By its distinctive design, open-back headphones provide an immersive listening experience. They can create a big, open soundstage that interacts with your surroundings and heightens the immersion of your listening experience. Sadly, even when you’re listening to music at a modest volume, they leak a lot of sound and can disturb those nearby. They struggle with background noise reduction as well. Check out our suggestions for closed-back headphones if you’re searching for something versatile, but if you want amazing sound from your headphones, look no further.
Sennheiser PC38X and Drop
The Drop + Sennheiser PC38X has an excellent boom mic that makes your speech via team chat crisp and rich-sounding, in contrast to other open-back headphones on this list. If you prefer one over the other, you may switch between the velour and microfibre earpads that come with these headphones. Despite having a little cheap-feel, the headband is well-padded and will be pleasant to wear for extended gaming sessions.
Their rich, well-balanced, and precise sound has a high-bass boost for boomier sound effects. These headphones don’t have an adjustable EQ or a lot of low-bass, which may be a deal breaker for certain gamers who want to tweak their mix. They nonetheless offer a more open-sounding listening experience than other conventional gaming headphones, while not having as spacious a soundstage as some of the other headphones on this list.
While the Philips SHP9500 do suffer from using less expensive materials, they are still the best budget-friendly open-back headphones that we’ve tested. Philips SHP9500 Manufacturers often cut corners on quality build materials for budget headphones. The swiveling ear cups appear to be prone to breaking under modest force, and although having a respectable overall build, their cloth cushioning is easily worn. Despite this, their wide ear cups make them pleasant for extended listening periods.
Great passive soundstage that feels open and large is produced by these over-ear headphones. Like most open-back headphones, they lack low-bass, but they have a boost in the high-bass to help balance out the spectrum and bring more warmth to mixes. Vocals and lead instruments seem true, natural, and flat due to their midrange’s flatness and balance.
X2HR Philips Fidelio
The build quality of audiophile headphones typically suffers when they are priced below the lower mid-range, but not with the Philips Fidelio X2HR over-ears. They are primarily made of plastic, but some metal helps to reinforce their structure and increase their all-around toughness. However, dynamic drivers are more prevalent at this price point, and the X2HR’s architecture impacts how well they work as a passive soundstage. Although overall extremely good, its soundstage doesn’t feel as expansive or immersive as the HiFiMan Edition XS’s.
They offer a highly secure fit and are suitable for extended listening sessions because of their automatically adjusting headband. They accurately represent vocalists and lead instruments thanks to their very neutral and well-balanced sound profile. Like most open-back headphones, they have trouble reproducing low-bass, but they have a little extra warmth and boom in the mid- to high-bass to help balance their sound.
XS HiFiMan Edition
The HiFiMan Edition XS are worth looking into if you want to occasionally save costs without giving up a planar magnetic design. Although they don’t have the same quality construction as the HiFiMan Arya, they have a more subdued overall sound, which is better for audiophiles searching for headphones with a somewhat more neutral listening profile. Their sound profile is exceptionally well-balanced, with lead instruments and vocals that are crystal-clear and in-depth. Sibilants like hi-hats are bright but not piercing since their treble is more neutral. Moreover, they produce a broad, roomy, and largely natural passive soundstage.
Although they fit well, you could find their headband irritating during extended listening sessions because it feels heavier than some other headphones from this brand. If that worries you, you might like the flexible ski-band headband design of the HiFiMan Sundara 2020, which does a better job of evenly distributing the weight of the headphones. Although they are less expensive than the Edition XS, they perform poorly in terms of passive soundstage and audio delivery.
Arya HiFiMan
The premium HiFiMan Arya has planar magnetic transducers rather than the more typical dynamic transducers for customers looking for the newest driver technology. They can reproduce low-bass more accurately and enhance their soundstage thanks to this design. Planar magnetic headphones feature a fairly sophisticated design, which has the drawback of causing performance to differ between units. Also, it makes them heavier and bulkier. Fortunately, these headphones include a ski band headband design that evenly distributes weight across your head.
These over-ear headphones have a balanced sound that guarantees accurate vocal and instrument reproduction. Its treble range is a little bit overemphasized, so sibilants like cymbals are piercing, but due to their open-back design, they still lack a little bit of thump and rumble. On the plus side, they feature a fantastic soundstage that makes your listening experience feel broad, roomy, and out-of-head.
Please take note that HiFiMan has updated these headphones and launched them. This model, often known as the Arya V3, has improved drivers with Stealth Magnets, which the company claims would enhance the sound quality of the speakers by lowering distortion and raising transparency. We tested the V2 model, which lacks this magnet configuration and is now sold on the manufacturer’s website. Although we haven’t tested the V3, there might be some performance differences between the two models.
Conclusion
The headphones we’ve listed above are what we believe are currently the best open-back models that the majority of people can purchase. We take into account availability, visitor comments, and price (cheaper headphones prevail over more expensive ones if the price difference isn’t significant) (no headphones that are difficult to find or almost out of stock everywhere).
Here is a collection of all of our open-back headphone reviews so you can make your own decision. Avoid getting sucked into the details. There are no headphones that are ideal. The option you make will depend more on your personal preferences and tastes.
