The Most UNDERRATED Audiophile Headphone

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First of all, LOVE this topic! I can’t believe I didn’t think of it before you and suggested it for The Noise Floor. :person_facepalming:

Here are my nominations and why they qualify:

Hifiman Mini Shangri-La

  1. It is indeed good. Not perfect. Out of the box, maybe not even great. But the FR is decently close to DF and for an electrostatic it has good bass extension. Add in some EQ tilt and a low bass shelf the sound is vastly improved. Heck they even slam a bit. The comfort is also good as it is light with large earcups. And like the sound, the comfort becomes great with a simple tweak: Capra strap.
  2. There is not a lot of attention paid to this headphone. No topic here and the Head-Fi topic is very short. I’ve thought about starting a topic here but kinda figured it must just be me that likes it so much. When everyone that tried it at CanJam SoCal liked it too I came close again but by then I was busy trying to secure a Bravura.
  3. Many things put people off before they’ve heard them. One is that they are an electrostatic headphone which requires a different type of amplifier aka energizer. The name is both stupid and places them at the very bottom of Hifiman’s estat offerings. Most people I ask think they’ve already heard them but haven’t. And most importantly Hifiman doesn’t have the best reputation for estats or energizers. As an owner of a hi-end audio equipment store told me, “Hifiman makes 3 energizers and 3 estat headphones and only 1 of those is any good, the Shangri-La Sr headphone”. He liked the Mini Shangri-La BTW. Another fellow audiophile didn’t even feel comfortable listening to his Stax headphones through the Mini Shangri-La energizer. What’s that term I’ve heard thrown around? Oh yeah, The Stax Mafia.
  4. They really shine for a spacious, open sound with a little heat around 3.5khz that gives transients a bit more snap. They are good value as a way to get started with electrostatics if you buy the system or as an alternative to the Stax house sound if you already have a Stax pro bias energizer.

Philphone

  1. If you like an open sound and tastefully heavy bass without EQ, Philphone is your huckleberry. As one audiophile described them to another “they do Fostex drivers better than Fostex”. Comfort is great too as they are lightweight and breathe well.
  2. It flys under the radar mainly because Phil doesn’t really market them. The only reason I know about them is because I follow Listener on Head-Fi and he posted to the topic there. The same store owner I mentioned above wanted to carry them but I don’t think Phil is interested in going retail.
  3. People aren’t put off by them before they’ve heard them so much as few know about them. The fact that you can’t order them from a website doesn’t help either.
  4. They shine because they punch better, sound more open, and are more comfortable than a Focal Clear. Blasphemy, I know. And I love my Focal Clear!
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