The best sounding headphone, period #canjam

[SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac]

With speakers there are 100s of extreme high-end models to check out. The headphone field is probably less than 20. I've heard most of them

[lynnpoole]

Wow, I wish my budget would allow such a purchase. Love your reviews even If I can't afford a lot of the equipment. BTW those Abyss AB 1266's look like some kind of reprogramming torture device from Clockwork Orange. LOL

[williampearson]

Hi Steve, life is short and the best ($4, 995 or $3, 995) always costs more, but comfort is very important in a headphone after hours of listening. I took you advice after your Dec. 2018 review and auditioned GRADO Prestige Series and bought the SR 325. No regrets....excellent clear natural sound. Do I need to upgrade to the best?? I will audition the ABYSS Diana Phi per your thoughtful description. My wife appreciates my use of headphones late at night and during the day! I have a form of tinnitus (slight wind swirling, whistling, or hissing in my ears). You need to tell your older audiophiles to check out open and not closed headphones. The tinnitus distracts too much from the music or voices in a closed headphone. The music in an open headphone is very enjoyable and the tinnitus seems to disappear. Hope to see you at AXPONA 2019 in Chicago!

[Cocteau]

Another great video Steve. Of course I agree completely - the Abyss are the best transducer I have personally experienced. I bought AB-1266 Phi; and use them as my prime reference. But! The best headphones I have ever listened with are the Sony MDR-R10s. I only listened for 5-minutes - but what a 5-minutes it was. Their insightfulness grabbed me instantly. (And Steve, why DIDN't you compare the Abyss to the SR 009s or the HiFiMan Sussvara?)

[craigshewchuk]

I need those AB and one day I am going to get them. And some of the other really crazy stuff you have shown, one day

[flargosa]

I was hoping Steve would say “and this little puppy right here is 499. 499 guys! and it gets you, hmmmm, this close to its big brother. “

[baldmetalnerd]

NOT worth the price and I should know since I've never listened to these so obviously I know everything!

[imhighonlife]

Steve
Thanks for the headphone recommendation.
I’m going to go out and get a pair
Regards
William Gates

[amirdilshad]

So are have you checked out the tc version . I have heard its better than the previous version by alot

[turbomustang]

I prefer the Focal Stellia's which are not cheap at $3000 but the sound they are capable of is amazing and not looking ridiculous is a bonus and the Abyss does not even come with a case

[PatrickDunca]

Could you talk a little about open vs closed headphones and how they each impact the sound? You talk about the quality of your room in relation to speakers. I’m wondering what you think for headphones.

[andreasleonlandgren]

Abyss Diana I have to get it now.

If its Steves choice its legit.

This guy have made me buy: Grado Elac b5 etc etc.

He is a genious

If I ever troll on his videos its out of respect.

[radiojet]

The big cans look so cool as to be worthy of a Guggenheim exhibit. Thanks, Steve!

[Hare_deLune]

Wow, it's a rare thing in audio that you can just say flat out "this is the best thing I've encountered."
That is to say, for someone who's heard alot of different equipment.

For the rest of us, it's probably a lot more commonplace and easy to do.

[thomaswachter]

Made close to my hometown of Buffalo NY.

[carlosbauza]

Great to know these wonders exist, and respect the users who appreciate them. But for a "speakers first" guy, I drew the line at Sennheiser HD 600.

[Bryan-thrc]

Do you have an opinion on the Schiit Bifrost? I've read your review on the Bifrost multibit, but wanted to know if you'd heard the base model.

[Mavrck]

At the price point of $5000, you also have the Stax SR-009S electrostatic headphones (granted you still have to shell out at least $1000 for an "energizer", but still). Have you heard these and if yes, can you compare them to the AB-1266? To many people, the SR-009S are the best headphones in the world and their personal dream headphones. I also wonder what you think of electrostatic headphones in general.

[scottlowell]

They just might be the best. However, with the inter web of hate, there is no winning. Doesn’t matter how much or what brand. Haters will pile on and say how much better another brand is.

[mikehanks]

I dunno...they look like some sort of medieval torture device. Or maybe a WWII German interrogation tool. (You vill tell us vhat vee vant to know, bring me zee Abeeys!) Form DOES follow function but in this case it's a hundred miles away. I just don't get it. They go to all the trouble to engineer a set of cans that rival anything you have ever heard (that's quite a fete considering your acoustic expertise and pedigree) but send them to Bizarro World for the aesthetics. And yet, they prove they CAN produce a product a lot more pleasing to the eye with the Diana Phi's. Anyway, back to your review, you answered a simple question, the AB 1266 are the best headphones you ever heard. Fair enough. But by opining that the Diana Phi's are a thousand bucks cheaper, sound almost as good as the AB 1266, and are more comfortable, I just have to ask if the AB 1266 sound a grand better? I kinda feel like you were steering us towards the Diana Phi's in an almost subliminal way. A lot of us out here in YouTubeland hang on your every word, every nuance of phrase and body language. More than a few members of the club (the Mid-Atlantic Chapter of the ACofA, the Audiophiliac Club of America) wondered aloud while we were watching this video why you would even bother showing us the Dian Phi's considering the title of the posting, The best sounding headphone, period. You can't imagine the debate that followed. Sometimes I thing you tease us just because you CAN. No pun intended.