My Empyrean has arrived yesterday. I bought them after I was extremely impressed by them at a 60 mins shop audition. I preferred them to the LCD4 out of a TT2/MScaler combo. And they don't disappoint on my home system either (Qutest+Taurus MKII).
This post will be a 'first impressions' post after listening to them for 6-7 hours.
Since the UK retailers were absolutely adamant on the retail price, I bought my pair from Germany with a generous discount. The slightly annoying and unexpected side-effect of this purchase was a bad experience with Home Office Border Force (UK) who decided to open this very suspicious package, even though there is no custom border between UK and EU (yet). They ripped the top of the inner cardboard box and the aluminium case was covered with oily prints. I don't know where this oil was coming from, perhaps an outside source, perhaps the hinges of the case as it seemed to culminate around there.
At least inside the case everything was alright in perfect and immaculate order.
The headphones look and sound as impressive as I remembered. My LCD2 Classic (while it is still a good headphone under £1000) simply sounds hazy, flat and boring in comparison. Bass on the LCD2C is pretty good actually. Less detailed than the Empyrean and a bit hazy, but has the same punch, quantity and impact. Empy's bass is a bit more dynamic though.
In everything else it is just not a fair comparison as the Empy blows the 2C out of the water.
What stroke me first with the Empyrean is the life-likeness, the energy of the sound, how much
alive these cans are. And while being alive they never fatigue. Bass is better than LCD2/LCD3 and just a tiny bit behind LCD4 in clarity. In everything else however the Empy beats Audeze IMO. Mids are more lifelike, treble is simply not a contest. Empy's treble is detailed and sparky without being bright. What an achievement!
Perhaps the sound is not as neutral and analytical as other flagships, but definitely the most enjoyable flagship I have ever heard. Resolution is fantastic, 3D imaging is immersive. Instrument separation is awesome. I can pinpoint every instrument or sound and follow whichever I choose.
Tonality is ear-friendly, slightly warm, slightly dark, but never on the expense of details or air. The best mixture I have heard between an airy, spacious and detailed sound versus a smooth, friendly and thick sound presentation.
The best of both worlds ever heard in one package.
With my music the Empy's are particularly enjoyable. I listen to a lot of ambient music where bass, layering and 3D sound effects are extremely important. The Empy's excel in these areas. As a bonus they offer very lifelike vocals and detailed treble for other genres. Violin, cellos can sound as you were in the recording room.
Of course, good source/amp/files are crucial. I have nothing less than FLAC and some 24 bit audio. The result is sublime.
I didn't have problems with the weight of my LCD2C (550g) but the LCD4 (600g) felt too heavy to live with. I consider the Focal line (450g) relatively light. The Empy's (430g) feel really light to me especially for the size, however objectively this is still 'mid-weight'.
I absolutely love the magnetic pad swapping system. Why are other brands torturing their customers when the solution is so simple? Why only a great Romanian (Meze) and a DIY Ukranian (Verum) company could come up with a simple magnetic system. How long do we have to wait until this becomes the industry standard? Manufacturers, wake up!
Regarding the leather or alcantara pads it is still early days but I think I already have a strong preference towards the leather pads. With the leather pads everything sounds more dynamic, much cleaner and clearer. More sub-bass, more balanced mid-bass. Shinier (but still not piercing) treble. Mids are pretty much equally good to my ears. The alcantara pads soften things up too much to my ears, even though I like a softer sound. In my opinion the magic of the Empy's if not lost, definitely becomes reduced by 20% when switching to the alcantara pads.
For the price I paid I would have been happy with any grill colour. I like all of them, however I think I do prefer the slightly more low-key look of the black grills. The brass is beautiful too, but perhaps slightly over the top for me. Just like the interior of a Pagani Zonda.
I felt the same way about the golden bits on the 99 Classic; that for me was just a bit over the top. However I find the shinier Empy's much more tastefully done than that.
This black grill however is not completely black, these can also shine a bit with appropriate lighting (see pictures).
Overall I love these headphones. I honestly don't know what else I would choose for my music and my taste on the current market. LCD4? Bass is perhaps 10% better but I find everything else better on the Empy. Auteur? No thanks. Dynamic drivers are unable to give me the bass I need. HD800S, Clear, Utopia are out of the game for the same and other reasons too (treble).
HEK2/SE? More spacious but bass is not as satisfying (diffuse) and the sound overall is a bit lean. Perhaps I would prefer them for acoustic/live music to the Empy but that is not my main listening area.
Susvara for $6000 no thanks. Harder to drive than the HE6? No thanks. Ether2? I don't know. I love a spacious earcup and I was disappointed by the AFO and AFC. Still want to try E2 one day.
D8000? I don't know. Heavy and from what I read/heard it seems to be a bit V shaped with too much bass. Abyss? Perhaps. I have never heard them but people say they are not too comfy. Also quite a bit more expensive.
Anyway, for the price I paid the combination of comfort, weight and sound the Empy seems to be unbeatable at the moment. For £1000-1500 more I could possibly find something 5% better. But who cares if this was already the top of my budget? I am very happy with the Empys. This is the best sound I have ever owned. They look gorgeous, they are light, future-proof (modular design), sound is just what I need (detailed and extended but focused on enjoyment instead of being a cold microscope).
"This is the beginning of a beautiful friendship." Thank you Meze!
