About to shake things up? - Aune AR9000 & AR3000 First Impressions

Official Content
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Fresh off our coverage of Vienna High-End 2026, the Aune booth unexpectedly turned out to be one of the biggest highlights of the entire show. We originally walked up to their table with the sole intention of evaluating their new flagship dynamic driver headphone, the AR9000. However, after spending some quality time with their lineup, the real plot twist of the show ended up being an upcoming, far more affordable open-back model called the AR3000. 

AR9000: The Flagship

The AR9000 will be entering the market at roughly $1,500, and our initial impressions suggested it may be comparable to a punchier alternative to the Sennheiser HD800S. It manages to fill in the crucial 1 kHz to 2 kHz midrange region beautifully, creating a very balanced foundation. The trade-off here is that some "soundstage"-centric listeners might find the presentation a bit more intimate than the more detached, diffuse sound of the HD 800S. However, we'd contend that soundstage is a bit less important when the core tonal balance is solid.

When GoldenSound ran a quick on-head manual tone sweep, it revealed that the ear gain at 3.5 kHz is a little bit low, but the rest of the response is remarkably coherent. While the official measurement charts taken on test fixtures indicate a prominent 6 kHz peak, Resolve didn't notice any of the harshness or "clackiness" that GoldenSound detected. Instead, he picked up an elevation around 8 kHz.

Slight quirks aside, AR9000 was one of the most normal-sounding headphones at the entire show... which brings us to AR3000.

The Aune AR3000: The (Shocking) Prototype

While the flagship AR9000 was a solid opening act, the upcoming AR3000 prototype was genuinely shocking. It aims to land at a much cheaper, highly accessible (but not yet finalized) price point, but its overall presentation is arguably even more compelling for daily listening. 

Where the flagship AR9000 goes for a more exciting, bombastic presentation, the AR3000 pivots completely toward an incredibly natural, organic presentation of timbre.

During Resolve's on-head sweep of the AR3000, he did notice a slight dip in energy around 5.5 kHz and 8 kHz. Because of this relaxed treble, some traditional audiophiles might find it lacks a tiny bit of absolute liveliness and sparkle in the top end.

However, the complete absence of any harsh peaks or grain gives it a smooth, natural character that makes it an effortless listen. For a budget-oriented prototype, the sheer competence here is incredibly exciting.

Final Thoughts

Aune has seriously brought their A-game this year, delivering a duo that exemplify what targeted tuning across two vastly different price points perhaps ought to look like. The AR9000 is a formidable contender in the $1,500 bracket that provides a more tonally complete alternative to established flagships.

Meanwhile, the AR3000 prototype proves that highly natural, extremely balanced presentations are capable of trickling down to the entry-level market faster than ever. Once the AR3000 officially leaves the prototype stage and hits production, Aune is going to have a massive winner on their hands, and we cannot wait to get final production units into the lab for a full breakdown.

This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://headphones.com/blogs/features/about-to-shake-things-up-aune-ar9000-ar3000-first-impressions
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Any idea about the release date? (AR3000)

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Let’s hope they don’t further tweak the FR of the 3000 and that they shoot for a 2026 release date. Sounds promising!

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I feel stupid for not trying the cheaper model.

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AR9000 first impressions: amazing. For me, personally, I’d maybe like a little more warmth. But I could also imagine myself not missing it after a while. The layering and separation are almost unbelievable. The best I’ve heard with the organs in Stephen Stills’s “Love the One You’re With.”

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After just purchasing the HEDD D1’s, now my sights are already on the Aune AR9000 and 3000. My interest is dialed on these headphones given that I don’t have an equalizer. Which brings me to the question; since equalizers are so routinely recommended with every headphone review, why not do a show about the various available commercial analogue and maybe even digital brands of equalizers?

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Your best bet if you’re in the digital domain is to use PEQ through software (e.g. Roon) or an app integrated with a DAC.

As to analogue EQ, many may disagree with me, but my advice would be to skip it. I’ve never heard it done well enough.

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Thanks for the reply. Unfortunately I don’t like the sound of Roon. My renderer is a Bryston BDP 3 and other than using Roon, I’m locked into using Manic Moose, which sounds great but there’s no EQ. The DAC that I’m using is an Ayre QB9 Twenty and it’s nothing more than a stand alone DAC. So where it pertains to my main stereo, I’ll have to make do without using an EQ.

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Roon sounds?

Interesting…

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Since moving to Chicago I haven’t had nearly as many headphones come across my desk as I used to in Vancouver where I’d at least get them on my head before @Resolve slithered away to his dungeon with them in hand. Add to that with my general inability to listen to any product at shows due to talking the entire time and it all adds up to me not having heard any new releases for quite some time. But, I finally got my hands on a AR9000 and have had them at my place for about a week.

I had initially heard them right before release for a quick 5 minute listen to compare against the Utopia. In that brief listening session I was surprised by how laid-back the AR9000 sounds. I was expecting them to be much brighter and was pleasantly surprised. During that 5 minute window I still enjoyed the Utopia more but it left me wanting more of the AR9000 in my life.

So now, after a week of having it and using it every day what do I think? I don’t think it is as visceraly as punchy as the Clear or the Utopia but there is an extremely pleasant rumble to its low end. Subbass extension on it is very nice and its exactly what is missing every time I am told the Sennheiser HD 600/650/6xx, etc… is the best headphone on the planet. I’ve also started to take to EQ thanks to something that the team has been working on (excited to share more on that later) so bumping up the low end works nicely as well. There’s an addicting nature here.

Midrange - I’ve got nothing to complain about here. Sounds great with all the EDM tracks I throw at it, vocal trance and metal. Nothing sounds wonky to my ears.

Treble - This is where headphones go to live or die for me and I had my concerns about the AR9000. Our team tends to have pretty different treble preferences from myself and its the area where we’ll often disagree. With the AR9000, no treble murder happened to my ears. In fact, just like with the low end, it’s a very pleasant listen.

For me, the AR9000 is just one of those headphones that disappears on your end. It’s comfortable and the tuning hits all of my personal sweet spots.

Some extra notes

  • We sell the AR9000 so take everything I say with that in mind
  • Unboxing experience isn’t on the same level as something like Focal (Clear Mg) but it’s nicer than Hifiman at this price point.
  • I like modular cables and this comes with one. It’s silly in this day and age that most high-end headphones just come with a single termination in their package.
  • When I saw photos of it I thought I’d hate the design. In person, it actually looks pretty nice. I wouldn’t put it at the same level as something like the Focal Clear but it’s similar the 800S for me. They feel pretty durable.
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Really curious to see how the final AR3000 turns out, because “smooth and natural without obvious harshness” is exactly the kind of tuning that tends to win people over long-term, even if it doesn’t immediately wow in a noisy show environment.

The big question for me is whether production keeps that same balance from the prototype. If Aune can preserve the timbre and comfort while landing it at a genuinely accessible price, it could end up being one of the more interesting open-backs in its bracket. Full measurements and longer listening impressions will be very welcome here.

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