HIFIMAN has a tendency to undercut its own products at times and the Svanar Wireless series is no exception. In a matter of months, the company introduced the Svanar Wireless at $499, which is the primary subject of this review, and then followed up with the Svanar Wireless LE that gives you most of the same features—including ANC and the R-2R DAC/amp—at $200 less. Costing $299 thus, the Svanar Wireless LE is much more competitive in the market compared to the $499 Svanar Wireless. Given that some have struggled with LDAC connectivity and stability, perhaps not having LDAC on the LE version isn't a big deal either. There's also the Svanar Wireless Jr at $179 which gives you LDAC back but replaces the R-2R DAC/amp with the SoC DAC and a Class AB amplifier. Of course both less expensive versions use simpler materials too but the overall form factor of the earphones and that unique case design remains untouched for good or bad.

The Svanar Wireless was touted as giving you ~80-90% e sound of the $2000 wired Svanar IEMs at 25% the cost. The latter is true at MSRP of course but that doesn't meant both merit the asking price. The former is close enough in tonality except the wired Svanar IEMs went for a well-executed V-shaped tonality that was bordering on being annoying for many in the upper mids and the Svanar Wireless unfortunately breaches that control with upper mids and lower treble coming off overly compressed and peaky. It ruins the tonal balance and shifts things towards a less pleasant listening experience out of the box. EQ can help but there is no easy way to do so unless you go for third-party solutions; there is no app or customization beyond the pre-programmed controls here. This sucks all the more when you realize that same impressive bass from the $2000 set is mostly preserved here too, which is the first time I can say this about a wireless set. Of course it's not as detailed or nuanced but the bass impact and slam you get is astonishing for TWS earphones!

HIFIMAN's claim to fame here is the integrated Hymalaya R-2R DAC/amp module. It makes for a warmer sound that presents male vocals and drums with added weight to the notes and can help tame a more balanced V-shaped sound to some people depending on their HRTF. Simply by this novel addition, the Svanar Wireless merits the innovation award. The issue is it had a good foundation to be more than just that and be a true contender for people who wanted an end game wireless set, but the list of cons is large and significant enough to stop that. Unfortunately the trend of anything closed-back from HIFIMAN not living up to the potential of its open-back product line continues. Hopefully next time's the charm!