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⭐Hifiman Audivina | The Concert Hall You Can Wear
▶️ Demo unit is available for auditions now! 

Hifiman releases a plethora of open-back headphones, from all price ranges; you want a budget, entry level planar headphone, HE-400SE Non-Stealth Magnet. Want a mid-tier all rounder? Ananda. Want the absolute grail? Susvara is here to serve.

Close back wise, you have Sundara Closed. What about the high end closed-back headphone? The Audivina is the answer.

Despite the huge earcups, the Audivina is just 30g more than the HE-1000SE. These headphones share the same headband design, the same teardrop shape shell and similar pads design. If you are familiar with the same teardrop shape design like the Ananda/Arya/HE-1000SE, Audivina will fit right at home.

The wooden earcups were inspired by the acoustic architecture of the Bayreuth Festival Theater in Germany. The design helps to create a wider soundstage than it actually looks, even among similarly priced closed back headphones. The curved resonance chamber also added a unique look and feel for the headphone.

The Audivina is also equipped with the Stealth Magnet design, which allows the wave to pass through the magnets without generating interference as the advanced magnet design is acoustically transparent. Along with the latest Neo "Supernano" Diaphragm(NsD), the thickness is reduced by 80% compared to the previous designs. The result is a faster, more detailed response while retaining lush musicality. The NsD is just between 1 to 2 microns thick, setting the new standard for Hifiman.

The wooden cup inlaid with silver logo, provides a good seal to your ears. Although you could still hear some noise and sound from the surroundings, but the sound leakage from the headphone is minimal. The removal of earpads is easy as the pads are attached via velcro. Looking through the earpads, you can see the Stealth Magnet peeking, with a 12-pointed star felt damping. The driver structure reminds of the previous HE-R10 design, with updated diaphragm technology and sound performance.

In short, Audivina does 2 things very well: Soundstage and Details. The wide soundstage is shown upfront, with large and precise soundstage and instruments alignment even in a closed-back design. The bass is more focused on the mid-bass region, with punchy yet very well textured bass response. The sub-bass, albeit tight, is still very much fast and detailed sounding. The bass is generally flat from the low transitioning to the midrange. The neutrality of the bass ensures there is no colouration and provides accurate response.

Midrange on the Audivina provides finesse and great details in instruments. Vocals can be slightly thin, but still provide an uncoloured and neutral sound. The overall tilt to the upper-midrange provides plenty of energy for the vocals. Speed and precision is the motto for this headphone, still retaining the texture and vigor and energy of the vocals. Vocals are rendered with great clarity and while there's some sibilance yet it is handled with control.
Although Hifiman likes you to pay more attention to the treble, the amount of treble energy in Audivina is just right. The treble is relatively tame, compared to the more energetic HE-1000SE. Not to say Audivina lacks air or sparkles, but more like the presentation is precise and crisp. There's no weird peaks or dips that would drag you out from the immersion of the music. 
As mentioned above, the soundstage is something to be anticipated in Audivina, it's airy, spacious and wide that is comparable to some of the open-back headphones. The instrument layerings, imaging and laser pinpoint of accuracy. You can hear the performers playing different instruments in different directions and well detailed. 

This closed back headphone is relatively easy to drive, with an impedance of only 20ohm and sensitivity of 97dB. You can pair it well with the Hifiman EF400 and it will drive this to a very loud volume in an effortless way. This R2R dac drives the Audivina with authority and finesse, while delivering a very enjoyable music experience. The dynamic and synergy works well for each other.

The cables that come along with Audivina (4pin Balanced XLR, 6.3mm and 3.5mm single-ended plug) pretty much ensures you can play the headphone with portable device or full sized desktop setup. Gone with the rubber tube feels and comes with the new, anti-tangle soft rubber cables that are easier to handle and look better. If you want to have a little more body from the Audivina, you could consider swapping out the cable for high quality copper cable. Like our Uranus HP-8C OCC Copper cable, it brings the meatier feel into the vocals, and bumps the deeper bass note up a notch. You could also consider pairing it with a tube amp, like Cayin HA-3A which provides a little more lush and rumble for the headphones. You could say that the Audivina performs equally well with tubes and solid state amps.

For the song choice, it is best suited with classical, atmospheric music, jazz and works well with instruments, and provides all the minute details from the music. Even with pop and electronic, the Audivina still holds itself up with enough bass and energy to carry itself through. Some metal or rock songs might sound a little brittle or thin, but this could be alleviated with cable roll or a warmer source overall.

In short, the Hifiman Audivina provides a very unique listening experience to the audiophiles with it larger than it looks soundstage, detail retrieval for complex music. It can excel with simple and complex tracks as well. With the ability to cable roll or amp pairing, you can pretty much enjoy this headphone for a wide variety of music choices and adds a new Hifiman experience in your headphones collection.


✒️ Author : Leong  | 📷 Photo : Hai Wei
More Stars Picker's In-House Review | starspickeraudio.net/blogs/blog

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◆ Frequency Response: 5Hz - 55kHz
◆ Sensitivity: 97dB
◆ Impedance: 20ohm
◆ Weight: 470g
◆ Neo "Supernano" Diaphragm with 1-2microns thickness
◆ Stealth Magnet Design
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⭐ Official Store | bit.ly/HFM-Audivina-S |
 □ Retail : RM8990 (PM for best price)

⭐ BUNDLE DEAL
  □ Top up RM45 for Uranus Sp-13 headphone case worth RM58

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