[Neweymatt]

Well... that didn't last long. I went ahead and ordered the pads. Should be fun to listen to everything again and compare with the other pads. I figured that regardless of what people say I will be too curious to hear them myself.

I have 0 plans getting any other headphones unless there's some miracle headphones for less than $1k that would be better than the Empys. Short of spending a thousand or more, I'm also done with equipment (amp, dac, cables, etc) so I'm at that point where I'm enjoying my set-up but once in a while I get the itch to want to try something new.



You have a ton of posts there so it was hard to find haha. I've read the Elite reviews and based on that I'm still probably an OG Empy person since I'd prefer a bit more fun sound than neutral. Would you say that the sound of the hybrid pads on OG Empy is in between of the leather and Alcantara pads?

I hear you bro, I get a little bit of vertigo when I think back on the gear I’ve purchased over the last 15 months, which is just about all of it.

In some ways I guess it's fitting that the Empyrean was my last purchase, saved the best for last. Other than a few accessories here and there, it will stay that way for a while.

 

[Newsee]

I hear you bro, I get a little bit of vertigo when I think back on the gear I’ve purchased over the last 15 months, which is just about all of it.

In some ways I guess it's fitting that the Empyrean was my last purchase, saved the best for last. Other than a few accessories here and there, it will stay that way for a while.

It was quite a jump this last purchase, congratulations. Have fun!

 

[Fife]

Agreed, when I had the Empyrean’s in house I thought the Hugo2 was an excellent match for them. The Hugo2 injected some liveliness and detail into the Empyrean’s that counteracted their warm nature.

H2 and Empyrean is a great combo for around the house.

 

[MichalZZZZ]

A few photos of my Meze Empyrean

 

[vcoheda]

excellent pics. i have the black copper empyrean as well. think it is really a very nice looking headphone.

 

[MichalZZZZ]

Thank you. In my opinion, one of the most beautiful headphones

 

[branislav]

Thank you. In my opinion, one of the most beautiful headphones

Nicer than the Elite version...

 

[MichalZZZZ]

Nicer than the Elite version...

I agree

 

[frix]

stunning pictures. This headphone is such a looker.

 

[Noobzilla]

Elite hybrid pads arriving today. Very excited to try them with the OG Empys!

 

[heliosphann]

Nicer than the Elite version...

Yea, I was pretty surprised they didn't go all out on the Elite version. Rather plain looking IMO.

 

[Noobzilla]

My first impression with the hybrid is I feel like the headphones might fall off my head though it really wont. The thinner pads cause the headphones to not clamp as well on the sides as the leather and alcantara pads so for non listening sessions I will may default back to the leather pads. Don't get me wrong the hybrid pads and fitting are still very comfortable overall (8.75/10) but just not as perfect fit (10/10) as the other two pads.

main equipment (can check my profile for the rest of the chain):
RME ADI-2 DAC FS + Headamp GS-X Mini

I mostly listen to instrumentals, video game sound tracks, movie/film scores
Sometimes alternative rock and pop

I tested the pads both with and without my ridic bass boost (I toned it down by 1 so it's +7 instead of +8). I do love my bass so I'm not going to apologize if my EQ offends anyone Regarding volume levels, switching from leather I typically had to raise the volume one notch higher when using alcantara and one notch lower when using the hybrid. Volume-wise, the leather pads sits in the middle. I try to keep the volumes constant but sometimes the volume can be too loud on the hybrid or too soft on the alcantara so I just adjust the volume to whatever levels I think would bring out the best from each of the pads.

I'm not the best at verbal description but here are my observations

leather - warmer, bassy, bass gets trapped inside a bit longer which can sometimes drown out some details, most fun overall
alcantara - brighter, more detailed, bass region losses weight which makes some instruments sound too thin, best for finding micro details
hybrid - bass dissipates faster but still retains that strong initial kick, tighter bass, a bit more detailed than the leather, middle-ground between the other pads but not as comfortable

For fun and rocking out I still prefer the leather.
Tbh not very fond of the alcantara but it does have its uses.
For overall listening I prefer the hybrids and will be using these pads most often moving forward.

 

[ThanatosVI]

My first impression with the hybrid is I feel like the headphones might fall off my head though it really wont. The thinner pads cause the headphones to not clamp as well on the sides as the leather and alcantara pads so for non listening sessions I will may default back to the leather pads. Don't get me wrong the hybrid pads and fitting are still very comfortable overall (8.75/10) but just not as perfect fit (10/10) as the other two pads.

main equipment (can check my profile for the rest of the chain):
RME ADI-2 DAC FS + Headamp GS-X Mini

I mostly listen to instrumentals, video game sound tracks, movie/film scores
Sometimes alternative rock and pop

I tested the pads both with and without my ridic bass boost (I toned it down by 1 so it's +7 instead of +8). I do love my bass so I'm not going to apologize if my EQ offends anyone Regarding volume levels, switching from leather I typically had to raise the volume one notch higher when using alcantara and one notch lower when using the hybrid. Volume-wise, the leather pads sits in the middle. I try to keep the volumes constant but sometimes the volume can be too loud on the hybrid or too soft on the alcantara so I just adjust the volume to whatever levels I think would bring out the best from each of the pads.

I'm not the best at verbal description but here are my observations

leather - warmer, bassy, bass gets trapped inside a bit longer which can sometimes drown out some details, most fun overall
alcantara - brighter, more detailed, bass region losses weight which makes some instruments sound too thin, best for finding micro details
hybrid - bass dissipates faster but still retains that strong initial kick, tighter bass, a bit more detailed than the leather, middle-ground between the other pads but not as comfortable

For fun and rocking out I still prefer the leather.
Tbh not very fond of the alcantara but it does have its uses.
For overall listening I prefer the hybrids and will be using these pads most often moving forward.

Very interesting, hope I can test it myself soon.

Also nice Bass EQ!

 

[ayang02]

I hope Meze will make hybrid pads for the OG Empyrean. I thought I remember some people here comparing the vegan vs real leather pads, did more folks get to compare the two?

 

[ThanatosVI]

I hope Meze will make hybrid pads for the OG Empyrean. I thought I remember some people here comparing the vegan vs real leather pads, did more folks get to compare the two?

The Hybrid pads work for the Empyrean as well.