Massdrop x HIFIMAN Edition XX Headphones

For those seeking a first-rate pair of planar magnetics, “XX” marks the spot. Our fourth collaboration with HIFIMAN, the Edition XX is a full-size, open-back headphone with the same basic shape and structure as its more expensive siblings: the HE1000, Edition X V2, and Ananda. For outstanding clarity and resolution, it uses the newly developed Neo Super Nano Driver, whose diaphragm—at just 1 or 2 microns thick—is 80 percent thinner than previous designs and 25 to 50 times thinner than human hair. The sound is airy and spacious, with a transporting level of detail. No dedicated amp? No problem. With a uniquely low impedance of 20 ohms, the Edition XX is easy to drive from your laptop or portable music player. Additional updates include a new symmetrical magnet structure and a more robust cable.

The Edition XX’s construction should look familiar to fans of HIFIMAN. This model uses the same hybrid ear pads as the Edition X V2: a combination of fabric and synthetic leather that’s been specially angled for acoustics. Meanwhile, the beefy suspension headband comes from the Massdrop x HIFIMAN HE4XX. Hand-stitched with breathable protein leather, it’s made of spring steel so it can bend without losing its shape. The attention to detail is evident throughout, down to the robust steel gimbals with a black oxide finish and matching Allen screws. Finally, the cable is sturdier than ever, with an all-metal plug and a switch from 2.5-millimeter to 3.5-millimeter metal connectors to the cups.

Born in New York City in 2007, HIFIMAN has had a big influence on the audiophile world, and founder Dr. Fang Bian has always had close ties with the community. He started out on Head-Fi and attended local meetups while pursuing his doctorate at Columbia. When he realized his PhD research could be relevant to his passion—the music-listening experience and the audiophile products that improve it—he started talking with forum members and meetup attendees about what they’d like to see in the next generation of headphones. Since then, the company has been featured in TIME, Forbes, and CNET’s “The Audiophiliac,” and won the CES Editors’ Choice Award. HIFIMAN is a natural partner for Massdrop because our goals are so aligned. At its core, it represents a member of the audiophile community building a company that serves the rest of the community.

Announced at CES 2018, the Drop + THX Achromatic Audio Amplifier (THX AAA™) 789 is a linear bipolar amplifier with feed-forward error correction. It’s designed for objectivists who appreciate an incredibly clean, transparent amp—the sought-after “wire with gain” whose amplification is wholly uncolored by a sound of its own. Made in collaboration with THX Ltd., it features the company’s groundbreaking THX AAA and feed-forward topology, which reduce distortion by 20 to 40 dB for realistic, fatigue-free listening. In fact, this bridged-output amp’s performance figures speak for themselves: It’s powerful (2 x 6W at 32 ohms) and quiet (136 dB SNR) with a record-low THD of -140 dB at 300 ohms, 100 mW. That’s four times the power of the Objective 2 amp, for example, with far less distortion.