Beautiful work of art
"These headphones are a work of art. The sound quality is great but does not justify the high price, by itself. The presentation, materials, design, comfort, and sound quality, combined, is what make this headphone worth it!"
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Meze Empyrean
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Meze Empyrean is discontinued - check out the Meze Empyrean II!
Meze’s first entrant into the realm of flagship headphones, the Meze Empyrean is an incredibly impressive effort, featuring stunning build quality and luxurious comfort. The sound impresses too, of course, with a wide and airy soundstage, and rich midrange presentation.
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“The Meze Empyrean was born from passion, curiosity and innovation. As a business, we have allowed ourselves the freedom to experiment and take risks in search of the perfect sound. To generate something truly remarkable, one must dare to explore, and that’s what we did with Empyrean. We pushed and refined industry standards and achieved a true game changer for audiophiles.”
– Antonio Meze, Lead Designer and Founder of Meze Audio
Our Take
A blend of premium materials, exquisite craftsmanship and detailing that’s unmistakably Meze, Empyrean is one of the most technologically innovative planar magnetic headphones in the world.
Over 30 years of research and development have led to the creation of the first Isodynamic Hybrid Array driver. Meze Audio have collaborated with Rinaro to create a new standard in planar magnetic audio, the resulting technology being one of the lightest and most advanced planar magnetic drivers on the market.
Hybrid Array Driver Advantages
The Empyrean Driver combines individual switchback and spiral-shaped voice coils, their unique shapes allowing sound to be targeted with more accuracy around the natural form of the ear. This unique combination generates an increased exposure of direct sound wave frequencies over the 10kHz range and improves imaging and localization by decreasing the impact of shortwave time delays caused by diffused field reflections.
- ACCURATE REPRODUCTION: Total harmonic distortion (THD) measures under 0.1% in the whole frequency range.
- LIGHTWEIGHT: Reduced driver weight designed to create a headphone that offers prolonged listening sessions
- ULTRA HIGH RESOLUTION AUDIO: Upper frequency limit of audio reproduction is 110,000 Hz.
- ERGONOMIC SHAPE: Ergonomically shaped driver structure with an increased active area.
- ULTRA EFFICIENT: 100db@1mw/1kHz High performance without needing amplification.
One of the problems with conventional planar magnetic arrays is coming from reflected signals entering the ear canal with different time delays, thereby worsening the focus of 3D sound imaging. Combining different voice coil configurations makes it possible to create a better sound intensity distribution across the sound wavefront at high frequencies when directed at the auricle and ear canal.
To create an audiophile headphone that is powerful yet light the driver needed to maximize power output while reducing weight as much as possible. Weight was minimized by optimizing a magnet structure around an ovoid shape that fits the ear more closely. Power output was increased through the use of a completely bespoke coil and magnet array design that optimized the active usable area of the driver within its ovoid shape.
Design Details
High precision CNC sculpted chassis, milled from a single piece of solid aluminum, results in a sturdy but light weight headphone weighing only 430g. This combined with suspension wings which increase the leather headrest’s contact surface area with your head and relieve uncomfortable pressure points offer additional comfort even when used for longer periods of time.
A core belief of Meze is to create products that last. The Empyrean is no different: from the replaceable earpads to the high-performance materials used, every part on the headphone chassis is available to be serviced and disassembled by our skilled team.
What's in the Box
• Meze Empyrean
• Case: High-strength aluminum suitcase with foam inserts
• One Pair Alcantara EarPads
• One Pair Leather Pads
• Vegan option available upon request
Cable Options
• 2.5m OFC cable, 4pin mini XLR plugs ending with 6.3 jack connector/p>
• 1.2m OFC cable, 4pin mini XLR plugs ending with 3.5 jack connector
• 2.5m OFC cable, 4pin mini XLR plugs ending with 4 pin XLR connector
Technical Specs
• Driver Type: Rinaro Isodynamic Hybrid Array®
• Frequency Response: 4-110,000 Hz
• Impedance 31.6Ω
• Nominal SPL 100 dB (1 mW / 1 kHz)
• Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) <0.1%
• Weight: ~430 g
MZ3 DRIVER SPECIFICATIONS
• Geometrical Shape Ovoid
• Size: 102 x 73mm / Weight: 82g
• Casing: Fiberglass Infused ABS
• Active Area 4650mm2 / Weight 0.016g / Acoustic Mass 10.7kg/m4
Overall rating: 4.9512196 / 5 from 41 reviews.
AI Generated Review Summary
The Meze Empyrean headphones offer a luxurious and comfortable listening experience with a wide and airy soundstage, rich and deep tone, and exceptional clarity and detail. The planar magnetic drivers provide a realistic tone similar to open high-end headphones, and the ergonomic design ensures prolonged comfort. The headphones are lightweight yet powerful, with a high-resolution audio range and low total harmonic distortion.
Summary topics
- Soundstage: 14%
- Drivers: 11%
- Tone: 8%
- Comfort: 14%
- Sound: 40%
Review topics: [].
Review highlights
- "They have a unique driver and design that look amazing and are functional." —
- "Soundstage is wide and music sounds full." —
- "The bass also has exceptional clarity and detail." —
Reviews
Fantastic planars and amazingly comfy!
"First- Thanks to Tim for the great service in getting these out to me, appreciate the interaction and fixing a last minute goof up I made on my order. As for the Empyreans, as much as I know everyone is gushing over the II's, I wanted the slightly warmer/fun set for daily use and they have fit that bill perfectly. They'll run on just about anything but if you can throw more power at them they seem to soak it up nicely. Non fatiguing and versatile, just what I wanted in a daily driver. The copper/black is icing on the cake, gorgeous build quality matches the sound <3"
My favorite with the angled pads
"Better than the new version in my personal opinion. Excellent weight to the music with wonderful vocal presentation!"
MEZEs mean Musical
"Ive gone through a plethora of cans, particularly ZMF, some Focal (both Clears and a celeste) T5 gen 3s, a HE 1000 Stealth, Zr-1s (pretty nice) and these are my favorite current production cans. They are full sounding, detailed (they just arent over accentuated like they are with chi-fi stuff or some Beyers) strong bass and very good mids (senn 600/650 and auteur OG on an OTL amp might be a bit better). These were bought with a trade back of that HE 1000 Stealth I mentioned and Headamp got it out before It even arrived so amazing to work with. Maybe Ill try out the HE 1000 SE one of these days but from what most are saying its tonality wont be as good as the Mezes even though technically it might be better (and thats probably a big MIGHT). Outstanding cans."
Perfect for me
"I've owned dozens of headphones including HFM, Audeze, ZMF, Senn, among many others. These are one of the two sets of headphones I've put on my head and instantly knew I was going to keep. Incredibly comfortable with a smooth, detailed sound that is never harsh, is presented with a very generous soundstage, and is well finished in the bottom end."
A true mastrpiece
"The Empyrean headphones by Meze Audio are a triumph of audio engineering and design, earning a solid 5/5 rating. Boasting an elegant build with premium materials and a self-adjusting headband, they marry comfort and style seamlessly. The Isodynamic Hybrid Array drivers deliver an exceptional sonic experience with unmatched clarity and emotion across all frequencies. These headphones are a joy for extended use, thanks to their lightweight design and plush ear cushions. Versatile and adaptable, they cater to audiophiles, professionals, and everyday users, making them a worthwhile investment for anyone seeking the pinnacle of sound reproduction. In the realm of high-end headphones, the Empyrean stands as a true masterpiece, offering an extraordinary auditory journey that justifies every penny of its price tag."
A Newbie!!
"I am a "newbie" in the high end world of headphones. After reading countless reviews of high end headphones, I decided on Meze. I discovered HEADAMP and read the reviews of the available headphones in my price range . I decided on the EMPYREAN headphones after considering the incredible price and encouragement from Justin. Because of the savings I decided to pair the EMPYREAN hp with the HEADAMP GS-X mini. The GSD-X mini has a terrific review in Stereophile 2023 Recommended list. The headphones/preamp are best described as "immersive" and the tone is rich and deep. Vinyl and CDs are equally FANTASTIC! I listen to Jazz and Bill Evans Interplay with Freddie Hubbard and Jim Hall are astonishing to listen to. Also Miles Davis Quintet 1965-1968 on CD sounds warm, detailed and once again "immersive". Comfort and long listening are two very important attributes of this headphones. Thanks to Justin and HEADAMP for an incredible service experience!"
Crisp and Comfortable
"Purchased a set of Empyreans in Jet Black. The headphones are light and extremely comfortable. I am using them with an upgraded ZMF silver cable and leather pads. A second set of Alcantara pads are also included. Music detail was excellent, and long listening sessions are possible in part due to the comfort of the headphones. The music is very crisp and pleasing. The leather headband strap on top is noticeable from a feel standpoint due to my thinning hair; still comfortable though. I may need to figure out a padding system for that.....The headphones were easily driven using my Benchmark DAC 3 HGC, NAIM Uniti Atom, and Ampsandsound Kenzie Encore. The headphones come with a locking case, but no keys. The keys are available upon request from Meze in Romania. A couple of friendly emails, and a few days later the keys arrived via DHL. Service and delivery from headamp was prompt as always. The Meze Empyreans are beautiful headphones, and I place them near the top of my collection. I recommend them...."
Meze Emperyean
"Very comfortable for long listening sessions. This is important as you will not want to stop listening with these headphones. They are just so musical - love them."
great experience
"I bought the open box and it was in mint condition. Shipping came in one day. Great service, great headphones."
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