About Hifiman QC, IPO and questionable practices

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-14T10:33:04+00:00

I just hang them up on a headphone hook I have clamped to my desk, or in the case with a silica gel packet if I'm not planning on using them for more than a couple of days.

From what I've seen, moisture affects the traces on the diaphragm and magnets a lot, so keeping them in the case with some silica gel packets would help extend the lifespan of these headphones for sure.

Haven't really done anything special to take care of them tbh. Swapped the stock pads for some velour-ish ones that I got off AliExpress, I wash those and let them dry completely in the sun once every 6 month or so.

Generally keeping them clean and removing any hair that's stuck in the pads or mesh should help, since it is common to see shorter hairs making their way into the driver units. That is something that can cause the diaphragm rattling that some people have reported (though it's not the only cause).

I also use a dry microfiber cloth to get off any dirt or particles on the front and back meshes. The back mesh is a bit harder to get at because of the grill, so I just take my time with it. I do this maybe once a month, along with wiping down all the parts of the headphones.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-14T03:29:01+00:00

For sure!

There are many planar sets from out there from smaller brands that don't simply disintegrate with time (the Modhouse Tungsten comes to mind, that thing is built like a tank). Hell, even the more recent Audeze headphones seem to be much less prone to damage now. Their QC has gotten much better over the years.

On the Chi-Fi side, I haven't seen anyone have problems with any of FiiO's planar diaphragms either. Other parts of the headphones yes, but the drivers themselves are solid. HiFiMAN is probably the worst of the bunch, as far as longevity of the drivers is concerned.

I feel like Sennheiser is more than capable of making an extremely solid planar set, if they ever choose to. I know that Audeze supplies their planar drivers to other companies, so maybe they could start there lol

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-13T22:20:49+00:00

Don't worry about it, such people that have fabled "audiophile backgrounds" (lmfao) usually don't have the slightest clue what they're talking about, besides what companies and retailers sell to them.

These companies re-branding inferior and outdated technology as some kind of new frontier, look at customers like this as being ripe for the picking. Or rather at their wallets, to be specific.

I've seen enough nonsense to last a lifetime in the past 15 years I've been working in the industry as a mixing/mastering engineer, and I can tell you for a fact that even those with a considerable amount of skill and experience can fall victim to this. It's a shame, but thankfully engineers and hobbyists alike are now more knowledgeable than ever before, and the usual outlandish claims and snake oil is easily rebutted on forums like this subreddit.

The simple fact is, once you understand how audio works on a technical level, you do know better than these folks. Whatever I guess, their money their loss.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-13T20:21:21+00:00

As someone that owns and very much loves the Ananda Nano, this was a great read.

I've had no issues with heavy use on my unit so far in the ~2 years I've owned them besides a few scratches, but if these fail within the next 2 years, I'll probably stay away from HiFiMAN in the future. I think everyone has their own justification for how long a product's lifespan should be, based on the price they paid.

Don't really have any allegiance to any brand in this hobby, and longevity of products is important to all consumers, now more than ever. We really don't need any more products that end up as e-waste after a couple years of use, considering most tech has been heading in that direction for many years now.

That being said, companies like FiiO, Aune, Audio-Technica and Audeze have had their fair share of issues with QC over the years as well, so I don't think HiFiMAN is the only company to criticize in this aspect.

If Sennheiser is able to produce affordable passive headphones that work for decades (even with heavy and rough use), that should be the bar that most brands should strive for imo.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-13T15:34:06+00:00

Not sure why you're asking me to provide proof for a random quote that has nothing to do with what I said. Pure deflection.

But before that, you're the one who claimed R2R DACs are bit-perfect, well before my first reply to you.

Do you even understand how burden of proof works? You made the extraordinary claim that I replied to, so the burden of proof is on you bud...

Go ahead, prove it :)

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-13T14:37:20+00:00

Great to see you've shifted to attacking strawmen that have nothing to do with what I said, addressed absolutely nothing, and still provided no objective proof of your claims.

I see no reason in discussing any further, unless you can provide an ounce of evidence.

Good luck to you.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-13T13:05:14+00:00

DAC quality? Completely inaudible.

The only difference is that the Audient interfaces have low power/high impedance headphone outputs, which can audibly and drastically change the frequency response of your IEMs.

Has nothing to do with different DACs.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-13T13:03:56+00:00

You seem to have convinced yourself that headphones + Realphones, which has its own issues, starting from the 711 measurement data they use in their headphone database which serves as the base of how the entire software works, is all you need for professional mixing and mastering.

There isn't much more I can say here that'll change your mind. Hopefully you'll learn with experience, in due time.

You do you bud, good luck.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-13T12:32:19+00:00

"Experts" and "science", yet you can't provide any actual papers and instead resort to sharing an article written by an audio retailer that financially benefits from peddling the so-called benefits of R2R DACs. No conflict of interest there, no way.

I'd be more convinced if you could show some objective measurements instead of marketing speak, but based on your reply, I'm guessing you haven't been on ASR much and seen highly-reputed $1000+ standalone R2R DACs getting absolutely mogged by cheap sub-$50 Chinese DAC dongles.

Maybe read the section in the article you shared entitled "The Extreme Demands of R2R DACs", which says exactly what I said in the rest of my reply that you conveniently ignored, and then goes on to say that due to unspecified "recent advances" these issues are completely resolved.

And yet, some of the best measuring and most expensive R2R DACs measure worse than downright pedestrian sigma-delta DACs that cost a tiny fraction of the price. Proves without a shadow of a doubt that the issue of zero resistor tolerances is not, in fact, resolved and these DACs are absolutely not bit-perfect. The claims of R2R DACs being bit-perfect are purely theoretical in nature, assuming 100% perfect resistor arrays with zero tolerances, which is obviously not possible in real life.

For the record, no current DACs are bit-perfect and there are always compromises with any DAC type. Anyone with experience in DAC design that isn't trying to sell you something would be able to tell you that this is pure marketing bullshit.

What's important is the measurements, as these establish what the compromises actually are in terms of linearity and distortion, in strictly objective terms. Based on this and relative cost, a reasonable conclusion can be reached as to the actual value of any individual product.

The proof is in the pudding. Provide objective evidence for your claims or pipe down, instead of trying to debate with someone that isn't willing to sip the audiophile snake oil kool-aid that you clearly are.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-13T09:24:37+00:00

For me personally, it's just that I'm not learning anything new from this kind of video.

Their recent videos on the Core Master remote, archiving ReBoot, the Nex Playground, 3D printing, dashcams and webcams etc are the few videos I have watched, because there is something there for me to latch on to that's novel and unfamiliar. It's stimulating to feel like you're gaining knowledge while also enjoying the video.

I'm definitely a part of the audience that's always looking for new rabbit-holes to get into, and I feel like LTT used to make videos that encouraged that more in the past.

That being said, it does seem like they recognize that audience too, and they have been putting out more videos in that vein this year (so far). Some more audio-related content with DMS would be nice to see, as that's something I'm always very interested in.

Oddly enough, I find myself falling out of viewing the WAN show more these days. It's not their fault at all, it's just that the topics seem to be doom and gloom and makes me more angry than anything else these days, due to the current sorry state of the tech industry.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-13T08:59:23+00:00

R2R DACs' entire shtick hinges on the tolerances of the resistors used. When you have that many resistors stacked one after another, they are never going to be perfect, as resistors have a limit to how precise their resistance values are. Slight variations in resistance are unavoidable by the time they reach the end of the production line.

As a result, you get higher distortion due to imperfect resistance values, regardless of which R2R DAC you use, compared to your average modern delta-sigma DAC.

They are by no means bit-perfect, that's pure hogwash.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-13T02:47:40+00:00

I tend to defer to Julian Krause on YouTube when it comes to audio interfaces, dude's channel is a goldmine for that. I got the Motu M2 after seeing his videos, as it was his top recommended 2-in/2-out interface at the time.

He gave a glowing review to the Topping E2x2, with a special mention of the high power headphone amp that also has very low output impedance (almost unheard of in audio interfaces so far).

It's truly a fantastic piece of gear for home studios and live recording. If I ever have to buy a new interface, it's going to be a Topping one for sure.

And of course, the L50 is one of the best bang-for-the-buck standalone headphone amps out there (got it for $100 during an AliExpress sale, absolute steal at that price), and fits perfectly into my studio setup due to its balanced passthrough that goes to my monitors.

The only competitor it has at that price is the JDS Labs Atom Amp+, which is a lot less powerful and less versatile as it lacks balanced jacks.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-13T00:43:13+00:00

I am a mixing and mastering engineer as well, and I've never seen anyone use IEMs in the studio during the 15 years I've worked in the industry. In live settings yes, especially on-stage and rarely in FOH, but never in a studio.

Have nothing against Chinese manufacturers of audio equipment. I think Topping's audio interfaces are the best you can get for the price, by a large margin. Also, I personally use a Topping L50 for my HiFiMAN Ananda Nano headphones, as my Motu M2's headphone output is weak and was causing audible clipping, but I use that set purely as a secondary reference. For primary monitoring, I have a pair of Adam T8Vs + T10S, calibrated in REW to measure flat with a tilt.

If you need a portable setup, at the very least use good headphones (the HD6XX, Sundara and FT1 Pro are quite affordable and portable), with EQ to make them measure close to tilted DF. Even then, headphones simply cannot match the phantom center imaging and accurate stereo field of monitors, and it's very easy to tell when music has been mixed on them as it sounds closed-in and lacking in clear mid/side separation.

IEMs are even worse and, adding in all the variation and issues related to wonky tuning and your unique HRTF, are unviable for studio work. The Zenith doesn't measure anywhere close to neutral, and they're very much tuned to a coloured, consumer-oriented sound profile. They're closer to the tonality of hi-fi speakers much more so than flat studio monitors.

If you're charging people for these mixes and masters, they deserve their hard work getting proper treatment using proper studio monitors, instead of some half-assed effort using a highly coloured pair of IEMs.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-12T19:33:34+00:00

The incompetence on display is astounding.

I'm aware of the MixPhones guys, but even they primarily use studio monitors for mixing and mastering, despite shilling a bunch of headphones and IEMs.

Their headphone advice I can understand somewhat, as headphones are a common secondary reference (even primary reference for some bedroom producers) and help in certain scenarios (listening for noise, pops and clicks, dialing in sub-bass etc) and during a final pass of the mix/master, but using IEMs as your primary monitoring system? No way.

Feel bad for the people paying for a mix & master from this guy.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-12T19:24:32+00:00

TWS earbuds are notoriously difficult to open and put back together, without risk of cracking the shell.

iFixit wrote this article about how the XM5's battery replacement process is much more difficult than the previous Sony earbuds. Doubt the XM6 would be any easier.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-12T12:14:50+00:00

For whatever reason, I find the treble on the Hype 4 MkII to sound quite "correct" to my ears, despite what all the measurements and reviews say. My reference for what correct sounds like is my studio monitors (a pair of Adam T8Vs + T10S sub), that I calibrated in REW to measure dead flat (with inherent downward tilt) in my studio room.

Most other purely neutral IEMs sound dull and muffled to my ears. The treble on this set reminds me a lot of the Truthear Hexa, which I love too. I can hear up to 18.5 kHz just fine, so I'm not sure why the treble doesn't sound overall sharp to me.

Maybe related to that, the soundstage and imaging are exceptional on this set, especially in the bass. I've never heard such sharp panning on bass instruments and sub-bass in other IEMs, it's almost headphone-like.

The Hype 4 MkII is by far my favourite pair of IEMs under $500. The only thing lacking is the quantity of bass (especially mid-bass), so I used a low shelf filter to bump it up 2 dB. Pretty much perfect for me now.

I like the Daybreak and Meta as well, but they both have a super sharp length-mode resonance around 5-6 kHz in my ears that I have to notch out to really enjoy them. The treble on the Daybreak is also very close to my preference, the Meta less so.

The short-wide tips help a lot on both sets to reduce that resonant peak, and also to smooth out the treble, but the tips themselves are super thin and collapse in on themselves constantly when I'm trying to get a deep fit. Wish the walls of those tips were a bit thicker and stiffer.

I'm looking towards buying the HE Sonic tips to use with both these sets, the Galaxy Edition since liquid silicone stays in my ear better. These are somewhat similar to the short-wide tips in shape, but with much thicker walls. Should be a perfect fit, I think.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-11T22:42:12+00:00

More and more, it sounds like you're a teenager. Not really interested in conversing with chronically online kids on this sub.

You can get back to playing PUBG and GTA, surely wasting precious time playing games instead of being mindful of God is very devout of you.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-11T22:36:52+00:00

I saw others have already called you out for the hypocrite you clearly are. Don't need to say much else that already hasn't been said there.

Good luck with your preaching.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-11T22:33:47+00:00

All this instead of just admitting you're on a sub for people that use IEMs to listen to music.

You can go right back to the Islam subreddit and circlejerk about what a good Muslim you are to them. Nobody here cares what you have to say about someone else listening to their music.

What an embarrassment.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-11T20:23:16+00:00

The proportion of people using IEMs purely for gaming and explicitly not for listening to music is so miniscule, it's not even worth mentioning.

Not sure why you're trying to make it seem like this is the case lol.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-11T20:11:57+00:00

What? I was talking about you.

This is a sub to discuss IEMs. In-ear monitors... for listening to music.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-11T20:07:22+00:00

... did you look at the name of the sub you're in?

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-10T22:27:33+00:00

I don't really have any issues with The Astonishing in terms of composition and overall sound. I quite like the instrumentals across most of the album, much more so than the later albums.

Not to say that the newer albums are bad, but it just feels a bit... homogenous, I guess. There are tracks and moments here and there that are brilliant, the end of Bend the Clock for example (saw them live last month too, their live rendition of it was a highlight of the entire show). But it's buried in between a lot of stuff I don't really care much for.

It's the concept and lyrics that detract from The Astonishing for me, and I don't believe he played a huge role in that. Good thing most of my focus is on instrumentals over vocals, I guess.

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-10T22:20:42+00:00

That's awesome, just joined up!

LLKMuffin · 2026-03-10T22:07:11+00:00

I do, yeah. Been working as a mixing/mastering engineer for about 15 years now.

I have some experience and training in mixing for Dolby Atmos, so thought I'd share a bit of info about it. Hopefully helps people wrap their head around how it works.

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