Hifiman Arya vs. Arya "Revision"
Nov 29, 2020 at 2:49 PM Post #62 of 94
@XGeneX88 @TeamHiFiMAN

About to purchase an Arya.
From what I read the manufacture date should be on the box.
Is it on the outside and where can I find it without opening the box?
Does anyone have a picture?

Ah, sorry, it was @ThanatosVI who posted something about that here: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/hifiman-arya-vs-arya-revision.933627/#post-15648676
You quoted the post which I why I amde the mistake.

@TeamHiFiMAN @ThanatosVI
Any way I can find out without opening the box if it's a 2020 version?
 
Nov 30, 2020 at 4:28 AM Post #63 of 94
@TeamHiFiMAN @ThanatosVI
Any way I can find out without opening the box if it's a 2020 version?
[/QUOTE]
Hi there,

There should be two sets of numbers outside the packaging cardboard box, which are the serial numbers. If the numbers start with 2, then it means the headphone was produced in 2020.

April
 
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http://hifiman.com
Nov 30, 2020 at 4:35 AM Post #64 of 94
@TeamHiFiMAN @ThanatosVI
Any way I can find out without opening the box if it's a 2020 version?
Hi there,

There should be two sets of numbers outside the packaging cardboard box, which are the serial numbers. If the numbers start with 2, then it means the headphone was produced in 2020.

April
[/QUOTE]

Hi April, thank you, I'll be looking out for that!
 
May 28, 2021 at 9:47 PM Post #65 of 94
Are all major stores selling V2 now? Amazon? The photos there look like V1 still, and at every store.
 
Jun 3, 2021 at 12:41 PM Post #67 of 94
Thank you @TeamHiFiMAN for being active in this thread, its great to see the manufacturer being open and trying to address concerns. Far too many manufacturers make changes and then give no information whatsoever. So it's awesome to see your active participation here.

I've had the original pre-revision aryas for ages and I adore them. Susvara is my go-to but arya is fantastic as a 'daily driver' given the comfort and being easier to drive.
I've been wanting to do a review of them for youtube but have been putting it off because I don't know if the pre-revision and post-revision models do indeed sound the same.

It stands to reason that the mesh change may have an impact on sound, even if it is minor. I'm trying to find someone who can lend me a post-revision unit so that I can review the most up to date model and if I do find one I'll post my thoughts in this thread. But it does seem like a fair few people are reporting that there might indeed be differences.
When I tried the post-revision model at a store a while ago there was no immediate difference but it's hard to say for sure without properly comparing them at home rather than quickly in a store.
 
Sep 8, 2021 at 8:30 AM Post #68 of 94
Thank you @TeamHiFiMAN for being active in this thread, its great to see the manufacturer being open and trying to address concerns. Far too many manufacturers make changes and then give no information whatsoever. So it's awesome to see your active participation here.

I've had the original pre-revision aryas for ages and I adore them. Susvara is my go-to but arya is fantastic as a 'daily driver' given the comfort and being easier to drive.
I've been wanting to do a review of them for youtube but have been putting it off because I don't know if the pre-revision and post-revision models do indeed sound the same.

It stands to reason that the mesh change may have an impact on sound, even if it is minor. I'm trying to find someone who can lend me a post-revision unit so that I can review the most up to date model and if I do find one I'll post my thoughts in this thread. But it does seem like a fair few people are reporting that there might indeed be differences.
When I tried the post-revision model at a store a while ago there was no immediate difference but it's hard to say for sure without properly comparing them at home rather than quickly in a store.
Can you make a review of the new Arya revision stealth magnets?
 
Sep 8, 2021 at 12:20 PM Post #69 of 94
Can you make a review of the new Arya revision stealth magnets?
If someone is happy to send me one I'd love to.

I want to review the arya but do not want to review my pair as its the OG and so will not represent the current production model.

@TeamHiFiMAN any chance of getting a review unit of the new aryas? Would love to make a video on them. I love my current ones
 
Dec 4, 2021 at 7:46 PM Post #71 of 94
I recently purchased Arya V1 from Moon Audio and it arrived yesterday. In their website, it only indicated that it was $500 sales. It didn't say that it was V1 or open box even though I knew that this price was not possible if it was not an open box product with V1. Still I was hoping that it was v2. I was able to find out that it is v1 through this thread.
Right after I received this Arya Package yesterday, they began to indicate that it is an open box product with v1 on their website. I think I did the screen shot somewhere. However, It looks exactly new and sounds beautiful. I'm not going to return. Moon Audio doesn't allow any return for an open box anyway.

I have the following questions;
1. The price was $1099 with no tax. What do you think? Was this okay purchase for v1 open box?
2. I realized that I could buy this on the Hifiman website too. Can Hifiman still provide 1 year Warranty even if it was not purchased from their website?
3. I was not interested in the Stealth version because it cuts down the soundstage according to many reports, but do you enjoy v2 more than v1? What are your listening experiences between them?
4. I'm not sure if it is appropriate to ask this question in this thread, but let me just ask hoping that someone shares the experience. For the amp, I have Original Shiit Jotunheim Multibit and Magni, A90, ifi Zen DAC 2, and DarkVoice 336 tube amp. I only have arya for 2 days, so I'm not sure about amp matching. What do you think? Any matching recommendations from amp I have? Is a Tube amp like DarkVoice okay too?

Thank you very much in advance.
 
Dec 4, 2021 at 9:48 PM Post #72 of 94
I recently purchased Arya V1 from Moon Audio and it arrived yesterday. In their website, it only indicated that it was $500 sales. It didn't say that it was V1 or open box even though I knew that this price was not possible if it was not an open box product with V1. Still I was hoping that it was v2. I was able to find out that it is v1 through this thread.
Right after I received this Arya Package yesterday, they began to indicate that it is an open box product with v1 on their website. I think I did the screen shot somewhere. However, It looks exactly new and sounds beautiful. I'm not going to return. Moon Audio doesn't allow any return for an open box anyway.

I have the following questions;
1. The price was $1099 with no tax. What do you think? Was this okay purchase for v1 open box?
2. I realized that I could buy this on the Hifiman website too. Can Hifiman still provide 1 year Warranty even if it was not purchased from their website?
3. I was not interested in the Stealth version because it cuts down the soundstage according to many reports, but do you enjoy v2 more than v1? What are your listening experiences between them?
4. I'm not sure if it is appropriate to ask this question in this thread, but let me just ask hoping that someone shares the experience. For the amp, I have Original Shiit Jotunheim Multibit and Magni, A90, ifi Zen DAC 2, and DarkVoice 336 tube amp. I only have arya for 2 days, so I'm not sure about amp matching. What do you think? Any matching recommendations from amp I have? Is a Tube amp like DarkVoice okay too?

Thank you very much in advance.

I really love the v1 personally. It has a little more rumble in the low end and a more “disperse” sound effect compared to the v2. The v2 has a slightly more tamed treble as well with some fixed “treble peaks” but also less excitement & air in the highs. It will all come down to your ears.. the Arya peaks on the v1 never bothered me. I had both the v1/v2 and the v1 (for me) had more magic. I do recommend burning them in for at least 100 hours.. it really caused them to open up more.

I ended up returning my V2 and re-purchased a V1 version which to this day I’m glad I did. They are one of my favorite headphone ever (and I own quite a few flagships).

I think you got a good/ fair deal. Here’s the thing.. you can’t really find v1 anymore on the retail market. It’s either v2 or v3 so if the v1 sounds as great to your ears as it does to mine, then it’s a fair deal. Your only other option would be buying a used v1 where good deals can also be found as long as you’re willing to own a pair with some miles on them.

Moon Audio should be an authorized dealer of HiFiman so you should have a full warranty as long as you can provide an invoice. They honor claims on open box items same as new and their customer service will go out of their way to help you regardless (Hifiman customer service).

Amps: I really love the v1 Arya out if the Burson Conductor 3x reference.. it’s bloody amazing. Also liked it out of the DX7, DX7S (did not like the Pro, too bright), the Jotunheim 2 was quite boring and way too smooth (sucked all the excitement out of the Arya)… the monolith 788 was nice as well (gave it allot of extra thump and made them sound a bit dark even). Magni 2 Uber wasn’t bad either running paired with a Modi 2. Not sure if that helps at all.. I’d probably recommend a warm or at least neutral amp pairing.. probably want to avoid pairing with anything bright.
 
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Dec 4, 2021 at 10:27 PM Post #73 of 94
I really love the v1 personally. It has a little more rumble in the low end and a more “disperse” sound effect compared to the v2. The v2 has a slightly more tamed treble as well with some fixed “treble peaks”. It will all come down to your ears.. the Arya peaks on the v1 never bothered me. I had both the v1/v2 and the v1 (for me) had more magic. I do recommend burning them in for at least 100 hours.. it really caused them to open up more.

I ended up returning my V2 and re-purchased a V1 version which to this day I’m glad I did. They are one of my favorite headphone ever (and I own quite a few flagships).

I think you got a good/ fair deal. Here’s the thing.. you can’t really find v1 anymore on the retail market. It’s either v2 or v3 so if the v1 sounds as great to your ears as it does to mine, then it’s a fair deal. Your only other option would be buying a used v1 where good deals can also be found as long as you’re willing to own a pair with some miles on them.

Moon Audio should be an authorized dealer of HiFiman so you should have a full warranty as long as you can provide an invoice. They honor claims on open box items same as new and their customer service will go out of their way to help you regardless (Hifiman customer service).

Amps: I really love the v1 Arya out if the Burson Conductor 3x reference.. it’s bloody amazing. Also liked it out of the DX7, DX7S (did not like the Pro, too bright), the Jotunheim 2 was quite boring and way too smooth (sucked all the excitement out of the Arya)… the monolith 788 was nice as well (gave it allot of extra thump and made them sound a bit dark even). Magni 2 Uber wasn’t bad either running paired with a Modi 2. Not sure if that helps at all.. I’d probably recommend a warm or at least neutral amp pairing.. probably want to avoid pairing with anything bright.
Thank you very much for your detailed answer and it actually helped me a lot! My main headphone was hd800s. Even if I love 800s, I always felt something was missing. With arya v1 for the last 2 days, I was able to find what I thought that was missing. Life. It is hard to describe, but I felt more life from music through Arya v1. Then my greedy feeling kept telling me that I could get even more if I got v2:) But not anymore after I read your reply:) I will also check the Burson Conductor 3x reference too!
 
Dec 4, 2021 at 10:39 PM Post #74 of 94
Thank you very much for your detailed answer and it actually helped me a lot! My main headphone was hd800s. Even if I love 800s, I always felt something was missing. With arya v1 for the last 2 days, I was able to find what I thought that was missing. Life. It is hard to describe, but I felt more life from music through Arya v1. Then my greedy feeling kept telling me that I could get even more if I got v2:) But not anymore after I read your reply:) I will also check the Burson Conductor 3x reference too!
I feel the same way. I also own an HD800S and prefer the Arya considerably for the majority of the music I listen to. Like you put it.. HD800S is an impressive but clinical experience while the Arya is just so full of soul.

Btw.. I edited my post to include a bit more info on the v1/v2 differences. I feel like the v1 had a better extension and more air in the upper treble range. I think they killed some of this on the v2 when they fixed the peaks but it’s just another piece of magic I recall was missing on the v2.

I hope you can try the Burson out.. Planars seem to respond really well to Class A amps in general. I also highly recommend looking into the Audio-GD D28 amp.. it is a BEAST for the money. The price/performance ratio is just outrageous… It’s basically in some ways like a Burson Conductor 3XR for only 850$ lol.. even their sound signatures are very similar (but you can’t roll the opamps and the dimensions were an issue for me). Great DAC on it as well.. just crazy that’s it’s only 850$..
 
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Dec 5, 2021 at 7:43 PM Post #75 of 94
I feel the same way. I also own an HD800S and prefer the Arya considerably for the majority of the music I listen to. Like you put it.. HD800S is an impressive but clinical experience while the Arya is just so full of soul.

Btw.. I edited my post to include a bit more info on the v1/v2 differences. I feel like the v1 had a better extension and more air in the upper treble range. I think they killed some of this on the v2 when they fixed the peaks but it’s just another piece of magic I recall was missing on the v2.

I hope you can try the Burson out.. Planars seem to respond really well to Class A amps in general. I also highly recommend looking into the Audio-GD D28 amp.. it is a BEAST for the money. The price/performance ratio is just outrageous… It’s basically in some ways like a Burson Conductor 3XR for only 850$ lol.. even their sound signatures are very similar (but you can’t roll the opamps and the dimensions were an issue for me). Great DAC on it as well.. just crazy that’s it’s only 850$..
Yes. I also need air in the upper treble range, especially for someone like me who is less treble sensitive and coming from hd800s and Etymotic ER4XR:) I also need a good bass response. I'm glad that I got V1, not V2:) It has been my 3rd day with V1. I'm loving it so far. I'm looking into the Audio-GD D28 amp as you recommended. They have a weird website:) Should I get a full option? Do you think this also has a good match with hd800s for classical music? I'm planning to use hd800s for orchestral symphony music and everything else with Arya. With my current amplifiers, the default single-end cable worked better than the balanced one. I meant music sounded better and smoother with single ended cable. So I'm thinking that my current amplifiers seem to have limitations with Arya v1.
You have helped me a lot! Thank you again!
 

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