Greetings!
I hope I am correct that I have not noticed a thread made for these headphones as of yet. I recently purchased and reviewed the HarmonicDyne Athena and wanted to share my thoughts on them.
First of all, quickly in the box you get the headphone, accessory box that contains cable and a carry bag as well as a coin that shows off the Athena name and serial number of your headphone. The carry bag is a cotton velour type and is simple drawstring type of bag. The cable is a very nice soft braided cable that I was impressed with right away. It's brown, so a different color considering the headphones are black. Still, I have to show it off because it just looks and feels nice (can I say a cable feels nice??)
As for the headphones, they are 34 ohm, 116.5db/mw of sensitivity. They are 50mm dynamic driver and are a semi-closed (or semi-open if you prefer) and have a side venting system so that sound is not locked in.
They are just 320g and made of a very solid plastic shell all around. There is metal in the band that is also part of the adjustment system. It has a nice tactile "click" when adjusting and does show off the name/serial number on one side.
The interesting part of the Athena is the cups/band. There is an outer glass shell for the cups/band. It is a slick and artistic look for sure. It also picks up fingerprints quicker than...well, it's damn quick. Over all it is also very comfortable on the head. It has a nice padding on the band that is covered by a cotton t-shirt like soft material. The pads are a suede like pad with a nice cut out for ear shapes. It seems to form nicely and my ears were snug inside without issue. Weight is distributed nicely, so all good with comfort for my bigger than average sized head.
Sound wise, this is a pretty exciting listen to me. Not exciting as in energy, but just as in it sounds very musical right out the gate. There is a small bump in the lower end of the bass so you will get some extension. I wouldn't call it boomy or bloated or over-powering either. This does add a touch of warmth to tracks, which if it is your flavor, it's relaxing/enjoyable. The midrange is a pretty unexciting FR, to me. I don't mean that negatively, just nothing really stands out to me in general. Again this is a relaxed type listen so nothing is aggressive. I do believe it has the proper gain on the FR where we need it for listening pleasure, but it's not a mid-forward, or recessed response. Vocalists do sound good enough for my tastes I enjoy vocal focused music. Then the high end is also a bit relaxed but does also sparkle up top. I do hear some hiss on male vocalists and sometimes cymbals can splash a little extra crispy. Personally, was ok with this just so it gave it a bit of character on the high end. I would not call it sibilance though. It's also not overly "airy" but I believe that to be more towards it being a semi-closed listen anyway.
Where I became impressed, was with the imaging and decent separation. The imaging is very good to me but the separation I wasn't expecting. It's not to be compared with a high end planar, so please don't mistake me here. I mean for $179 DD headphone, it's pretty good. Listening to things like Gogo Penguins who use a variety of instruments I was able to pick up fairly well with the Athena.
Also, the sound stage was not as closed in as I was thinking it may be. The semi-closed/open system with the venting seems to vent out just enough to let the stage expand. It is a good, natural stage that I am getting out of it. A pleasant surprise you might say.
Lastly, for sound, I think where it does fall behind is going to be on just sheer resolution and ultimate detail. Again, it's $179...so I would expect this. I've really enjoyed listening to the Athena. However, after a couple of weeks I switched back over to my 109 Pro's and quickly could hear the difference in resolution quality. You pay for that however so I'm good with it!
The one big thing I have really enjoyed doing with the Athena is Gaming. I am an avid PC Gamer and these are damn good for gaming. Not v-shaped, but I think if you can combine all I have said with the FR you will see it can seem a bit v-shaped. Thankfully the mids aren't scooped so you get that aspect too. I got to precisely hear where things were coming from and got a good sense of depth in games. There isn't a ton of dynamics as far as punch/slam, but it's enough to make games engaging. I'm a casual type gamer, so I am not referring to competitive. These may be very good for that as well, but I'll pass on to someone who is to stamp that remark.
I've honestly got nothing but great things to say about the Athena. Comfort, Sound, Looks...it really has it all for me. I don't necessarily like the idea of glass on a headphone just for the fingerprints/scratches that can happen (no scratches yet, I'm careful). Still, it does look pleasing regardless. Also, this is very easy to drive! I did enjoy it the most balanced out of my Liquid Platinum, but that is just me. That's not to say it was miles better then anything else, because it's not. I'll link my video review from my channel as well for anyone that would like to check that out. I always appreciate any comments/suggestions/questions from you all!
Cheers!
I hope I am correct that I have not noticed a thread made for these headphones as of yet. I recently purchased and reviewed the HarmonicDyne Athena and wanted to share my thoughts on them.
First of all, quickly in the box you get the headphone, accessory box that contains cable and a carry bag as well as a coin that shows off the Athena name and serial number of your headphone. The carry bag is a cotton velour type and is simple drawstring type of bag. The cable is a very nice soft braided cable that I was impressed with right away. It's brown, so a different color considering the headphones are black. Still, I have to show it off because it just looks and feels nice (can I say a cable feels nice??)
As for the headphones, they are 34 ohm, 116.5db/mw of sensitivity. They are 50mm dynamic driver and are a semi-closed (or semi-open if you prefer) and have a side venting system so that sound is not locked in.
They are just 320g and made of a very solid plastic shell all around. There is metal in the band that is also part of the adjustment system. It has a nice tactile "click" when adjusting and does show off the name/serial number on one side.
The interesting part of the Athena is the cups/band. There is an outer glass shell for the cups/band. It is a slick and artistic look for sure. It also picks up fingerprints quicker than...well, it's damn quick. Over all it is also very comfortable on the head. It has a nice padding on the band that is covered by a cotton t-shirt like soft material. The pads are a suede like pad with a nice cut out for ear shapes. It seems to form nicely and my ears were snug inside without issue. Weight is distributed nicely, so all good with comfort for my bigger than average sized head.
Sound wise, this is a pretty exciting listen to me. Not exciting as in energy, but just as in it sounds very musical right out the gate. There is a small bump in the lower end of the bass so you will get some extension. I wouldn't call it boomy or bloated or over-powering either. This does add a touch of warmth to tracks, which if it is your flavor, it's relaxing/enjoyable. The midrange is a pretty unexciting FR, to me. I don't mean that negatively, just nothing really stands out to me in general. Again this is a relaxed type listen so nothing is aggressive. I do believe it has the proper gain on the FR where we need it for listening pleasure, but it's not a mid-forward, or recessed response. Vocalists do sound good enough for my tastes I enjoy vocal focused music. Then the high end is also a bit relaxed but does also sparkle up top. I do hear some hiss on male vocalists and sometimes cymbals can splash a little extra crispy. Personally, was ok with this just so it gave it a bit of character on the high end. I would not call it sibilance though. It's also not overly "airy" but I believe that to be more towards it being a semi-closed listen anyway.
Where I became impressed, was with the imaging and decent separation. The imaging is very good to me but the separation I wasn't expecting. It's not to be compared with a high end planar, so please don't mistake me here. I mean for $179 DD headphone, it's pretty good. Listening to things like Gogo Penguins who use a variety of instruments I was able to pick up fairly well with the Athena.
Also, the sound stage was not as closed in as I was thinking it may be. The semi-closed/open system with the venting seems to vent out just enough to let the stage expand. It is a good, natural stage that I am getting out of it. A pleasant surprise you might say.
Lastly, for sound, I think where it does fall behind is going to be on just sheer resolution and ultimate detail. Again, it's $179...so I would expect this. I've really enjoyed listening to the Athena. However, after a couple of weeks I switched back over to my 109 Pro's and quickly could hear the difference in resolution quality. You pay for that however so I'm good with it!
The one big thing I have really enjoyed doing with the Athena is Gaming. I am an avid PC Gamer and these are damn good for gaming. Not v-shaped, but I think if you can combine all I have said with the FR you will see it can seem a bit v-shaped. Thankfully the mids aren't scooped so you get that aspect too. I got to precisely hear where things were coming from and got a good sense of depth in games. There isn't a ton of dynamics as far as punch/slam, but it's enough to make games engaging. I'm a casual type gamer, so I am not referring to competitive. These may be very good for that as well, but I'll pass on to someone who is to stamp that remark.
I've honestly got nothing but great things to say about the Athena. Comfort, Sound, Looks...it really has it all for me. I don't necessarily like the idea of glass on a headphone just for the fingerprints/scratches that can happen (no scratches yet, I'm careful). Still, it does look pleasing regardless. Also, this is very easy to drive! I did enjoy it the most balanced out of my Liquid Platinum, but that is just me. That's not to say it was miles better then anything else, because it's not. I'll link my video review from my channel as well for anyone that would like to check that out. I always appreciate any comments/suggestions/questions from you all!
Cheers!
