[ThanatosVI]

Meze Audio elite Dark version 50 pcs

I own that one, worth every Cent!

 

[IZONE]

Since I am a relatively poor (budget audiophile) compared to most of the members of the threads I am following, take my opinion with a grain of salt. My current financial situation does not allow me to keep 10 or even 5 flagship headphones. If I could of course I would.

The Empyrean was my first high-end love. Not just because of the improved technicalities and lifelikeness above other usual 500-1500$ headphones but because of its unique (warm, natural) sound presentation (and industry standard design/build).

I love the Empy's soft, sweet and easy listening sound to date. If I could afford to keep a stable of high-end headphones, they would definitely stay. But the more TOTL headphones I try the more I can see the Empy's as flavour/mood/easy listening cans when it comes to comparing them to similarly priced high-end headphones.

While I still immensely enjoy my Empyrean for its smooth and soft presentation, I simply can't ignore the fact that my D8000 (with the D8kpro pads and XLR cable) sound tighter, more accurate, more balanced and more detailed while almost equally warm and perhaps even more fun (to me personally).

As I said, if I was a millionaire I would keep the Empys forever for certain moods. I love it's bigger soundstage, soft and rounded sound, even though details, definition and accuracy is lost compared to other similarly priced flagships.

I personally love a punchier and more defined, more accurate presentation with my type of music (modern with plenty of bass) so I actually enjoy the D8K's enhanced dynamics, clarity and bass impact a little more than the Empy's extra bass quantity but lesser refinement. (I prefer Audeze bass to HiFiMan bass.)

That said, if I sell my Empyrean I will always miss them. Until I can comfortably afford several flagships I guess.
The Empyrean offers a very comfortable, seductive and warm sound, but these Romanian engineering marvel is slightly further away from what I would call 'accurate', 'dynamic' and 'balanced' when it comes to comparisons to other 2-4K headphones. Raw facts as they are. Still the Empyreans are perhaps the most engaging headphones I have ever heard. The D8K conveys more information and allows a deeper/clearer insight into the sound stage.

Go on your journey my brother. Travel the paths until you come back to the Empyrean some day sometimes the journey makes us appreciate the final destination more. Chasing details is something we all do at one point or another. For sure the D8K Pro has more details than the Empy and better transient response, which are "technicalities" most people are talking about. LCD-4Z has more technicalities but the LCD-3 has some strong magic inside. We all keep learning and moving closer to our perfect sound.

Funny thing is the Empy is so magical I hesitate to buy the Elites as I cannot imagine Meze hitting the jackpot twice. My current invalidated theory is that most of it was by design but along the way something magical happened when making the Empys. IMHO of course. It could also be that my ears / shape of my ear canals / the current gear I have and the music is creating some sort of special synergy as some people seem to really hate the Empys which baffles me to no end LOL. To those who hate the Empys I say instead of focusing on leading edge of transients and decay just listen to your music - the magic is there!

 

[betula]

Go on your journey my brother................ I say instead of focusing on leading edge of transients and decay just listen to your music - the magic is there!

Thanks.
In a way I agree with you, but which headphones would you choose from your stable if you could only keep one?

The Empy's indeed have a unique musical tone, but then on other headphones you own, the insight to soundstage is definitely clearer resulting in better instrument separation, enhanced details and a clearer sense of space.

Sure I can really enjoy the Empy's musicality but I also enjoy a sharper representation/picture. It is like a HD monitor with a super satisfying warm colour scheme versus a 4K screen which can be warmer or colder depending on what other flagship headphones we are comparing the Empy to.

I think most people dedicated to this hobby enjoy two things: music and the high level of technical reproduction (fidelity). All of us however value these two things differently. It is like a scale from a very musical point to a very 'technical' point. The same way you can place headphones on this scale you could also place audiophiles. We like and seek these two qualities to different extent.

IMO the journey is about to find your ideal headphone match on this scale according to your personal preference of balance between 'musicality' and 'technicalities'.
Good for you if you can keep more than one TOTL interpretations of 'the best' sound (since every manufacturer say they are the best).

This preference can also change slightly by mood and by time, but I think there is a main line of preference for each of us. An Audeze fan will never become a Beyer/Grado worshiper and vice versa. Having many options for your personal preference is a luxury even in this hobby.

But hey, a five thousand £$€ headphone system with one flagship headphone is already a luxury, isn't it?

 

[ThanatosVI]

which headphones would you choose from your stable if you could only keep one?

The Meze Elite!

Fortunately I can afford several of these flagships. The Solitaire P beats the Elite in fidelity and all the technical stuff, while the Empyrean beats the Elite in musicality.

However the Elite gets me like 80% of both combined with ultra comfort and the possibility do be driven from basically anything.

If I could get only one headphone and had strong Budget limits, it would definitely be the Meze Elite.

 

[Ichos]

The Meze Elite!

Fortunately I can afford several of these flagships. The Solitaire P beats the Elite in fidelity and all the technical stuff, while the Empyrean beats the Elite in musicality.

However the Elite gets me like 80% of both combined with ultra comfort and the possibility do be driven from basically anything.

If I could get only one headphone and had strong Budget limits, it would definitely be the Meze Elite.

Hey, talking to me?
How do you know?

 

[betula]

The Meze Elite!

Fortunately I can afford several of these flagships. The Solitaire P beats the Elite in fidelity and all the technical stuff, while the Empyrean beats the Elite in musicality.

However the Elite gets me like 80% of both combined with ultra comfort and the possibility do be driven from basically anything.

If I could get only one headphone and had strong Budget limits, it would definitely be the Meze Elite.

To me this comment is very helpful and increases my interest in the Elite.
Any chance you could compare the Elite to D8K/D8Kpro?

 

[ThanatosVI]

To me this comment is very helpful and increases my interest in the Elite.
Any chance you could compare the Elite to D8K/D8Kpro?

If you send me yours I'll gladly compare them

 

[betula]

If you send me yours I'll gladly compare them

I guess I could swap them for the Elite for a couple of weeks.

 

[ThanatosVI]

I guess I could swap them for the Elite for a couple of weeks.

Which would make the comparison difficult ...

 

[IZONE]

Thanks.
In a way I agree with you, but which headphones would you choose from your stable if you could only keep one?

The Empy's indeed have a unique musical tone, but then on other headphones you own, the insight to soundstage is definitely clearer resulting in better instrument separation, enhanced details and a clearer sense of space.

Sure I can really enjoy the Empy's musicality but I also enjoy a sharper representation/picture. It is like a HD monitor with a super satisfying warm colour scheme versus a 4K screen which can be warmer or colder depending on what other flagship headphones we are comparing the Empy to.

I think most people dedicated to this hobby enjoy two things: music and the high level of technical reproduction (fidelity). All of us however value these two things differently. It is like a scale from a very musical point to a very 'technical' point. The same way you can place headphones on this scale you could also place audiophiles. We like and seek these two qualities to different extent.

IMO the journey is about to find your ideal headphone match on this scale according to your personal preference of balance between 'musicality' and 'technicalities'.
Good for you if you can keep more than one TOTL interpretations of 'the best' sound (since every manufacturer say they are the best).

This preference can also change slightly by mood and by time, but I think there is a main line of preference for each of us. An Audeze fan will never become a Beyer/Grado worshiper and vice versa. Having many options for your personal preference is a luxury even in this hobby.

But hey, a five thousand £$€ headphone system with one flagship headphone is already a luxury, isn't it?

For sure we are all living in luxury. First world problems. Ten years ago I had to sell cherry-picked unicorn LCD-2.1 R2 which I loved dearly due to financial difficulties and many headphones, watches after that as I faced ups and downs in my life. I'm always grateful for the position I'm in now where I can comfortably keep so many nice headphones without sweating... although I should shrink my collection just a bit for practical purposes. It makes no sense to have a more than ten headphone rotation... if I keep going like this I'm going to hit 20 soon LOL (I have a brand new Susvara incoming )

As for the one headphone I would keep... if I figure out the answer for that then I would be a happy man. So far in my journey I already went chasing for resolution/details and also was a timbre head, soundstage/imaging head, transient speed/decay head etc. etc.. Now I'm at enjoyment of music and emotional attachment. Does it get me "there"? Am I tearing up? If my heart is beating fast and I'm tearing up then I'm there. Tonight it's the LCD-3 2021 with the new pads singing like an angel making me forget the Empys... at least for one night

For whatever it's worth Empys would be one of the last few remaining if I had to start selling due to financial difficulties. Not sure if it will be the very last one but it's up there with the last few. This is why the Elite is intriguing but at the same time I don't need more details as I have other headphones that are more resolving/detailed. The Empys "get me there" quite often which makes me happy all from a pretty humble set up of Qutest/Singxer SA-1. I'm looking at a lot of upgrades for sources and amps. WA33 / Soloist GT / TT2/MScaler / Yggy... hopefully not a Dave... surely I don't need to spend that much haha

Okay Audeze midrange cream fest is calling me like sirens need to go now... IZONE Out

 

[Newsee]

Funny thing is the Empy is so magical I hesitate to buy the Elites as I cannot imagine Meze hitting the jackpot twice.

Oh yes, they did.

 

[Arcamera]

The Elite one of these days, but in the meantime-- continuing love for the Empyrean. If I could only keep one headphone, that's the headphone. (Over my LCD4, HE1000SE, V2, Utopia, Thekk, whatever else I have).

 

[mynamesjeff]

Going through my headphone journey over the past 7 years, i can safely say that the Empy is the best all rounder i've ever had.
Fantastic with my cardas clear XLR, qutest and Burson Soloist.

 

[Neweymatt]

Going through my headphone journey over the past 7 years, i can safely say that the Empy is the best all rounder i've ever had.
Fantastic with my cardas clear XLR, qutest and Burson Soloist.

Here's a question for you, what IEM do you have or had that you'd say comes close to what Empyrean does?
I feel like for a headphone, I'm all-in with the Empyrean, but now wondering what IEMs would compare favourably.. thanks

 

[The1Signature]

i would like to buy the meze empyrean in the near future. since it would be my first electrostatic / magnetic headphones, i have a question: do i have to have a energiser like the ifi pro iesl?

because z reviews use this pro iesl for the stax and describes it as being a MUST for those magnetic headphones. however, he does not plug the meze into the iesl but rather directly to the ican / amp. am i missing something here or did understand it total wrong?