Really looking forward to your impressions.
If you could also compare the 109 to the Arya AE, at least briefly, it would make my day!
Thanks.
Meze Audio 109 Pro
- Thread starter Ichos
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If you could also compare the 109 to the Arya AE, at least briefly, it would make my day!
Thanks.
double post, sorry.
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Hey boys! Just purchased these and will providing some early impressions in a bit absed on my listening experience in store.
But I have to say that these may be the best value headphones on the market, even surpassing the HD 6xx...
But I have to say that these may be the best value headphones on the market, even surpassing the HD 6xx...
Yes , why not, I also have the Arya SE.Really looking forward to your impressions.
If you could also compare the 109 to the Arya SE, at least briefly, it would make my day!
Thanks.
fleo815
Head-Fier
Just spent a couple of hours with it and I would agree with what's already been said about them...supremely comfortable, really nice soundstage, powerful low end and treble that, on a couple of tracks, had me turn down the volume a bit..but I'm a little sensitive to hot treble so for most people it won't be an issue. To me, this is a well done, high end 'fun' headphone..reminds me a lot of the HP-3 but better soundstage and way more comfortable..if that's your bag, you'll love it.
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Okay guys! Here are my really impressions of these headphones after spending around an hour or so listening to them in a local shop and testing them against a few other headphones. I'll try to make these as concise as possible as I don't want to bore anyone and also I want to listen to these for some time at home without too much ambience around me. I'll have this organized first about I feel about the sound and how they compare to the other headphones I tested in the store.
1) Build & Comfort:
I figured I'd start here; I'll keep it short. The build is as expected by a Meze product at this point. Sturdy, feels extremely premium, and both the earpads and headband are comfortable. You'll have no issues wearing these for hours at a time.
2) Sound Signature:
These are tuned very similarly to the Meze Lirics that were released last year. Slightly V shaped with a strong Bass emphasis and elevated treble. What's interesting (as others have noted in this thread already) is that the highs are not fatiguing or shrill at all. The bass, although having a strong presence, isn't bloaty nor does it overpower the rest of the frequency spectrum. It's a deep bass that extends very deep into the subbass regions. Mids are slightly recessed, but still very present and pleasing to the ears. I personally went ahead and increased the mids a bit and lowered the treble as I prefer a slightly warmer signature, but even from the point where I put these headphones on, I was immediately wowed by the overall clarity and detailed these provide.
3) Soundstage:
This one is a bit interesting. So everything sounds large, similar to a Hifiman headphone or even the older siblings of these cans (the Empyreans and the Elites). The stage isn't super wide (I'd say somewhere between the Arya's and HD 650's), but the imaging in PRECISE. I think at this point Meze is known for the fantastic imaging that their headphones provide, but given the price on these cans, it's actually astonishing how well these place sounds in the mix in front of you.
4) Overall Impressions:
These cans are freaking amazing! I'm actually shocked Meze priced these at $800 retail - these honestly sound like headphones that are in the $2-3k range (which I will jump into more detail on below). When I went into my local shop to try these out, I had absolutely no intention in buying anything, but after spending the amount of time with these that I did, I knew I had to buy a pair. These are probably going to sell out very quickly, especially as more people get their hands on these and provide their own reviews/impressions. These may beat the 6xx's as the best value headphones on the market.
Comparisons:
I'll keep this section short and just provide an overall glance on how I feel these stack in terms of sound quality against the following headphones.
1) Meze Empyrean and Elite:
Not as warm as these two, but I found the bass to be very close in terms of quality between these two cans. Overall imo, the 109's are at the same level in terms of sound quality between these headphones (which really shocked me). Soundstage is wider on the Empyrean and Elite, but not by too large of a difference. Honestly, based on the time I had, I would recommend people wanting to get a Meze headphone to go with the 109's given how much cheaper they are to their siblings.
2) Meze Liric:
I mentioned this above in the sound signature section, but tuned very similarly. The soundstage on the Liric's are definitely wider, but I almost feel as if the imaging on the 109 is better (though I'd have to check this when I get more time with the cans at home). 109's have more bass, but honestly I think these two are very close to another in the sound category (although I may even give a edge to the 109's).
3) Focal Clear MG
The clears are much warmer with a more spherical soundstage. However, I actually found the 109's to be sound better, especially after some EQ'ing. Also, I found the 109's to be more comfortable, especially as a person with a small head
.
4) Focal Utopia 2022
This last comparison shocked me and is what made me decide to purchase the 109's today. So the Utopia's sound great, amazing actually. BUT, the 109's weren't too far behind IMO. The Utopia's did everything just a little bit better; slightly better punch, a slightly better bass response, slightly better staging and imaging, etc. The only area where I feel the Utopias pull further ahead is in resolution, but unfortunately it was hard for me to tell just how resolving the 109's were given that the shop wasn't completely silent. Also, at least for me, the Utopias hurt the top of my head. Again, due to my very small head, I couldn't get a comfortable seal with the earcups (which could contribute a bit to my impressions on the sound), whereas with the 109's, I didn't feel any discomfort at all.
Also, I tried the 2020 Utopias a couple months ago and those were much more comfortable for me to wear, so it's definitely a change Focal made with their headband designs to where I guess they tried to lower the clamp force.
Conclusion:
If you have $800 to spend on these cans and you're even SLIGHTLY interested, buy these. These are going to sell out very soon IMO and Meze may end up raising the price on these as demand continues to rise. Absolutely 10/10 based on my early impressions on these. Meze probably should have priced these somewhere around $2,500-$3,000 but I can't complain that they are not!
Edit: I forgot to mention that I will be comparing these with my LCD-5's tonight and tomorrow and I'll post how these compare to those cans in a quick follow-up post.
1) Build & Comfort:
I figured I'd start here; I'll keep it short. The build is as expected by a Meze product at this point. Sturdy, feels extremely premium, and both the earpads and headband are comfortable. You'll have no issues wearing these for hours at a time.
2) Sound Signature:
These are tuned very similarly to the Meze Lirics that were released last year. Slightly V shaped with a strong Bass emphasis and elevated treble. What's interesting (as others have noted in this thread already) is that the highs are not fatiguing or shrill at all. The bass, although having a strong presence, isn't bloaty nor does it overpower the rest of the frequency spectrum. It's a deep bass that extends very deep into the subbass regions. Mids are slightly recessed, but still very present and pleasing to the ears. I personally went ahead and increased the mids a bit and lowered the treble as I prefer a slightly warmer signature, but even from the point where I put these headphones on, I was immediately wowed by the overall clarity and detailed these provide.
3) Soundstage:
This one is a bit interesting. So everything sounds large, similar to a Hifiman headphone or even the older siblings of these cans (the Empyreans and the Elites). The stage isn't super wide (I'd say somewhere between the Arya's and HD 650's), but the imaging in PRECISE. I think at this point Meze is known for the fantastic imaging that their headphones provide, but given the price on these cans, it's actually astonishing how well these place sounds in the mix in front of you.
4) Overall Impressions:
These cans are freaking amazing! I'm actually shocked Meze priced these at $800 retail - these honestly sound like headphones that are in the $2-3k range (which I will jump into more detail on below). When I went into my local shop to try these out, I had absolutely no intention in buying anything, but after spending the amount of time with these that I did, I knew I had to buy a pair. These are probably going to sell out very quickly, especially as more people get their hands on these and provide their own reviews/impressions. These may beat the 6xx's as the best value headphones on the market.
Comparisons:
I'll keep this section short and just provide an overall glance on how I feel these stack in terms of sound quality against the following headphones.
1) Meze Empyrean and Elite:
Not as warm as these two, but I found the bass to be very close in terms of quality between these two cans. Overall imo, the 109's are at the same level in terms of sound quality between these headphones (which really shocked me). Soundstage is wider on the Empyrean and Elite, but not by too large of a difference. Honestly, based on the time I had, I would recommend people wanting to get a Meze headphone to go with the 109's given how much cheaper they are to their siblings.
2) Meze Liric:
I mentioned this above in the sound signature section, but tuned very similarly. The soundstage on the Liric's are definitely wider, but I almost feel as if the imaging on the 109 is better (though I'd have to check this when I get more time with the cans at home). 109's have more bass, but honestly I think these two are very close to another in the sound category (although I may even give a edge to the 109's).
3) Focal Clear MG
The clears are much warmer with a more spherical soundstage. However, I actually found the 109's to be sound better, especially after some EQ'ing. Also, I found the 109's to be more comfortable, especially as a person with a small head
.4) Focal Utopia 2022
This last comparison shocked me and is what made me decide to purchase the 109's today. So the Utopia's sound great, amazing actually. BUT, the 109's weren't too far behind IMO. The Utopia's did everything just a little bit better; slightly better punch, a slightly better bass response, slightly better staging and imaging, etc. The only area where I feel the Utopias pull further ahead is in resolution, but unfortunately it was hard for me to tell just how resolving the 109's were given that the shop wasn't completely silent. Also, at least for me, the Utopias hurt the top of my head. Again, due to my very small head, I couldn't get a comfortable seal with the earcups (which could contribute a bit to my impressions on the sound), whereas with the 109's, I didn't feel any discomfort at all.
Also, I tried the 2020 Utopias a couple months ago and those were much more comfortable for me to wear, so it's definitely a change Focal made with their headband designs to where I guess they tried to lower the clamp force.
Conclusion:
If you have $800 to spend on these cans and you're even SLIGHTLY interested, buy these. These are going to sell out very soon IMO and Meze may end up raising the price on these as demand continues to rise. Absolutely 10/10 based on my early impressions on these. Meze probably should have priced these somewhere around $2,500-$3,000 but I can't complain that they are not!
Edit: I forgot to mention that I will be comparing these with my LCD-5's tonight and tomorrow and I'll post how these compare to those cans in a quick follow-up post.
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Beagle
His body's not a canvas, and he wasn't raised by apes.
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Holy crap. I found the Clear MG quite bright and analytical. I guess these will shred my eardrums?
Haha, tbf with the 109, I applied a high shelf filter of -3 db at 3000 HZ, so I think you'll be fine with some light adjustments (I'm also pretty treble sensitive for what it's worth, and even with the default tuning, the treble of the 109's didn't bother me at all).
Sounds good, maybe they need some EQ in the treble for those that are sensitive, I'm waiting for a comparison between these and the Arya Stealth which I have at the top of my wish list.
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Death_Block
1000+ Head-Fier
Stop saying that!!
All brands should be making phones at reasonable prices
pk4425
500+ Head-Fier
Curious for any comparisons of the 109 Pro to the Edition XS and the LCD-X 2021 version. Thanks!
sebiambrus
100+ Head-Fier
how it compares to HD800 and utopia in resolution?
Resolve:
source: https://forum.headphones.com/t/meze-audio-109-pro-official-discussion-thread/18719/9
source: https://forum.headphones.com/t/meze-audio-109-pro-official-discussion-thread/18719/12
From my experience with the Meze Liric I can imagine, that the 109 is max at 500 USD Level at technical performance. The XS is at 500 USD. My experience with the Meze Liric was that in terms of build quality it was a 2000 USD headphone and in terms of technical performance a 500 USD headphone. Like the empys:
But thats only my impression of Meze in general and it depends on preference, because there is more than the technical performance.
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Mhog55
Headphoneus Supremus
I didn't find the MG bright or analytical per say, but I don't think I'd want something any brighter, nor more analytical. This thread is interesting as most are with different subjective opinions. I'm hearing "fun" from one crowd, and Hifiman type tuning from another. Hifiman tuning isn't really my bag, so I'm not at all sure that the 109 is going to be for me... Yet. They almost sound like they have some typical Audio Technica traits. I really was hoping for a much more sophisticated and mature version of the 99s in an open package. Don't like hearing that the mids are slightly recessed with elevated treble. No biggie, lots of other cans I still need to try. On a side note, my 99 Classics tend to slip upwards on my ears while in use. I believe it's from the headband strap being fairly tight and stiff. Same thing with the 109?
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