[Ichos]

The Empyrean is equally if not more detailed than the Arya.
IMO the Empyrean's advantage over all the above mentioned headphones is the 'lifelikeness' which is a true flagship quality.

And the latter seems to be forgotten in the TOTL realm...

 

[Dalmonegrig]

However, i'm a little confused. I find some consensus about the Empyreans being overpriced in terms of sound and technicalities (lot of people saying that apart from their excellent build quality and comfort they are more comparable to 1.5k headphones) while the Arya's performance is normally described as above their price.

The cost Empyrean ($ 3,000) matches the sound quality, comfort and build quality. I have not heard any cheaper headphones that can outperform Empyrean.
In terms of sound, I didn't like Arya at all.

¿Which one do you think that will be a more natural upgrade for my Audeze? ¿Is the Empyrean a step up considering i'll have to pay about 400 € more?

Empyrean is better than the Audeze LCD2 Classic in every way. This is definitely a big leap.

I'll move them with a topping A30 pro and Lotoo PAW 6000, and, as a reference, my iems are Campfire Atlas and Sennheiser IE800 which i both enjoy much despite their respective faults.

Empyreans scale well, the better the hardware in your system, the better they are revealed.

Thank you in advance for your answers, i can't audition them and for me it's a lot of money, so i need external opinions!!

If you get the chance, it's best to listen to them. You have to understand, you need great hardware to revealed Empyrean. I already had to invest about $ 3,000 in the equipment and this is not the end. In order to get the maximum, I need about $ 1,000 more. But, already now I hear a great sound.
Look at my equipment.

Perhaps this will help you.

 

[Chris Kaoss]

And the latter seems to be forgotten in the TOTL realm...

This is what I'm thinking too.
Hunting for the next big outstanding thing by sacrificing the, maybe, one truth of music listening.
But at the other hand, whatever keeps you enjoying listen to music, still do it.

When I be able to get the Empy and couple it with the R28, call it a day and I'll be done. ^^

 

[pirex]

what i could find in the LCD X?. Accepting that the Empyrean are less spacious and detailed than the Arya, do you think that will they show a better resolution and soundstage than the Audezes?

I just tried Audeze LCD-X 2021 and Meze Empyrean. It is incomparable. Empyrean is two shelves above. There is space, there is a stage, there is detail, but most importantly it is a very natural sound, unlike the LCD-X, which sound unnatural to me. My only problem is that I can't afford it

 

[Deolum]

Thank you very much for your generous answer. I also asked in the Arya forum and for the moment i'm finding some consensus about it's low response. I think i'm going to discard the Arya. Really helpful.

LCD MX4 (which are possible to find around 1500 and are supposed to be a better version of the LCD X) were also on my radar, could be the third option, but i'm understanding reading all kind of reviews that the Empyreans will offer me more spaciousness and more natural treble performance. Am i right, will i find a more spacious stage listening to Empyreans than what i found in my LCD2 or what i could find in the LCD X?. Accepting that the Empyrean are less spacious and detailed than the Arya, do you think that will they show a better resolution and soundstage than the Audezes?

Whats most special about the Empys is maybe that the soundstage starts way away from your head so you have always some distance between you and your sound. Layering is not that special though. It sounds lifelike for a planar but still not as lifelike as cheaper dynamic headphones but is easy to drive and a good allrounder. It has nothing it can't do and if you buy it you have to accept that you don't have the best possible sound at all but maybe you just like it. Unlike others i don't think that it "scales" well the only thing you have to look for is that you have a synergy that fits for you.

 

[xoxiax]

Well, well, well, thank you very much to all for so many and diverse opinions!

You made it, or maybe i listened what i wanted to hear, whatever happened in my neurotic consumerist process i just pulled the trigger and payed for an excellent offer (in fact, the only one i could afford), so i'll be soon joining the Empyrean club. For my personal tastes they look pretentiously ugly with that techie futurist design, but i wouldn't mind wearing a couple of dead rats if they could provide me an immersive experience getting lost in my music.

At the end, for me is all about that, music, and your debate and divergencies about lifelike sound reaffirmed me in my search of an excellent "singer" vs an excellent sound reproducer (being both Meze and Arya, for sure, very good at the other's strenghts). Aryas, Empyreans, Lcds, etc. could be considered emulators that try to evoke a space with specific conditions (size, air, reverberation...from the studio to the church, from the garage to the stadium...) where music flies. I appreciate the ability to emulate it, obviously, but the privilege in my priorities goes to music itself. Some of my most emotive memories listening to music where produced by a tiny old radio listening on the forest to Coltrane's "Naima", wandering in the park completely stoned with cheap earbuds while losing myself in Boards of Canada's stuff or raving with The Stooges through the distorted sound of my old cassette player. It always was about their artistic expression and my personal situations when exposed to ir, not about sound.

Ultimately i've been pondering about my relation with music and i see clear that the more i invest in equipment the more i lose that connection focusing my attention in sound above music itself. I suppose that some of you will agree. So i'm really hoping to find an equipment with the virtue of being capable of disappearing from the equation and just route my attention to the emotions expressed by the artist. When i read foreign authors, the best translations for me are the ones that i can't notice and let me dive in the narration. So i hope the Empyreans can be that kind of good translator, not centered in precision but in reproducing the best conditions to focus in the story you're being told. It looks like a coherent aim in this hysteric audiophile search we all share, don't you think?

And well, a little bit long, my apologies, but that's the reflection that you aroused in me. Or maybe i just needed to compensate my materialistic impulse with some ethereal thoughts... In any case, thanks!!

 

[Neweymatt]

So i hope the Empyreans can be that kind of good translator, not centered in precision but in reproducing the best conditions to focus in the story you're being told. It looks like a coherent aim in this hysteric audiophile search we all share, don't you think?

Yes, I do think! If Boards of Canada are a benchmark for you, then I reckon you'll be very happy with your purchase.

I bought my pair blind without auditioning anything else in the relative price range, based purely on what I've learned to be my own preferences through existing gear and comparisons/reviews that I trust. I might otherwise have taken the time wait and listen to a few others, maybe a RAD-0 or a DCA Ether2, but getting them second-hand locally was something I did not want to pass up.

I could care less if the Empyrean is a 'perfect' re-producer of music; what I care about is engagement and getting completely lost in music. This, to me, is the magic of this headphone. I've had them 2 weeks now, and I feel I've got a bit of a bargain on them at the second-hand price paid, they give me exactly what I want out of listening to music.

 

[pirex]

@Neweymatt
Have you tried Meze Empyrean on Asgard 3 and Bifrost 2? what with synergy, isn't that too warm sound? Do you think it would be better to combine it with something more neutral and analytical?

 

[vinceluth]

Nice

 

[Neweymatt]

Have you tried Meze Empyrean on Asgard 3 and Bifrost 2? what with synergy, isn't that too warm sound?

Yes, conceivably it could be, but I don't use the Schiit that way. Rather I've got the BF2/Jot2 on my desk, and using Silver Dragon XLR cable with the Empyrean; I've installed the new ESS DAC card in the Asgard3, and it's used elsewhere in the house.

The extra punch from the jot2 balanced output, coupled with the somewhat brighter silver cable works very well in combination with the warmer BF2 and Empyrean; I'm also using the alcantara pads, I like the bit of additional stage width you get with those. It's hard to do direct comparisons, as the cables are different, but if I use the SE cable that came with my LCD-2C on the Empy instead, the SE out from the Jot2 is much softer, more 'wooly'; not terrible, but in most ways inferior to the balanced out. The Asgard3/ESS DAC however is definitely brighter and a nice listen in it's own right, although I've mostly been using other headphones/IEMs with that.

So yeah, synergy is definitely important to get right for your own tastes. I'm still exploring a lot of this, so having a variety of gear to mess around with is pretty good fun.

 

[yagislav]

Do you guys find more sub-bass with the leather pads or the suede ones? It's funny because I used to feel there is more sub-bass with the leather pads but these days I feel there is more with the suede ones!

 

[bagwell359]

I just tried Audeze LCD-X 2021 and Meze Empyrean. It is incomparable. Empyrean is two shelves above. There is space, there is a stage, there is detail, but most importantly it is a very natural sound, unlike the LCD-X, which sound unnatural to me. My only problem is that I can't afford it

Comparing the Emp to any LCD-2 is like comparing a BMW M5 to a Chrysler 200. It's not even worth a mention. The tuning on the Arya needs an EQ to get it near correct. Again not a useful compare.

That being said, the HE-6se v2 at $599 is a lot closer - not as good, but value wise? In my close testing about 6 months ago I had the Susvara, LCD-4, and HEK se (w/ EQ) outpointing the Emp, but the Emp wa by no means embarrassed.. The E2 with EQ is also worth mentioning.

 

[pirex]

I am currently using Ananda on an Asgard 3, the sound is too dry for my taste, I miss some body and a little more bass. I considered replacing it with the Edition X V2, but I don't want to lose resolution and air and I'm not sure if it would be a good choice and if the difference would be enough. When I completely accidentally listened to Meze Empyrean, my jaw dropped, this is it !!! . At the moment, the only problem is a thin wallet. My search goes in that direction, but at the moment it has to be a budget solution, any suggestions are welcome

 

[ThanatosVI]

I am currently using Ananda on an Asgard 3, the sound is too dry for my taste, I miss some body and a little more bass. I considered replacing it with the Edition X V2, but I don't want to lose resolution and air and I'm not sure if it would be a good choice and if the difference would be enough. When I completely accidentally listened to Meze Empyrean, my jaw dropped, this is it !!! . At the moment, the only problem is a thin wallet. My search goes in that direction, but at the moment it has to be a budget solution, any suggestions are welcome

Especially now there are quite a few used ones available for 1800 - 2200.

 

[lucasratmundo]

I'm selling my Empyrean Copper in the UK, if anyone is interested