This very closely matches the one I posted initially as well - so hopefully we can finally put this question to rest haha.
Here’s what we know for sure:
There is some difference in the frequency response
There is some difference for the pads (look/feel)
While there may be other factors that account for these changes that go beyond simply different pads, at the very least we can be confident that there was a revision at some point with this headphone, and the new one measures better.
Ding! Ding! You nailed it. This last time as I was troubleshooting I switched out the 1/4 adapter that came with my Sundaras to another spare I had lying around and voila, the problem disappeared. Fingers crossed that nothing else comes up, but other than slightly irksome planar crinkle these replacements have been great.
Joking aside, congrats on getting your Sundara, it’s good to hear you’re enjoying them so much. I’ve not heard the Sundara so I can’t recommend an upgrade but there are plenty of options within the HiFiMAN stable, if you like the house sound. Ananda? Arya? Or just go Susvara, if you really need a big hit?!
It’s worth being aware of the law of diminishing returns - make sure to savor the moment now of enjoying your upgrade! I had the same experience as you with my HE 400i a few years ago, and the good news is that I’ve enjoyed similar pleasure upgrading to the HD 800 and Clear. Upgrading up any further will likely be pretty expensive, perhaps prohibitively so…
I totally agree with you @Tchoupitoulas, when you get that initial first upgrade it’s more than likely thats the biggest one you ever get. You may get a decent upgrade the next time but after that its mainly very small steps for lots more money.
It’s these small steps that lots of us on the forum are still chasing. Its a hard thing to stop but I’ve found it’s not as rampant as it once was. Lack of disposable cash doesn’t help though. Lol. Who am I kidding if money was not an issue I would be like a kid in a sweet shop.
A new headphone has peaked my interest as a possible contender to outperform the Sundara, Namely the Ollo S4x.
Has anyone heard both the Sundara and the S4x?
If so, any thoughts on how the two compare? I really like that the S4x has a 5 year warranty, looks much more premium, and is fully user serviceable. I can’t seem to find any comparisons with the Sundara, although there is a review of someone saying they like the S4x more than the Ananda.
There is also the new Avantone Planar as well. I am debating on canceling the S4x order and just trying those out instead. After reading more about the S4x, I don’t think it will be able to compete with the Sundara on detail, clarity, and resolution, nor will it be able to handle EQ as well.
I may get the Planar instead to compare with the Sundara.
EDIT: After speaking with the US Distributor for Ollo, he feels confident I will like the S4x and they offer a 30 day return policy. I’ll keep my order and test them.
I just got the S4x and the Avantone Planar yesterday and have been testing them quite a bit. I’ll give my initial impressions so far.
In terms of sound, the Avantone Planar is extremely impressive. It is very similar to the Sundara after my EQ settings that I’ve spent quite a bit of time refining. It sounds much better than the Sundara with no EQ. It can use a bit of a bass shelf boost, but the upper mids and treble is much less offensive and harsh than the Sundara, details and soundstage are on par with eachother but the Planar is significantly easier to drive.
If the Planar came in a Sundara form factor or similar, It would be the clear and easy winner of the 3. The problem with it is it is absolutely massive and heavy. I wear my headphones all day and I can’t imaging keeping this on for 5-8 hours a day, although it is comfortable, it just looks obnoxious on my smaller sized head and is a lot of weight. It’s well balanced, just heavy.
The S4x has really good detail and tuning, it’s got good bass extensions and nice mids, treble is recessed a bit but doesn’t lack detail. It is however, a very intimate headphone, It feels and sounds almost like a closed back. On vocal heavy music like Andrea Bocelli or Pentatonix, it sounds great, but when you got more open music like Tool or Orchestral recordings, you don’t get that “wow” factor of the other two. This is also one of the easiest to drive headphones I have ever used for a higher end headphone. I can barely get to the 12 o clock position on the low gain setting on my Fiio K5 pro, and using the Apple USB-C DAC/AMP, you only need about 60% power for a pretty loud sound. The headband headphone is also EXTREMELY microphonic. If you touch or scratch the headband it amplifies the sound right to the earcups. Comfort is good, about on part with the Sundara.
I’m really unsure of which one I will end up keeping. The Sundara really is limited to my desktop as it’s by far the hardest of the 3 to drive and requires quite a bit of EQ to sound excellent on top of that, I will have to replace it already as the left driver is ticking with low frequencies already. The Planar sounds incredible but is massive and heavy. The S4x sounds good but lacks sound stage and is extremely microphonic. If only the Planar could be in the Sundara form factor I would have a clear winner.
Thanks for your write up! Great observations here. I don’t find the upper mids and treble on the Sundara harsh at all and I actually love their sound without any EQ at all, but your description of the Avantone makes me curious to hear them. Will be a while before I spend any more on headphones though.
For me, the Sundara’s can sound a bit piercing, almost metallic at times, especially with songs with vocals that can be a bit shouty.
I will be very curious to see measurements of the Planar, but I suspect it will be a bit more recessed in the treble or a bit smoother than the Sundara. It really does sound amazing.
I don’t see any reviews of the Avantone Pro Planar from any of the usual suspects online. I’d be curious to see what someone like @Resolve thinks of them.
Hi. I follow the Headphone Community on YouTube from last year and I thank you Chrono and all the staff for all the hints and help you give. I was looking for a planar magnetic headphone and following the crew reviews I bought the Sundara as first introduction in this world. I love them paired with my Rega P3 and Lehmann Audio Linear head amp. On my MacBook plus Audirvana and Amarra Luxe something was lacking both with Mojo and Dragonfly Cobalt. I’ve added Chrono’s equalising suggestions and now they sound great. My first post here in the community and it is a big thank you to all the great for your great job
There shouldn’t be any significant channel imbalance going on with representative units. There’s always going to be some difference - like mine shows a slight difference in the lower treble by 1-2dB - but it shouldn’t be audible or distracting when music is playing.
If I remember correctly in the owner manual is stated that when new there can be a minor imbalance on the R/L channels and that it is going to disappear with use. I had it for the fist 15 hours and it has then disappeared. I hope it can help.
