Hifiman Sundara Review - A Class of its own
General/Build/Comfort/Packaging
To date, I have tested multiple Hifiman headphones from HE400SE, to Ananda Nano and Edition XS, i have the Sundara with me today which is the crowd’s favourite despite being released years ago, and no, it doesn’t sport the stealth magnet, but it does have the neo supernano diaphragm derived from the Susvara. Let’s talk about the build quality, to me, the build is more or less similar across the line up, so there really isn’t much to talk about, the same goes for the packaging, it is also identical, a cardboard box which consist of the styrofoam headphone stand, the dual 3.5mm cable,a quarter inch adapter as well as the headphone itself. The clamping force is just nice to my preference, not too tight or loose, the earpads cover my whole ears and I don't feel any discomfort like how I did with on ear headphones.
Gears used for this review
Earmen Tradutto -> Earmen CH-Amp
Earmen Colibri
Hiby R6 II
Hifiman Sundara Stock Cable
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
Sundara’s tonality is quite neutral to my ears, there’s a hint of planar timbre but other than that, in terms of price performance ratio, it is really good. There’s a slight hint of warmth to give the overall impression of slight musicality rather than sterile sounding. CH-Amp gives the Sundara a very dynamic experience, fast bass and snappy transient response, very engaging listening experience. Pairing it with dongles does leave something to be desired.
Bass
Bass is fast and tight with good control
The sub bass does sounded a little rolled off, but mid bass is punchy and has good slams
It is definitely not the bass response that bassheads will crave, but personally the bass response to me is just nice, unless if i listen to EDM, then i will crave for more bass quantity
Bass has good texture overall and doesn’t sound too thin unless it is under powered
Mids
The mids are not overly forward nor recessed,
Vocal for both male and females has good enough textures to them
Female vocal has a bit more energy compared to male
Upper mids are generally safe to my ears and not shouty
A tinge of warmth in this range prevents the overall presentation to sound sterile/clean
Treble
Treble has plenty of energy yet it is not harsh nor sibilant
Fast and snappy transient response
Very good resolution for the price, in fact i think it is actually punching above its price point
Good detail retrieval, micro details can be picked up easily
Very good technicalities for the price point
Soundstage/Imaging
Soundstage is slightly out of your head, not exceptionally wide considering this is an open backed headphone
Good height and width perception for the soundstage
Instruments can be picked up easily where it is coming from
Good layering and separation
Driveability
Sundara does require quite a bit of power to perform at its best, avoid the budget/entry level dongles as they will not power the Sundara well. It does go loud if you are talking about the volume, but bass control and trebles are quite off/harsh
Most of the recent release will do the job just fine, iFi Zen Air Can, Fiio K11, Tempotec Mach 3 if you are on the budget
Comparison (Grado SR125X)
In comparison with Grado’s 125x, which is a dynamic driver headphone and also open backed
Mid bass is slightly punchier and sub bass has a little bit more rumble compared to the Sundara
In terms of build quality, both more or less has similar build quality in my opinion, not exactly premium looking for the budget to mid range models
The 125x’s cable is not removable and gets tangled very easily,not to mention it is very thick and stiff, whereas the Sundara is bundled with a rather high quality stock cable and it’s removable, hence that makes cable rolling possible
The treble can be a little too much on certain track when you crank the volume up, those who are treble sensitive will be affected
In terms of timbre and tonality, the 125x has rather natural timbre and the tonality is leaning on brighter side of spectrum
Final Thoughts
Having tested multiple Hifiman headphones from various price point, it’s safe to say Sundara offers a very good price performance ratio if you are on a budget, it has very good technicalities yet it doesn’t sound dull and lacking in terms of musicality, a very balanced blend between musicality and technical performance. Recommended!
*The Hifiman Sundara 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 299$, for the performance and value, a total steal!
Hifiman Sundara - Non affiliated
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