[LCMusicLover]

100% agree, I don't know many headphones as divisive as the Empy, well besides Abyss.

Agree that Empy are really divisive regarding their sound. Lots of that around brands which have had QC and Customer Service issues (Audeze and Hifiman come to mind immediately). But when the discussion is strictly about sound quality, I can't come up with another set of cans for which opinions are more polarized.

 

[Hoegaardener70]

Agree that Empy are really divisive regarding their sound. Lots of that around brands which have had QC and Customer Service issues (Audeze and Hifiman come to mind immediately). But when the discussion is strictly about sound quality, I can't come up with another set of cans for which opinions are more polarized.

Yes, and the criticism is very harsh as well. Some people dislike e.g. the Utopia signature but still respect its technical capability. The Empy critics do not only dislike its tuning, they even claim it is technically subpar. I am always astonished about this when listening to my Empy

 

[betula]

100% agree, I don't know many headphones as divisive as the Empy, well besides Abyss.

To my experience pretty much all headphones are divisive. Some will love them, some will hate them, just like with everything else in life. During the years I have seen lovers/haters of the LCD4, HE1000SE/Arya, Audeze in general, Focal in general (Utopia, Clear), ZMF headphones including Verité and lately even the Susvara.

Especially when it comes to flagship headphones, we must be aware that sonic taste depends on many factors and it varies a lot. Pretty much any average person on the street would listen to any of the above mentioned headphones could experience a sonic revelation or epiphany. Us, headphone connoisseurs are very picky and we all have our own refined taste. That is why it is important how we phrase our opinion.

How many people on Earth even had a chance to listen to the Empyrean for example? Probably the population of a bigger village. And only a fraction of those are here on the forums.

 

[Ichos]

That's the problem, with empyrean you hear lots of different opinions, some didn't liked them, some loved them, so more opinions will be welcome on elites.

I can only vouch for my impressions.

Most opinions are rushed and not in depth.
I am very patient, I could have already reviewed them but I am waiting.
To properly burn them, grow on me, listen on the long run, test with a variety of gear.
Till now they certainly deserve the flagship status and surely not for the tons of boring and highly disturbing detail retrieval that most people associate with flagship headphones.
There is a lot more than that.
In my opinion of course....

 

[jlbrach]

100% agree, I don't know many headphones as divisive as the Empy, well besides Abyss.

abyss aint divisive,pretty much unanimous in terms of praise

 

[Hoegaardener70]

abyss aint divisive,pretty much unanimous in terms of praise

Not really - think Resolve Audio / Andrew (Diana in particular), Crinnacle to name a few. Anyway, you know I like both the Empy and TC, just wanted to give an example.

 

[rangerid]

Not really - think Resolve Audio / Andrew (Diana in particular), Crinnacle to name a few. Anyway, you know I like both the Empy and TC, just wanted to give an example.

I like Resolve, he prefers Susvara than TC and I can see why, it's a closely Harman tuned headphone and it sounds good just on about anything, yes it requires globs of power but isn't too source picky. I wasn't too fond of TC when I first heard it and IME even tho Susvara is harder to drive, I found TC to be more source dependent and I greatly prefer it on Tubes vs just solid state amps. Much of what Andrew complained about with the TCs tuning and the mids/vocals is easily remedied with a tube amp/pre

As for Crinnacle, his opinions on over ear headphone are worthless as he states he doesn't even use them, just listens for a few minutes, take some measurements and publishes his 'graphs' and calls it a day, reminds me of ASR...

 

[enb141]

abyss aint divisive,pretty much unanimous in terms of praise

I have to disagree, they probably have a pretty good sound, but they look as torture devices, and also are heavier and less confortable than Empyrean/Elite. Also they are less efficient than Empyreans/Elite too.

 

[jlbrach]

correct on both counts...they require a powerful amp and arent as comfortable but they are dramatically better in terms of sound

 

[enb141]

correct on both counts...they require a powerful amp and arent as comfortable but they are dramatically better in terms of sound

At those price points, at least they shouldn't be that ugly, of the High End headphones, Abbys are the worst looking ones. Also those need a perfect seal, if you have a little "hole" in the earpads they will touch the magnets and create noise.

 

[jlbrach]

actually the frame is able to be manipulated in order to change the sound signature...it is quite comfortable when adjusted properly and incredibly well made...it is a special HP and requires more effort but again night and day in terms of sound

 

[JLoud]

I think they look nice in a Industrial way. Also no comfort issues for me( listening to them as I type). Not sure what a perfect seal is. Mine don't seal at all. I can adjust "porting" to sound preference. But everyone likes what they like.

 

[enb141]

actually the frame is able to be manipulated in order to change the sound signature...it is quite comfortable when adjusted properly and incredibly well made...it is a special HP and requires more effort but again night and day in terms of sound

Yes is adjustable, but still looks ugly to many of us, and I doubt it as confortable as Z1R, Elite or Empyrean.

I think they look nice in a Industrial way. Also no comfort issues for me( listening to them as I type). Not sure what a perfect seal is. Mine don't seal at all. I can adjust "porting" to sound preference. But everyone likes what they like.

I know lots of people that hate them because they look like a medieval torture device.

The minority of people like how abyss headphones look, the majority wont complain about sound but the looks and the amp requirement is the real problem with abyss.

 

[paradoxper]

At those price points, at least they shouldn't be that ugly, of the High End headphones, Abbys are the worst looking ones. Also those need a perfect seal, if you have a little "hole" in the earpads they will touch the magnets and create noise.

This is just silly You have zero clue what you are talking about which is very problematic.

 

[ThanatosVI]

abyss aint divisive,pretty much unanimous in terms of praise

Actually they receiced also a lot of flak earlier.
Even though rarely about the sound.

Things like,
- fit on the head Is hard to get right (apparently this was improved with a Revision?)
- Butt ugly
- Weak midrange (the only Bad thing about sound but was claimed quite often)
- measures horrible (lol who cares)