Jana Dagdagan

Last week, John Atkinson and I attended "The Audeze Sensory Experience," Audeze's official launch party for the iSine10 ($399) and iSine20—the world's first in-ear planar magnetic headphones, which will be available in November.

The event was held at Manhattan's 1 Hotel Central Park, a chic combo of nature and urban architecture. Dark wood, warm lights, floor-to-ceiling glass panels overlooking the city. A DJ played upbeat electronic music at just the right volume. Trays of mini crab cakes, risotto balls, and steak tartar circulated while chit-chatting press folk routinely raided the complimentary beverage table.

On the far side of the space was a closed off glass listening room equipped with a handful of iSines to listen from either preloaded hi-rez players, iPads, or your own smart device. (The headphone cable includes the 24-bit DAC, so the iSine can be driven directly from an iDevice's Lightning jack—prospective iPhone 7 purchasers take note.) A woman sporting a high-cut dress assisted in providing and replacing ear tips. Audiophile circles enthusiastically discussed the unthinkable feat of creating in-ear planar magnetic headphones in a growing line outside the room (footnote 1).

I listened to the iSine10's for maybe 10 minutes before I felt guilty holding up the flow of the forming line. It was enough time to know that I enjoyed them, but not enough to write a confident detailed review. In short, upon first impression, I found the iSine10s to be fairly warm and airy. They were also much lighter in weight than I had expected.

Most events in the high-end audio industry contain the following elements: (hopefully) good sound, (sometimes) good food, and (always) free alcohol. This event satisfied my expectations in all three. But there's one more element I can usually count on at these types of events - I often find myself being told what to hear, being told that I won't be told what to hear, being asked what I heard, being corrected about what I've heard, and so on.

What I enjoyed most about the Audeze Sensory Experience was that none of that attitude was present. I briefly conversed with Audeze's Founder/CEO Sankar Thiagasamudram, but not once did he attempt to force-feed me marketing information or approach me with the usual awkward audiophile-y reverse psychology.

It was purely about the sensory experience, aptly titled. It was as if I had stepped into a modern day less extravagant, audiophile centered Gatsby-esque party.

This got me thinking—is this part of the solution to converting more music-loving non-audiophiles into avid, fierce appreciators of sound? Invite them to events like this one? This thought had never crossed my mind at previous launch events or listening gatherings, but now it all seems so clear. Perhaps the answer is in building upon the overall sensory experience as a whole. Perhaps we need to eradicate the whole "this is what you're hearing" mentality, and create an experience that shows (but doesn't tell) how fun and cool experiencing good sound can be.

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Footnote 1: I drove the iSine 10s with my iPhone 6S, using very familiar recordings, and I was impressed with the full-range sound and the lack of distortion even at very high spls. I have been promised a review sample.—John Atkinson