the instrument separation of the Celestee you'd have an overall best-in-class presentation for closed-back headphones (I have not heard the LCD-2 Closed, Z7M2, Z1R, or Australis though). Instruments can be heard clearly with the A2CN but are (subjectively) closer together and not given as much space individually. The best way I can describe it is the typical planar presentation of a "wall-of-sound".
Imaging:
Imaging is cleaner overall than the Celestee. Instruments to either side are very similar in that they are clearly placed, but with a bit more space left-to-right (see soundstage). Where the A2CN takes a noticeable step forward is in the center image. I can more easily place centered vocals and instruments than I can with the Celestee. Imaging depth is similar to the Celestee as well, where instruments sound like they're about the same distance from me.
Other thoughts:
Soundstage height seems to be a little larger on the Celestee. It's hard to describe but it sometimes sounds like certain sounds (cymbals expecially) are coming from higher up in my head. I believe this is why the Celestee has a better sense of instrument separation despite having a smaller soundstage width.
Quick Sundara Note: I mentioned somewhere that the Celestee didn't sound as claustrophobic as the Sundara. I'm actually going to change my take on this. The Sundara has a very similar, very intimate vocal presentation and sounds narrow. Further listening determined that while the initial presentation is narrow, the furthest details and instruments (left-to-right) are actually significantly wider than the Celestee. I believe I originally felt that the Sundara was more claustrophobic because of the feeling/sensation of wearing the headphone. On my head, my ears feel more cramped/squished flat with the Sundara, giving a more claustrophobic experience as a whole and I was incorrectly projecting that feeling into the sound.
In my post (#245) responding to Crinacle's impressions, I mentioned I believed the Celestee was a better headphone overall than the A2C. I no longer believe that. Having further compared them and listened to each one, I find them to be almost identical; if I were to give them an overall score, not just soundstage and imaging. If someone is trying to decide between them, I believe it should ultimately come down to what type of sound signature they're looking for.
Go A2CN if you want a more fun, v-shaped response.
Go Celestee if you want a more "neutral"/accurate response.
I'm personally trying to decide which one to keep and I have absolutely no idea which one I want to go with. When I first got the Celestee, I was leaning towards the Aeon. After some time with the Celestee, I was leaning towards it. After further comparison between them, I'm completely tied. I thoroughly enjoy both headphones and believe you can't go wrong with either one... as long as they fit your personal preferences.
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