Hifiman Edition XS: measurement and comparison to Ananda and HE1000V2 [updated measurement]

frequency response measurement of HIFIMAN Edition XS

HeadFi seems to be down the moment I wrote this… anyway here’s the measurement for the Edition XS. Copying me initial impressions from HeadFi:

Sound of the EDXS I would describe as effortless, pleasing, smooth and balanced. Tonally very close to the Ananda, with a more pominent bass presence, but this could be due to better seal/fit on the head thanks to cup swivel (should stop going on about this lol). Subtle differences in mids and highs. I don’t have the Ananda on hand any more so a side by side comparison would be difficult, but with the updated neo-nanometer diaphragm, technically the EDXS should be about on par with the Ananda. I will compare them to the HE1000V2 later, which I do have.

Note: measurements are normalised in the mids around 500hz, which I found most sensible for these three. This makes the EDXS bass to seemingly extend better than even the HE1000 V2, but in reality not quite (or at least only about the same). The EDXS seals most easily though thanks to the new headband. But the HE1000V2 still have the most bass presence and impact, one could easily tell. The Ananda also extends slightly better than the graph tells IMO, as it is almost impossible to get a perfect seal for them on the measurement rig due to the lack of swivel.

It seems the Edition XS seems to have stronger magnet control on the diaphragm than the Ananda, as there’s less fluctuation in the FR. This is closer to HE1000V2 level of control, but still not quite.

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Further comparisons and impressions with HEKV2 and Ananda in this article, endnotes and comparison to HE6SE V2 and GL2000 in this article.