During CES 2016, we got a chance to go hands - on with the newly announced Audeze
SINE planar magnetic headphones.
If you'd like a bit more portability, and don't mind trading some detail for dollars back, we'd also suggest checking out Audeze's impressive
Sine planar magnetic on - ear headphones.
Not exact matches
Pushing that concept even further, this year Audeze has released a pair of
planar magnetic on - ear headphones, the
SINE.
While the
Sine's
planar magnetic drivers and proprietary technologies contribute to the bulk of the sound quality, the headphones» closed - back design is also a big deal.
Like Oppo, whose PM - 3 over-ears also make our best - of list, Audeze has helped push
planar magnetic headphone tech by leaps and bounds in recent years, letting you take a highly sophisticated mechanism out of the audio lab and into the real world, and the
Sine are the company's tour de force on this front.
As the first ever on - ear
planar magnetic headphones, the
Sine were years in the making, spawned from multiple evolutions in Audeze's lineup.
Audeze celebrates the
Sine for being the first on - ear
planar magnetic headphone, but for my money, I don't see any portability advantage with the
Sine over the already established Oppo PM3.
Both headphones are lightning - quick in their response and suffer no distortion even at dangerously loud volumes — this degree of precision is the big advantage of
planar magnetic cans — but the
Sine has the extra low - end punch that the PM3 seems too idealistic to want to provide.
Audeze caught our imagination last year with
Sine, the superb
planar magnetic on - ear headphones.
That's why I'm a big fan of
planar magnetic headphones, like Audeze's
Sine headphones or Oppo's PM - 3, which use fancy, expensive drivers and other internal components for incredible precision that more accurately re-creates what engineers hear in the studio.
We also compared the headphones to several different high - end models, including two pairs of
planar magnetic cans from Audeze (the $ 800 EL - 8 open - back headphones, and the $ 500 closed - back
Sine on - ear), as well as a pair of Massdrop x Sennheiser open - back HD 6XX headphones (a custom facelift of the $ 350 HD 650).
We've had some experience with Audeze's
planar magnetic technology before, as they feature in the
Sine, and the results are certainly impressive.
Audeze's EL - 8 (30 ohms) and
Sine (20 ohms)
planar magnetic headphones are great examples.