You’re an owner of an earlier generation of Arya, wondering if you should replace it with this new Stealth Magnet version Before we get into the product itself, I should note that I do not own the original Arya headphones, so this review is that of a “fresh listener” to the Arya line. With that in mind, I have listened to many other HIFIMAN headphones, including the Ananda , Sundara , HE-R10D , and both versions of the Deva . I’ve also spent a good amount of time with other excellent planar magnetic headphones, such as the Dan Clark Audio AEON Open-X from Drop and the Audeze LCD-GX .

As a standalone headphone, the Arya Stealth has a relatively neutral tonal quality through the mids going slightly north of neutral on the highs and a degree warmer and denser on the lows.

Sound Impressions

If you felt the Ananda was too relaxed sounding the Arya ups the energy, improves the dynamic range, and makes everything just that little bit more exciting to listen to. In short, it engages you rather than simply presenting the music passively. If I would have known about this I would have waited instead of getting my 1000 V1, c'est la vie. My V1 are still the best combination of soundstage with precision imaging and subbass extension I have heard to date.

HIFIMAN’s Stealth Magnet technology is acoustically transparent, dramatically reducing wave diffraction turbulence that degrades the sound waves’ integrity, maximizing accuracy. The output goal is transparent sonics, exposing every recording detail without extraneous noise. New “Stealth Magnets” reside in the asymmetric oval cups. The Arya Stealth’s tuning shows a perfect mix of bass presence, mid naturalness and top end excitement. All-in-all it’s a very good and easy to like tuning. Call me impressed! Detail, technical and extension wise, the Arya Stealth is still playing below the HE-1K series and of course the Susvara, but it makes up for it with its musicality, energy, layering, addictive bass presentation, mid timbre and treble liveliness. It all just works perfectly together and that’s how you build award winning headphones. The Arya Stealth isn’t the cheapest, but you get so much in return that’s ridiculous. Sound-wise this is a hard to beat headphone in the segment. Highly addictive. I like this design more than circles, but I haven't tried the he6. They should make a special edition all white version and embrace the EGG !!Once you go desktop, the Arya Stealth scales really well without any noticeable clipping. Feed it more power and that bass response just hits deeper and the treble gets even more control. Frequency Response For gaming, there’s enough body and presence to sound great in action scenes. Hiding out from tanks in Battlefield 2042 was thrilling.

Yeah, that's exactly what I say in my coming HE1000 Stealth first impressions: the Arya Stealth is warmer, more "musical" and intimate. An image that is very clear in my mind from when I was A/Bing them was with Elgar's Op 85 cello concert: I listened first with the HE1000 and every instrument was very precisely placed, all was incredible clear and crisp: there was zero perception of missing clarity or imaging. The new Stealth edition is still too forward in the treble for my preferences, but I don't experience the same "grittiness" from the V2. Something tells me the stealth magnets don't have as influential a change as the actual driver used. It might not make the Arya sound any smoother either, since the stealth magnets were used first in the HEKSE, not the HEKV2, and from what I read the SE has a more peaky, punchy sound, similar to the Arya. Then again, they were also used in the Susvara, but that's another monster altogether. Ik heb ook de HE1000SE en de Susvara beluisterd en deze gaan weer een stap verder maar ook onbereikbaarder voor mij.Initially, I found that the Arya’s treble was fatiguing at anything higher than low volumes ( sound pressure levels). Treble has no sign of roll-off and maintains significant air in the upper frequencies. The Arya Stealth, a new version (Version 3 or V3) of the Arya is now available. It now comes with Stealth Magnets but still retails for the same price as the original Arya. Cable length and type: 1.5m (6.6ft) 6.35mm to dual 3.5mm detachable single crystalline copper cable HiFiMAN Arya Stealth — HEDDphone ONE — ZMF Auteur OG Zebrawood LTD — AKG K340 — Stanton Dynaphase Sixty (modded) For those with the Edition XS thinking is it worth the upgrade then yes, it is on a different level. They share the same broad house tuning but you hear a lot more information and delicate cues with the Arya Stealth driver.

Imaging characteristics are improved hugely here, it’s one of the first apparent things when you put on these headphones, assess the balance and tonality. Whereas the Arya V2 seduced with a large and tall soundstage that had good depth leading to a coherent sense of space and distances, the rendering of objects or instruments inside wasn’t as sharp as the HD 800 or HE-1000SE. The Arya Stealth bridges this rather huge gap and brings the Arya series to another level, closer to the top. Instruments and their positioning, placement are far sharper and precise now and move “fuzzyless” around the still big space that draws the whole scenery well out of your head. HIFIMAN’s confidence making Arya’s non-stealth edition now a special request only has its good reasons. Let’s find out: Treble will most likely be hotly contested among listeners and critics (pun intended). The Arya’s treble has exceptionally crisp detail, sparkle, and extension. Like the bass, the treble frequencies have distinction and dynamics. The weight may look somewhat heavy on paper. On my head, the Arya are well-balanced and feel rather light. They are easy to wear for long periods of time without any irritation. Bass on the Arya is about quality over quantity, but that isn’t to say they’re light on the low-end. The Arya Stealths have good sub-bass extension; the drivers push enough air that the lowest lows — the bass you can feel — comes through nice and strong. I found this to be especially true in electronic music and hip-hop.

Any critiques I share below are at a truly minor scale and intended to help you decide if the Arya will appeal to you. There is no carry case for the Arya Stealth but rather you get the foam and satin overthrow from the original Arya box with the headphones firmly inserted in the center. To the top, there is a manual, warranty card and just underneath (though still above the headphones), is the cable. The Nanometer technology is a breakthrough core technology developed by Hifiman and it’s the first of its kind in a headphone application. According to Hifiman, working with this advanced material is extremely challenging yet the successful incorporation of this film as the Arya’s planar driver is the cornerstone of its remarkable sound.