Audiophile Headphone Reviews

STAX is one of the longest-standing, most trusted headphone brands in the audiophile world. Their amazingly open-sounding, often tube-powered, electrostatic headphones are not just high-performance, but today are actually collectable. The highest end of the STAX lineup is the STAX… Read More »

The Stax brand has been synonymous with electrostatic headphones – aka earspeakers – since the early 1960s. Back then, they didn’t have much competition. Later, Shure and Koss produced electrostatic models but they were aimed at a more entry-level than… Read More »

PSB is a highly regarded brand of speakers distributed by Lenbrook, who also handle Bluesound and NAD. For a few years now, PSB has also been making some premium headphones that have been well received, the latest of which is… Read More »

The HIFIMAN HE-R9 is a wired, closed-back pair of audiophile headphones from a company primarily known for its open-back offering. It’s a somewhat entry-level pair priced at at $369with a 3.5 mm TRS connection, along with a 6.35mm adaptor so… Read More »

Focal introduced its top-of-the-line wired headphone model, the Utopia, in 2016. In the seven years since, the company has developed some new ways to improve the design. The improvements and time since the initial launch warranted a revision of the… Read More »

Apple didn’t pay $3,200,000,000 to Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine for nothing. The headphone company they carefully pried from the hands of Monster Cable founder, Noel Lee, is a key part of today’s overall tech-lifestyle aesthetic. Be it at work, walking around town, working out at… Read More »

Like most audio companies these days, Denon—best known for its AV receivers, no doubt—has thrown its hat into the proverbial high-end wireless headphone ring with two over-ear models and two in-ear models. The Denon AH-C830NCW (buy at Crutchfield) earphone is… Read More »

It was going to be a matter of time before the high-end audio business got serious about high-end, luxury headphones and 2022 was that year. With audiophile headphone products like the Sennheiser Momentum 4, Bowers & Wilkins Px8, Focal Bathys,… Read More »

Stax is known primarily for one kind of component: electrostatic headphones. Its first headphone/amplifier combination, the SRD-1 and SR-1, were released in 1960 and are legendary today. Currently the company has nine models ranging in price from the $455 to… Read More »

Just like any sort of hunting, audiophile bargain hunting involves a modicum of danger, but that’s part of the thrill. The risk of finding a stinker is part the process, and the rise of Chi-Fi, or Chinese-made gear has made… Read More »

Ask 1,000 people at The Mall of the America if $999 is a lot of money for wireless, over- ear, Bluetooth headphones and you might get a fully unanimous 1000/1000 people saying yes. For audiophiles, we often view things a… Read More »

You may be surprised to learn that Cleer Audio sells an audiophile-oriented, wired-only audiophile headphone set. Cleer’s primary user base consists of younger, on-the-go listeners who are seeking headphones that perform at a higher level but also look really cool.… Read More »

Audiophiles love wired headphones. Younger tech fans and music enthusiasts love everything to be wireless. For the past few months, I’ve reviewed nearly every high-performance Bluetooth headphone, from brands such as Sennheiser, Bowers & Wilkins, Mark Levinson, Focal, Technics, Apple,… Read More »

There was a time when my dear friend Ethan and I brainstormed the concept of what a true pair of high-end wireless Bluetooth speakers would look, feel, and sound like. On my way to the plane for which I am… Read More »

Retro is all the rage these days, and a number of companies have taken that mantle leaving the musty pawn shops and cluttered old record stores that sell 1970s gear and turned it into a modern audiophile sales boom. McIntosh… Read More »

Perhaps my favorite product category of the past five years has been wireless over-ear headphones. There’s been so much growth and improvement in this highly relevant space. The Sennheiser Momentum 4 (buy at Crutchfield) are a next-generation offering in the… Read More »

The audiophile world is filled with wired headphones that can bring the excitement of live music straight to your head. They can deliver the dynamics of the studio experience without having to worry about the acoustics of the room or… Read More »

The Sennheiser HD600 (buy at Crutchfield) audiophile headphones have been available to music lovers and audio professionals for over 20 years. That type of longevity rarely exists in the fast-paced world of consumer electronics, where new products are released on… Read More »

The vast majority of wired audiophile headphones being purchased these days are wireless, which is what most people want for their cell phones and other portable devices and perhaps even their TVs. To this day, though, even the best forms… Read More »

When I think of Apple AirPods (buy at Amazon), I think of thoe small, straw-like earbuds that are so popular these days. The AirPods Max is nothing like the in-ear monitors after which it’s named. Rather, it’s a very sophisticated… Read More »

Future audiophiles don’t hold the same grudge against Bose that longtime audiophiles sometimes do. Perhaps that’s because they know Bose for the thing the company does best: headphones. More specifically, noise-canceling headphones like the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 (buy… Read More »

Sony’s role in headphones digs deep into the history of both consumer audio as well as professional audio. I can’t tell you how many Sony headphones that I’ve seen on directors while making movies or commercials on set here in… Read More »

Value always catches our attention at FutureAudiophile.com, and we’ve found an excellent one here. 1More may not be the first name that audiophiles think of when shopping for headphones, but the company has caught our attention before with headphones that… Read More »

Bowers & Wilkins PX7 S2 audiophile wireless headphones ($399 – buy at Crutchfield) wireless noise-canceling headphones are the second iteration of the company’s best over-the-ear cans. The original version of the Px7 was my reference travel headphone for years. (Sadly… Read More »

I know what you are thinking before you even ran through your head: Jerry, why the hell are you reviewing a pair of $1,000-plus in-ear-monitor headphones that are wired when almost no smartphones these days have stock headphone jacks, and… Read More »