[SilverEars]

Here you go: https://www.ebay.com/itm/3-5mm-OCC-...XX-HE-400i-headphones-Both-3-5mm/293421773018 (looks like they increased the price by $4 but on the plus side if you're in the US, they now stock it in their CA warehouse). Have been very happy with them as they've been much easier to live with than the stiff OEM cable.



So I'm generally not a huge believer in burn-in (I do it out of habit to silence the inevitable "but you didn't burn-in...") and my first impression was that the Sundara was insanely bright and absolutely not what I wanted. I got these to potentially replace my DT1990's since while I love the sound sig, it was just too bright for me and fatiguing to listen to for long periods. I was bummed since I watched/read a bunch of reviews stating the Sundara's treble was tamer than the DT1990's and it didn't jive with what I was hearing, so I decided to burn them in (and not even for that long, I think just a few hours max) and after some regular use, I must say that I'm not hearing the ear piercing treble I initially heard. Thought perhaps it was just mental burn-in but after a/b'ing with the DT1990's I'm very happy that's it's not as sharp by comparison.

While the sound sig is similar, the DT1990 certainly has more bass quantity but for me it's not the same "quality". What intrigued me most was the planar bass slam I kept hearing about and unfortunately I'm not very articulate with describing sounds but the best way to describe the difference is that with the DT1990 (and imagine if you will if a bass note lasted as long as a cymbal's) it's as if someone placed their hand on the drum to stop the note from finishing naturally whereas that occurs with the Sundara; it's subtle but appreciably noticeable. Also, the sound stage and imaging is far better on the Sundara and that's what really sealed it for me (I'll be listing my DT1990 soon for anyone interested). I mean even this is subjective since if you like a more intimate sounding (and slightly better isolating) headphone and aren't treble sensitive then the DT1990 might be better for your needs. My only minor quibble (aside from the cable) is that the pads aren't thick enough for me so my left ear lobe is making contact with the inside of the pad. I've temporarily addressed this by inserting a thicker-ply tissue around the rear-half's inner circumference to increase the depth - will be looking for some other material or perhaps different pads in the long run.

EDIT: Despite the lower impedance (37Ω vs 250Ω), the Sundara is definitely "harder to drive" than the DT1990; I need to set my SBX G6 to High gain to really let the Sundara shine whereas I can stick with Low gain w/the DT1990.


Can you provide exact details how one can tell whether they have the "stealth" version? Also any chance of referencing/linking pics of the differences? Thx!

Surprised you thought Sundara was peaky, at least compared to DT1990.

I'm not surprised you'd think the stage is more expansive than DT1990. Beyers are not really that open of headphones even if they look like theres tiny openings around. I think they keep somewhat enclosed to increase bass response with the dynamic driver since it's hard to do with being open as Sennheiser demonstrates. It's interesting how Hifimans are so open compared to other planars out there, yet they keep a fairly linear bass response.

I generally found Sundara bass less than plentiful compared to something like HE500, but it did come out with electronic tracks.

 

[Smoothstereo]

Sundara sounds less thin if paired with the right tubes in the amp. I find my Sundara sounds adequate in the bass performance with a pair of Zenith 6J5 (needs adapter) on the Vali2.

 

[duyanh43]

What, Sundara sounds thin? I find them very full, a little bit warm for me, need more sparkles in the highs as they are kind of smooth now.

 

[Kammerat Rebekka]

^Well..your other headphone IS the HD800

The Sundara is slightly lean/brightish compared to more linear sounding headphones such as the HD600 or even Hifiman’s own HE500....doesn’t necessarily mean they are better/worse. My friend who also owns the Sundara clearly prefers them over my HE500 as well as every Audeze he’s ever tried on. He finds the 500 overly warm and the Audezes verging on the point of unlistenable.
Anyway...I still love this headphone. It is a steal at it’s current pricing and worth every penny of its original one. Open, delicate and delightfully airy are all connotations that come up when thinking of the Sundara.

 

[der luda]

It is a steal at it’s current pricing and worth every penny of its original one. Open, delicate and delightfully airy are all connotations that come up when thinking of the Sundara.

I had to buy the Sunata because of the price from the dealer of trust .... There is hardly anything comparable

 

[Smoothstereo]

I agree, the Sundara does sound good. If i had to describe it in one word is "listenability". It just sounds good with whatever song I play or whichever dac/amp I have tried. Very well balanced overall. Just hope it will have longevity.

 

[Kammerat Rebekka]

I did something incredibly stupid a little while back. I’d yet again purchased an HE500 and after a very short while decided that I slightly prefered it and that I really didn’t need two Hifimans in the collection. Nahh I sold the Sundara to a friend of mine and went off and bought something like 50 cds instead. In fact this was me telling myself that I was done with cans - that I owned what I “needed” and yeah forget about new coconuts for a while and funnel the cash towards new music. Brilliant idea...until my friend came around here the other day. He dropped by to fix the old frustrating screw connectors on the 500 and thought to himself that he might as well bring along just about every headphone he could carry. That included my old Sundara as well as the new Drop one with the oval cups.
So yeah whilst he was toiling away with his solder iron I found myself popping back inside the rabbithole of headphones
...and sitting there with my own music in a cool chillax atmosphere I realised that a) I prefer the Sundara over the Drop one even if I really dig the immersive feeling I get from those huge cups..but then again I get the same experience from my K712...and b) that the Sundara is tuned very differently to the HE500 and rather than being better/inferior to the old master, it ends up sounding far more like a complimentary headphone to me.
Now for the hard bit: to stop making stupid decisions on a whim!
...although they at times do end up in something brilliant..the stupid decisions that is

Also..you’ll never guess what’s adorning my skull right this minute..it rhymes with Rihanna but ultimately sounds better.

 

[SkyZippr]

Does anyone experience decreasing volume on one side, after listening for 2 hours or so? In my case I can hear the vocal moves away from the center to the right at the end of 2 hours.
Also I can hear noise from both sides, again after 2 hours or so. It's not like static noise, but rather like the noise a dynamic earbud would make when you push it into your ears.
Are these inevitable features of planars or Sundara, or is mine faulty?

 

[shafat777]

TBH, I had the exact same issues with my Sundaras. Unfortunately i went through 3 pairs of cans and all three had the exact same issues. Surprisingly, all 3 of my cans had issues with the Left driver having lower volume than the right. Its a typical QC issue with Hifiman although they claim to have fixed the driver issues in their newly manufactured sundaras. If its still under warranty, I would contact hifiman and have then send you a replacement that is manufactured recently.

Hope this helps.

 

[BrainFood]

Does anyone experience decreasing volume on one side, after listening for 2 hours or so? In my case I can hear the vocal moves away from the center to the right at the end of 2 hours.
Also I can hear noise from both sides, again after 2 hours or so. It's not like static noise, but rather like the noise a dynamic earbud would make when you push it into your ears.
Are these inevitable features of planars or Sundara, or is mine faulty?

Sorry to hear that. When, where did you buy yours?

 

[SkyZippr]

Unfortunately mine is a used pair so I don't think I can send it back to Hifiman. The used store does have some return policy, so maybe I should check with them.
Shame, because the SQ was perfect for me.

 

[Shane D]

Got my Sundara's today. They are very impressive! I tried using them with my Tube amp, but that wasn't working very well. I then ran them through the SMSL SP200 and they really lit up. I have read on this thread that the mids are recessed and I would have to disagree with that. However, they are certainly not mid forward like my Grado GH2's or Focal Elex's.

The sound, to me, is really full and wide. It is like the music is all around me and all the instruments are fighting for attention. And when bass is called for, it is strong. I really didn't need yet another open back, but these were a killer deal and I am glad I made the jump!

For the record, I bought and hated the HE4XX's. I thought they were horrible in every possible way, sound wise.

The Sundara's are SO different they are a great addition for the collection.
Grado's go one way, the Focals go another way, The Koss Electrostats go another way and these are yet a fourth way. It is like owning four different sound systems. Now I just need to do some fine tuning on the amp side.

The above are very early impressions and I will follow up with my experiences as I get used to them. I can't imagine what the fabled 150 hours of burn-in will accomplish, but I am very curious to see.

 

[morndewey]

Greetings. Anyone paired Hiby R5 dap with these? Wondering if they can be driven appropriately via 3.5? Do I need 4.4? Does Sundara allow 4.4 cabling? Or is R5 not up to the task without external amp? Thanks

 

[duyanh43]

Greetings. Anyone paired Hiby R5 dap with these? Wondering if they can be driven appropriately via 3.5? Do I need 4.4? Does Sundara allow 4.4 cabling? Or is R5 not up to the task without external amp? Thanks

I dunno how but my Sundara needs bigger volume than both my HD650/800

 

[cfranchi]

I’m currently listening to Sundara (thru Mojo), I’m still amazed at how it is so dynamic, punchy, airy, etc (I don’t listen anymore to my beloved Fidelio X2).

This hobby is endless and I’m still searching my next toys : Arya, T1, etc. However after each listening session with Sundara my GAS is always taking a step back.

At 349$, Sundara is the best kept secret of headphone industry