Closer Examination

The cable that ships with the HIFIMAN Arya Unveiled is the exact same one we saw with the Arya Organic before, which would be fine were it not for the part where it's stuffed in a box with the two magnetic veils and now the strain relief on the source termination has to put in extra work owing to how that large cable connector housing is bent in the box. I had to spend some time to massage it back into a more straight shape while also taking the time to remove any kinks in the cable from it being rolled inside. At this point, I suspect most people will end up quite satisfied with the stock cable enough to even use it, as opposed to previous HIFIMAN cables which were.. less than ideal. The cable has a 6.35 mm (1/4") single-ended source connector and uses a thin single crystal copper conductor placed inside a pliable woven fabric sleeve, resulting in minimal microphonics in use. There is a simple splitter which leads to thinner wires heading to the left and right channels. As with all planar headphones from HIFIMAN today, the connectors are again of the 3.5 mm TRS variety, with L/R markings to help indicate the channels. The metal plugs come gold-plated for added oxidation resistance.


I think anyone familiar with HIFIMAN's Arya or HE1000 series of headphones will find the Arya Unveiled also familiar. If you treat this as an unveiled version of the Arya Stealth from 2021, things get much simpler too. We get a black anodized aluminium frame that matches the black ear cups, pads, and headband nicely. The headband functionality is identical to the previous Arya headphones too as we see a thin piece of sheet metal bent twice and used as a flexible brace that the ear cups are attached to, with a cutout in the center reducing mass. This is accompanied by a relatively long synthetic leather suspension band stretching with the headband to support your head. I wish there were holes in the support band to help prevent hot spots on the top of your head as with the HE1000 series though. The stitching is well executed, and the support band does its job by providing ample support. On the outside we see the HIFIMAN logo and "Arya" engraved above the ear cups, and L/R markings on the inside indicate the left and right channels. The entire headband assembly is held in place with screws, making this relatively easy to disassemble and maintain with available spare parts. You can also get an HE1000/Susvara suspension band made of real leather if you so desire, but be warned that it requires deft hands and precision screwdrivers.


The suspension band on either side terminates in two slider mechanisms that go up or down the steel headband for vertical sizing. There are several punched-out holes which allow for discrete clicky steps, thus allowing both sides to be easily matched up. It's not the easiest to set up on-the-fly if you already have it on the head, so I recommend taking it out and setting it up with some trial and error before it's finalized for good. There is a lot of room here to accommodate larger heads, especially as the suspension band moves with the slider, so the limitation is more likely to be for those with smaller heads. I would say the range on offer is fine for most adults as far as the vertical sizing goes, but note that the sliders can scratch the paint off the headband if you keep going back and forth.


There are articulating points where the frame meets the ear cups allowing for nearly 360° of ear cup rotation and swivel alike. This is a departure from the Susvara Unveiled that had deliberate stop points to prevent that set from being able to lay flat on your desk when not in use. I suspect HIFIMAN decided otherwise here given the drivers on the Arya Unveiled, as with the HE1000 Unveiled, are less prone to accidental damage. Regardless, the end result is you can basically tilt and rotate the ear cups almost every which way. This, combined with the ample vertical sizing means that the Arya Unveiled offers excellent flexibility to help ensure a comfortable, secure seal around your ears.


Now we get to the part that makes this Arya an unveiled version of, well, the previous Arya headphones. Open-back headphones usually have a grille to help protect the drivers, and many talk about the grilles being acoustically transparent—as does HIFIMAN itself about most of its headphones. However, anything in the pathway of sound waves will still result in some reflection back into the ear cups and these waves are not necessarily going to be in synergy with those being fired the other direction from the drivers into the ear canal. The Susvara Unveiled was the first commercially sold set of headphones to remove the grilles entirely in that never-ending quest for improved transparency and staging. The HE1000 Unveiled followed suit, and now we see the Arya Unveiled do the same such that the drivers are exposed on the back. As with the HE1000 Unveiled, I am less worried about the exposed drivers here on the Arya Unveiled—at least compared to the Susvara Unveiled. This be because we do see the exposed section is smaller here, allowing for more space around the drivers to hold the headphones using your hands in a more natural manner. Likewise, the fragile diaphragm is less exposed owing to the smaller gaps between the magnets, in addition to the top and bottom of the magnet array. I'd still say use the provided magnetic veils to protect the drivers when not in use. These are black to match the rest of the headphones, and do note that the veils are held in place by relatively weak magnets in the frame which do not impact the driver functionality. Just don't shake the headphones too much with these on, lest the covers fall off inadvertently.


The magnetic veils are made of plastic, which also matches the plastic ear cups on the Arya Unveiled—another point of differentiation of the Arya line from the HE1000 line with its metal cups—and we see a glossy finish given to the ear cups which make them more prone to pick up fingerprints and dust, unfortunately. These teardrop-shaped ear cups come with equivalently shaped ear pads, and here we see a mesh screen adding some protection to the drivers from the inside. HIFIMAN has ditched the window screen to further add to the unveiled concept here, so you should be extra careful about any loose hair or dust getting in there. There are 11 stealth magnets on the outside (with the curved sides) and seven flatter magnets on the inside, making this magnet setup different from the Arya Organic, for example. The ear pads are held in place by plastic clips, however I will again point out that HIFIMAN has changed the ear pad installation mechanism with the HE1000 Unveiled, and did the same again here. The previous style ear pads used lower profile plastic clips that were positioned more towards the outside compared to what is used here. This not only means you can't use the older HE1000/Arya pads, but also these have a higher chance of breaking when you try to install them owing to the clips being raised further than the surface of the plastic retainer ring. Needless to say, I am not happy with this change even if HIFIMAN makes replacement pads available at the same price—someone is inevitably going to be upset when it's time to change the pads. For what it's worth, the pads seem to be using the same composition as the SerenityPads used before. These are slightly contoured to better conform around the ear and are composed of a polyester and pleather cover with medium-density foam filling. There is some consolation in knowing these pads generally last a long time, and the Arya Unveiled is less susceptible to a broken seal affecting its tonality.


On the bottom of the ear cups angled towards the front is where we find small cutouts for the cable connectors that have the cable plugs go in easily. The cable is also naturally directed away from your neck/shoulders before resting closer to your chest or on the desk in front. The HIFIMAN Arya Unveiled has dual 3.5 mm TRS connectors on the ear cups to increase compatibility with aftermarket cables, which is handy if you don't like the stock cable. The stock cable is ~3 m long, so you may want to invest in a shorter aftermarket cable that can also match your aesthetic preferences, while also being more pliable compared to the HIFIMAN offering. You may also want to choose a different cable based on the source outputs available, given this stock cable is fixed with a 6.35 mm single-ended connector. In case you go for a headphone stand, keep in mind that supporting the Arya Unveiled off the suspension band isn't recommended for longevity and I also recommend getting one that does not add pressure on the ear pads such as those omega-shaped stands—something closer to the stand in the photos above is my preference.