Louis reviews the HIFIMAN Ananda Unveiled, a new midrange set of open-back planar headphones using the company’s latest ‘Unveiled’ acoustic technology. It is currently priced at $549.

Disclaimer: I received this sample in exchange for my honest opinion. Headfonics is an independent website with no affiliate links or status. I want to thank the team at HIFIMAN for their support.

HIFIMAN needs no introduction. They’re a dominant force in the headphone industry, and at every audio show, they pull off multiple stunner releases. In this last round of events, HIFIMAN introduced four new headphone models.

From that group of headphones, we’ll first tackle the Ananda Unveiled, which was first launched this summer.

Including this model, this will be the 4th Unveiled HIFIMAN headphone that we have reviewed. The other three include the Arya Unveiled, HE1000 Unveiled, and the flagship Susvara Unveiled.

It looks like this new fully open design is here to stay, even though it’s HIFIMAN’s most radical gambit.

Features

The Ananda series of HIFIMAN headphones has been through revisions at least four times now, if I recall well enough.

There was the original, a second version, which was treated with Bluetooth capability, and the third, which was the Nano. I could have missed one or two, but these were the major releases.

This time around, the Ananda Unveiled also gets fitted with HIFIMAN’s NEO Nanotech, second-generation diaphragm, which is even thinner compared to the last generation that was fitted on the Nano variant, for example. HIFIMAN claims this membrane is 60% thinner.

Alongside that, HIFIMAN is driving that thin membrane via enhanced magnets. HIFIMAN optimized the shape of the magnets to achieve higher sensitivity levels, and I must say, lately, HIFIMAN headphones have become way easier to drive.

Design

Another surprise I was hit with is that HIFIMAN completely redesigned the headband. It’s a composite headband with a plastic shell and a hard rubber pad under a metal spring.

The head strap was incorporated, and I’m sure HIFIMAN did that to retain the old head strap comfort, which worked out well.

The head strap is mounted differently on this new headband. It seems easier to replace now since there is only one screw that acts as a shaft holding it in place.

The yokes are metal, so you don’t have to worry about their longevity. The problem is that there’s a minimal amount of swivel. There’s just enough to get you by, as they say.

What’s also different about this headband is where the metal headband spring is. I like this style over previous versions because the top is not as protruding and pronounced as previous models.

In reference to the cup design, from looks alone, you would think you’re looking at the HE1000 Unveiled because the cup design is almost identical and obviously borrowed from that model.

The dead giveaway here is the visible driver magnet count, which was higher on the HE1000 Unveiled.

Comfort

When I got the HIFIMAN Ananda Nano, the one thing that I disliked was the high amount of clamping force they applied to my medium-sized head. It was definitely not a headphone for large-headed people.

The Ananda Unveiled headband improved upon this, and they don’t clamp down as hard. When you expand these to wear them, you get some resistance, but not half as much as on the previous version that uses the older headband style.

You get very little swivel from the yokes, just enough for the pads to conform to the contours of your head. HIFIMAN states that these headbands have rotatable hinges, but I think they’re referring to the headband mount.

Stock Pads

The Ananda Unveiled stocks pads are the UltraPads from HIFIMAN. They’re one of the most comfortable pads around, but they tend to come apart prematurely, especially in warm, humid climates.

HIFIMAN uses a six-point mounting system on these pads. The pads are hybrid, Asymmetrical, and cavernous with memory foam inside. There’s also a similar pad with a nine-point mounting, and I wish this were standardized since the asymmetrical pads are all of a similar size.

It was a nerve-wracking ordeal to remove these pads because the inner portion of the driver is fairly exposed. Put it this way, I did it so you don’t have to, and only do so when changing the pads or when necessary.

The worst part was putting them back on because one slip of the finger and you could potentially damage that driver. There is a single, very thin mesh cloth protecting the driver on the inside.

Stock Cable

HIFIMAN makes a lot of great headphones, but they’re not discerning about their stock cables. It’s almost like they’re enticing their customers to explore the custom cable market.

At least nothing has changed with the dual 3.5mm connectivity used by most of their headphones, and then some. This makes it easy to outsource a good cable if the stock cable doesn’t work for you.

The Ananda Unveiled comes with a six-foot HIFIMAN Crystaline Copper cable with TRS 3.5mm terminals.

It’s a downgraded version of the one offered by HIFIMAN at their official online store because this one doesn’t come with any metal connectors. These are rubber-coated with strain reliefs.

The cable works, and the bottom portion of the cable has a thick rubber insulation, and they’re flexible and don’t transmit any noise. That section is acceptable even though the connectors are not metal.

But the cables above the Y-section cables are hollow vinyl tubes with very little inside and don’t inspire confidence in me that they will last long.

My experience with these cables is that they last two years tops, then they become intermittent. The bottom line here is that I feel this headphone is worthy of a better stock cable.

Packaging & Accessories

Alongside that stock cable, you’ll find the two magnetic veils and two sets of cloth bags to wrap the cups and the back plates in. But once removed, I found no more use for them. I used the back veil covers exclusively after unboxing.

HIFIMAN was ornate with their packaging in the past, but now we just get a plain brown cardboard box, and I’m not saying that’s bad. What I think is innovative about it is that they turned the inner foam into a useful headphone stand.

Sound Impressions

I used HIFIMAN’s EF400  and theEF600 to test the Ananda Unveiled. I also used the SMSL SU-X and SH-X stack. I also used the Rose Technics RT-5000 and the FiiO QX13. I also used the iFi audio GO blu briefly.

When the gear in use had 4.4mm connectivity, I used MEZE Audio’s upgraded cable, but most of the time I used HIFIMAN’s stock Ananda Unveiled cable.

Summary

This is not HIFIMAN’s typical house sound, but one that is familiar to me and refined in a few ways.  It still carries on that bright, energetic top end, but the low end has been filled in nicely, contrasting with the neutral bass that was the typical HIFIMAN sound of the past.

The overall presentation is expanded and full. However, on this set, the vocals, in particular, took on a smooth overall character, and the vocal presentation has been tamed from being too forward or strident.

If I were to give them a brief sonic description, then it would be bright-leaning with added bass presence over the previous HIFIMAN tuning and a cozy midsection that’s natural and pleasant.

One note: these headphones display that effect in which the bass is highly increased when you break their air seal.

That means that the Ananda Unveiled is highly sensitive to pad rolling, and I bet that once these pads start to shrink from usage, the bass response will also increase.  

I heard some small peaks at around 2.2kHz and 7.2kHz when I ran a tone sweep, and I heard bass effective down to 22Hz, which is deep enough to produce well-extended bass.

Those peaks were mild, and they didn’t remove enjoyment from listening to them. Those peaks, to me, are somehow masking that midrange to produce tones below the radar, but without adding artificiality.

In other words, there’s some color here, and the Ananda Unveiled tuning attempts to avoid sounding bland or too flat.

They do portray an analytical character in that lots of detail is produced, but it’s not sterile-sounding either, and is a good headphone for listening and not just for monitoring and analytical listening.

Bass

The Ananda Unveiled can do bass better than most HIFIMAN headphones can, especially those under a grand, but it’s still not the center of attraction of the overall sonic spectrum.

The Ananda Unveiled produces tight, fast, and clean bass notes that are distinct and well pronounced. It’s a nice shift away from the original Ananda, which lacked sub-bass presence.

The bass is produced with a good amount of body and pose, more so compared to most previous HIFIMAN headphones from the past, not just the Ananda line.

It’s a well-extended bass that reaches very low but doesn’t sound subwoofer-like since the bass tends to sound more cleansed comparatively.

The bass is also well-layered in that you can hear layers within basslines, and is also well-textured.  With this driver, it’s all about the speed, and it caters mostly to refinement, articulation, and slam, but not so much to physical rumble.

Midrange

The midrange and vocal presentation of the HIFIMAN Ananda Unveiled reminded me why I love planar drivers, and it is certainly a highlight here. The vocals, for example, are produced with a high amount of accuracy in tonality and with a warm flavor.

They’re not as forward, which is one of the characteristics that veered me from calling this a HIFIMAN house sound, and it’s because of the relaxed nature of vocals in this set.

Some will perceive these as the most V-shaped HIFIMJAN up to date, but I consider the mids to be unleashed, unclenched, and well balanced.

Male vocals are tamed and warm, female vocals are vibrant and alive. This is not a peaky signature but one that sounds smooth and life-like.

This is a good ‘Jazz’ headphone since it tends to produce most instruments within the midbands, but I would say that it’s not gender specific.

The midrange is pushed back in the lower regions and a bit forward in the upper midrange area. These characters produce midrange with a level of vitality and good articulation.

Treble

The treble response fills the cups and your ears with bright, airy, and energetic treble that reveals fine detail, fine textures, and microdetails. But they’re the first to get strident when the volume level reaches loud levels.

When pushed, they could become grating, and it also depends a lot on the recording, since the Ananda Unveiled seems unforgiving at times, revealing poor recording flaws. This is where the Ananda Unveiled shows its blights.

The high frequencies have always been dominant within the HIFIMAN house sound. However, the Ananda Unveiled manages to maintain a level of balance between the high frequencies and the rest of the frequency response by producing highs that are rational but also pleasant to listen to most of the time.

Most of the treble energy seems to be centered around the 8k to 12k region. That gives this set its bright character, but the best range for detail lies around 5k to 8k. Both these areas are deficient in sibilance, but abundant in airiness and shimmer.

Staging & Dynamics

HIFIMAN has found a niche here in that the Unveiled implementation got the planar driver to sound closer to a dynamic in terms of impact and slam, filling in that bit that was missing from the HIFIMAN house sound.

But what the Ananda Unveiled does best is layering and separation. It produces focused elements and produces them in their own corresponding space.

There’s also a minimum amount of conglomeration. When things get complex, the Ananda Unveiled holds it all together by maintaining coherence.

Height, width, and depth are all represented well, and the overall panorama doesn’t feel artificially stretched either.

Vertical layering, frontal depth, plus a holographic impression, is felt. Just a touch more intimate than their high-tier models like the Arya Unveiled or the HE1000 Unveiled, which, in general, can produce a larger panorama.

My Verdict

The HIFIMAN Ananda Unveiled is a set of open-back planar headphones with the latest in the company’s innovations, including a highly resolving sound, high comfort levels, and portable-friendly sensitivity levels. It has a lot going for it.

HIFIMAN has hit paydirt with the Unveiled line, and the Ananda Unveiled is one of those headphones that I would consider a fantastic buy because it sonically performs close to some higher-tier models, even within the present HIFIMAN line.

HIFIMAN Ananda Unveiled Technical Specifications

• Frequency response: 5Hz to 55kHz
• Sensitivity: 93 dB
• Impedance: 22Ω
• Weight: 449g excluding magnetic veils and headphone cable