[Kammerat Rebekka]

Hifiman cables are irritating. I’ve had my buddy knit together cables for every headphone of their’s that I’ve owned: HE400, HE500, HE6, HE400i, HE5XX, Ananda, Arya (very shortly), HE1000, HE5 as well as the Sundara.
For once, these headphones need a bit of colour..and it’s always nice to have a cable attached to one’s headphone that doesn’t feel like a latex glove..though tbh the new ones are ever so slightly better than the old garden hose variant with the infuriating screw-on connectors.
I do not buy additional cables in order to gain better sound quality though. That is fool’s gold imho.

I still feel the Sundara and the HE500 are the best cans Hifiman has made. The latter however is not anywhere near comfortable whereas I often forget that I’m wearing the Sundara.
Top tip: if anyone in here listens to Ozric Tentacles, be sure to plunk on some Erpland with this can. Swoop

 

[pataburd]

Enjoying my "Fool's Gold" immensely at the moment!
: )

 

[SkyZippr]

If Hifiman releases a version of Sundara with Deva headband then I'm good to go. My neck seems to hate the hammock style headband.

 

[SR1se]

Sundara is price breaker in headphone world. This can has good bass performance.

 

[Kammerat Rebekka]

If Hifiman releases a version of Sundara with Deva headband then I'm good to go. My neck seems to hate the hammock style headband.

There are quite a few options available from Hifiman that are fairly close tuning-wise to the Sundara..that all come with the headband you prefer
The HE400i 2020, HE400se and the HE560 v4 are all presentation-wise “riffs” on Hifiman’s housesound aka dead-neutral with various degrees of laidback uppermids.
I do remember you wanting a comfortable planar with low weight because of your neck. Personally I think you should give the world’s most comfortable planar a shot..though granted the HE5XX is somewhat more ‘in-your-face’ with it’s presentation vs the Sundara, but I’ve seen a fair few peeps prefering that type of sound.
Also doesn’t weigh anything - seems lighter than most dynamic driver cans out there tbh.
Anyhoo just a friendly rec on my behalf

Edith: The HE4XX is also a very very good contender that I obviously forgot about. It is supremely comfortable and lightweight

Double-Edith: I am obviously not saying that all these headphones sound the same
I’ve owned a lot of Hifimans and settled on the Sundara for a reason. It is the closest I’ve heard a planar come to sounding like an HD600. Still with an ever so slight laidback upper-midrange, but only compared to a dynamic driver Sennheiser and, let’s face it, in terms of the general planar magnetic market; the absolute benchmark for neutral sound alongside the new LCD-5.
What I am suggesting though is focusing more on comfort..because that seems to be an overriding priority in this particular case..and well Hifiman does make some of lightest and most comfortable planars on the market…and I feel all folks into headphones and music at the very least should get a chance to own some kind of planar. They’re just so unique in their presentation..and more often than not, they tend to be the headphones that make people go ‘WOW’ - even the peeps who are not interested in sound quality; planars seem to be the ones that are the most persuasive.
Anyhoo if supreme comfort is the key to owning a planar magnetic…well then the HE5XX is the king imho…still something like an HE4XX or HE400i 2020 are about as light and comfy as can be.
Best of luck!

Also happy new year!
I’m listening to King Crimson’s Discipline over the Sundara. The way ‘The Sheltering Sky’ rolls along in it’s soothing and at the same time somewhat disturbing manner is captured so well over this can. Those lightsaber-like shafts of light that some times jolts through the otherwise gentle and trotting electronic beats are just heavenly! Goosebumps all around. I hope you gents and ladies out there catch your own.

 

[SkyZippr]

There are quite a few options available from Hifiman that are fairly close tuning-wise to the Sundara..that all come with the headband you prefer
The HE400i 2020, HE400se and the HE560 v4 are all presentation-wise “riffs” on Hifiman’s housesound aka dead-neutral with various degrees of laidback uppermids.
I do remember you wanting a comfortable planar with low weight because of your neck. Personally I think you should give the world’s most comfortable planar a shot..though granted the HE5XX is somewhat more ‘in-your-face’ with it’s presentation vs the Sundara, but I’ve seen a fair few peeps prefering that type of sound.
Also doesn’t weigh anything - seems lighter than most dynamic driver cans out there tbh.
Anyhoo just a friendly rec on my behalf

Edith: The HE4XX is also a very very good contender that I obviously forgot about. It is supremely comfortable and lightweight

Coincidentally, I just happened to order an HE560 v4 from Adorama for $220. It should arrive in a few days. I found out that the weight of Sundara may not really be the problem, as I was fairly comfortable with Beyer's DT1770pro which is heavier than Sundara. I figured it might be the headband, so I decided to give HE560 v4 a shot. Also since everyone is talking about how good it is for its discounted price, I'm kinda hyped up for its arrival.
Oh and HE400se is also a good headphone imo. It's slightly more laidback or less detailed than Sundara depending on what you are looking for. But for its price it's a frigging steal.

 

[Kammerat Rebekka]

Alright cool. Glad you found out for yourself

I just made an edit though which is somewhat superfluous now…or well part of it
Happy new year folks!

 

[decemberflower]

My cable for the headphones broke unfortunately broke today. A replacement from HIFIMAN is $120, which is basically highway robbery considering it probably cost them $5 to manufacture that flimsy piece of crap.

Does anyone here have any recommendations that aren't a complete and utter ripoff? The ones available on Amazon didn't get the greatest reviews.

 

[SchwizzelKick66]

My cable for the headphones broke unfortunately broke today. A replacement from HIFIMAN is $120, which is basically highway robbery considering it probably cost them $5 to manufacture that flimsy piece of crap.

Does anyone here have any recommendations that aren't a complete and utter ripoff? The ones available on Amazon didn't get the greatest reviews.

This is actually the best thing that could have happened to you lol. The stock cable is possibly the worst cable I've ever used. It actually affects my enjoyment of the headphones haha.

Hart Audio cables. I just got a dual 3.5 mm cable with a 3.5mm interconnect from them a few days ago. Amazing build quality and premium feel. Ran me about $55.

Best part is that you can use their interconnects with any of their other cables, so if you like it (which you will), you can buy a cable from them for any other headphone you have and use it with the same interconnect.

I see absolutely no reason to buy elsewhere and spend any more than what Hart offers.

 

[JamminVMI]

This is actually the best thing that could have happened to you lol. The stock cable is possibly the worst cable I've ever used. It actually affects my enjoyment of the headphones haha.

Hart Audio cables. I just got a dual 3.5 mm cable with a 3.5mm interconnect from them a few days ago. Amazing build quality and premium feel. Ran me about $55.

Best part is that you can use their interconnects with any of their other cables, so if you like it (which you will), you can buy a cable from them for any other headphone you have and use it with the same interconnect.

I see absolutely no reason to buy elsewhere and spend any more than what Hart offers.

I also like the Hart ecosystem. Because of their modular style, I can inexpensively add another headphone, which is VERY convenient! Periapt cables in Wichita is also great. Both are in similar price ranges.

 

[hamcha]

My cable for the headphones broke unfortunately broke today. A replacement from HIFIMAN is $120, which is basically highway robbery considering it probably cost them $5 to manufacture that flimsy piece of crap.

Does anyone here have any recommendations that aren't a complete and utter ripoff? The ones available on Amazon didn't get the greatest reviews.

If you have some patience (3-4 weeks), I just received this cable from Lunashops/EachDIY. Of course, they are much nicer than Hifiman stock cables. I paid $40 for 3m cable with 3.5mm for the music source connector.

Variety of lengths. The cable is soft, pliable, looks nice, sounds nice (not much, if any, difference, between Hifiman stock cables), and not microphonic. FYI: to select music source connector use the "color" selection. They also have other cables materials/types.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000614744098.html?spm=a2g0s.12269583.0.0.35c06800fpg8cF

 

[Ficcion2]

My cable for the headphones broke unfortunately broke today. A replacement from HIFIMAN is $120, which is basically highway robbery considering it probably cost them $5 to manufacture that flimsy piece of crap.

Does anyone here have any recommendations that aren't a complete and utter ripoff? The ones available on Amazon didn't get the greatest reviews.

Just to throw in another option if youre located in the US.

https://www.audiophileninja.com has made me 3 balanced cables so far. I payed about $75 per cable and had them about 4 days later plugged into my gear.

 

[the1andonly]

I liked the Sundara a lot, was a hard thing to sell... then I picked up the Ananda for almost nothing over the sundara's price... it really does complete it a lot more, besides the tunings it gives you that extra bit of the resolution the Sundara is missing as well as imaging and stage size.... Sundara is fantastic since it keeps it's value but to the guys in here thinking the Ananda isn't a big enough upgrade like I used to think before I took a change... well I think the opposite now, the Sundara is like a appetizer

 

[Kammerat Rebekka]

^In the end it’s all about tastebuds. I’m glad you found what you were looking for in the Ananda.
Personally I’ve had both the Ananda and Arya drop by whilst owning the Sundara..and well the latter is the only one remaining in my collection. Both the Ananda and Arya have a larger dip in the uppermids as well as more treble prominance effectively making them sound brighter (more detailed?).
If anyone is into a more treble forward sound, it’s definitely the right way to go Hifiman-wise.
On the other hand; if you’re searching for the most neutral and realistic tuning found in a planar magnetic? The Sundara is the way forth (or the LCD5)

 

[the1andonly]

^In the end it’s all about tastebuds. I’m glad you found what you were looking for in the Ananda.
Personally I’ve had both the Ananda and Arya drop by whilst owning the Sundara..and well the latter is the only one remaining in my collection. Both the Ananda and Arya have a larger dip in the uppermids as well as more treble prominance effectively making them sound brighter (more detailed?).
If anyone is into a more treble forward sound, it’s definitely the right way to go Hifiman-wise.
On the other hand; if you’re searching for the most neutral and realistic tuning found in a planar magnetic? The Sundara is the way forth (or the LCD5)

agree with everything you said until this, IMO the Sundara and Ananda are on opposite sides of "perfect reproduction" that makes you feel like you aren't listening to any audio equipment but are actually there... I will say tone/timbre of Sundara is a closer to that "perfect" middle ground but it lacks in size of soundstage as well as staging which the Ananda absolutely nails near perfect as it gets, it also lacks a tad in detail and a good bit in resolution, while the Ananda may be on the opposite side of the line into supernatural territory there I do feel it's closer.... Tuning on the Ananada is still better, I am tempted to concede it is a tossup but on principle alone the lack of resolution, small lack of detail, and soundstage size/staging bothers me on the Sundara so I firmly insist to my ears it's the Ananada but I am going to concede for some people the mis-steps on the Ananda to "perfect reproduction" may bother some where the Sundara may not and takes it with tone/timbre... but what a pair the two are.... Legit I had an LCD-3 and LCD-X about half a decade old and as soon as I listened to it they were gone and I had ordered a new LCD-3...

I will note I shared your opinion when I had only tried the Sundara, and I thought it was too boring and sold it, but it was hard to do, the Ananada really scratched that itch the Sundara lacked which for me was mainly resolution but also stage size was hard coming from starting the hobby with Beyerdynamics and early on with the DT1990.

Having to decide between the two(and the Arya, if only I liked bright headphones... dat stealth tho...) is a good problem to have, Cheers my friend.