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Who likes new headphones?

C’mon raise your hands… don’t be afraid, no one here is going to slap it down.

My hand is up. Waaaaay up.

I like to hear about a new set of cans, especially ones with an impedance around 25 Ohms and a 103dB sensitivity so they are designed to work well with a smart phone and I don’t need to lug a DAP around all the time to get the best performance out of them.

Dr. Fang Bian has been busy designing and building headphones since 2005 when he started Head-Direct which morphed into the HiFiMAN Electronics company we now know today.

Seems like Dr. Bian is into listening to the people who like to buy headphones for portability – not just great sound – and came up with the Ananda open-back planar ‘phones which are specifically designed to maximize performance from personal audio sources (specifically in this case for smart phones and tablets).

Dr. Bian said that the idea behind the Ananda was creating a design that would be targeted at those consumers who wanted ONE high-end set of cans that could work flawlessly regardless of what was driving them. With an MSRP of $999 USD, while not a budget set of headphones for sure, they are certainly not price spec’d out of reach of most individuals looking for that end-game pair of ‘phones.

According to Dr. Bian “Ananda is designed for music lovers who want one high-performance, extraordinarily comfortable headphone for all personal listening, whether it’s a home system, high-resolution portable player, or an everyday smartphone.

“The word ‘Ananda’ is derived from the Sanskrit term for ‘bliss,’ which is what this headphone will bring to anybody who enjoys audiophile-grade performance, no matter the source.”

Featuring lightweight, ultra-fine planar drivers rated at 103dB sensitivity, a frequency response of 8Hz – 55kHz, and weighing in at 14.07 ounces, HiFiMAN says this configuration will provide “consistently low distortion, high-fidelity output when used with a smartphone, let alone current and upcoming high-resolution digital audio players and home audio systems.”

With a new external grille pattern fabricated to reduce sonic reflections, the company claims the design allows the drivers to be more neutral in their presentation. The Ananda also sports a hybrid headband with weight-dispersion strap and next-generation asymetrical-design ear cups which more naturally follow the shape of the human ear.

I’ve contacted HiFiMAN to get a review pair, so as soon as I can get a set shipped here, we’ll do a detailed unboxing post on them with initial impressions.