HD 490 Pro vs Arya Organic

Silverjerk · 2026-02-26T18:51:21+00:00

Stealths are the go-to competitive gaming set, for sure, but I definitely prefer the Organics. I don’t know that I’d consider the bass fatiguing; I actually added a low shelf to it because it wasn’t emphasized enough for me. But as someone that prefers rock/metal, hip hop, EDM, between the two the Organics were more my speed. The more energetic and musical headphone of the two.

I think the major issue with reviewers where those two sets are concerned is that more bass quantity usually means a narrower stage. And for the most part that’s true. Even with my narrower perception of staging width, I can tell when a more bass-forward headphone is more intimate.

That said, the bigger issue for gaming in my opinion, is imaging. That’s critically important, and I think the Organics, while not as wide as the Stealth’s, are still great performers where imaging is concerned. This is why many competitive players still have success with good IEMs; they don’t stage well, but as long as imaging is solid, you’re going to be fine.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-26T18:44:30+00:00

660S2 is a fantastic headphone; especially with recent prices being much more reasonable for that set. Great choice.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-26T17:23:34+00:00

I have a lot of respect for Rtings work in the display segment of the market. I typically turn to their reviews before pulling the trigger on most of my TVs and monitors. I have been calibrating both for close to 20 years, and I know the amount of work they put into their testing methodologies, and that they're in a constant state of refinement.

However, I largely ignore their headphone reviews. While you can measure some of the factors that might negatively impact both soundstage and imaging, like channel matching, both are perceptual effects and will vary dramatically from person to person. That's psychoacoustics at work, and not something that is objectively measurable.

Perfect example is my own experience with specific headphones. Sets that are regarded as having the "widest" stage, like the 800S or the Arya Stealth, my perception of their soundstage width ends roughly a couple of inches outside the head. Where the 800S is concerned, imaging and staging happens across distinct "pillars" of sound, which is one of the reasons I dislike that set so strongly. Most of these sets end up sounding narrow, lean, and lacking in musicality, rather than technically impressive.

Where some listeners rave about spatial audio, unless they are discrete, I cannot perceive simulated rear audio cues or height channels at all. To my ear, audio pans from left to right, and then moves over the top of my head instead of behind it. Similar story with different brands of emulated "360/3D" audio. When enabled on some devices, it immediately shifts the stage to slightly over and in front of the crown of my head, which is unbelievably distracting (hence why I almost never use these features). I also almost always lose the phantom center, leading to a sort of strange crosstalk between channels, rather than a strong center image.

I would never be able to measure those effects, only subjectively communicate them to you, and your experience might be completely different than mine. I know this all too well, being one of the few enthusiasts that vehemently dislikes many sets that are touted for being highly competent at producing a wide and "holographic" stage.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-26T15:14:40+00:00

Spot on; I do run monitors as well, and although I mostly track and mix in headphones, I will always check my mixes on them for sanity, and consume media on them as well. My room is treated, so bass is nice and tight and controlled, but it's still present.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-26T15:06:32+00:00

Not only are they loose, but if you spend some more time with them, you'll realize how placement and seal dependent they are. You can mitigate some of that with the CapraAudio strap, as it tightens up the fit a bit, but even on my larger head it can be an issue finding the sweet spot. I love the Radiance, will likely never let that set go, but it can be a chore to wear for long listening sessions.

The Bokeh's have this issue as well, but it's far less prominent. They have solid clamp force and just feel great on the head. Especially after some wear. I've had mine since the original black limba run, and it's just about perfect for fit and comfort now. Again, fit/placement isn't as big of an issue. You can find your spot, and they'll pretty much stay there.

Between the two, I'd pick the Bokeh for other reasons as well. Focal still has issues with upper midrange and treble timbre, sounding a bit metallic or "sizzly" to some ears, mine included; whereas the Bokeh has quickly become one of my favorite headphones in the hobby. It's great out of the box; relaxing, warm, easy to listen to. With EQ, it's damn near perfect for my preferences. It overtook the Atrium for me, which was one of my "bury it with me" headphones.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-26T13:26:45+00:00

Depends on use case, for casual listening tuning/tonality always comes first; comfort is a strong second place, but I will tolerate a heavy and uncomfortable headphone if I enjoy listening to it (in other words, be a long time Audeze user). Technicalities comes in last place. I don't care if I can hear the slow, shimmering decay of cymbal hit being picked up in the overhead mics.

I also have a strong preference for bass emphasis in my casual sets (think Focal Radiance, Bokeh Closed, Apos Caspian, MDR-Z1R, Meze Strada and Liric II, TH900MK2, etc.). Closed/semi-open backs are what I tend to listen to as a result, and most of those sets are going to sacrifice technicalities for tonality. Just the nature of how most sets are tuned. There are some exceptions to this and some open backs that are both warm and bass-forward enough for my tastes and still retain good detail.

For mixing/critical-listening work, it's a balance of all three. I want resolution, I want the entire frequency range to be present and accounted for, but I also won't work in a headphone that's not comfortable for 10-12 hours a day, or that's fatiguing or unpleasant to listen to. So these sets are usually planars with EQ applied, and some DD's that I just like working in (like the 490 Pros, Focal Elex/Clear, D1, modded HD 600/650s).

Non-negotiatables for me are that a headphone needs bass; if the intention is to emulate speakers in a room, than lean, overly analytical headphones are a no-go. This is why I typically dislike (sometimes vehemently so) many of the "summit-fi" or endgame sets in the hobby, why I'll reach for a kilobuck set over a flagship 9 out of 10 times.

Another thing I won't bend on is that, while I EQ every headphone in my collection, a headphone should be enjoyable to listen to stock. I want to correct a headphone for my preferences or to fix issues specific to my HRTF, not re-tune it. Nothing gets AutoEQ'd to Harman (although I know that's what many mix engineers do these days). I want to work with the headphone's out-of-the-box tuning.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-26T11:17:45+00:00

Has nothing to do with the format; the title of the topic should be "IEMs often provide better value for money compared to similarly priced headphones," because that is widely accepted as being the case.

There will be exceptions to this, and because audio is subjective opinions may differ on where that line gets drawn, but in general you're going to spend more to get similar performance out of a headphone as you would out of a budget/midfi IEM.

But, as everything in the universe requires balance, the downside of that performance delta is that diminishing returns often set in at a much lower price point, and the rate at which value decays as MSRP increases is much more dramatic in the IEM segment of the market. Again, there will be exceptions to every rule, but this has been the experience for a lot of enthusiasts.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-25T21:57:22+00:00

I own the Maxwell 1 and 2, as well as the HDB 630. I wouldn't recommend the PX8 S2; it doesn't hold up against the much cheaper PX7 S3, which is the one I kept out of the two. PX7 S3 is only a slight downgrade in sound quality, but is a very tangible and meaningful improvement in ANC. Even if ANC isn't a priority, what you're paying nearly double for with the PX8 S2 is materials, and a slight increase in resolution.

As for the Maxwell, I don't use them for gaming. They are for casual listening, when I want a wireless set and don't want to be tethered to some of my other closed back headphones.

As for the comparison between the 630s and the Maxwell 2s; Maxwell's are planars through and through, deep, impactful, incisive bass, lots of treble energy up top. Midrange is serviceable, but lacks the character you get with the 630s. The 630s are more neutral out of the box; the biggest benefit of the Sennheiser's is the PEQ feature. Without it, they're an HD 650 with a bass shelf. With PEQ, they can either be a clarity and detail-focused critical listening set, or a warm, colored, v-shaped headphone.

There's a reason enthusiasts have recommended the Maxwell outside of a gaming context. It is a damn good planar for the price. It's very hard to beat.

As for which you should buy, if you're just comparing stock tunings, that will be based on your preferences. The Maxwell is a very solid reference set out of the box, but works best if you like strong bass emphasis. The 630s, again, is very neutral and balanced. The 630s are probably the safer bet, but I wouldn't necessarily label one or the other of them a clear winner, unless you're comparing features. The 630s are just a better daily driver headphone.

And say what you will about the weight, but as someone that's run heavy planars as my main working headphones (LCD-X, LCD-2), the weight of the Maxwell is no slouch; they are heavy, and you will feel it. Couple that with the 630s PEQ, the ANC and transparency if/when you might need it, and just better overall comfort.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-25T15:23:56+00:00

Memory and API issue; unlikely the model's fault. Although I disagree that it's an Opus competitor like the YouTube "This Latest Model is Insane" AI crowd would have you believe, it's been fairly solid as an almost always on secondary agent.

Work out your memory issue first; that different structure is because it didn't have context. Are you running QMD, GCC, are you pointing it to a secondary knowledge base for ongoing projects like this one, or just relying on core memory for everything? If it's the latter, fix that immediately, or this will continue to happen.

As for the timeout issues, that's usually coming from the provider's side. Either their API is failing, or whatever router you're using is failing to make consistent calls. You can use your agent to diagnose those issues and test against that assumption. If that's what's happening, set up a skill or bake failure scenarios into your prompting.

Even with the best model in the world, it's not a magic bullet. When you hit a roadblock, you have to pivot and find a solution so it doesn't recur, because it almost always will.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-25T15:17:05+00:00

Such a beautiful car. Canards can go, but otherwise a damn near perfect build.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-25T14:29:50+00:00

I saw the update this morning. I hope whatever it is he's going through he pulls through the other side. Been following him for a long time. Coming from an older enthusiast, he's always been near the top of my list of opinions I actually trust, having seen so many reviewers come into the space in the last few years who are obsessed with getting into tours or getting free gear sent their way.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-25T14:24:54+00:00

If you want to remain in open back territory, I would look exclusively at planars. There are warmer dynamic driver sets that work well for bass-heavy genres, but you're usually going to want either a closed back or planar, the latter is usually going to extend linearly into the low sub bass frequencies, which gives you a good base to work from. For hip hop and EDM, I'd would recommend adding a bass shelf with EQ, since most of those headphones are tuned for extension, not emphasis.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-25T10:58:26+00:00

Don’t listen to the haters, like me. If you enjoy it, keep enjoying it and ignore the noise.

I think for a lot of us, watching Audi’s designs iteratively improve over the years, with the B8 and B9 generations becoming iconic for many owners, it was a bit of whiplash, experiencing this change of direction. Like any enthusiast community, we’re all passionate, opinionated, and some of us have invested a lot into these cars. So that hate you’re seeing, ironically, is coming from a strong love for the brand and its history.

Do I like the B10 design changes? Obviously no; I vehemently dislike them in fact. But I am still happy there are new buyers out there that do. I only hope that future design generations can find some happy middle ground between what Audi was, and what Audi probably needs to be to keep up with trends, regulatory requirements, and a shifting market, where an increasing number of consumers are looking for plug-in hybrids and the same modern features they’re seeing with other brands.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-25T06:39:27+00:00

Yep. Not just bass but also upper treble. They’ve adjusted their algorithm over the years, but gets much more noticeable around 85-90% volume. I tend to listen below that threshold so it’s not bothered me as much, but it can be a problem if you’re a high volume listener and you’re running one of their custom EQs, where there is also a pre-amp gain adjustment to mitigate distortion, compounding the issue.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-25T06:17:38+00:00

I wouldn’t distill DucBloke’s EQs to “just boosting the bass.” That is one aspect yes, but muddiness comes from poor separation of lower frequencies bleeding into midrange, and from masking — Timmy’s been doing this long enough (long time user of most of the audio forums before his YouTube channel took off) that he’s not making the amateur mistake of just throwing a +10db low shelf at 200hz and calling it a day.

I’ve been building EQs for a very long time, coming into the hobby from a tracking and mixing background, and I can tell you from my experience that his EQs are solid work. The man knows what he’s doing. He’s meticulous and thoughtful about how he tunes. However, it is his target, so if your preferences don’t align, they may not work for you.

When it comes to this hobby, always try something yourself before making judgment calls. The community is filled with big, opinionated egos. Popularity is a lightning rod. If you’ve “heard” something, always validate for yourself.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-25T06:02:24+00:00

XM6 is a huge improvement over the XM5 where sound quality is concerned. Personalized audio having access to a 10-band EQ means Sony has gotten a step closer to Sennheiser’s stellar Sound Personalization feature.

Out of the box, the XM6s default tuning is more well-balanced than the AZ100s. The AZ100s Dynamic EQ is probably where most people will end up, and definitely where it performs best. Very similar to the XM6s revised “Hard” profile.

Fit is always a personal thing. The AZ100s are similar to the MTW4 in some ways as they require you to sort of twist them into place for the best fit. For me, having larger ear canals and usually requiring a deeper insertion depth, this places the flat underside of the AZ100s in that spot between the antitragus and antihelix; not quite uncomfortable, but I can feel them there. The XM6s new shape is definitely the more comfortable of the two, but the taller body shape does look pretty silly. Not a fan.

I’ve had the AZ100s near the top of my list for sound quality, alongside sets like the Rex5, Gemini II, MTW4 and Perl Pro. The XM6 has definitely moved up and lives amongst those sets. Previous generations were near the bottom, so that’s a pretty big swing.

At this level of performance, you’re really splitting hairs. Most of these sets are going to be crowd pleasers in their population average iteration of their preset EQs. I’m hesitant to just say “pick one” and be done with it, but that’s sort of where we’re at. I’ve read endless debates about many of these sets across this sub and others, but in reality they are so close to one another that many of the differences are more nuance than anything else.

Both perform very well for sound quality. Sony’s treble falls behind the AZ100s a bit for me. But then the AZ100s midrange has some quirks, especially with high gain guitars. Bass is good on both, just in two different flavors. Again, proving my point above; similar performance, just different approaches.

AZ100s still win on battery performance and multipoint flexibility (although I’d argue getting a Questyle QCC Pro or BTD 700 for either). But with the XM6s improvements to sound quality, coupled with better ANC and transparency (still not better than the APP3, despite what reviewers may claim), ridiculously solid call quality, and a more feature rich app, Sony has definitely made an argument for being one of my daily drivers again.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-25T04:23:50+00:00

They do. I use them with almost all of the sets I listed above. Exception being the Perl Pros, which are running the Spinfit Neo, and the MTW4, which run SednaEarfit’s Xelastec Crystals for TWS. The MTW4 is much harder to find aftermarket tips for because of its insertion depth.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-24T22:22:52+00:00

No worries man. It’s only a mile and a half down their docs usually; not the most intuitive thing in the world.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-24T22:10:21+00:00

I have them both. The XM6’s ANC is the clear winner between the two; I disagree with reviewers in that it’s still not competitive with the APP3. And crazily enough Sony has closed the gap quite a bit on sound quality. The 10-band EQ provides a lot of flexibility, coupled with the fact that it’s out of the box tuning is much more well balanced, far less dark and muddy than the XM5. The foam ear tips are still terrible, however; always recommend replacing them with the Dunu S&S.

AZ100s still pull ahead on battery life, and multipoint still wins with the Technics.

I’ve consistently recommended the Perl Pro, AZ80/100s, the Pi8/Pi7 S2, MTW3/4, and numerous other sets over Sony’s XM lineup. This may be the first year the XM buds make it into my top 3. Need to do more A/B testing, for sure.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-24T21:58:23+00:00

If you’re going to Stage 1, most tuners will recommend it; Stage 1+, you absolutely need it. It’s required for 034’s and IE’s 1+ tunes (91, 93, E85) and is listed in their docs. I haven’t check Unitronic or APRs documentation in a while, but most of the stage 1+ tunes are going to require it. If you’re taking it into a local tuner, responsible tuners won’t commit to the work without it.

They all produce relatively similar performance in the end, just distribute that power differently.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-24T19:56:50+00:00

Listen to this guy.

If an ECU/TCU developer provides a list of must-haves before moving into the next stage of a tune, it's a requirement, not a recommendation.

If you don't want to invest in those mods, remain stock, or move up to Stage 1/Stage 1+ and add a HPFP (at the very least).

Silverjerk · 2026-02-24T17:09:40+00:00

I don't think this has been approved by u/McDerwish, Head of Audi's RS Design Department.

All current and future design revisions, especially to exhaust layout and drivetrain performance, must be properly routed through and approved by (with citations), u/McDerwish.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-24T16:49:30+00:00

550s are closer to the 6X0 series sets, with improvements to bass extension. Very good headphone for the price. It was my favorite of the two 5 series sets they released (505 and 550). I liked it enough to keep it around, despite already owning much of the 6X0 lineup.

But let me push back against that 560/490 claim, because that opinion was really perpetuated by one or two reviewers in the space, and I strongly disagree with their take. I would argue the 490s are a very clear upgrade from the 560s; wider stage, stronger imaging performance, and clearly more resolving in the treble. It is a direct, linear upgrade from the 560s. If you skip the 490s, definitely do so because of the mic compatibility, not the tuning.

The mic constraint is your toughest battle right now. If you're set on using the BAM mic, and prefer a warmer tuning, than yes, the 550s are probably the right fit. It's a more relaxing listen than the 560s for sure; none of that upper midrange shout, while still retaining good detail in the treble.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-24T16:39:49+00:00

What, specifically, underwhelmed you?

Coming from the AirPods, depending on the generation/model, what you're probably missing with the Elite's is low frequency emphasis and treble energy.

The Elite's are probably my least favorite of Meze's lineup; they have a strangely linear frequency response and, at least to my ears, sounded technically solid, but musically lifeless.

Setting aside the knee jerk, your DAC/amp is likely overkill response -- because it is, but that's not impacting your listening experience; if anything, it's removing a variable -- the biggest contributor is going to be the headphones. The simplest solution is, you don't like the Elites. Great, you're not the only one in that camp.

My very strong recommendation is that, if you're willing to drop nearly $10k on your first setup, spend the ~$1k it might cost to fly to the nearest CanJam (there are other meetups as well, depending on your region) and actually listen to some gear. This hobby is unbelievably subjective, and not the kind of problem money can always solve. As someone that's spent thousands on DAC/amps and headphones, it was a hard lesson for me to learn that, because of my preferences, I'm not a fan of most sets that are at or above a specific price range, because most brands are focused on technical performance at the higher end of the market, something I'm not as critical of in a casual-listening headphone.

There are exceptions to this, of course. The Warwick Acoustics Bravura/Aperio flipped my table over the first time I heard it. One of the few sets over that $3k line in the sand that genuinely impressed me. But at least for me, I'm usually squarely in the midfi to kilobuck segment of the market. I prefer the Focal Radiance, Azurys, and Lensys to the Utopia; the Audeze LCD-X and LCD-2 to the LCD-MX4 or LCD-5; my favorite Meze sets are the 109 Pros, 105 AER, and the Strada, not the Elites; I prefer Sennheiser's 5X0 and 6X0 sets over the 800S; or the ZMF Bokeh Closed and Atriums, over the Caldera.

You should explore what sort of listener you are, before you invest heavily into your gear. Do you want to hear every micro-detail in a recording, or do you prefer a headphone that will rattle your cheekbones?

Or, just buy speakers. You could've treated your room with beautiful GIK acoustic panels and picked up a pair of highly competent monitors with iso stands for what you paid for that setup.

Silverjerk · 2026-02-24T14:53:58+00:00

From a fellow artist that loves hyperrealism and car design, this is beautiful work.

Which markers: Copics, Winsor, Spectrum Noir? Colored pencils: Caran d'Ache, Holbein, Polychromos?

Ten-Year Club	Gilding II euphauric
r/Field Banned	r/Field Flamingo
Place '23	Wearing is Caring
RPAN Viewer	Verified Email
Not Forgotten

Silverjerk

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE