[CreditingKarma]

I need some help on purchasing tips. ]
im gonna have to blind buy as there arent any place around here to audition.

LCD 4/4z
meze empyrean
zmf verite

these are the 3 i have narrowed down.

i currently have the andromedas and the hd6xx, looking to get a more fun headphone for long work sessions.
i heard the lcd 4 quite heavy. i like to wear my headphones for hours. so comfort is key.

I would also add the Diana Phi to your list for a listen. I had the lcd 4z and they sound good but the phi is much more detailed. I had borrowed all of the LCD series from a friend a month ago and going back to the lcd 4 and 4z they sounded veiled almost like putting a blanket over a speaker compared to the Abyss.

If you like the sound of the empyrean maybe also try the LCD 24 if they are still available.

 

[mixman]

I would also add the Diana Phi to your list for a listen. I had the lcd 4z and they sound good but the phi is much more detailed. I had borrowed all of the LCD series from a friend a month ago and going back to the lcd 4 and 4z they sounded veiled almost like putting a blanket over a speaker compared to the Abyss.

If you like the sound of the empyrean maybe also try the LCD 24 if they are still available.

Even though I haven't heard them, from the many sound descriptions of the 24, It sounds very much like descriptions of the Verite. If you want that type of sound, I would just say to get the Verite as they will be cheaper. The Empyrean will have a thicker sound with more bass and bass impact. They would be the choice if you are looking for that thicker balance.

 

[Jvincent]

Having owned the Meze Empyrean since June of this year here are my thoughts!

Equipment used:

Amp’s: - SPL Phonitor X - HDV820

DAC’s: - Schiit Yggdrasil - HDV820

Music:

Lowest quality CD Red book 44kHz up to 192/24-bit streamed from Qobuz or from my own library played through JRiver25.

Build quality:

At launch Meze originally had some issues with their anodizing process of the aluminum frame that caused the finish on the headphones to easily blemish and scratch; Meze was quick to remedy this and extend the anodizing process which also changed the color of the aluminum frame some as well giving it the “gun metal” finish we see today. All materials used are of premium quality providing excellent comfort and durability. The few months I have owned these they have not picked up any scratches/dings and still look pristine. I don’t have any doubts these will stay in very good condition for many years to come.

Comfort:

Meze nailed this one! The suspension headband, thick soft pads (both suede and leather) multi point adjustment (vertical and 360° swivel) where the yoke attaches to the headband, and another pivot adjustment where the yoke attaches to the frame of the drivers gives you a lot of freedom to mold these to your head. This level of adjustment makes for a headphone that while 430g seems to disappear from your head! I have had many extended listening sessions 8+ hrs. of both music and for gaming, without any form of fatigue.





Drive:


The Empyrean is very easy to drive! You would be hard pressed to find something that can’t power these to be pleasant to listen through. Running balanced through my AK 100ii DAP, there was enough power (1.7Vrms) to acceptably listen to most genres of music with only bass heavy songs struggling to be presented correctly.

The SPL Phonitor X and HDV 820 had more than enough power to drive these to full potential; to the point where the power available in these amps really are overkill for the empyreans. All of my listening on these were done in low gain mode with the volume at 9-11 o’clock.

Sound:

While the DAP and HDV 820 were able to drive the headphones just fine in this section I will discuss sound quality through the Schiit Yggdrasil DAC and SPL Phonitor X amp only:

You have two sets of pads to choose from and this will vary the sound greatly. The leather pads give you a more intimate (narrower soundstage) and overall more excited/ intense sound signature. I found this caused some distortion in the lower frequencies, recessed the mids further and increased treble (even with the leather pads it’s never to the point of being too bright or fatiguing). My preference is with the suede pads; they present in a more relaxed manner with a much wider soundstage, cleaner more articulate bass, smooth mids and airy highs. The Empyrean is a jack of all trade’s kind of versatile headphone that has superb bass and vocals. Timbre is on point, and very natural sounding. With the suede pads the soundstage is very wide (not HD800 wide but not too far off either) with acceptable imaging.

While comfort, fit and finish are superb on these headphones detail retrieval is where most people have a hang up. At an MSRP of $3000 I would agree fully that if detail retrieval is your sole objective there are many better options available. $1600 HD800 is hard to beat for the price/performance you get, $2500 ZMF verite are a superb headphone that if you don’t need planar slam could be end game for many. In my own practice I have found that Meze/ Rinaro’s tuning of the driver may be somewhat to blame for this, these are bass-tilted headphones… possibly to a fault. The bass can drown out the mids and details making it very hard to pick up on certain parts of music you may be familiar to listening for in analytical tests. Couple this with the leather pads which seems to be the preference for most and I find it can muddy up the listening experience especially during points in a song where sonically there’s a lot is going on.

I say the lack of detail retrieval may be somewhat down to the tuning of the drivers because at home I have found that an eq of -3.5db preamp with 3db boost at 1.5k makes a huge difference in bringing the mids back into the mix. Taking that a step further, using the crossfeed option with the Phonitor X also seems to help make a big difference in detail retrieval and clarity. I couldn’t begin to tell you what is going on in the analogue circuitry of the Phonitor X’s crossfeed section to cause this but I can say that as a listener it creates more separation, pulls bass back quite a bit and brings the sound signature much closer to a neutral presentation. With these adjustments made it does make the detail retrieval much better than the default Empy’s sound signature but still doesn’t bring it on par with other premium planar’s like the RAD-0, LCD-4 etc.

Meze has confirmed that they have multiple pads that are in R&D and set to be released in 2020, I am hoping that the new pads will give better performance and sound quality. My hope, and this is a tangent of my own thoughts which Meze have not confirmed or even spoken of… Is that the Empyrean frame could be built as a chassis to a modular sound system. The cups and drivers were engineered in a way that owners could swap them out with ease and very quickly (not RAAL Sr1a quick with the driver change, but within 15 min). New pads or drivers could be developed and an owner could swap them out themselves for a different sonic presentation while retaining that incredible comfort. This would be a huge quality of life improvement to the audio world and one I personally would love to see from Meze.




Conclusion:

The Empyrean is an extremely comfortable headphone that you can have on your head all day without fatigue of any kind. The quality of materials and design will ensure a product that will last many years. While the Empy scales well with better gear, it is a headphone you can listen to out of most equipment and get good performance from it. At a price point of $3000 USD, the detail retrieval is lacking, this can be improved some by eq changes etc. but still IMHO will not be worth purchase if you are looking for a super detailed headphone. Overall sound signature is a fun and dare I say it… musical rather than analytical. There is a bass bump- slightly recessed mids with present but never overpowering or fatiguing treble; vocals through the Empyrean are some of the best I’ve heard, and timbre is very authentic. This is a great headphone for background or relaxed listening for any genre from classical to EDM. Having owned it for 6 months I still love listening to the Empyrean every time I put them on, however I am now looking for another detailed/ analytical headphone to fit that need

 

[betula]

Having owned the Meze Empyrean since June of this year here are my thoughts!

Equipment used:

Amp’s: - SPL Phonitor X - HDV820

DAC’s: - Schiit Yggdrasil - HDV820

Music:

Lowest quality CD Red book 44kHz up to 192/24-bit streamed from Qobuz or from my own library played through JRiver25.

Build quality:

At launch Meze originally had some issues with their anodizing process of the aluminum frame that caused the finish on the headphones to easily blemish and scratch; Meze was quick to remedy this and extend the anodizing process which also changed the color of the aluminum frame some as well giving it the “gun metal” finish we see today. All materials used are of premium quality providing excellent comfort and durability. The few months I have owned these they have not picked up any scratches/dings and still look pristine. I don’t have any doubts these will stay in very good condition for many years to come.

Comfort:

Meze nailed this one! The suspension headband, thick soft pads (both suede and leather) multi point adjustment (vertical and 360° swivel) where the yoke attaches to the headband, and another pivot adjustment where the yoke attaches to the frame of the drivers gives you a lot of freedom to mold these to your head. This level of adjustment makes for a headphone that while 430g seems to disappear from your head! I have had many extended listening sessions 8+ hrs. of both music and for gaming, without any form of fatigue.





Drive:


The Empyrean is very easy to drive! You would be hard pressed to find something that can’t power these to be pleasant to listen through. Running balanced through my AK 100ii DAP, there was enough power (1.7Vrms) to acceptably listen to most genres of music with only bass heavy songs struggling to be presented correctly.

The SPL Phonitor X and HDV 820 had more than enough power to drive these to full potential; to the point where the power available in these amps really are overkill for the empyreans. All of my listening on these were done in low gain mode with the volume at 9-11 o’clock.

Sound:

While the DAP and HDV 820 were able to drive the headphones just fine in this section I will discuss sound quality through the Schiit Yggdrasil DAC and SPL Phonitor X amp only:

You have two sets of pads to choose from and this will vary the sound greatly. The leather pads give you a more intimate (narrower soundstage) and overall more excited/ intense sound signature. I found this caused some distortion in the lower frequencies, recessed the mids further and increased treble (even with the leather pads it’s never to the point of being too bright or fatiguing). My preference is with the suede pads; they present in a more relaxed manner with a much wider soundstage, cleaner more articulate bass, smooth mids and airy highs. The Empyrean is a jack of all trade’s kind of versatile headphone that has superb bass and vocals. Timbre is on point, and very natural sounding. With the suede pads the soundstage is very wide (not HD800 wide but not too far off either) with acceptable imaging.

While comfort, fit and finish are superb on these headphones detail retrieval is where most people have a hang up. At an MSRP of $3000 I would agree fully that if detail retrieval is your sole objective there are many better options available. $1600 HD800 is hard to beat for the price/performance you get, $2500 ZMF verite are a superb headphone that if you don’t need planar slam could be end game for many. In my own practice I have found that Meze/ Rinaro’s tuning of the driver may be somewhat to blame for this, these are bass-tilted headphones… possibly to a fault. The bass can drown out the mids and details making it very hard to pick up on certain parts of music you may be familiar to listening for in analytical tests. Couple this with the leather pads which seems to be the preference for most and I find it can muddy up the listening experience especially during points in a song where sonically there’s a lot is going on.

I say the lack of detail retrieval may be somewhat down to the tuning of the drivers because at home I have found that an eq of -3.5db preamp with 3db boost at 1.5k makes a huge difference in bringing the mids back into the mix. Taking that a step further, using the crossfeed option with the Phonitor X also seems to help make a big difference in detail retrieval and clarity. I couldn’t begin to tell you what is going on in the analogue circuitry of the Phonitor X’s crossfeed section to cause this but I can say that as a listener it creates more separation, pulls bass back quite a bit and brings the sound signature much closer to a neutral presentation. With these adjustments made it does make the detail retrieval much better than the default Empy’s sound signature but still doesn’t bring it on par with other premium planar’s like the RAD-0, LCD-4 etc.

Meze has confirmed that they have multiple pads that are in R&D and set to be released in 2020, I am hoping that the new pads will give better performance and sound quality. My hope, and this is a tangent of my own thoughts which Meze have not confirmed or even spoken of… Is that the Empyrean frame could be built as a chassis to a modular sound system. The cups and drivers were engineered in a way that owners could swap them out with ease and very quickly (not RAAL Sr1a quick with the driver change, but within 15 min). New pads or drivers could be developed and an owner could swap them out themselves for a different sonic presentation while retaining that incredible comfort. This would be a huge quality of life improvement to the audio world and one I personally would love to see from Meze.




Conclusion:

The Empyrean is an extremely comfortable headphone that you can have on your head all day without fatigue of any kind. The quality of materials and design will ensure a product that will last many years. While the Empy scales well with better gear, it is a headphone you can listen to out of most equipment and get good performance from it. At a price point of $3000 USD, the detail retrieval is lacking, this can be improved some by eq changes etc. but still IMHO will not be worth purchase if you are looking for a super detailed headphone. Overall sound signature is a fun and dare I say it… musical rather than analytical. There is a bass bump- slightly recessed mids with present but never overpowering or fatiguing treble; vocals through the Empyrean are some of the best I’ve heard, and timbre is very authentic. This is a great headphone for background or relaxed listening for any genre from classical to EDM. Having owned it for 6 months I still love listening to the Empyrean every time I put them on, however I am now looking for another detailed/ analytical headphone to fit that need

Nice sum up of your experience with the Empyrean, thanks!

I have got two additional thoughts.

1, I think a lot of people forget that the Empyrean is still a very detailed headphone. Perhaps not as detailed as other 3K (or more expensive) flagships, but more detailed than most headphones on the market. On a personal note, I don't miss the extra details on those other flagships as the Empyrean has other qualities that are unique and can't be found elsewhere. The Empyrean has a natural and airy tone/timbre. It is spacious, immersive, fun, engaging with superb imaging. And it connects you to the music like nothing else. If you want to admire technicalities, than there are better choices for that. If just you want to sink into your music, the Empyrean will do that for you better than anything else I tried so far.

2, After reading your post I tried the velour pads again for more time. I agree, that perhaps the velour sounds 'objectively more correct' meaning it is a little more balanced throughout the frequency range and sounds a little bit more natural and organic with a tiny bit more forward mids. However, especially with my music I miss the extra bass punch/impact and treble sparkle of the leather pads. So, even though the velour sounds more correct, the leather pads give me more fun. I would use the velour with acoustic and classical music, I would stick with the leather for modern genres and electronic music.

An extra thought on the detail retrieval capabilities: you are right saying that it can also improve with different gear to some extent like it did with your Phonitor X. The clarity and details coming through from my TT2 is miles ahead of my previous Qutest/Taurus MKII combo.

Also, I can't wait for the new pads next year. I hope one of the new pad options will be a combination between the existing leather and velour.

 

[wojpol]

If you are looking to purchase Meze Empyrean headphones, see Ebay . $2200 Buy it now, 60 hours of use time - $1900 takes it as a best offer

 

[up late]

suggested amendments to your first point:

1, I think that the Empyrean is still a very detailed headphone. Perhaps not as detailed as other 3K (or more expensive) flagships, but more detailed than most headphones that I've heard. On a personal note, I don't miss the extra details of those other flagships as the Empyrean has other unique qualities. The Empyrean has a natural and airy tone/timbre. It is spacious, immersive, fun, engaging with superb imaging. And it connects me to the music like nothing else. If I want to admire technicalities, then there are other options for that. If I just want to sink into my music, the Empyrean will do that for me better than anything else that I've tried so far.

you're welcome

 

[betula]

suggested amendments to your first point:

you're welcome

Thank you so much!
What a brilliant, helpful man!

 

[Dinrog]

While its true that the empy doesnt quite have the resolution for its pricetag, im actually considering one along or instead my 4z because i often have multihoursessions right now and the awesome comfort of the meze would be very welcome! I think i can stomach some tradeoffs..

 

[mixman]

While its true that the empy doesnt quite have the resolution for its pricetag, im actually considering one along or instead my 4z because i often have multihoursessions right now and the awesome comfort of the meze would be very welcome! I think i can stomach some tradeoffs..

I think that is a good trade off as I think while the 4z has better resolution, the Empy has a better tonal balance. Also, the more I do this headphone thing the more I realize comfort is the most important aspect to owning a headphone, because if you don’t want to wear it or never put it on, it really doesn’t matter what it sounds like. Does it?

 

[up late]

Thank you so much!
What a brilliant, helpful man!

always happy to help with the removal of unsubstantiated claims

I think that is a good trade off as I think while the 4z has better resolution, the Empy has a better tonal balance. Also, the more I do this headphone thing the more I realize comfort is the most important aspect to owning a headphone, because if you don’t want to wear it or never put it on, it really doesn’t matter what it sounds like. Does it?

agreed - headphone comfort is a high priority for me

 

[betula]

I know, for some reason the Empyrean thread is not the friendliest and most accepting one on Head-Fi, but I like to experiment.

I still love my Empyreans out of the TT2, this combo is the best I have ever tried and owned so far. But you know, as most of us I also can't stop thinking what could be improved.
I really loved my LCD2C for the bass. I also like the bass on the LCD4 a bit more than on the Empyrean. Mids and treble however are much more natural and airier on the Meze flagship, so trading in that last bits of bass impact and clarity is not really a question for me. I quite like the natural tone of the Verité (and Aeolus) but dynamic drivers just cant give me satisfying enough bass impact versus planar transducers when it comes to EDM. I like the clarity and detail of Focal headphones but to me they are a bit too upfront especially in the treble. I need something more relaxing than Focal but perhaps not quite as warmish and relaxing as the Empy? After a short audition I actually quite liked the HD800S, or at least some aspects of it (was a surprise to me). The spaciousness, separation refinement, definition was spot on. What I missed from the HD800S is a bit more bass impact (planar fan here) and just a little more soul/musicality.
Hifiman, before I forget it... And I won't mention build quality here. I owned and liked the HEXV2. Tonality is spot on for my taste, spaciousness is almost too much (I don't always want to listen to an open air concert), bass is there but not as focused as I like. The whole picture is a bit diffuse. I prefer the LCD line for focus and bass, although Hifiman is more spacious and more natural sounding. HEKV2 is better detailed and focused (short audition) but I have similar preference problems as I had with my HEXV2.

Up to this date the Empyrean is the best compromise I have ever tried for my taste and needs. What I would improve on the Empyrean is clarity, refinement, even more insight especially in the low frequencies. A flatter and a hint crisper, clearer bass impact (like LCD4). The natural and friendly tonality of the Empyrean is spot on and a unique selling point at this price range. (Not to mention comfort.)

To me the Empyrean is the best overall package I have tried so far, but that doesn't mean I couldn't or wouldn't want to tweak anything further.
Looking at my taste and history with headphones the only candidates that would worth for me to try are the Susvara and Abyss headphones. Both the Susvara and Abyss TC cost twice as much as the Empy. Technically they must be better, but technical performance is not everything when you are ready to drop 3-6K on a headphone. The new Diana V2 looks interesting, but I love my bass and from 3-4 sources I heard bass is not Diana V2's strength.

I guess my thoughts might contribute to further Meze developments instead. Remember, even just five years ago what headphones we had. Hardly anything from what I have just mentioned. Imagine, what headphones will come out in the next five years. This hobby is sky rocketing at the moment and it is still just the beginning.

 

[racebit]

but I like to experiment.

Please call me when any other headphone allows to be used with earcups tilted. And with sub bass that can be heard. Till then...

 

[nwavesailor]

And there may, hopefully, be other Empy pads offered at some point.

 

[CreditingKarma]

Please call me when any other headphone allows to be used with earcups tilted. And with sub bass that can be heard. Till then...

I there is only one that I know of that allows for the ear cups to be tilted and has sub bass that can be heard and felt. That would be the Abyss AB-1266 PHI TC. I am n ok t saying that it is for everyone and I really like tha empyrean. The Abyss for me takes the best of the HD800, LCD4, Stax sr009s, and the Utopia and marries them into a really great sounding headphone. The look is most certainly not its strongest attribute for sure.

 

[518141]

I know, for some reason the Empyrean thread is not the friendliest and most accepting one on Head-Fi, but I like to experiment.

I still love my Empyreans out of the TT2... This hobby is sky rocketing at the moment and it is still just the beginning.

Good post.
There is always room for improvement but Meze should be careful with changes. With the Empyrean, Meze has come up with a tonal balance that may be unusual for flagship headphones, but in spite of all that, it is special in this area.
I would find an Empyrean Pro really interesting. Some of your suggestions could be implemented in it.
I think you should talk to Mr. Antonio Meze.
But seriously in a Pro model you could change some things. For example, a stronger focus on clarity and refinement. Probably my thoughts remain more of a wish than that would become reality.