Fit and Comfort

Seen above is the HIFIMAN Arya Unveiled placed on a mannequin head, to help show how these headphones would look on a human head. Note that the head is slightly under average sized, so account for the discrepancies accordingly. As with all headphones, getting a good fit and seal is crucial, so make sure to properly use the available height adjustability of the headband and the swivel/rotation of the ear cups themselves. This section is mostly a summary of the points expanded upon in more detail on the previous page and I will mention here that the Arya Unveiled is about average for planar magnetic driver headphones at ~413 g (excluding the veils and the cable), which is otherwise on the heavier side overall. That said, owing to the larger frame and ear cups, the mass density is not as high as you might think. Secondly, the weight distribution is quite good here courtesy the wide suspension band and I personally had no issues wearing this set for 60-75 min-long listening sessions. I do wish the suspension band had ventilation holes though since eventually these started to run warm on the top of my head. Otherwise, as with most such HIFIMAN offerings, the Arya Unveiled is among the more comfortable headphones for me thanks to the multiple swivel and pivot options in addition to the roomy and soft ear pads. Clamp force was about perfect for my average-sized head too and, if anything, it's more the size of the ear cups on the side of my head that keeps me self-aware of these than the actual weight and clamp. I do recommend using these in a quiet environment lest others around you get a second-hand listen, or the ambient environment could affect your listening experience, and people will certainly gawk at you wearing these in public no matter what you are listening to. Not that I recommend doing so given the exposed drivers on the outside, and remember to use the magnetic veils when taking a break.

Audio Performance

Audio Hardware

Please read the relevant section on this page for a brief introduction on how planar magnetic drivers work if you are unfamiliar with them. To summarize, it involves ultra-thin diaphragms with conductive traces as the effective voice coil. This theoretically allows for lower inertia paired with high magnetic flux fields generated from magnets to move the diaphragm back and forth very quickly for fast transients and increased resolution while lowering distortion. HIFIMAN is using what it calls the nanometer thickness diaphragm, which some have taken to mean a single nanometer thick. I suppose in that regard the marketing has worked, but it's more that the thickness of the diaphragm is less than one micron, and thus in the nanometer range. I believe the Arya Unveiled drivers are based off the same drivers used in the Arya Stealth from 2021, with some improvements along the way in manufacturing no doubt. There are of course big changes thanks to the drivers being unveiled, with no grilles on the outside making this a true open-back set and eliminating unwanted sound wave reflections/refractions. This is further complemented by the window shade/screen on the inside being replaced by a less restrictive mesh. Add to this HIFIMAN's stealth magnet system, at least on the outside, and this is a planar magnetic set with very little between the drivers and your ears. The magnets on the inside are less stealthy, going for a flatter and slighter larger form factor as with the Susvara Unveiled and HE1000 Unveiled we saw before. These can perhaps help smoothen out the treble peaks based on HIFIMAN product history. The Arya Unveiled is one of the easier planar magnetic headphones to drive with a rated impedance of 27 Ω and sensitivity of 94 db/mW, so a decent desktop amplifier will suffice here. I would suggest going with a good solid state chain here, but your mileage may vary.

Frequency Response Measurement and Listening

I will mention that I have a general preference for a warm-neutral signature emphasizing a slightly elevated bass and smooth treble range with detailed mids and good tonal separation. I also generally prefer instrumental music over vocals, with favored genres including jazz and classical music.


Our current headphones test setup uses a set of two custom in-ear microphones for the two channels. These microphones closely adhere to the IEC711 class, but have been tweaked to be more reliable in the >10 kHz frequency range, the precise issue with my previous setup, that is otherwise still very good and will continue to be used for IEMs and earphones. Two soft silicone pinnae are installed on the sides, separated by a distance matching my head, and multiple "height" adapters have been 3D-printed for further customization based on fit, head size and shape. Each set of microphones has an XLR output I separately adapted to 3.5 mm. I used a transparent source—the JDS Labs Element II desktop DAC/amplifier—for measurements after confirming it was not a bottleneck in any way. This artificial head simulator feeds the microphone lines into a reference USB sound card, which in turn goes to a laptop that has ARTA and REW running. I begin with an impulse measurement to test for signal fidelity, calibrate the sound card and channel output, account for floor noise, and finally test the frequency response of each channel separately. Octave smoothing is at the 1/12th setting, netting a good balance of detail and signal-to-noise ratio. The default tuning was used for testing, and no app or program-based EQ settings were chosen, unless specifically mentioned. Each sample of interest is measured at least thrice with separate mounts to account for any fit issues, and an average is taken of the individual measurements for statistical accuracy.


As per usual, you can find my headphone frequency response measurements on VSG.squig.link, along with all the earphone measurements. Scroll to the bottom and choose different targets there, including some from Harman Kardon developed after years of R&D. The Harman 2018 over-ear target in particular, is a reference curve many headphone makers aim for now, but I find it too bass-boosted—especially for open-back sets. As such, I am opting for the Harman 2018 curve with the bass target from the Harman 2013 curve, which is what is referred to as the "Harman Combined" target. Before we get talking about the sound signature of the HIFIMAN Arya Unveiled, I want to briefly talk about the measurements themselves and the channel balance achieved here. I've had pretty good luck with HIFIMAN samples to date in this regard, and this sample certainly has good driver matching generally, yet I did notice a small mismatch in the upper mids when it came to female vocals in particular. I'd estimate the entire channel balance was within 1-1.5 dB throughout—not the best I've seen from the brand but well within industry standards and, more importantly, thankfully nothing to take me away from the listening experience. Hopefully all retail units will be even better, and if you notice consistent channel imbalance that is distracting you then please do contact HIFIMAN about it.

If you have read my Susvara Unveiled and HE1000 Unveiled reviews, you already have an idea of what to expect. In fact, even if you are only remotely familiar with HIFIMAN's open-back planar magnetic headphones, there's a general tread which still continues here. The pre-Unveiled sets tend to go neutral-bright in tuning, with excellent bass extension, a midrange that comes off neutral to some and fairly forward to others, and then treble that tends to be more divisive in being right on the edge of enjoyment/extension and fatigue for some and extremely irksome to others. These older sets also typically had a dip in the upper mids between 1-2 kHz, which further emphasized the ear gain and potentially created a wider sense of space to the sound you are hearing in your ears. The Arya Unveiled fills out this dip to a good degree, which makes for more prominent vocals, and we also see the treble is overall significantly tamer than most HIFIMAN sets—especially the mid-treble that more people are sensitive to than they realize. I say the Arya Unveiled is probably the most neutral HIFIMAN set I've tried, to the point where this is the safe recommendation from the brand for anyone wanting to see what a HIFIMAN set is all about. I'd personally want some more air for my music library, yet tonally I totally get why many people preferred the Arya Unveiled over the more expensive HE1000 Unveiled and Susvara Unveiled at trade shows.

One thing people might have hoped for with the Arya Unveiled is that same bass shelf we see with the Arya Organic. This is better seen as an unveiled version of the older Arya Stealth instead, with a more typical flat bass going all the way down to 20 Hz (and below). I would not say the Arya Unveiled is a bassy set thus, yet the absence of a sub-bass dip typically seen in open-back dynamic driver sets is still appreciated. You get that deep-reaching sub-bass rumble here, and the sound is low enough in distortion at typical listening volumes to easily accommodate a bass shelf added via EQ if you so desire. For what it's worth, the driver resonant frequency is ~40-50 Hz. So breaking the seal with glasses or more worn pads is not likely to drop the bass as much as give you a slight upwards bump there instead. Don't expect a very punchy sound even then though, as the more open design makes it harder for bass notes to have that guttural impact. There's not much in the way of reverb either, with trailing ends of tones disappearing fairly quickly. Bass timbre is still improved over the previous Arya models I've tested, and honestly I could say the same for the mids and treble too. Vocal timbre is easily the biggest improvement here for reasons aforementioned.

The mids exhibit more driver modes than the HE1000 Unveiled and Susvara Unveiled did, although again these are not audible to my ears. All this tells me is the diaphragm is perhaps less stiff here than in the higher end models, or perhaps the magnets chosen are slightly different. There's a sense of added warmth to the mids, partially from the lower mids being slightly elevated akin to the HE1000 Stealth, but more so as a result of the relatively relaxed treble. I found the Arya Unveiled to be very easy going thus, and still very technically competent as expected from a premium set of headphones. Transients are quick, layering is handled without issue, and instrument separation is effortlessly rendered. Imaging is extremely precise in a wide cone in front of the head, making it a conducive set for gaming too if you were so inclined. Needless to say, the Arya Unveiled also excels for general media consumption too. Soundstage is fairly wide and tall, although not necessarily any more than its direct predecessors. The ear gain is prominent as with pretty much any HIFIMAN open-back set, which works nicely for my HRTF and music library. This can be a bit much for some though, yet again those who listen to a lot of Asian pop music with prominent female vocals may also appreciate the energy in the lower treble. There is also some excess 5 kHz energy, which I feel is going to be more prominent in general. This is also emphasized further by the rest of the treble being fairly relaxed yet not dark in any way. Those who have complained about the higher frequencies being overly emphasized in planar magnetic headphones, especially those from HIFIMAN, should certainly give the Arya Unveiled a go. It works well with most instrumental genres as-is, and the relatively smoother treble again makes it easier to EQ to your preferences.

I'll again remind you to remove the magnetic veils before using these headphones as they will sound absolutely terrible otherwise, with the added potential of hurting the drivers too.


HIFIMAN products are in a weird position these days owing to the aggressive price cuts given to older models from just a few years ago. The Arya Stealth, for example, released in 2021 for $1600 and currently costs $600. The Arya Organic from last year replaced the Arya Stealth to an extent, and went from $1300 at launch to $980 now. Both are clearly less expensive than the new Arya Unveiled, and I have to say the $600 Arya Stealth is a great deal in giving you HIFIMAN's best headband assembly with an excellent planar magnetic driver system. The tuning is more in line with the neutral-bright HIFIMAN signature from the pre-Unveiled days, yet not as annoying as the Arya Organic can be with its upper treble. The bass shelf on the Arya Organic does have many fans, yet I have no qualms in saying the Arya Unveiled is absolutely the better tuned set here. The same can be said with the HE1000 Stealth too, which has my go-to kilobuck recommendation until now. You can find it for $1120 now, down from $1400 at launch, and the Arya Unveiled costs over $300 more. The HE1000 Stealth gives you metal earcups and a genuine leather suspension band with ventilation holes, although the tan suspension band and the orange wood veneer can take some getting used to. I do like the warmer sound there, which you get indirectly here too, and the 5 kHz region is less irksome with the HE1000 Stealth, yet the Arya Unveiled wins out with improved vocals and transparency in addition to again having an overall smoother and more relaxed treble. The HE1000se is still more expensive than the Arya Unveiled, and it's the first of HIFIMAN's flagship sets using a more refined driver setup. You get excellent bass quality here and detail retrieval that can compete against TOTL sets which cost significantly more. Yet this is a double-edged sword as the HE1000se is an extremely bright-sounding set to where I would pick not only the Arya Unveiled over it, but the HE1000 Stealth too. I much prefer the aesthetics of the Arya Unveiled over any of these, with the Arya Stealth coming in second in this metric.


Stepping outside the HIFIMAN umbrella, there's also Audeze with the MM-500 and LCD-X planar magnetic headphones. The MM-500 is part of Audeze's pro-audio line, developed in collaboration with Grammy award-winning mixing engineer Manny Marroquin. It's clearly based off Audeze's flagship LCD-5, with a similar mid-forward tuning, and looks/feels stunning in the hands. The MM-500 is also built like a tank, and the tuning is quite nice for many. I would personally prefer some more treble though, as this goes firmly into the darker treble territory for me—the Arya Unveiled is a much more balanced set in this regard. The MM-500 also has a narrow soundstage, which can be useful for identifying errors when mixing and mastering music, yet I am confident the average audiophile is more likely to prefer the wider and taller soundstage of the Arya Unveiled, and HIFIMAN also wins on the comfort front with the MM-500 clamp force being something else—you can slowly work the headband to reduce the clamp force though. I'd say the MM-500 with some comfort and tuning tweaks can be right up there in the subjective aspects with the Arya Unveiled though. The LCD-X is arguably Audeze's most popular set, again adopted by professionals to mix and master music in addition to audiophiles who prefer the older Audeze tuning where there just wasn't enough ear gain to feel neutral. I don't get it though—the MM-500 is lighter, actually more neutral sounding, and cleaner at the same time. The LCD-X perhaps gives you some more bass relative the mids, yet it's a set that benefits even more from EQ. The Arya Unveiled is significantly lighter and more comfortable, so purely in this regard I can't help but suggest most people go this route now that the tuning is far more controlled. Then there's the HE1000 Unveiled, going back to HIFIMAN with its previous Unveiled entry. It costs nearly twice as much and has the same metal cups + better suspension we saw with the HE1000 Stealth, and the black + silver colorway is attractive too. The HE1000 Unveiled also feels more spacious and resolving to me, and I personally prefer the upper treble here than on the Arya Unveiled. However, it does get brighter in the lower treble by comparison to the Arya Unveiled, and the upper treble air can be a dealbreaker for some. Given the price differential, I again feel the Arya Unveiled is the safer recommendation to make.