I love the back design of Hifiman's planar headphones, however, will that be dusty after several months?
Okay, so I had Arya in my Dust disaster room for I think two weeks now. My room is literally filled to the neck in dust, and I've no idea why, I clean it and leave a window open almost at all times, but man, I do get dust easily.
Anyways, I can't notice any dust on Arya itself, and and none on the driver, while something like my Speaker Amplifier does gather dust like a magnet. So Arya doesn't seem to mind my environment. I haven't put it away while not in usage, nor treated it especially, and I even took Arya on a walk today. Not one issue for me!
Also, time for first impressions!
- Okay, so the package for Arya is really nice. It doesn't come with much, but it has a nice box, and it sits really cozy in it.
- The cable is nice, Full Copper, so it provides a nice warm touch to their midrange, I love the way they paint both male and female voices
- The comfort!!! This is more comfortable than even the Empyrean, and even more comfy than HD800 for me! HD800 was a touch too loose, Arya is simply put, just right! I am in love with having them on my head
- Although HIFIMAN quotes a weight of 400 grams for them, they feel like a feather on my head, can barely tell that I'm wearing them. Really nice job on the weight mencahsim.
- The build quality is, as youy can see in the photo, pretty much flawless. This looks and feels like a flagship. It is as much of a technological wonder as it is a design one. I feel HIFIMAN doesn't emphasize at all how awesome this looks and feels in person
- Sound is light, pretty bright, yet quite punchy, dynamic, and huge. Like, HD800 levels of huge, but with a better instrument definition, and in fact, it ain't just huge, it is fully open. Arya provides almost no passive noise isolation, the membrane inside is extremely thin, and that means that Arya will not isolate almost at all from the outside noise. This also makes their sound magically detailed, clear and wide. So much width and depth to the soundstage, it is insane.
- I am using Mytek Brooklyn DAC+ to drive Arya, and the only thing I can say is that I'm speechless at the level of detail and refinement they have. It ain't just the way they portray detail, it is the natural way they go about it. There's nothing out of place, instruments sound natural, most headphones have a kind of sound that indicates it is a headphone, but Arya simply doesn't, you hear things as you'd in an open space. This is the best way to describe them, they simply feel like you're not wearing them, the way they are designed, being so open, they are a bit like a mini Jade II, really open, but with more bass.
- Oh yes, the bass can go low and punch deep. They aren't the most punchy out there, but they are incredibly dynamic and musical, even something that I don't usually enjoy like country sounds like the sweetest music of heavens to my ears. Arya is also one of the best headphones for gaming ever created, Soundtracks, or playing some shooters, even some Starcraft II, or some visual Novels, I'm in heaven, both because they are so darn comfortable, and also because they are so natural, airy and open. I'm simply in love with the overall feeling.
- Arya sounds best at all volumes, sounds nice at really low volumes late at night, sounds nice at mid volumes, but can also unleash some fury if you blast them at loud volumes.
- If I had any complaints about them, I think those would be about the stock cable, it is thick and not very flexible, I'd have prefered them to come with either Sundara cables, or HE6SE cables, but that may be a personal preference.
- Another really minor compaint is that they are advertised as being hard to drive, but they really aren't, they are easier to drive than LCD-2C, Kennerton Thror, just a bit harder than Sundara.
- The sound of Arya, is really what you would want if you were coming from high-end flagship speakers. Arya sounds like speakers that cost over 10.000 USD, actually tested by me... So yep, there you have it.
- For a really comfortable headphone, with a light sound, Arya does better than HD800S at being comfortable, open and airy, has better instrument separation, has better instrument definition, HD800S can be a bit vague, also Arya doesn't have any peaks or dips, it is one of the most natural and linear headphones I've heard. In fact, it makes both HE6SE, and Jade II sound a bit colored by direct comparison, HE6SE feels a bit more emotional, and also a bit more thick and punchy, although muuuuuch harder to drive, while Jade II feels a bit more midrange-forward when placing all of them side-by-side.
- Arya sounds a bit similar to Crosszone CZ-1, but it is not as soft, nor as gentle, it is more natural overall.
- The treble also reminds me what an "expensive" treble sounds like. The detail, the fine extensions, and all of those without being harsh nor sibilant, nor bothersome, man this is nice.
- Overall, this is a great headphone, Very few complaints. Made for "natural" sound, not for bassheads necessarily, not for treble heads in particular, just for a natural, airy, open and clean sound.