For listening at my desk, I love the iLoud Micro Monitors ($350). It is, after all, where you probably spend a lot of your time at home. Your first speaker purchase should be a quality pair for your desktop. I still have yet to encounter a pair of wireless earbuds that sound amazing, but the best I've heard are the Astell & Kern UW100 ($299), which have some of the most realistic sound you'll find, thanks to the company's excellent processing. Looking to go wireless? The best Bluetooth-powered over-ears you'll find are the Apple AirPods Max ($549), which sound shockingly good, even compared to wired headphones like the aforementioned HD6XX. They offer the cleanest, clearest sound I've ever heard from a pair of headphones-great for high rollers without perfect listening rooms. If you've got unlimited cash, the Audeze LCD-5 ($4,500) are exceptional. They sound even better than the more expensive closed-back models.
(In headphone lingo, the soundstage is the imaginary three-dimensional space you find yourself in when you shut your eyes and listen.)įans of open-back listening with big budgets should check out the Elex ($749), a collaboration between Drop and Focal that brings elements of Focal's more expensive Elear and Clear headphones to the sub-$1,000 mark. They produce one of the widest soundstages I've ever heard. The recent Celestee closed-back headphones ($999) are as gorgeous to listen to as they are to look at.
If you prefer over-ear headphones, I really like the latest models from the French company Focal. Sound quality is excellent, especially with an outboard headphone amp in tow. If you want more sound isolation, I also really like in-ear headphones like the Shure Aonic 3 ($199), which cut out very nearly all outside noise, and pack up super small for travel. They are a perfect pair of headphones to plug straight into a phone or a stereo, though you will notice that using an outboard headphone amp improves the sound. However, open-back headphones sound more natural and speaker-like in any room. There's nothing to block sound in or out-not only will other people hear your music, but you'll be able to hear sounds other than your music. “Open-back” means that they don't seal out the outside world like the “closed back” over-ears you might be used to. Open-backed headphones like the Sennheiser HD6XX ($240) are a great first buy for those who have a quiet room to listen in. Photograph: Dropīecause they take problems with room acoustics out of the equation, a quality pair of headphones is the place most budding audiophiles should start. The company makes many models (like the HD6XX shown here) that are excellent for immersive at-home listening. Sennheiser is one of the top names in high-end headphones.
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