Hifiman Ananda

[warp2600]

Mine arrive tomorrow.

Excited to see how these handle Jazz.

Beautifully. Prepare to be transported to be on stage at the event with the musicians. Aftet years of wearing Grados, you will be shocked to experience that the HP cups do not touch your ears. The space you perceive will be expanded both physically and sonicly.

 

[marekm]

True

 

[E8ArmyDiver]

Mine arrive tomorrow. First HiFiMan and planar headphones. Grado guy for more years than I care to share. Excited to see how these handle Jazz.

One thing I've noticed about planar headphones,and even speakers, having owned Magnapans...They need at least 200 hours break in to sound natural..They can sound very plasticky with thumpy,one note bass until then,so don't judge them too soon...Enjoy...

 

[grungychamois]

One thing I've noticed about planar headphones,and even speakers, having owned Magnapans...They need at least 200 hours break in to sound natural..They can sound very plasticky with thumpy,one note bass until then,so don't judge them too soon...Enjoy

This is my first planar headphone. Back when I had my old stereo room I used Magnapans. Loved them so much.

 

[grungychamois]

Beautifully. Prepare to be transported to be on stage at the event with the musicians. Aftet years of wearing Grados, you will be shocked to experience that the HP cups do not touch your ears. The space you perceive will be expanded both physically and sonicly.

I just hope my head isn’t too small… lol

 

[grungychamois]

Well, they are here. Will be listening very soon.

 

[grungychamois]

I’ll post better thoughts later, but I will say that these are immediately improved with Dekoni Fenestrated Sheepskin pads. Well, for a Grado person. So far I’m getting a relaxed Grado sound that a few test tracks gave me chills with the tonality and imaging. I am not disappointed and expect these to only get better.

 

[HWB3]

I just put a couple of hours into my Sundara's. Enjoy.

 

[carloskleiber]

Been really enjoying mine out of an EF600. Wondering how I should upgrade...Arya stealth?

 

[warp2600]

Been really enjoying mine out of an EF600. Wondering how I should upgrade...Arya stealth?

That's a sensible (logical) step to upgrade.
I enjoy my Ananda SM V3 out of a Vali2++ so much (the stage and clarity!) that I resist the urge to upgrade.

 

[E8ArmyDiver]

Been really enjoying mine out of an EF600. Wondering how I should upgrade...Arya stealth?

I don't know what version you have but at the last Dallas CanJam I compared my Nano's to the Arya Organic,HE1000V4,HE1000SE & Susvara...I didn't hear ANYTHING that screamed I NEED TO UPGRADE...Although If I won the lotto I would pop for the Susvara...If your amp is absolutely TOTL then the HE1000SE would be my next move up the line...

 

[Xerosnake90]

Snagging the Ananda Stealth off someone in the classifieds. I've owned the OG and the fit was too tight, this was before I knew how to properly stretch out headphones. Upgraded to the Arya v2 which gave me the same issues and I sold them. When I revisited the v2 recently I couldn't get over how treble hot they were.

Gonna be interesting to see how the Amanda Stealth respond to my Wa6SE. I've been using HD 660s2 which I absolutely love, tonality is perfect but a little extra technicality wouldn't hurt

Edit:
Received the Ananda Stealth today, the 390 gram version which has a lower impedance. I have the 440 gram version with slightly higher impedance coming in on Wednesday.

Funnily enough my first listen I was really disappointed and told myself I'd return them. They were flabby and soft, but I used the low output on my wa6 instead of the high which I always used with the 660s2. Switched outputs and they sounded better immediately.

Tonality: The Ananda are just a smidge brighter in the treble, crisper. I have owned the Arya v2 and sold it due to being a brightly tuned headphone, the Ananda are more neutral and haven't made me wince yet, they're passing all my treble tests so far. The 660s2 are a touch warmer with a bit thicker mid bass, but also softer up top. The Ananda sound a bit leaner with better sub bass.

Technicalities: I always loved the s2 for its imaging and the Ananda is a step above as well as having an incredible soundstage. This thing is spacious, instruments are all separated without much interference. The s2 is more claustrophobic and the soundstage is tighter. The Ananda sounds more holographic as well while the s2 now sounds flatter. The experience in the Ananda is based on creating an ethereal sound with all the instruments around you while s2 is more forward and up front with the vocals. It's really easy to get lost inside a track.

Naturally you now hear more details since the imaging is so good, and the soundstage is large separating everything. The timbre is also pretty good, the added treble really makes things sound more detailed and helps the different timbres shine through. The s2 might have better timbre, but it doesn't shine through since it's more congested

I'm loving them more and more as I listen. If I can get the comfort right then it's going to be difficult putting the s2 back on. The technicalities are just incredible and I just got into my orchestra stuff. Wow, just incredible. I'm right there

 

[LostnAmerica]

Snagging the Ananda Stealth off someone in the classifieds. I've owned the OG and the fit was too tight, this was before I knew how to properly stretch out headphones. Upgraded to the Arya v2 which gave me the same issues and I sold them. When I revisited the v2 recently I couldn't get over how treble hot they were.

Gonna be interesting to see how the Amanda Stealth respond to my Wa6SE. I've been using HD 660s2 which I absolutely love, tonality is perfect but a little extra technicality wouldn't hurt

Edit:
Received the Ananda Stealth today, the 390 gram version which has a lower impedance. I have the 440 gram version with slightly higher impedance coming in on Wednesday.

Funnily enough my first listen I was really disappointed and told myself I'd return them. They were flabby and soft, but I used the low output on my wa6 instead of the high which I always used with the 660s2. Switched outputs and they sounded better immediately.

Tonality: The Ananda are just a smidge brighter in the treble, crisper. I have owned the Arya v2 and sold it due to being a brightly tuned headphone, the Ananda are more neutral and haven't made me wince yet, they're passing all my treble tests so far. The 660s2 are a touch warmer with a bit thicker mid bass, but also softer up top. The Ananda sound a bit leaner with better sub bass.

Technicalities: I always loved the s2 for its imaging and the Ananda is a step above as well as having an incredible soundstage. This thing is spacious, instruments are all separated without much interference. The s2 is more claustrophobic and the soundstage is tighter. The Ananda sounds more holographic as well while the s2 now sounds flatter. The experience in the Ananda is based on creating an ethereal sound with all the instruments around you while s2 is more forward and up front with the vocals. It's really easy to get lost inside a track.

Naturally you now hear more details since the imaging is so good, and the soundstage is large separating everything. The timbre is also pretty good, the added treble really makes things sound more detailed and helps the different timbres shine through. The s2 might have better timbre, but it doesn't shine through since it's more congested

I'm loving them more and more as I listen. If I can get the comfort right then it's going to be difficult putting the s2 back on. The technicalities are just incredible and I just got into my orchestra stuff. Wow, just incredible. I'm right there

And better with time.

 

[chatnever]

I've recently upgraded from the Sundara 2020 to the Ananda V3 (16Ω)... and wow.

The difference is night and day. In short:

• Huge improvement in bass – I don't even need XBass on my iFi gear to feel its slam.
• Much better mids/vocals – especially on acoustic live recordings.
• Significantly improved clarity – though it can be a bit too bright on certain songs.
• Almost holographic soundstage.

I can't believe such a small step up made such a massive difference! This could be my endgame—for a while, at least.

That being said, can you recommend upgraded earpads? The stock pads feel too thin and soft, and if they follow HIFIMAN tradition... they'll probably fall apart in a year or two. I see too many options on AliExpress:

• Sheepskin / Cowhide
• Perforated / Non-perforated
• Velvet / Ice silk

I prefer pads that are a bit thicker while maintaining the Ananda’s signature sound—especially its bass, mids, and soundstage—while also slightly taming the brightness, if possible.

 

[HiddenSquid]

Hi! I noticed from your signature that you have the D7200 and the Ananda. I have the D7200 and I'm wondering how does the Ananda compare in terms of bass and mids and treble. My country is in a lockdown so I'm not able to demo one anytime soon. Thank you!

Any comparison?