Hifiman Ananda Nano's Review - Superb technicalities at mid-fi price!

 

General/Build/Comfort/Packaging

I don’t think anybody needs any introduction for Hifiman, in case if you need, you may read about it here. Ananda Nano is using both the stealth magnets and also the nanometer thickness diaphragm that is based on their top of the line Susvara’s.

The Ananda Nano that I have with me today, shares some resemblance with its bigger brother, the Arya, the earcups in particular. The packaging of the Ananda Nano is similar to the HE-R9, HE400SE, and Edition XS that I have tested, with the exception that the Ananda Nano came with a storage case instead of a headphone stand. The cable remains the same across the models that I have tested. The build quality is pretty good overall, it's just that the earcup itself is quite huge and it might be an issue for people with smaller heads. For me personally, it fits just fine without the need to adjust the headband, the clamping force is also just nice, i wear glasses sometimes and i don’t have any issue with the fit or clamping force. Very comfortable throughout the listening session, the earpads are also soft and don't really cause my ears to feel warm nor hot even when I'm not listening in an air conditioned room.

Gears used for this review

• Earmen Tradutto DAC + Earmen CH-Amp

• Hiby R6 II DAP Mid/High Gain

• Earmen Colibri

• Hifiman Ananda Nano Stock cable and Earpads

Foreword

My review is solely based on what I hear via my equipment and I never consider my reviews to be objective in any way rather a subjective approach. Do take into consideration that everyone’s ear anatomy is not the same, so the psychoacoustics perception might be different as well, but i believe it will not stray too far

Sound Impression

Ananda Nano has a slight emphasis on the upper treble based on my listening impression, hence it has a very detailed sound and at the same time, contributes to a fairly large and airy soundstage. In terms of tonality, Ananda Nano is definitely on the brighter side, and in no way it is harsh. Let’s take a look at the break down below:

Bass

• Starting with the bass, it’s safe to say the bass has very good speed, very very fast and tight, and punchy as well, Slipknot’s People = Shit!, especially during the intense drumming during the opening, Ananda Nano has no sweat in keeping up

• The sub bass has very good extension, although it doesn’t extend that deep, but considering it being an open backed, it is really impressive

• The bass response is not basshead kind of presentation, but to my ears, they are sufficient and will present themselves well when the track calls for it

• Bass has good texture overall and doesn’t sound thin

• The bass doesn’t bleed into the mids at all

Mids

• The mids are quite detailed and lush

• Vocal for both male and females has good enough textures 

• Female vocal has a bit more energy compared to male

• Upper mids are generally safe to my ears and not shouty

Treble

• Treble response has plenty of energetic yet it is not harsh nor sibilant, but do bear in mind that everyone has got different level of tolerance for treble, to my ears, they are not harsh nor anywhere near sibilant

• Fast and snappy transient response

• Very good resolution

• Good detail retrieval, micro details can be picked up easily

Soundstage/Imaging

• Soundstage is very wide and has good depth and height perception

• Instruments can be picked up easily where it is coming from

• Excellent separation and layering

• Very good soundstage and imaging overall

Driveability

• The Ananda Nano is not hard to drive, i am using it with the Earmen’s ST-AMP with 1.8w from 4.4 headphone out, the Ananda Nano sounds like it is being driven to its optimum performance

• When i switch over to ST-Amp’s bigger brother, the CH-AMP, i am greeted with the Ananda Nano that has better control on the bass, and much more dynamics

• I would say it does scale with amplification as well as source

Final Thoughts

The Ananda Nano is definitely one of my favourite planar magnetic headphones that i have tested from Hifiman, and I'm really surprised by its capability in terms of the sonic performance as well as its technicalities. Not to mention that the price is highly competitive as well given what it has to offer. It doesn't require a beefy amp to sound good yet it does scale with better source and amplification, the only downside is that some might find the lower treble a little too forward which can then be perceived as bright on certain tracks, but other than that, at 599$, this is a highly recommended headphone from me!

*The Hifiman Ananda Nano was sent over by Hifiman for the purpose of this review, I received no monetary compensation nor was I influenced in any way to produce this review.

If you are interested in getting a pair, head over to their official store to grab one now! It is currently available for 599$

Hifiman Ananda Nano - Non Affiliated