I need to say this. Hearing and the pleasure associated with it is subjective. Everyone perceives sound in a unique fashion. I bought the Susvara, LCD5, Utopia, and Meze Elite to try because its impossible to hear them locally. I kept the elites and sent everything else back. The musicality across the frequency spectrum is superb, articulate bass, wonderful mid range imaging and engagement, and trebles that are very well tuned. Now if you prefer sitting 6” from the first violin instead of row 5 of the orchestra than you would probably favor a headphone that focuses on detail above all else. We can agree or disagree with this reviewer but the term veiled is simply not accurate when listening to the elites. The other factor for me is craftsmanship and there is no question that the Elites are just beautifully designed, engineered, and built. If you love fondling apple stuff you will definitely like the elites. Happy hunting.
Wave Theory, have you tried the Elite headphones recently for a more extended period of time? You're the reviewer I listen to the most, I believe I have similar tastes to you when it comes to music and tuning preferences. I loved the He1000se but I ended up giving it back because something felt missing. I did the same with the LCD 5 headphones, they were incredible sounding, uncomfortable, but musical and punchy. I went to Can Jam Dallas and figured trying out the Elites would be a waist of time, I knew you didn't like them so I figured I wouldn't either. After 30 minutes with them I decided to sell my LCD 5s and buy the elites. They are less detailed but incredibly rich and I found that I liked everything about the Elites more than all the previous headphones I tried. To you, does more detail in audio gear always = more value? I used to think the more revealing and resolving a headphone was, the better, but the Elites changed my mind. I still get all the detail I want but the musical experience is unmatched for me compared to the HEKSE, LCD 5, LCD 4z, Utopia, MDR Z1R, ZMF Calderas, Atriums... the list goes on. My home setup is also a V281 amp and my DAC is a Yggdrasil OG A2. I've tested the Elites on all sorts of gear across the board and while there are definitely set ups I prefer over others, I felt they sounded great across the board.
Subscribed, great review, specifically when comparing it to the HE1K V2 because I have it too, and I thought the Meze Elite would be an upgrade to it, I'll take a look at the detailed written review but it looks like I'm going to scrap the idea of buying the Meze Elite. Keep it up buddy.
Thank you man. That's exactly how I feel my HE1000SE seem to similarly just be more detailed and more extending across the entire frequency curve compared to the Elites that I borrowed for a few weeks. The Meze Empyrean and Elites sound great and smooth but just not as revealing so to some they will be preferable. I wonder what you think about the HE1000SE vs the V2 vs the V2SE. Now that would be a cool comparison
Thanks for your honest review. Many reviewers are reluctant to criticize and always emphasize the "good" instead. I still remember the first time i listened to the Empyrean: huge disappointment ! It isn't just a problem of tuning. The drivers are "slow" sounding: separation, resolution, plankton, imaging are all bad. There was a HD650 in the same shop. Thr HD650 has better resolution and imaging than the Empyrean ! Even though the HD650 loses in other areas (e.g. bass extension, and probably staging), they are quite close technically. The fellow audiophile friend i went with shared exactly the same view as me. Enjoyment is subjective and everyone is free to spend he(audiophiles are almost exclusively male!) money on whatever he wants. But someone needs to say the truth: that you are not buying performance here but just build quality instead.
Thanks for the review. It really helped. Have you tried the Empyrean leather pads on the Elite? Those are thicker correct and should they work/fit on the Elite? If you have tried them what are your conclusions? Thanks again!
I didn't EQ down the bass, but that's a large part of what the velour/alacantra pads do. WIth a lower relative bass level the veil isn't detectable to my ear.
Honestly , after listening them for the second weekend (had them home for testing), they are not really an upgrade fror my HEkSE or LCD 4, but they position kinda in the middle of those two regarding sound, and I like them more . I have used FiiO M17, FiiO K9 Pro and Woo Audio WA6
The most exciting & enjoyable headphone on the planet. It literally smokes every boring reference headphone out there. It’s basically perfect! It’s ‘Passion For Sound’ favorite headphones; ‘Director’s Garage’ ABSOLUTELY LOVES them and ‘ZEOS’ also RAVES about them as well. It’s always good to listen to multiple headphone viewers because you can get a taste of the sound signature they like & compare it to the sound signature you like.
Hello! Did you pull the trigger on either of the headphones? If not, I highly, highly recommend to try them out before purchase if possible. I was "burnt" by the Susvara, D8000 and the DCA Expanse when I was able to compare them to the Elites. I haven't got a clue what veil is he talking about. Nobody ever mentioned any veil, regarding the Elites. Happy hunting!;))
One more thing: cable matters for the Elite, and the positioning of the ear cups because of the "tweeter". The headphones have to sit on your head properly.
LOL. I do come down pretty hard on a handful of them. Check out my reviews of most HiFiMans, Focals (not named Clear MG), Audeze LCD-X & LCD-XC & LCD-5, Senn HD6XX & HD800 S, Beyer DT880, just to name a few. Thanks for watching!
Its always interesing to find the one reviewer whose review is completely different then all other reviews , online, , and in print, regarding this headphone. You are alone in your opinion. espeically regardigng the "veil". It literally sounds like you are listening to the Elite and yet reviewing the Empyrean, as it has the bloated bass and slight softer sound that could be considered "veiled". But not this gear.
I need to say this. Hearing and the pleasure associated with it is subjective. Everyone perceives sound in a unique fashion. I bought the Susvara, LCD5, Utopia, and Meze Elite to try because its impossible to hear them locally. I kept the elites and sent everything else back. The musicality across the frequency spectrum is superb, articulate bass, wonderful mid range imaging and engagement, and trebles that are very well tuned. Now if you prefer sitting 6” from the first violin instead of row 5 of the orchestra than you would probably favor a headphone that focuses on detail above all else. We can agree or disagree with this reviewer but the term veiled is simply not accurate when listening to the elites. The other factor for me is craftsmanship and there is no question that the Elites are just beautifully designed, engineered, and built. If you love fondling apple stuff you will definitely like the elites. Happy hunting.
The LCD5 may be more detailed, the Susvara might be more accurate tonally, but at the end of the day, you buy what you want to. Enjoy
Nicely stated 👏🏽
this headphone is kinda trash honestly
Wave Theory, have you tried the Elite headphones recently for a more extended period of time? You're the reviewer I listen to the most, I believe I have similar tastes to you when it comes to music and tuning preferences. I loved the He1000se but I ended up giving it back because something felt missing. I did the same with the LCD 5 headphones, they were incredible sounding, uncomfortable, but musical and punchy. I went to Can Jam Dallas and figured trying out the Elites would be a waist of time, I knew you didn't like them so I figured I wouldn't either. After 30 minutes with them I decided to sell my LCD 5s and buy the elites. They are less detailed but incredibly rich and I found that I liked everything about the Elites more than all the previous headphones I tried.
To you, does more detail in audio gear always = more value? I used to think the more revealing and resolving a headphone was, the better, but the Elites changed my mind. I still get all the detail I want but the musical experience is unmatched for me compared to the HEKSE, LCD 5, LCD 4z, Utopia, MDR Z1R, ZMF Calderas, Atriums... the list goes on.
My home setup is also a V281 amp and my DAC is a Yggdrasil OG A2. I've tested the Elites on all sorts of gear across the board and while there are definitely set ups I prefer over others, I felt they sounded great across the board.
Thanks for the review - off to read the written!
Great job. ... are you reviewing the DCA Stealth? $4k Noire??
Subscribed, great review, specifically when comparing it to the HE1K V2 because I have it too, and I thought the Meze Elite would be an upgrade to it, I'll take a look at the detailed written review but it looks like I'm going to scrap the idea of buying the Meze Elite.
Keep it up buddy.
glad to see the channel grow, keep it up :)
Have tried other unit of elite? Does the veil still there as it is not a defective unit?
Thank you man. That's exactly how I feel my HE1000SE seem to similarly just be more detailed and more extending across the entire frequency curve compared to the Elites that I borrowed for a few weeks. The Meze Empyrean and Elites sound great and smooth but just not as revealing so to some they will be preferable. I wonder what you think about the HE1000SE vs the V2 vs the V2SE. Now that would be a cool comparison
still think yuin has best 'earbud' sound
What veil? Did you use the stock cable? Was the headphone positioned on your head correctly?
Cool review... I saw these were just posted for sale and bro got the new stealth...
Thanks for your honest review. Many reviewers are reluctant to criticize and always emphasize the "good" instead. I still remember the first time i listened to the Empyrean: huge disappointment ! It isn't just a problem of tuning. The drivers are "slow" sounding: separation, resolution, plankton, imaging are all bad. There was a HD650 in the same shop. Thr HD650 has better resolution and imaging than the Empyrean ! Even though the HD650 loses in other areas (e.g. bass extension, and probably staging), they are quite close technically. The fellow audiophile friend i went with shared exactly the same view as me. Enjoyment is subjective and everyone is free to spend he(audiophiles are almost exclusively male!) money on whatever he wants. But someone needs to say the truth: that you are not buying performance here but just build quality instead.
Thanks for the review. It really helped. Have you tried the Empyrean leather pads on the Elite? Those are thicker correct and should they work/fit on the Elite? If you have tried them what are your conclusions? Thanks again!
No pad rolling other than the stock pads. Thanks for the feedback!
@@wavetheorysound But in theory, the Empyrean leather pads would fit and attach to the Elite?
@@gjtube37 honestly not sure. I don't know if the OG uses the same magnetic mounting system as the Elite. Community? Anyone know?
@@wavetheorysound Thank you!
@@gjtube37 i think i read on headfi people were able to
Is Hifiman EF400 good enough to pair with Elite?TIA
EF400 will power it quite well, but not quite maximize it.
how close to the empys get if you eq down the bass, does the veil go?
I didn't EQ down the bass, but that's a large part of what the velour/alacantra pads do. WIth a lower relative bass level the veil isn't detectable to my ear.
Please review the stax sr-x9000 on a srm-t8000
Honestly , after listening them for the second weekend (had them home for testing), they are not really an upgrade fror my HEkSE or LCD 4, but they position kinda in the middle of those two regarding sound, and I like them more . I have used FiiO M17, FiiO K9 Pro and Woo Audio WA6
The most exciting & enjoyable headphone on the planet. It literally smokes every boring reference headphone out there. It’s basically perfect! It’s ‘Passion For Sound’ favorite headphones; ‘Director’s Garage’ ABSOLUTELY LOVES them and ‘ZEOS’ also RAVES about them as well.
It’s always good to listen to multiple headphone viewers because you can get a taste of the sound signature they like & compare it to the sound signature you like.
yeah its smth id like to use when im outside with limited setup
Sub 138 - I tried these at CanJam this past weekend and they would not fit on my head correctly. I had a constant space between the back of my ear.
Thanks for the good review. I'm leaning to the Meze and then back to the Hifiman over and over again for the last 4 months.
I do recommend you getting the audeze LCD 5
Hello! Did you pull the trigger on either of the headphones? If not, I highly, highly recommend to try them out before purchase if possible.
I was "burnt" by the Susvara, D8000 and the DCA Expanse when I was able to compare them to the Elites.
I haven't got a clue what veil is he talking about. Nobody ever mentioned any veil, regarding the Elites.
Happy hunting!;))
One more thing: cable matters for the Elite, and the positioning of the ear cups because of the "tweeter". The headphones have to sit on your head properly.
I have never heard you like any headphones…
LOL. I do come down pretty hard on a handful of them. Check out my reviews of most HiFiMans, Focals (not named Clear MG), Audeze LCD-X & LCD-XC & LCD-5, Senn HD6XX & HD800 S, Beyer DT880, just to name a few. Thanks for watching!
Its always interesing to find the one reviewer whose review is completely different then all other reviews , online, , and in print, regarding this headphone. You are alone in your opinion. espeically regardigng the "veil". It literally sounds like you are listening to the Elite and yet reviewing the Empyrean, as it has the bloated bass and slight softer sound that could be considered "veiled". But not this gear.
When I paired these headphones with a $400 AC power cable for my gear, the SOUNDSTAGE was less veiled and the IMAGING smelled less offensive.