It has been my never-ending quest to search for the best headphones for metal music listening. After several years of buying and trying many different headphones, I thought I would share my current tier list of headphones, to help anyone out there who might be looking for their next pair to headbang to!
My list is only what I have owned or heard. I still need to hear the LCD-5, HE-6 and many others!
Fellow Metal-heads, please share your own list below!
Tier 1 (the BEST , regardless of price):
Fostex TH-900 - V-shaped tuning makes for a very fun and exciting listen. Incredible slam, impact, and dynamic ability. Near TOTL resolution and detail. Punches above its price point IMO. One of my personal favourites. Negatives: leaner and colder sounding than Final D8000, recessed mids.
Abyss AB-1266 Phi TC - Slightly U-shaped tuning. Crisp, clear, detailed, punchy. TOTL resolution, bass slam/impact, very visceral. Downsides are cost, demand on source components, strange fit, and not super comfortable.
Final Audio D8000 - Smooth, non-fatiguing, with very good slam and impact, excellent bass quality and quantity. Rich and meaty mids, unlike the TH-900. Has all of the qualities that are found in good planar headphones. However, detail and resolution could be a little better for the price-point
Final Audio D8000 Pro - Significantly improved resolution, technical abilities, detail (TOTL level) and tuning compared to the original D8000. However, bass quantity/slam/impact is worse. Needs a bass boost badly.
Audeze LCD-4with EQ only - TOTL technical ability, resolution, detail, and excellent bass impact/slam. Need to EQ the mid-range and a touch more bass quantity would be perfect. Very heavy, but still quite comfortable.
Focal Utopia - Incredible speed, detail, resolution, with the very best dynamic ability I have heard . But can be fatiguing on long listens for me and needs a bass boost)
Tier 2 (very good, but not quite Tier 1 level performance):
HE-6SE - Best neutral/balanced sounding headphones for metal I’ve heard outside the Tier 1 headphones. Excellent bass slam/impact, but could use more bass quantity for my tastes. Superb planar qualities (imaging, separation, effortless detail) (Unfortunately have not tried an OG HE6, it’s on my wishlist!)
Fostex TH-600 - Almost as good as the 900 with a bit more mid-bass and less sub-bass compared to 900. Incredible value on the used market
Hifiman Arya - Superb detail, speed, planar qualities, but unfortunately lacking in slam, bass quantity and dynamics. Excellent, but you can do better for metal music…
Focal Clear - Similar overall to the Utopia but a notch down in resolution and detail, still a very good and solid upgrade from the HD-600 apparently.
Fostex TH-909 - an open-back 900, less treble and sub-bass than 900. But still has good slam and dynamics and is almost as enjoyable as the 900. Redundant though if you already own the 900.
Sennheiser HD800S - Surprisingly good with Metal considering how people had described it prior to hearing it for myself. Similar to the Focal Clear, but more detailed, a much wider soundstage, and a bit more balanced tuning. Can’t really go wrong with this, but it needs more bass impact and dynamics for my preferences. Great value with the right amp!
Tier 3 (solid performance, entry-level):
Fostex TH-X00 - Superb value used , similar tunings to the TH-600 but lesser resolution and detail.
Hifiman Sundara - Very good value, similar sound profile to Arya, but a few notches below in technical ability, resolution, and detail.
ZMF Atticus - Warm, rich, smooth, lush sound. Not my preferred tuning, a bit too warm. Excellent, although quite bloated bass with strong slam/impact and dynamic qualities. The biggest drawback is it is severely lacking in technical ability, detail, and speed compared to others on this list. Unfortunately, it is the only ZMF model I have tried so far.
Fostex TH-610 - Very decent sound overall, but lacking the magic of the 600 and 900 due to less bass and treble quantity. Has a more balanced and less V-shaped tuning. Good used buy.
AKG K371 - Solid sound quality and a Harman target tuning. Can’t really go wrong with it for the price. I would boost the bass up personally.
Tier 4 ( NOT recommended, particularly bad for Metal listening IMO ):
Most Grado headphones - phenomenal, delicious, mid-range performance, no doubt. But lacking in comfort, build, bass impact and extension. Also, too bright and fatiguing for long listens (the ones I’ve heard anyway). Very polarising. I’m sure some of you like it with metal, but I don’t. More of a classic rock/blues headphone to me.
Most Audeze headphones without EQ - Excellent bass and usual planar qualities, but off sounding mid-range can sound hollow/honky and sometimes muddy without EQ
Focal Stellia - perfect for most genres except Metal. Sounded both fatiguing and somehow boring/unconvincing with Metal. Might be source picky as well.
Hifiman Susvara - TOTL technical ability and perfectly balanced tuning. A fantastic all-rounder for many genres, but a little boring and lacking in bass quantity and dynamics for metal music IMO. Not worth the price at all.
Yes definitely need to try some more of the Audeze models. I’ve only heard the higher-end open-backs LCD-X and up. I want to try the closed backs, particularly the LCD-XC and the 2 as well.
That’s correct. I listen primarily to the heavier more modern rock and metal. Late 80s and newer.
Stuff like:
Gojira, Tool, Coheed and Cambria, Nails, Death, Meshuggah, Parkway Drive etc.
Sound signature preference needs to be applied as well. I listen to metal a lot myself (Opeth, Deftones, Type O Negative, etc.), but I prefer more neutral sounding headphones. Tier lists are kind of pointless seeing as everybody hears differently. That being said, I can say that personally I prefer my Diana V2 or Auteur with most genres…but it does also depend on what gear chain I am using.
Yes certainly, I personally prefer a very dynamic, impactful sound with a strong amount of bass quantity as well. I understand a lot of metal listeners prefer a ‘neutral’ sound, but that word is kind of meaningless to me really, neutral to what exactly? What target curve? Harman? DF? Listening to live metal music, it is definitely not ‘neutral’, the sound is very dynamic and depends on how the sound engineer does their job. For example, the guitars can sometimes overpower the drums in volume and vice versa.
As I mentioned, this tier list is in my opinion not an objective reality, but I think the level of technical performance moving from tier to tier is pretty objective as well(Arya is better/ in a higher tier than Sundara etc.), except where noted (Susvara is in Tier 4 due to sub-optimal presentation for metal specifically, although overall performance is objectively Tier 1).
I use the word neutral as to what it sounds like to my ears. I am personally not a fan of any target curves or EQ of any kind. I personally dislike narrow band peaks in the treble or bass roll off. But I also don’t believe there is any type of definitive headphone for a certain genre. We all value certain attributes differently. Example…some people value comfort and build quality just as much as sound quality.
As a musician myself, I tend to look for different things then some other folks. I also care very little about vocals…but I still own some mid forward headphones because I believe they sound good. I can’t tell you how many times I see or read somebody calling a certain headphone neutral, only for me to hear it as something totally different.
Also, I just really hate tier lists. Nothing against you whatsoever as I still find some of your experiences were very interesting to read through.
100% My understanding of ‘neutral’ would better be described as ‘balanced’ sounding. Nothing jumps out as too over-emphasized or rolled off, everything is present and can be heard individually but the sound is also overall cohesive. The best ‘neutral’ headphones on this list are Utopia (slightly bright), HE6se, HD800s, Arya, and Focal Clear.
Yes, a good headphone should ideally work well for ALL genres equally. Same with speakers. However, I have found this not to be the case. This is why we all have several headphones that contrast and complement each other, rather than us all only having the Susvara or HD800s as our one and only headphone…
Everybody hears things a little differently at the end of the day and has their own preferences and priorities.
I’m also a musician of sorts as well (guitar) and tend to judge headphones and speakers on how they present instruments compared to how I hear the same instrument in a live/acoustic setting. Guitar through a valve amp and cab for example… rather than guitar on a compressed recording.
I understand what you’re saying. I personally found the Arya too bright…but for context, I tend to listen to headphones in longer listening sessions (4 hours or longer). The Utopia I haven’t heard, nor the HE6se. I used to own a Focal Clear and I found them to sound mostly neutral (they had a very fun mid bass boost and a small peak in the upper mids/low treble that gave them some character).
As far as if I had to pick 1 headphone for metal, it would definitely be my Diana V2.
Yes, you’re right. I also found the Arya a bit bright as well, but it’s got that pretty balanced Hifiman sound overall. I really liked the sound of the Diana, but the comfort and fit I couldn’t gel with. I haven’t heard the new Diana TC and would like to at some point. But I own the 1266 TC, so I’m not desperate to either haha The Focal Clear is one of my favorite headphones and I sold it only to fund the TC. I would happily own it again one day…
I had comfort and fit issues with the Diana V2 initially. 3 things changed that. The revised/new pads made a world of difference comfort wise. I also bent and shaped the headband carefully in order to break the seal and get a bit more bass. The last thing that was a game changer for me was the Headband Comfort Wrap that I bought from Beautiful Audio.
At the cheaper end of the pool I really enjoy the HE400i (2020) for metal. Especially older songs if the recording is less high fidelity. For a more resolving and faster listening experience I really like the Focal Elegia. These grew on me for metal, at first I found them too mid forward for this but once I realised what they did for guitars I began to really appreciate them as an alternative.
I’m very curious to try a Denon AH-5200 for this style too. I feel like I would enjoy them.
Hello,
The Aeon R/t Closed can be really convincing on the right amp.
With the Singxer Sda 2, it’s a real blast and a pleasure to listen.
Better than the D7200 I had back then.
And I liked it even more than with the Lcd 2C.
If you love drums, you will feel the full authenticity with the Aeon R/T.
But it’s a bit of a shame that the Aeon R/T is an amp bitch.
Because it can’t convince on every amp.
Absolutely. I used to own both the 400i and Elegia not too long ago. They are both excellent headphones at their price point. Wished I could have just stopped there and been happy sometimes haha
I personally found the he400i had way too much of a peak in the treble for metal music. I do enjoy my HE-500 with Focus Pads a lot when listening to metal though.
Which edition of the 400i did you have and which amp did you listen to it on? The 2020 edition are a slightly warmer tuning. I feel they definitely benefit from a warm amp too, brings out their best but I have only heard that edition so I have no idea if that is true of older versions?
