[frozenOx]

Keep an eye on the AVExchange subreddit. Sundara's routinely come up for ~$280 but they typically sell the day they're posted.

The 400i do well with metal. They have a bit of treble emphasis but are not what I would describe as bright by any means. Not a ton of sub bass and bass impact but what's there is fast and punchy. They take EQ well if you don't mind going that route. For the price, I think they're a great option. Open box from HiFiMan at $139 is a steal IMO.

I recently received the NF Audio NM2+ and I'm not sure I'll keep them. I need to give them some more listening time but they're very bright and fatiguing with black metal, most death metal I've listened to or really any compressed mix. They're very detailed, and have great bass response, but they do not shine at all with the metal I typically listen to. Interested to hear how you like the Believes. Those are on my IEM wish list.

That's good to know about the NM2+. I don't think I'll be ordering anything from Aliexpress anymore. My IEMs are bouncing around "partner facilities" for the past week and haven't even been given to the USPS yet.

 

[Vruksha]

Talking about iem's, You guys should give LZ A7 a try with black metal they sound crazy good! I've been enjoying a lotta black metal with them, not at all fatiguing compared to NM2+ (I do own both). Highly recommend the A7 for metal.

 

[MSA1133]

Checkout the Heddphones!

Try before you buy though. It has weight and fitting issues with many people but the fast transiets and impactful bass is deliciously good for Metal. I sometimes find myself heading for it over my Abyss TCs.

 

[Uebelkraehe]

Checkout the Heddphones!

Very much agreed, the incredible speed and well controlled punch makes the HEDDphone an excellent choice (not just) for this genre.

 

[frozenOx]

Also still really enjoying the Grado Hemps today. Flattened out the headband, then shaped it back and the ear pinch is gone and much better comfort. They're aggressive but not fatiguing. Fast and good imaging = instrument separation. Not a big sound stage though if that's your thing. More 6 series Sennheiser like. Thanks ytseJamer for the recommendation.

Just swapped pads with the Geekria bowl shape and flat shape pads. Flat sounded really similar to the stock F pads and maybe a touch more comfortable. The bowls did not sound better. All the bass and low mids were gone, and they're already airy fast headphones.

Just put the PortaPros back on too after listening only to the Hemps....and honestly. For metal, the PortaPros are good enough. If all you listen to is metal and you're on a budget I'd just stick with that. Pad swap and cut a hole out over the driver and the portapros are excellent and comfortable little metal headphones and even work well with black metal. Hemps are way better in every way, but it was not a jarring experience and my ears quickly adjusted back to the PPs.

 

[frozenOx]

Talking about iem's, You guys should give LZ A7 a try with black metal they sound crazy good! I've been enjoying a lotta black metal with them, not at all fatiguing compared to NM2+ (I do own both). Highly recommend the A7 for metal.

https://drop.com/buy/lz-a7-iem?mode...17393.566043849929549862317844&referer=RRER3V

 

[eaglerock]

Been following this topic and reading a lot of pages and finally decided to get something that will work for my music taste: Hifiman Sundara, am i making the right choice at that price ?
I'm mainly stuck in the 80's heavy metal "Dio, Black sabbath, Judas priest, Accept, Iron maiden, Manowar,...."
Been using dt 880 and 990 pro, both feels a bit too bright on the highs, need to always put the volume down to be able to enjoy a long listening.
I guess the Fiio k5 pro should be good enough to drive the Sundara ?

 

[YtseJamer]

Been following this topic and reading a lot of pages and finally decided to get something that will work for my music taste: Hifiman Sundara, am i making the right choice at that price ?
I'm mainly stuck in the 80's heavy metal "Dio, Black sabbath, Judas priest, Accept, Iron maiden, Manowar,...."
Been using dt 880 and 990 pro, both feels a bit too bright on the highs, need to always put the volume down to be able to enjoy a long listening.
I guess the Fiio k5 pro should be good enough to drive the Sundara ?

In my opinion, the Grado Hemp is a better choice than the Sundara for classic heavy-metal. They are not bright at all compared to the DT880 or DT990.

You should watch Steve Guttenberg's video here on YouTube, he's comparing the Hemp with the Sundara.

 

[frozenOx]

Sundara's are neutral bright sounding and you already have 880s, so it's really another bright set when you seem to be wanting something warmer. But they're supposed to be excellent. I only had the HE4XX and they were just OK. Needed lots of EQ and the build quality was meh.

Grado Hemp is phenomenal, fast and airy, yet also warm with great bass. I think any of the Sennheiser 6 series including the 58X are really good for that genre and those are darker than the Beyers. So if you want warmer and already ahve Beyers, I'd try and demo any Hifiman's first since they can be rather bright and thin sounding in that price range.

 

[YtseJamer]

I have the HiFiMan HE-6SE that I'm driving with a $3500 integrated amp (Exposure 3010S2D), but at the end of the day, and for pure musical enjoyment I prefer the Grado Hemp.

 

[Sajid Amit]

One of my favorite headphones for heavy metal is the Hifiman Sundara. In fact, I liked it so much, I bought the Arya, and then the Susvaras!

My Sundara review is here, if anyone is interested in reading, although most of you probably have owned or tried the Sundara on this thread.

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/hifiman-sundara.23041/reviews

 

[shuto77]

In my opinion, the Grado Hemp is a better choice than the Sundara for classic heavy-metal. They are not bright at all compared to the DT880 or DT990.

You should watch Steve Guttenberg's video here on YouTube, he's comparing the Hemp with the Sundara.

I'm so glad Steve Guttenberg is on YouTube now. I made my first several audio purchases in 2006-2008 almost exclusively based on his reviews on CNET. I know he's not a measurements guy, but his impressions are still super valuable.

 

[frozenOx]

Given all the Sundara owner issues with driver failure, and my own experience with the HE4XX. I'd just be so hesitant to buy the lower end Hifiman cans over Sennheiser. Especially if you're looking for a warmer sound signature. Makes zero sense to buy Sundara over 6XX or 600 when you want less treble for classic metal.

 

[MatW]

I'm so glad Steve Guttenberg is on YouTube now. I made my first several audio purchases in 2006-2008 almost exclusively based on his reviews on CNET. I know he's not a measurements guy, but his impressions are still super valuable.

Our hearing deteriorates quite substantially with age. I cannot help taking that into account in choosing whose reviews I trust.

 

[Kammerat Rebekka]

Been following this topic and reading a lot of pages and finally decided to get something that will work for my music taste: Hifiman Sundara, am i making the right choice at that price ?
I'm mainly stuck in the 80's heavy metal "Dio, Black sabbath, Judas priest, Accept, Iron maiden, Manowar,...."
Been using dt 880 and 990 pro, both feels a bit too bright on the highs, need to always put the volume down to be able to enjoy a long listening.
I guess the Fiio k5 pro should be good enough to drive the Sundara ?

I think the Sundara will be brilliant for what you are looking for
Unlike many others on here I don’t hear the Grado Hemp as being ‘warm’ or indeed differently tuned compared to the other Grados one can purchase ie it sounds very forward and aggressive. It also comes with a significant amount of bass roll-off which actually makes Sennheisers like the HD600/650 appear like regular basshead cans.
What it does do is trick you into believing that it’s ‘fast’ or something to that effect. I think it is the somewhat lean bass response coupled with the extra amount of energy one gets via the upper mids and treble, which both come across like the Grado of old: a punch to the face.
Mind you a lot of folks tend to go for that type of presentation...but if you are looking for something which is less tiring than the Beyers in the highs..Grado is not your safest bet. A Sennheiser probably is. The Sundara though strikes a fine balance between the two and has a wonderfully almost estat sounding treble.
I’m guessing here...but I think the Hemp has gotten all these stickers of being an outlier from Grados line-up and somewhat of a ‘warmer/bassier/jack of all trades’ headphone simply from the fact that it’s made of Hemp....and people naturally float away to thoughts of Cheech & Chong, Cypress Hill and Bob Marley.