Hifiman Sundara Closed Back Box
The Sundara Closed-Back Version retails in Europe (release date) for 479€, it uses a Planar Magnetic Driver, is very well build and looks very cool with the wooden cups at least for my taste. The headband and the pads (leather outside /soft cloth inside, memory foam) are very comfortable , the clamping force is well balanced not too tight not too loose, i could wear those headphones for hours of listening with ease.
HFN Sundara Closed with Box and Accs
As for the accessories you get 3.5mm cable with a 6.35mm adaptor, a manual and a cool headphone stand
which at same time protects the headphones during transportation. The provided cable is of good quality but nothing
special. It would have been nice if Hifiman provided a balanced cable with their headphones (as Fiio does with their FT3 and FT5
headphones).
Inside & Outside isolation is good. I could listen to the headphones at high volumes without disturbing my
colleagues in the office & also outside noises are somewhat less noticeable.
After a 2 month break-in period the sound improved quiet a bit, although they sounded already good out of the box.
On paper the Sundaras are easy to drive but i found that the sound quality improves when paired with the right amp.
The best results achieved was pairing it with the Singxer SA-1 desktop amp using a balanced xlr cable as it can deliver a lot
juice to the headphones, while portable units like the Fosi DS-1 dongle or the Hiby R5 II DAP struggled to deliver enough energy
for these headphones to shine especially in the bass department it lacked in punch and dynamics. A very good pairing would also
be the Xduoo MT-604 & Earmen ST-Amp.
Sundara with stand
Compairing the Sundara to another closed-back headphone the Focal Elegia it fell a bit behind in almost every aspect. The Elegia
has better layering, soundstage & bass. If there is a lot going on in a track at higher volumes the Sundara struggles with separation
tending to fatigue where the Elegia sounds more cleaned up. Where the Sundara has it over the Elegia is the comfort and the outside
isolation.
Final Word:
Can the Sundara Closed Back be recommended ? Well considering the actual prices it sells for (under 200 Eur)it could be solid option. It is difficult to find decent closed back headphones in that price category. If carefully partnered these can sound very good. If the budget can be stretched a bit to around 400 Eur i would go for the Focal Elegia which is technically the better headphone.
Used listening components:
Questyle CMA-400i
Questyle M15
Singxer Sa-1
Earman ST-Amp
Xduoo MT604
Fosi Audio DS1
Cayin Ru-6
Hiby R5 II
Matrix Mini i-4
Wiim Pro
Fiio K11
Hart Modular Audio Cables & Stock Cables