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WinnowedFlower t1_j9xmqy5 wrote

My HD650s are finally starting to give out, so I am looking for something that might be an upgrade from them, I want something that is open back for that soundstage, but with punch bass so that stuff I listen to sounds enjoyable (anime music, metal, alt rock), neutrality is important too but so is a fun sound signature. Budget is around half a thousand bucks?

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ThatGuyFromSweden t1_j9xysdd wrote

You can't really get a significant upgrade from the 650 on that budget. The Focal Elex fits your requirement for punchy bass.

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WinnowedFlower t1_j9yzy7f wrote

Thanks, I know it's above the budget I stated but thoughts on the Hifiman Ananda Stealth?

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ThatGuyFromSweden t1_j9z7oco wrote

Bass probably isn't its strong suit.

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WinnowedFlower t1_j9z97ar wrote

Would it be an upgrade otherwise for the genres I mentioned? I can get a pretty good deal on it that puts it within my budget.

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No_Lavishness6935 t1_ja27qwa wrote

Ananda is a rather old model and extremely good (in my experience) at handling female vocals, Japanese sweet girl vocals especially. However, it might not be that good for all the rock genres you mentioned.

If all-roundedness is a factor, I would definitely get editions, for it's cheaper and an upgrade to Ananda in my opinion.

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ZEPOSO t1_j9zflqw wrote

You mentioned you like metal/rock and I love my Anandas for certain bands/albums in those genres.

Like Coheed and Cambria, Muse, and Rush all sound super epic on the Anandas because of how tall the soundstage is and I think they deal with really busy tracks pretty well with great separation.

However, for other artists like Arctic Monkeys, Foo Fighters, or Circa Survive I think there are better headphones around that price point (I personally prefer my DT 1990’s for those artists).

I don’t think you can go wrong with an Edition XS or an Ananda but if you’re only buying one headphone I might do a little more research.

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