John Pickford finds out whether these aerodynamically designed open-back headphones heighten the listening experience. They’ll cost you £1,990 and are available here. For many audiophiles, headphone listening is a serious business, and on test here is a serious set of headphones. Audio-Technica’s ATH-ADX5000 is the company’s new flagship model and when they claim they’re “a new reference in home listening”, they aren’t kidding; they haven’t … Continue reading Audio-Technica’s ATH-ADX5000

Review: Master & Dynamic MH30 Headphones. Long Live Vinyl tests a pair of on-ear headphones set to compete with those from more established brands… Launched in 2014, New York-based Master & Dynamic are relative newcomers to the world of personal audio. While competitors such as Sennheiser, AKG and Beyerdynamic can boast decades of innovation in pro-audio design, M&D take their own philosophy of high-quality sound … Continue reading Master & Dynamic’s MH30

John Pickford checks out the Meze Audio 99 Classics, a sub-£300 set of headphones offering great sound and comfort for the price… The Meze 99 Classics arrived with me just after the similarly priced Master & Dynamic MH30s, reviewed in issue 12. The M&Ds impressed me enormously, so I was prepared to be underwhelmed by the 99 Classics if they didn’t live up to the hype … Continue reading Meze Audio’s 99 Classics

John Pickford tries Pioneer’s flagship DJ headphones to see how they fare at home… Headphones, like loudspeakers, are designed and marketed for both professional and domestic use. Domestic equipment often has a more relaxed, musical sound, bringing out the best in whatever music it’s asked to reproduce; it loves all of your records. Paradoxically, pro headphones usually offer anything but an accurate or musical sound, … Continue reading Pioneer’s HDJ-X10

They’re pricey, but aimed at vinyl lovers. Andy Jones checks out Blue’s Ella headphones… Price £699 Web http://www.bluemic.com Blue’s Mo-fi and Lola headphones threw away the rule book when it came to headphone design, largely down to the way they encircled your head, almost clamping on with a neat, uncurling headband design that has six joints – resulting in a perfect fit. They were received … Continue reading Blue’s Ella

Andy Jones discovers that everything in headphones can actually be black and white… Price £89 Web http://www.yamahaproaudio.com Yamaha is well known for its accurate speakers, and its new HPH headphone range has been designed for the same sonic detail, as well as offering a lively listening experience. There are three models in the range: the 8s, which retail for £170; the 7s, which cost £135; … Continue reading Yamaha’s HPH-MT5

Andy Jones enjoys a masterful set of headphones, but they come at a price… Price £1,200 Web httpss://www.soundtech.co.uk When a company charges four figures for a set of headphones, you can bet your bottom thousand dollars they’ll have the word ‘reference’ in the name – it makes them sound like some kind of standard, to therefore justify what you’re paying the cash for. AKG’s K872s go … Continue reading AKG’s K872

In this feature we’ve rounded up arguably the best headphones you can get for listening. These are studio headphones and might be pricier than you would expect to pay for consumer headphones, but they deliver accuracy for music production and therefore for listening back. However, accuracy can be tiring over long listening periods, but we think the following deliver a perfect balance… KRK KNS 8400 … Continue reading The Ultimate Headphones for Vinyl Listening