[SchwizzelKick66]

Hifiman's build quality is nothing to write home about, I think they have to improve in that area if they want to survive in the future.

It's crazy to me. I've never experienced such a dichotomy in sound and build. For headphones that sound so incredible, Hifiman build is just so sub par.

I could give them a pass for their early models having sub par build and bad headband designs, but they continue to propagate the same mistakes into all of their subsequent models. Their two headband designs border on laughable to me- the Sundara/Ananda headband is so rickety and don't seem to match with the rest of the headphone build. The XS/400se headband style is basic if not bordering on cheap, with little to no concern given to comfort or fit. And the egg earcups from Ananda/XS/etc are so big and they seemingly did not give a crap about fit when they designed them.

If hifiman could marry their sound quality with better build quality and design, they would really have something going. As it stands unless I see a significant change in their build and design, I don't think I can buy another hifiman unfortunately...

 

[IXOYE]

I have given up on Hifiman until they improve their build quality.

 

[Ichos]

I have given up on Hifiman until they improve their build quality.

I strongly doubt that.
Just look at the $2K Svanar cable.
For God's sake, this is the 2023, hello HiFiMan have you seen what the competition is offering?

 

[cirodts]

I have had the sundara for some time and I must say that both with my ibasso dx220 player, with my topping e30 dac and rupert neve amplifier it never sounds good, I put the sundara on sale, yesterday out of curiosity I tried it with my mobile lg v20 and the sundara sounds very very good is full-bodied and defined.
I would like to understand why Sundara is so picky with dacs and amplifiers?
Which dac or amplifier do you recommend to have a full-bodied and warm sound on sundara.

 

[tigon_ridge]

I have had the sundara for some time and I must say that both with my ibasso dx220 player, with my topping e30 dac and rupert neve amplifier it never sounds good, I put the sundara on sale, yesterday out of curiosity I tried it with my mobile lg v20 and the sundara sounds very very good is full-bodied and defined.
I would like to understand why Sundara is so picky with dacs and amplifiers?
Which dac or amplifier do you recommend to have a full-bodied and warm sound on sundara.

I never thought the Sundara didn't sound good, but I had a similar revelation going from analytical amps to the Crown XLS 1502, which gave the Sundara exactly what you described: full-bodied, warm sound. In my opinion, the Sundara may be one of the warmest Hifiman offerings, which doesn't say much, because Hifiman planars almost always sound analytical/dry, and bright to me. Being the warmest of the bunch just means it's one of the least analytical, but it can still be pretty analytical with many dacs and amps. The XLS is so smooth that it gives the Sundara just enough warmth and smoothness to sound very rich and musical, without going overboard and sounding slow and muddy. It's just a perfect balance of a natural, accurate sound. I rigged up a couple resistors (110 ohms per channel) on the output to eliminate the noise floor. This combo has me so spoiled, unfortunately, because I now can't imagine how I would upgrade from this setup without spending serious coin. Audeze planars tend to be quite rich and thick, and they don't have the Sundara's bass rolloff, but they also can be too rich (in more than one sense of the word 'cos they also cost a pretty penny). My EQ fixes the rolloff, as a powerful amp offers such headroom. This combo is <$800, and it is imo the sickest deal in this hobby at this moment. I'm still gushing over it months after my review of it.

 

[cirodts]

I never thought the Sundara didn't sound good, but I had a similar revelation going from analytical amps to the Crown XLS 1502, which gave the Sundara exactly what you described: full-bodied, warm sound. In my opinion, the Sundara may be one of the warmest Hifiman offerings, which doesn't say much, because Hifiman planars almost always sound analytical/dry, and bright to me. Being the warmest of the bunch just means it's one of the least analytical, but it can still be pretty analytical with many dacs and amps. The XLS is so smooth that it gives the Sundara just enough warmth and smoothness to sound very rich and musical, without going overboard and sounding slow and muddy. It's just a perfect balance of a natural, accurate sound. I rigged up a couple resistors (110 ohms per channel) on the output to eliminate the noise floor. This combo has me so spoiled, unfortunately, because I now can't imagine how I would upgrade from this setup without spending serious coin. Audeze planars tend to be quite rich and thick, and they don't have the Sundara's bass rolloff, but they also can be too rich (in more than one sense of the word 'cos they also cost a pretty penny). My EQ fixes the rolloff, as a powerful amp offers such headroom. This combo is <$800, and it is imo the sickest deal in this hobby at this moment. I'm still gushing over it months after my review of it.

Hello, but the Crown XLS 1502 is a speaker amplifier and not a headphone amplifier.

 

[tigon_ridge]

Hello, but the Crown XLS 1502 is a speaker amplifier and not a headphone amplifier.

Indeed. You need an adapter for the output connectors. A power headphone amplifier can power many efficient speakers to reasonable loudness, with the right adapter; and a speaker amp can power inefficient headphones with the right adapter. It's not too complicated to make the adapter yourself. Efficient headphones will have too much background noise with the XLS. The Sundara + XLS has a fair bit of noise, which I eliminated by incorporating power resistors into my DIY adapter.

 

[cirodts]

thanks, link me speaker out to headphone out adapter

 

[tigon_ridge]

thanks, link me speaker out to headphone out adapter

They're very hard to find. That's why everyone who tries to power their HE-6 with a speaker amp just builds their own. I think this is because the demand is too low, plus the fact that many have destroyed their headphones when turning on/off their speaker amp. I have not had this problem with my XLS. There is no loud clicks/pops when powering on/off, either.

 

[cirodts]

other than these sundara amps, which schiit can you recommend?

 

[JamminVMI]

other than these sundara amps, which schiit can you recommend?

I use sundara with Lyr 3 and Asgard 3, one on main rig, other in my office. I prefer Lyr, but that’s me. Jotunheim 2 also has the current to make them sing, but I’m just not fond of Jot2. Need to get it in classifieds.

 

[Trebor1966]

Sundara Silver Edition will be soon available:
https://www.thomann.de/be/hifiman_sundara.htm
https://www.sieveking-sound.de/hifiman-sundara-silver.html

 

[gonzalo1004es]

Hi! The Spanish distributor (where I’m located) offers three different pads for Sundara: FocusPad, FocusPad-A & Palipad. Anybody knows which is the current stock pads for Sundara? Thanks!

 

[Trebor1966]

Hi! The Spanish distributor (where I’m located) offers three different pads for Sundara: FocusPad, FocusPad-A & Palipad. Anybody knows which is the current stock pads for Sundara? Thanks!

Palipad

 

[gonzalo1004es]

Palipad

Thanks!