I am sort of headphones guy. Not that I do not enjoy listening to speakers (Sonus faber Amati, Guarneri Hommage…), headphones provides additional option to have fun listening to music.
I do own number of headphones just to mention some Sennheiser HD 560, HD 600, HD 650, HD 800 and Stax SR-007 (Electrostatic) with tube Stax amplifier SRM T1 to mention the better ones.
I am a proud owner of Sennheiser Orpheus (HE 90) released in 1991 at the list price of 16 000 USD. I was lucky to buy the demonstration version for less than half in 1997, this amount still creates strange effects on my friends faces when they hear it. Mostly it can by described as “something is seriously wrong with you”. Nevertheless when they hear the sound they at least partially understand. Somebody little, somebody more.
I am truly enjoying these piece of technology practically for 20 years now - sound is really great to whatever I compared it with. When I try anything else I always want to come back to my Orpheus.
2 years ago I came across the news that Senheisser released the second generation of Orpheus (HE-1) and I was puzzled how the sound could be even better. Looking at the pictures, it is really advancement from design perspective – very modern, super technological, utmost luxurious. I said – time to upgrade! Then I have heard the price of 50k – Euros or USD, it does not really matter and I had to stop my ambition. Even with dream discount it is far more expensive than I could psychologically think of the decision. Since then I am still thinking about them and trying to look at the price from different angles – discount, selling all my other headphones – still no solution. Currently I am hoping that I will be able to listen to them on time.
Time goes by and this year I hear that company Hifiman released new headphones at the similar price of 50k. I had some respect for this company, although never heard of any headphones – news about them as well as my local shop was very positive about them. Still there is this “invented in China” factor, which holds me back. We are used that everything is produced in China, invented is a different level. First technology piece I bought which was invented in China was a computer case LianLi – premium aluminium piece and I must say it was good – light, silent, delivering what it should…
I came across also the Xiaomi mobile phones and both publicity as well as my geek friends are positive about this brand – also invented in China.
Still - very premium headphones?
Browsing internet I found comments like this:
Why the hell anyone would buy this over the Sennheiser HE-1 is beyond me. Fake wood, Hifiman build quality, while Fang laughs all the way to the bank. Source is Fangs Weibo supposedly. That being said the price will drop to $20,000 when Shangri-La V2 comes out in 6 months anyhow.
Invented in China, built in China, not really my brand I was wondering what these headphones with some nanotechnology thing might deliver.
And then my local shop announced that, they will have Shangri-la’s in house for testing. It took me few minutes to organize the session and to bring my old Orpheus to compare.
Senheisser with 25 years older technology, price is difficult to compare – if I use 3% yearly inflation, 16k becomes since 1991 34.5k in 2016, anyhow it more about marketing of the flagship than anything else.
Shangri-La presents impressive parameters – we know that this technical data are not that important, important is end result:
Headphones Frequency range 7Hz-50kHz, amplifier frequency range 10-40kHz +/- 1.2 dB, http://www.hifiman.com/shangri-la/index.html
Similar for technology – “at the heart of the technology of the Shangri-La headphones is an Ultra-Thin Driver made only possible by Nanotechnology. At much less than 0.001 mm, its Nanotech driver is so thin, it is not visible from the side with the naked eye. Nano-particle coated sub-micrometer thickness diaphragm provides unsurpassed high frequency response”. http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/hifiman-introduces-ultimate-headphone-system-shangri-la/
Sounds fantastic, anyhow it also might not mean anything…
I was very much wondering how these 2 will compare. I mentioned to the manager of the shop that I am going to write about this comparison, if it si ok, when Hifiman will score worse than old Senheisser. He said I can write whatever I like…super!
We sat with my friend musician for about 2 hours and listened to Sony Rollins, Lee Ritenour, Bob Marley, Torelli and Bobby McFerrin. And difference was very clear!
Orpheus was fantastic - with supreme details and clear vocals, very analytical. Balanced spectrum and great space. Simply thrilling.
Shangri-La was also balanced, analytical and supreme, with vocals les spronounced. BUT Shangri-La was more balanced and full bodied and even more spacious. AND this difference was not subtle, it was quite there!
Pls do not misunderstand – both headphones are premier league and both deliver ecstasy. Simply we enjoyed more Shangri-La’s than Orpheus. Orpheus delivers thrill, Shangri-la on top of that goose bumps…
My friend described it nicely – Orpheus is like being in a concert hall, Shangri-La is like in studio.
It is always about preferences and I can imagine that some of you will prefer Orpheus over Shangri-La. For example violin in Torelli’s Concerti Grossi op. 8 was in Orpheus more pronounced and thus different experience whereas with Shangri-La violin was more hidden. Both version were delivering very nice, albeit different experience. One could listen to the same CD repeatedly with different impression.
We had only couple of hours and it I was always looking forward to hear the song with Shangri-la…
I must say at the end I was not happy for 3 reasons:
1. There is better headphone’s sound than my Orpheus
2. This sound is not reachable to me – at least for now.
3. This better sound is not made by my favorite brand Sennheiser
From the last of course there is a hope that I will be able to hear Sennheiser Orpheus second generation and I would be curious to compare with Shangri-La. Potentially this could address the last point, but not the points 1. and 2.
As a conclusion – I am still thinking about Shangri-La and its sound and repeating my favorite saying – “Hapiness is art of satisfaction”. One have to be happy and enjoy with what he has…
Martin Minarovic, Lozorno, Slovakia
I am sort of headphones guy. Not that I do not enjoy listening to speakers (Sonus faber Amati, Guarneri Hommage…), headphones provides additional option to have fun listening to music.
I do own number of headphones just to mention some Sennheiser HD 560, HD 600, HD 650, HD 800 and Stax SR-007 (Electrostatic) with tube Stax amplifier SRM T1 to mention the better ones.
I am a proud owner of Sennheiser Orpheus (HE 90) released in 1991 at the list price of 16 000 USD. I was lucky to buy the demonstration version for less than half in 1997, this amount still creates strange effects on my friends faces when they hear it. Mostly it can by described as “something is seriously wrong with you”. Nevertheless when they hear the sound they at least partially understand. Somebody little, somebody more.
I am truly enjoying these piece of technology practically for 20 years now - sound is really great to whatever I compared it with. When I try anything else I always want to come back to my Orpheus.
2 years ago I came across the news that Senheisser released the second generation of Orpheus (HE-1) and I was puzzled how the sound could be even better. Looking at the pictures, it is really advancement from design perspective – very modern, super technological, utmost luxurious. I said – time to upgrade! Then I have heard the price of 50k – Euros or USD, it does not really matter and I had to stop my ambition. Even with dream discount it is far more expensive than I could psychologically think of the decision. Since then I am still thinking about them and trying to look at the price from different angles – discount, selling all my other headphones – still no solution. Currently I am hoping that I will be able to listen to them on time.
Time goes by and this year I hear that company Hifiman released new headphones at the similar price of 50k. I had some respect for this company, although never heard of any headphones – news about them as well as my local shop was very positive about them. Still there is this “invented in China” factor, which holds me back. We are used that everything is produced in China, invented is a different level. First technology piece I bought which was invented in China was a computer case LianLi – premium aluminium piece and I must say it was good – light, silent, delivering what it should…
I came across also the Xiaomi mobile phones and both publicity as well as my geek friends are positive about this brand – also invented in China.
Still - very premium headphones?
Browsing internet I found comments like this:
Why the hell anyone would buy this over the Sennheiser HE-1 is beyond me. Fake wood, Hifiman build quality, while Fang laughs all the way to the bank. Source is Fangs Weibo supposedly. That being said the price will drop to $20,000 when Shangri-La V2 comes out in 6 months anyhow.
Invented in China, built in China, not really my brand I was wondering what these headphones with some nanotechnology thing might deliver.
And then my local shop announced that, they will have Shangri-la’s in house for testing. It took me few minutes to organize the session and to bring my old Orpheus to compare.
Senheisser with 25 years older technology, price is difficult to compare – if I use 3% yearly inflation, 16k becomes since 1991 34.5k in 2016, anyhow it more about marketing of the flagship than anything else.
Shangri-La presents impressive parameters – we know that this technical data are not that important, important is end result:
Headphones Frequency range 7Hz-50kHz, amplifier frequency range 10-40kHz +/- 1.2 dB, http://www.hifiman.com/shangri-la/index.html
Similar for technology – “at the heart of the technology of the Shangri-La headphones is an Ultra-Thin Driver made only possible by Nanotechnology. At much less than 0.001 mm, its Nanotech driver is so thin, it is not visible from the side with the naked eye. Nano-particle coated sub-micrometer thickness diaphragm provides unsurpassed high frequency response”. http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/hifiman-introduces-ultimate-headphone-system-shangri-la/
Sounds fantastic, anyhow it also might not mean anything…
I was very much wondering how these 2 will compare. I mentioned to the manager of the shop that I am going to write about this comparison, if it si ok, when Hifiman will score worse than old Senheisser. He said I can write whatever I like…super!
We sat with my friend musician for about 2 hours and listened to Sony Rollins, Lee Ritenour, Bob Marley, Torelli and Bobby McFerrin. And difference was very clear!
Orpheus was fantastic - with supreme details and clear vocals, very analytical. Balanced spectrum and great space. Simply thrilling.
Shangri-La was also balanced, analytical and supreme, with vocals les spronounced. BUT Shangri-La was more balanced and full bodied and even more spacious. AND this difference was not subtle, it was quite there!
Pls do not misunderstand – both headphones are premier league and both deliver ecstasy. Simply we enjoyed more Shangri-La’s than Orpheus. Orpheus delivers thrill, Shangri-la on top of that goose bumps…
My friend described it nicely – Orpheus is like being in a concert hall, Shangri-La is like in studio.
It is always about preferences and I can imagine that some of you will prefer Orpheus over Shangri-La. For example violin in Torelli’s Concerti Grossi op. 8 was in Orpheus more pronounced and thus different experience whereas with Shangri-La violin was more hidden. Both version were delivering very nice, albeit different experience. One could listen to the same CD repeatedly with different impression.
We had only couple of hours and it I was always looking forward to hear the song with Shangri-la…
I must say at the end I was not happy for 3 reasons:
1. There is better headphone’s sound than my Orpheus
2. This sound is not reachable to me – at least for now.
3. This better sound is not made by my favorite brand Sennheiser
From the last of course there is a hope that I will be able to hear Sennheiser Orpheus second generation and I would be curious to compare with Shangri-La. Potentially this could address the last point, but not the points 1. and 2.
As a conclusion – I am still thinking about Shangri-La and its sound and repeating my favorite saying – “Hapiness is art of satisfaction”. One have to be happy and enjoy with what he has…
Martin Minarovic, Lozorno, Slovakia