Closer Examination

The Edifier STAX SPIRIT S3 comes folded inwards out of the box to show this is designed to be a portable set of headphones, and the wireless connectivity on offer helps further in this matter. There are articulating hinges and joints integrated in the frame just past the headband on either side to help in this matter, and unfolding the headphones still reveals a fairly compact set that now looks no different from the typical Bluetooth headphones—at least for now. An predominantly-black color scheme helps keep things clean and we see the use of a pleather headband cover with foam filling on both sides. There is no suspension band or a plush headband here, although it does a better job than average in being supportive. Stitching is done well throughout, and we see branding in the form of Edifier printed on the outside. The headband fits into plastic enclosures on either side, which in turn lead to the plastic frame employed here. I noticed creaking here and there when moving and adjusting the headband but it lasts a second or so only and not a big deal unless you go in expecting premium construction. An "L" marking on the inside helps indicate the left channels, with the other side occupied by an Hi-Res Audio logo.


Headband sizing happens courtesy the inner steel band, as we see the leather section is simply in the middle and more plastic parts are on either side. Simply push it up and down from the sides as seen above, and there are multiple discrete steps with clicks to help you more easily match the sizing done on each side. The inside of the band also now reveals more certification information for those curious, including confirmation that the max charging power draw is 7.5 W (1.5 A over 5 V DC). Sizing options are somewhat stingy though; there is enough range here between the smallest and largest sizes to fit most people but I worry it might not be sufficient for those among us blessed with premium-sized craniums.


I mentioned the articulating joints before, and these combine with two pivot points to allow for an extreme degree of horizontal cup swivel. Combined with the vertical sizing and the plentiful rotating ear cup movement on the third axis around the c-clamp securing them in place, most end users will easily fit the STAX SPIRIT S3 over their heads and ears. As such, I am happy to see final going with a working design that gets the basics right—mostly anyway, as pointed out earlier.


There is a vent on the top of the ear cups protected by a metal mesh to prevent contaminants from entering the acoustic chamber, and this helps relieve any pressure build-up in the ears too. The STAX SPIRIT logo makes a come back on the ear cups themselves, with a carbon fiber inlay and the logo applique in yellow making for a closed-back combination of flashy and intrigue simultaneously that somehow works well if I say so myself. The carbon fiber section reminds me of the same done on the Audeze Euclid IEM face plates, and ends up making this set come off more premium if you agree with me, or potentially cheap/gaudy looking if you don't.


The Edifier STAX SPIRIT S3 comes with leather pads pre-installed, and these are configured to work well with the frame and ear cups which naturally push them in at an angle to apply uniform pressure across the surface of the head as they go over the ears—provided you use the various sizing options properly anyway. The ear pad pick from the accessories section can be useful to help remove these, although I did not struggle much to take these off with my bare hands. We see a similar installation mechanism with the four plastic nibs on these ear pads too, and removing one also provides a closer look at the planar magnetic drivers used here. This makes the STAX SPIRIT S3 quite a rarity in a Bluetooth world dominated with standard dynamic driver headphones. We'll talk more about the drivers later on in the review.


Here's a look at both types of provided ear pads along side each other, with the leather pads somewhat denser and thinner relative to the mesh ones. Both use the same type of foam filling, but the mesh pads sure feel heavier and cooler to the touch too. Installing the pads is as simple as lining them up so the longer side faces top-down, aligning the four nibs in the ear pads with the respective posts in the ear cups, and simply pushing them in one by one until all four click into place. It reminded me of the old Intel CPU stock cooler in some respects, with a retaining mechanism courtesy an expanding plastic section in each protrudion helping keep the ear pads firmly in place. There isn't any pereceived gap between the ear pads and the cups thus, although I don't know whether this could be improved by going with other install mechanisms and also whether they provide any tangible improvements to the seal/isolation achieved.


The underside of both ear cups host relevant I/O functionality, with one catering to charging courtesy the expected Type-C port and an indicator LED and the other all about controls and communication. The battery charging LED turns red when the battery level is low—there is also an audio prompt—as well as when the battery is charging between 0-99%, turning off only when it is fully charged. The other side has a power/Bluetooth pairing multi-function button integrated between volume control buttons, a 3.5 mm AUX port for wired connectivity, and another indicator LED in addition to vents for the integrated microphone. The LED uses red/blue/green colors to indicate various operating states, and the three buttons can be used in different combinations for various controls too as shall be seen later in the review.