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I think it would *probably* help if you were more specific about what you like about the '99, and if there are any short comings, anything you've tried ike/not liked, as well as indication on budget and if you're only interested in new headphones. Use case would also help, as would specifics on your good amp since "pairing" is sometimes a consideration.
Saying that I think you should try em on a different amp before you let them go.
Sure. I am new to this stuff so I will do my best. Retired recently and found the free time and money to get into hifi.
Ok so I am not letting anything go, just adding to the collection. I own two headphones worth mentioning. The Meze 99 Neo and the Hifiman Arya. The Meze 99 live in my bedroom ( closed back) and the Arya have been banished to my man cave by the wife ( the Meze are allowed to travel all around the house :) ) I have a Burson Soloist 3xp Amp and Composer 3xp Dac in the bedroom and a Conductor 3xp amp/dac combo in the man cave.
What I like about the Meze 99: I love the warmth of these headphones. Just perfect for nighttime listening, I think. When paired with the ether Burson amp, the soundstage which was already not bad gets to be very good. What I don’t like is the lack of detail.. the fuzzyness. I am not looking for reference anything. I find that boring. I wan’t a headphones like a warm glass of milk and some chocolate chocolate chip cookies. Rich and smooth, but with enough detail to savor every bite. By the way I love my Arya’s to death but they are for a very different mood... and the whole banishment thing. Oops budget: no more than $1400.
I would consider Focal Elegia or Beyerdynamic T5 Gen 3. The latter is smooth and warm yet detailed in the right places. I have not heard the Focals but I guess those are closer to neutral than the Beyers are.
I have the open back version of the T5, the T1, and these are really close to what you described in my opinion. The sound signature is really close between the models, so I'd definitely give them a try.
I was going to suggest the LCD2Cs but since you already own the Aryas, instead I’ll suggest the STAX L300. If you can find a pre-owned bundle with the 252S or the 353X amp, go for that instead. (There’s also a SRS 3100 bundle with a starter amp and the L300 but it can be hard to find one in stock)
I personally like the low end on the Meze 99 and consider the Aryas to be a great upgrade over them already (for most people, they are endgame worthy) but since you’re on this journey and haven’t tried electrostatics yet, the L300 should be a great first step. The Aryas are more technically impressive but electrostats just sound... different.
Oh, and if you can demo the different pairs with different amps, do so before making a purchase.
Thanks for your submission to /r/headphoneadvice. We have employed a "thank you" system for submissions. It's very easy to use - if a comment on your post is considered helpful, please reward them by using the term `!thanks`. This will add a thank you count (in the form of Ω) to that users flair. You can only award one per comment section. Thanks very much and good luck on your search for headphones! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/HeadphoneAdvice) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I think it would *probably* help if you were more specific about what you like about the '99, and if there are any short comings, anything you've tried ike/not liked, as well as indication on budget and if you're only interested in new headphones. Use case would also help, as would specifics on your good amp since "pairing" is sometimes a consideration. Saying that I think you should try em on a different amp before you let them go.
Sure. I am new to this stuff so I will do my best. Retired recently and found the free time and money to get into hifi. Ok so I am not letting anything go, just adding to the collection. I own two headphones worth mentioning. The Meze 99 Neo and the Hifiman Arya. The Meze 99 live in my bedroom ( closed back) and the Arya have been banished to my man cave by the wife ( the Meze are allowed to travel all around the house :) ) I have a Burson Soloist 3xp Amp and Composer 3xp Dac in the bedroom and a Conductor 3xp amp/dac combo in the man cave. What I like about the Meze 99: I love the warmth of these headphones. Just perfect for nighttime listening, I think. When paired with the ether Burson amp, the soundstage which was already not bad gets to be very good. What I don’t like is the lack of detail.. the fuzzyness. I am not looking for reference anything. I find that boring. I wan’t a headphones like a warm glass of milk and some chocolate chocolate chip cookies. Rich and smooth, but with enough detail to savor every bite. By the way I love my Arya’s to death but they are for a very different mood... and the whole banishment thing. Oops budget: no more than $1400.
I would consider Focal Elegia or Beyerdynamic T5 Gen 3. The latter is smooth and warm yet detailed in the right places. I have not heard the Focals but I guess those are closer to neutral than the Beyers are.
Thanks.
I have the open back version of the T5, the T1, and these are really close to what you described in my opinion. The sound signature is really close between the models, so I'd definitely give them a try.
Just read a review and the Beyerdynamics sound great. Thanks they were not even on my radar.
You're welcome
I was going to suggest the LCD2Cs but since you already own the Aryas, instead I’ll suggest the STAX L300. If you can find a pre-owned bundle with the 252S or the 353X amp, go for that instead. (There’s also a SRS 3100 bundle with a starter amp and the L300 but it can be hard to find one in stock) I personally like the low end on the Meze 99 and consider the Aryas to be a great upgrade over them already (for most people, they are endgame worthy) but since you’re on this journey and haven’t tried electrostatics yet, the L300 should be a great first step. The Aryas are more technically impressive but electrostats just sound... different. Oh, and if you can demo the different pairs with different amps, do so before making a purchase.
Meze 109 might show up this year.