[up late]

I wasn't really assessing anything, his strong preference towards oval HiFiMan headphones is well known. And those offer a radically different sound tuning.

the susvara and utopia are his reference headphones - neither of which are oval in shape. to say that 'he is in camp hifiman' suggests that he is biased and seemingly ignores his positive reviews of the modhouse tungsten, zmf bokeh, zmf atrium open, zmf atrium closed and dan clark e3 - none of which are hifman headphones.

 

[betula]

the susvara and utopia are his reference headphones - neither of which are oval in shape. to say that 'he is in camp hifiman' suggests that he is biased and seemingly ignores his positive reviews of the modhouse tungsten, zmf bokeh and atrium closed - none of which are hifman headphones.

I am yet to see a YT reviewer who is not biased at all by his personal taste.

 

[up late]

I am yet to see a YT reviewer who is not biased at all by his personal taste.

neither have i but that's beside the point and i gather that you have not watched the review

 

[betula]

neither have i but that's beside the point and i gather that you have not watched the review

What is your point? I watched enough of the review to know that he dislikes the Empy 2 and I watched enough of his previous videos to know his preference.

Yes, all YT reviewers have a preference which is absolutely fine, but not all of them are fully aware of it or state it clearly enough.

 

[aurimasma]

It doesn't have to be Hifiman vs Meze. I own both HE1000se and Empyrean II. They're different, yes. Their technical abilities are different, yes. But so does my moods for a certain type of sound from time to time.
HE1000se shows everything as is, without regard to the quality of the recording or listener's fatigue. Empyrean II likes to lie a little bit, make things prettier than they really are.
I love them both for what they are. One is for hearing everything and the other one is just for being comfortable (and not necessarily hearing everything).

 

[up late]

What is your point? I watched enough of the review to know that he dislikes the Empy 2 and I watched enough of his previous videos to know his preference.

Yes, all YT reviewers have a preference which is absolutely fine, but not all of them are fully aware of it or state it clearly enough.

i think that i made my point clearly enough to you in both my first and second reply. i suggest that you watch the video in its entirety or skip to around the 30 minute mark where he talks about his dialogue with meze, acknowledges his subjective preference and explains why he thinks that the empyrean 2's sonic performance is not commensurate with its price point.

 

[infinity3914]

It doesn't have to be Hifiman vs Meze. I own both HE1000se and Empyrean II. They're different, yes. Their technical abilities are different, yes. But so does my moods for a certain type of sound from time to time.
HE1000se shows everything as is, without regard to the quality of the recording or listener's fatigue. Empyrean II likes to lie a little bit, make things prettier than they really are.
I love them both for what they are. One is for hearing everything and the other one is just for being comfortable (and not necessarily hearing everything).

Agreed, very well put!

 

[betula]

i think that i made my point clearly enough to you in both my first and second reply. i suggest that you watch the video in its entirety or skip to around the 30 minute mark where he talks about his dialogue with meze, acknowledges his subjective preference and explains why he thinks that the empyrean 2's sonic performance is not commensurate with its price point.

I don't think I have attacked or accused him with anything terrible, so I am not sure I understand why you are so protective of him. I was stating simple facts about his likes and preferences. It is good of him that he explains this in the video, but why should that change anything I said?
I was a bit puzzled by your initial response. By 'being in HiFiMan camp' I did not mean there are no other headphones he likes or he is paid by HiFiMan or whatever. I was simply mentioning that he has a strong preference to HFM headphones which is quite far from Meze's sound philosophy and can at least partially explain his dislikes.
I think you take this way too seriously and see things behind my comments which are not there. Before completely derailing the thread I am out.

 

[up late]

I don't think I have attacked or accused him with anything terrible, so I am not sure I understand why you are so protective of him. I was stating simple facts about his likes and preferences. It is good of him that he explains this in the video, but why should that change anything I said?
I was a bit puzzled by your initial response. By 'being in HiFiMan camp' I did not mean there are no other headphones he likes or he is paid by HiFiMan or whatever. I was simply mentioning that he has a strong preference to HFM headphones which is quite far from Meze's sound philosophy and can at least partially explain his dislikes.
I think you take this way too seriously and see things behind my comments which are not there. Before completely derailing the thread I am out.

i didn't say or insinuate that you 'attacked or accused him with anything terrible.' nor am i protecting him. lumping the reviewer into 'camp hifiman' as you did in your initial post is not a 'simple fact' but it is simplistic. i 'simply' called you out for it. whether you think i am taking this 'way too seriously' or not is again, beside the point.

 

[mki233]

What is your point? I watched enough of the review to know that he dislikes the Empy 2 and I watched enough of his previous videos to know his preference.

If you had watched the review, you would have heard him say that he liked what the Empy II sounded like, he just couldn't stomach how poor its technical capabilities were in comparison to others of similar or much lower price. And that's what soured him on it. This isn't another Audivina where it was just a bad headphone all around, its that he thinks it just has a very bad price.

 

[betula]

If you had watched the review, you would have heard him say that he liked what the Empy II sounded like, he just couldn't stomach how poor its technical capabilities were in comparison to others of similar or much lower price. And that's what soured him on it. This isn't another Audivina where it was just a bad headphone all around, its that he thinks it just has a very bad price.

I watched it. To me this video is just another example that our taste, hearing and preference is very far from each other. He similarly dislikes the Elite saying it is not worth half the price. IMO the Elite with angled alcatara pads are fantastic headphones and one of my favourites. While I appreciate the HEKSE for example and think they are good headphones especially for the current retail price, I would pick the Elite over them any day. This reviewer probably feels the other way around. Without going into detailed comparisons, let me just say to me sound is more than technicalities. There is coherence, lushness, body, organic timbre, lifelikeness, overall engagement factor and so on. Not to mention build quality and comfort: you pay for that too. Just put the HEKSE next to the Elite and see.
Watching the video changed nothing in my views, opinion or thoughts. I just understand these confrontational comments here even less.

 

[ThanatosVI]

If you had watched the review, you would have heard him say that he liked what the Empy II sounded like, he just couldn't stomach how poor its technical capabilities were in comparison to others of similar or much lower price. And that's what soured him on it. This isn't another Audivina where it was just a bad headphone all around, its that he thinks it just has a very bad price.

The thing is, the Empyrean II doesn't have poor technical capabilities.
Glad I didn't waste my time on such a factually wrong review

 

[Dragonmilenario]

For me, it’s more about how the music is presented: the Hifiman way (a steak cooked rare or even blue, without salt or pepper) or the Meze way (the same steak but cooked more and with some condiments). In my view, the HE-1000SE is the purest example of this raw presentation, while the Meze Elite represents the alternative approach. The Empyrean II, in this analogy, is closer to the Elite than to the HE-1000SE.

The Liric II, which I really enjoy and, to my ears, represent the perfect blend of both worlds, are the headphones that Meze has crafted in a style more reminiscent of Hifiman. As such, it’s the Meze headphones that Wave Theory likes the most.

 

[up late]

The thing is, the Empyrean II doesn't have poor technical capabilities.
Glad I didn't waste my time on such a factually wrong review

so you've concluded that a subjective review is 'factually wrong' without having seen it. i like your thinking.

 

[Mr X]

For me it's fine for him to state his reasons (including techincal) for not liking the Empy II, after all it's his experience and opinion and his ears.

BUT to state that he vaules the EmpyII at $800 (a few hundred more than say AirPods Max) is an absolute joke and for me loses the review quite a bit of credibility IMO.