HIFIMANHIFIMAN Edition XS Full-Size Over-Ear Open-Back Planar Magnetic Hi-Fi Headphones with Stealth Magnets Design, Adjustable Headband, Detachable Cable for Audiophiles, Home, Studio-Black

Even a brief look around the internet will tell you this is an amazing set of cans. And my own experience bears this out. This is a fantastic sounding set of headphones.The sound stage is plenty wide. The bass has a controlled authority and does not bleed in to the higher frequencies. On loud volumes the bass feels like you are getting a jaw massage and a back massage for your eye balls.These are really open headphones. You would be forgiven for thinking these are some kind of sunglasses because you can literally see through the drivers. You can feel the difference in pressure in your ears if you hold your palm an inch or so away from your ear while wearing the headphones which demonstrates how open these are. As a result they leak some sound and let practically all the ambient noise in. The clarity and resolution are quite detailed.The large planar drivers are everything here. The following analogy explains my feeling. There is a meme about the fighter plane A-10 Warthog being an airframe designed around the main Gatling gun that it has. That is, it is a gun with wings rather than a plane with a gun. These headphones give a similar vibe with respect to its drivers. Practically all the money you spend has gone towards the gigantic planar drivers. It is a headphone built around the drivers. You will want to have your ears higher up in relation to the cups as the drivers are positioned slightly higher in the cups. The large drivers immerse you in the sound and with certain music the instruments can seem like they are located above or below you.As a result of the focus on the drivers the rest of the build quality can feel a little cheap. The cable is definitely good. It feels premium. The plastic used in various parts seems brittle. The headband is cushioned but you can feel the internal frame underneath the foam as you run your fingers over the band. This is especially noticeable if you have owned any Beyerdynamic or Sennheiser headphones which have high quality dense plastic. It does not hold a candle to their build quality. If you keep this expectation in mind you will save yourself some remorse. The pads are also very cheap feeling and lack attention to detail in their construction. The stitching looks uneven etc. If you wear glasses the fabric on the pads can be really squeaky and get on your nerves. I immediately replaced it with a velour replacement pads. These are admittedly minor issues but some may expect more at this price point. In my opinion it is worth it regardless.The sheer size of these headphones could be problematic for smaller heads. The fit is a bit on the looser side and it might move around as you move your head to look down for example. The yokes can swivel a little which provides a nice fit to a variety of head shapes I imagine.For driving gear, they ran fine off of a Fiio K3. In the picture I have them on a Fiio K7. An amplifier is not strictly necessary to get these loud but a budget/starter amp might improve the sound if you are not happy with the sound directly off of your phone or laptop. Remember that money is better spent on headphones rather than source/driving gear.Finally I want to clarify some marketing verbiage used in the description. The magnets used are called "stealth" magnets that apparently allow sound to pass through more easily in comparison to the non-stealth version. The real difference is a change in cross section shape of the magnets that allows sound to come through more easily or cleanly or something.TLDR: Incredible sound and incredible value for money

I am not an audiophile by any stretch of the imagination. I don't know all the ins and outs of music production and sound. I can't tell you about lows, mids and highs. But I do love listening to music, and I have a modest sound system in my office with that allows me to enjoy it. I had purchased a Topping DX3Pro+ about a year and a half ago or so and I also purchased some Sennheiser HD 660 S along with it. I like the headphones, but they don't quite have the kick in the bass department that I like. I have tried using an equalizer to increase the bass output, but due to the setup of my PC and how I put it to sleep, that method inconsistent. So I convinced myself I didn't need the bass in my headphones and I would just use my floorstanding speakers with 12" woofer to listen to music that I want to enjoy some bass (my kids "love" when they are trying to play PS5 in the same room /s).Enter the HIFIMAN Edition XS headphones. After reading more about planar magnetic headphones and knowing that they can reproduce more bass than my Sennheiser's, I was ready to pull the trigger at the $270 price point to give them a shot. And boy am I happy I did. The amount of bass in these headphones is considerable compared to the 660s and it is perfect for my listening preferences. It's not too overbearing that it muddles the sound, but it's just right for what I like. Even on my 12" sub, I have it set around the mid point, maybe slightly less, as I don't enjoy overbearing bass. These are perfect for me, and I enjoy the open back style more than closed back. Less warm on the ears and kind of opens up the soundstage a little bit. In some tracks you feel like the sound might be several feet away, it's quite remarkable. Some songs just sound different in these in that respect and I like it. The music kind of feels like it's around you, not right in your ear hole. I do not have any issue driving these headphones with my DX3Pro+, the volume is quite sufficient at around -20db on the readout with the boosted gain. I have gone louder closer to 0db, but this is higher than I would normally run them so I didn't really listen for distortion at this level or check to see if my DX3Pro+ would crash due to the load. So far I haven't had any issues whatsoever with this DAC and headphone combo working together and I am really happy with the sound quality.The overall size of the headband is quite large. I do have a slightly bigger head, but not gigantic. I adjusted the headband one click from the smallest for my head size. I could see some individuals with a smaller head having issues wearing these comfortably and still have the headband rest on top of their head. If you have a smaller head, you might want to try finding these somewhere to try on before purchasing or knowing that you might have to return them if they are too large.I do want to highlight two issues I have had the headphones, but not issues that I would dock a star for. The first issue is as others have pointed out in other reviews, the cord that comes with the headphone is quite short. I can't lean very far away from my desk without risking pulling my DAC off the desk. Would have been nice to have a longer cable. The second issue is that they are quite heavy compared to other headphones I use, and there's something about the headband that after about a half hour of listening, my head starts to hurt where the headband rests. I have to adjust slightly to relieve the pressure. I have noticed the longer I use these headphones that this becomes less and less of a problem, but I didn't have this issue with the Sennheiser or the Audio Technicas that I have. It's to the point now, though, where I don't notice it and I was listening for several hours recently and when I was finished, I didn't even notice it, so this issue may go away as you get used to the weight.I have seen some reviews on here where people say if you move, you will hear plastic cracks and creaks if you move your head with these headphones on. I don't really notice this myself. Sometimes I wear glasses when using headphones, and they are plastic themselves, so I notice they will creak with any headphone I am wearing, so I might be desensitized to it. I was wearing contacts recently while wearing the headphones and tried moving my head around to see if I could get them to make noicse, and they did a little bit, but not so much that I would say I was annoyed or would notice during normal use when I wasn't actively trying to focus on it.I have also seen some review about the build quality. I feel like the build quality is sufficient for the price I paid, and I'm not throwing my headphones around or dropping them frequently, so I think they will last for a long time with how I treat them. There is nothing about them that makes me feel like they aren't worth the price point I paid.The foam stand that comes with the boxes insert is a little gimmicky, but I'm actually using it as my headphone stand already has my Sennheisers and my Audio Technicas hanging from it, so I do have a place to put them for now, but I won't use it long term. The foam is quite stiff and if not careful, I worry it will cause wear on the headband. I haven't noticed any yet, just a long term concern I have, and I will probably be purchasing a new headphone stand soon.Overall, as you can see from my rating, I am really happy with this purchase. The planar magnetic speakers in these really give a sound that I find quite appealing with great bass for my listening preferences. And at this price point, I have no regrets about buying these headphones whatsoever. These will be my daily drivers for headphone music listening from now on.