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WeakestBoss t1_je8lii7 wrote

I just bought myself an Ananda v2 recently because i really love the sound quality, but seeing all the posts about hifiman QC in this sub is really getting me worried.

What is a good alternative to Ananda Stealth?

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Spyronight t1_je8py3x wrote

had the ananda stealth and sold it. Better alternatives Focal Clear OG (better tone, slightly better detail retrieval, worse soundstage [ananda stealth had a “tall” soundstage) or the Stax L300 setup with srm 252 energizer (severely lacking without eq, peace eq has a great auto eq feature, I think I use the headphoneanalyzer eq for the L300). Nothing else matches it from the stuff I tried at that price range.

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blorg t1_je9izkg wrote

Focal quality is worse than Hifiman. They sound great, but incredibly creaky (Hifiman doesn't do this) and I would be more concerned about Focal headband or driver failure. And if it's out of warranty Focal want stupid money to fix anything, even the pads are like $200+.

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Spyronight t1_je9mivp wrote

I should have made it clear that I only gave those recommendations based of sound quality + same price bracket, not on build quality. The Ananda stealth is built way better than the L300 that’s essentially plastic with a weak headband. Regarding the focals mine only creak if I move around alot but I get were you are coming from. The pads for the clears are available for $80 I believe. I dont think you can find a headphone ~$500 in the pricerange of the 3 I mentioned with that quality of sound, Maybe a Beyer T1?

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blorg t1_je9mnue wrote

Edition XS :)

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Spyronight t1_je9q19i wrote

Thats still a hifiman tho, might as well get the ananda stealth.

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leperaffinity56 t1_jeab22j wrote

I have a pair of Hifiman Edition xs; what am I missing out on with the Anandas?

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Spyronight t1_jebqpvn wrote

no missing enough to upgrade.

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flyedchicken t1_jebnhe1 wrote

Anandas sound even a bit more 'clean' than the XS, slightly less bass, slightly more treble. Slightly more detailed I've heard.

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leperaffinity56 t1_jebprk6 wrote

Oh dang even cleaner than the xs sounds nice but the bass response on the XS is exquisite.

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Watermelon4man t1_je9nqvl wrote

The Stax L300's plastic is so brittle that it'll just break if you look at it wrong.

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Ok-Psychology-1420 t1_je9q6eb wrote

Neumann NDH30 is worth a try in that price range. Very strong technicalities, and yet a very fun, engaging listen. Build quality is top tier as well.

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Spyronight t1_je9qgyp wrote

Always wanted one of their mics, truth be told havent heard much of this headphone. Maybe itll get more traction in the future.

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Ok-Psychology-1420 t1_je9quwj wrote

Yeah it’s stayed out of the spotlight since its release last year (surprisingly). I think it’s being marketed to the pro audio crowd, and not so aggressively toward the consumer/audiophile set. There’s a pretty active thread over on head-fi and it’s definitely gaining traction. I give it a strong recommendation!

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wankthisway t1_je8s5xa wrote

Honestly from what I'm seeing basically every planar / high end planar brand has questionable QC. Maybe the monster you know is better than the one you don't? Aka at least you know what to expect with Hifiman.

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GamePro201X t1_je8su93 wrote

Meze seems pretty good when it comes to planars. Although their tuning is not something everyone would like

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No_Analysis6187 t1_je8vj94 wrote

Audeze and zmf are solid

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aceCrasher t1_je8w5ln wrote

Only recent model years. In the early 2010s Audeze was more known for shoddy QC, like cracking wood rings.

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coreyfromlowes69 t1_je9m2kd wrote

I remember those posts (LCD-5?) with the threaded mini XLR connectors getting yanked out. Might as well have been held in with bubble gum lol

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UnnecessaryMovements t1_je9qe6z wrote

And dead drivers as well.

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Smugsie t1_jeb49zv wrote

Dead drivers indeed. Back in 2018 I RMA'd an iSine 20 for a dead driver, their customer service was great though, I only had to pay for shipping to have the unit replaced.

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Makegooduseof t1_je8tkql wrote

Does Dan Clark Audio have issues as well? I don’t recall seeing a lot of drama involving DCA.

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Ok-Psychology-1420 t1_je9qf4b wrote

I had a pretty noticeable channel imbalance in my Aeon closed 2s. But DCA fixed them for me for free. Their customer service is excellent!

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Makegooduseof t1_je9wyrt wrote

Other than the channel issue, how do you like your Aeons? That’s one headphone I’ve been waffling over for a year or two now.

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Ok-Psychology-1420 t1_jeaa8fq wrote

honestly, I think they're fantastic. And for the low used prices I've seen lately a solid value. I don't use them a ton, lately preferring a lot of dynamic driver headphones, but for a closed planar, it's hard to do better (unless you can afford something like the Stealth).

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SpringsNSFWdude t1_je8wvu1 wrote

DCA has good QC the most common complaints I hear is that their "resolution" or sound retrieval whatever you want to call it, isn't particularly great for its price range, and that they have a low dynamic range.

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UnignorableAnomaly t1_jeb47rb wrote

I've had 2 headphone problems and one was DCA but I rarely see any mention of DCA having issues so I think they're rare.

1st was a hd650 driver that died after a few years.

2nd was a DCA Aeon X Closed who's earcup would crash into into the hinge arm preventing it from swiveling and fitting to my head so I returned those.

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MuchSalt t1_je94bgp wrote

the good ol beyer that will never broke

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curumba t1_jeboco4 wrote

I wasnt too happy about my DT 1990 Pro. They feel solid, but the driver died, the plastic sides broke 3 times until i was too tired to send it in and the headband started peeling off.

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subhanepix t1_je8rphb wrote

just bought edition XS two days ago and have similar concerns

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