Closer Examination

HIFIMAN's headphone cables are practically a bad meme these days. I wasn't content with the cables that came with the Arya or HE400se, although our HE400se sample was sent before a revision was made with a supposedly better cable now in the box. With HIFIMAN seemingly acknowledging the complaints from others in this regard, I am happy to report that the cable that ships with the Edition XS is the best from the company to date. It's nothing fancy, with a simple polymer sleeve over copper conductor HIFIMAN does not detail. I didn't even need that cable tie to have it to remain coiled, so that's saying something. It begins with a 90° angled 3.5 mm TRS connector headed to your source, with an optional 1/4" (6.35 mm) adapter for use with more prosumer equipment. The conductor is inside a single thick sleeve which feels like polyurathane and heads to a simple splitter for thinner wires heading to the left and right channels. As with all planar headphones from HIFIMAN today, terminations are again 3.5 mm TRS with L/R markings to indicate the channels. No microphonics were felt in use, so this cable is good enough for most end users.


The first time I took out and held the Edition XS headphones, I had a weird sense of déjà vu. The headband surely shares a lot of DNA with the HE400se we recently saw, and those teardrop-shaped ear cups and pads remind me of the HIFIMAN Arya. Those who have covered more from HIFIMAN will also draw comparisons to the Ananda and Edition X, among others, and I suppose the higher-end HE1000 series is similar on the ears. The biggest difference compared to the likes of the Arya and above is the missing suspension headband, with HIFIMAN instead relying on a single, thick faux leather-covered headband with memory foam filler inside. While it works well enough in practice since it's comfortable and wide enough to minimize hot spots on the top of the head, it's still one of the cheapest implementations for headphones and relies a lot on the rest of the headphones to be more than simply functional. Stitching quality is adequate; however, a close-up shows this is not even genuine leather grade. The headband terminates in plastic housings with "HIFIMAN" and "Edition XS" facing outward for branding, albeit subtly enough not to make you walking advertisement.


The channels are marked on the inside, and the actual headband continues into this housing. A steel band is part of the headband assembly and used for sizing, with several cutouts in the steel the plastic ends slot into. Sizing options are plenty, however they are going to be more useful for those with larger heads than smaller ones as shall be seen soon.


One good improvement over the less expensive HIFIMAN headphones using a similar headband design is a wee-bit of horizontal swivel courtesy the cutout in the plastic housing for some wiggle room. This allows for plenty of vertical sizing in addition to some horizontal motion for more fit options compared to the likes of the HIFIMAN Sundara. There are additionally two pivot points courtesy the C-shaped yokes/frame for the ear pads themselves to have near-360° rotation around the center. These come together to make the Edition XS a far more amenable set of headphones to get comfortable on your head than originally thought.


We now get to the teardrop-shaped plastic ear cup HIFIMAN uses with a few other models as well, and the Edition XS is the latest of those. The taller nature of the ear cups and ear pads is meant to follow the form of the ears and contours of the head. These are open-back over-ear headphones, so I would expect a taller soundstage, too. The outer grille has 11 horizontal bars cut into the aluminium, which is given a native silver finish as opposed to the black on the Arya. Below these is a fabric cover that looks quite like the patented "Window Shade" in the Arya, but HIFIMAN makes no mention of it. Perhaps, it is not as good as the acoustically transparent implementation there. The ear pads are also slightly and a composite of a polyester and pleather cover and medium-density foam filling. The polyester is perforated and supports the sides of the head, but there is no denying that these extend below the ears and down to the jawline for most, which feels weird the first few times you wear the Edition XS, almost as if you have horse blinders on. The clamp force is thankfully high enough out of the box not to make it feel too loose on the head. The ear pads are deep enough for most ears not to touch the inner fabric lining separating you from the magnets and diaphragm, but some have managed to make a strand of hair poke through the fabric, which you should certainly remove right away lest it touch the diaphragm and create artificial crinkling noises in use.


Between the headband and multiple pivot points, the ear cups on the HIFIMAN Edition XS are quite likely to adhere well to your specific head. Good contact is a must for headphones anyway, which results in wear and tear to the ear pads. HIFIMAN has gone with clips to secure the ear pads, making them user-replaceable when the time comes. These appear to be the same HIFIMAN SerenityPads as on the Arya, with the inner lining and protective cover integrated on the driver side of the ear cup, so the ear pad is hollow. The easier replacement system has also led to several third-party replacement ear pads of different material choices, including velour, sheepskin, and full leather. Removing the ear pads provides a closer look at the drivers—I am not brave enough to unfasten the screws since those also keep the thin diaphragm with magnets on either side intact. A careless move here and the diaphragm can tear, wrecking the driver. That said, shining a light through reveals how thin it is, including with the stealth magnet assembly seen on the HE400se before.


On the bottom of the ear cups, angled towards the front, is where we find small cutouts for the cable connectors from before. These have the cable plugs connect easily enough, which naturally directs the cables away from your body and comfortably sets them down at the splitter on your chest, or a desk when sitting down. The HIFIMAN Edition XS 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. With the two wires meeting centrally at the splitter and moving to the source, weight balance is still centrally placed as it then heads to the source. The cable is ~1.6 m long, making the Edition XS less conducive to portable use even with a powerful enough portable DAC/amp. All of my testing was done at home with the Edition XS either on the headphone stand or Dekoni case from earlier. This is where the 6.35 mm adapter came in handy, and I used it primarily with the likes of the JDS Labs Element II.